Curated OER
Plate Tectonics: Third Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Third graders examine plate movements and boundaries with a lab that demonstrates how volcanoes and earthquakes are formed. It presents different types of stresses an object can withstand through a hands-on...
Curated OER
Kinetic and Potential Energy
Students calculate kinetic and potential energy in the lab. For this physics lesson, students demonstrate how energy can be transformed from one form to another. They collect data from the experiment and write a detailed lab report.
Curated OER
Heat and Thermodynamics
This is actually a 10-day mini unit on thermal energy for your high school chemists. Every avenue is taken to get learners absorbed in heat: a pretest, a PowerPoint presentation, Internet exploration, demonstrations, lab activities, and...
Purdue University
Can You Design a Hot or Cold Pack?
You're getting warmer. Groups conduct an experiment to determine which of four chemicals are in hot/cold packs. They learn about exothermic and endothermic reactions and use this knowledge to design a hot/cold pack that is small enough...
Curated OER
2D Motion
Students examine the motion of objects in two dimensions. In this dimensional lesson students view several demonstrations, complete a worksheet and a lab activity.
Chicago Botanic Garden
Understanding the Greenhouse Effect
Dive into the power of the sun with a two-part lesson. Budding scientists model the greenhouse effect in a hands-on activity, and then participate in a skit that explores the earth's energy balances and what really occurs in the...
Curated OER
Energy Forms
Students explore energy by participating in a science lab in class. In this energy form instructional activity, students define the different types of energy such as light, mechanical and sound while examining energy measuring tools in...
University of Georgia
Heating and Cooling of Land Forms
Compare heating and cooling rates of different land forms. A lab activity has groups collect data on the rate of heating and cooling of soil, grass, saltwater, fresh water, and sand. An analysis of the rates shows how the different land...
Curated OER
Plate Tectonics: First Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
A set of first grade geology lessons focuses on plate tectonics and movement of plate boundaries. During the pre-lab, learners experience three types of plate movement through a kinesthetic demonstration. The lab...
Curated OER
Ultimate Ride Coaster Deluxe
Eighth graders describe the energy transformations as cars travel over a roller coaster. They explain the principle of conservation of energy as it relates to a roller coaster ride. The integration of technology is done using educational...
Curated OER
Pendulum Power
Eighth graders study the Law of Conservation of Energy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics. they create a pendulum out of either a rope with a bowling ball or barbell tied to one end.
Curated OER
How Much Energy is a Kilowatt Hour?
Students study the conservation of energy. In this energy lesson plan students explain the differences between potential and kinetic energy.
Curated OER
Looking into Surface Albedo
Young scholars demonstrate how the color of materials on Earth affect the amount of solar energy that is absorbed. In this solar energy lesson plan students complete a lab to explore how the color of materials on the Earth's...
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Sensing the Invisible: The Herschel Experiment
Learners of light will construct a contraption in which light is passed through a prism and shone into a box. The temperatures at different points along the path and outside of the path of light. The intent is to imitate William...
Curated OER
Top Quark Lab
Students find the mass of the top quark. For this physics lesson, students create a vector diagram from a given set of data. They discuss their calculations and findings in class.
Center Science Education
Looking Into Surface Albedo
How does the color of a surface affect the heating of the earth? Middle school science classes experiment with color and surface albedo to determine the relationship. The website has tabs for an overview, teacher's instructions,...
Curated OER
Middle School Home Energy Audit
Seventh graders research the origins of local electrical power and compare costs and methods of generation with other areas of the country or world.
LABScI
Freezing Point Depression: Why Don’t Oceans Freeze?
Can you go ice fishing in the ocean? Learners examine the freezing point of different saltwater solutions. Each solution has a different concentration of salt. By comparing the freezing points graphically, they make conclusions...
Curated OER
Plate Tectonics: Sixth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Here is a set of pre-lab, lab, and post-lab lesson plans on plate tectonics. After completing the previous labs on volcanoes and earthquakes, sixth graders use the gained knowledge to explore plate boundaries and the movement of...
Curated OER
Digestion & Nutrition: a Case Study
Middle schoolers explore digestion/nutrition and utilize scientific investigation skills. They complete meal logs for several days and graph their results. After analyzing their data, they write formal lab reports.
Curated OER
Good Vibrations Remote Sensing data Collection: Thermal Emission Spectrometer
The Mars Global Surveyor spent two years creating a mineral map of the planet Mars using thermal emission spectrometry. To help young astronomers understand this remote sensing instrument, have them simulate how data is collected and...
Curated OER
Pendulum Lab
Students predict how changing the pendulum components affect its period. For this physics lesson, students calculate the period using different masses. They analyze lab result and complete assigned worksheet.
Curated OER
Keep It Hot
Students design and conduct an experiment to explore the insulating abilities of different materials for keeping a liquid in a paper cup warm. A small group of lab partners test four different materials: black paper, white paper,...
Curated OER
Slinky Lab- Simulating the Motion of Earthquake Waves
Sixth graders simulate primary and secondary waves. In this earthquakes waves lesson, 6th graders experiment using a slinky to gain understanding of how waves are created during an earthquake. Students record observations in drawings....