Explore capillary action from different perspectives. In the fourth installment of a nine-part series, scholars perform several experiments to observe capillary action. They look at the meniscus of water in a glass, observe capillary...

High schoolers conduct an experiment using the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen. After pairs balance the chemical equation for making water, they mix different ratios of hydrogen and oxygen in a chemical reaction. Classmates...

Do you separate your trail mix before eating it? Then you've been separating mixtures your whole life! Scholars model a contaminated soil sample using trail mix and estimate the percentage of each component. They consider how to clean up...

Investigate what is pushing on us. An intriguing lesson has pupils calculate the amount of force on various squares due to air pressure. Using the data, individuals create a graph in the third lesson of the Up, Up and Away unit...

Introduce your class to air masses and how they affect the weather with a lesson that focuses on the differences between high and low air pressure systems. The class explores actual weather data using archived weather data.

Let the true colors shine through. Pupils conduct a flame test to identify an unknown element. Class members calculate and prepare specific molarity solutions of three chemicals. Using their observations of the colors emitted, they...

The greenhouse effect and its relationship to global warming is the focus of an activity that asks class member to consider the effects of climate change on weather. Pupils work with their families to determine their carbon...

Scholars harness the power of microbes with an engaging activity that uses yeast to break down sugar in water. Multiple setups of the same experiment lets learners determine which temperature results in the fastest rate of...

Let there be light. The last installment of a seven-part series has pupils conduct an experiment on light attenuation through different numbers of transparency sheets. They then relate the results back to how X-rays measure bone density.

Hop into a resource on Beer's Law. A PowerPoint presentation introduces Beer's law as part of calculating bone density from X-ray images in the sixth instructional activity in the series of seven. Individuals work on practice problems...

Groups suspend objects within layers of liquids to determine the densities of different liquids and compare them to the densities of objects calculated in Part 1. The groups then carefully test their calculations by layering the...

Seventh graders describe how water flows through the ground, what an aquifer is and what soil properties are used to predict groundwater flow. They consider the affects of pollution on groundwater supplies and write a letter drawing...

Students view a demonstration of how groundwater flows and define several related vocabulary terms. They complete a worksheet, participate in discussion and make a poster.

Fifth graders inspect the basic functions of the immune system and determine how viruses and bacteria invade the immune system. They also explore what happens to the immune system in outer space.

Students create a pie graph using M&Ms to demonstrate the composition of air. They label each section of the graph, and list the fractions from largest to smallest.

Students investigate how pollution is a global issue. They locate the countries affected by radiation from Chernobyl, sequence the progress of radiation transport from Chernobyl and plot the pollution points on a world map, and read and...

Learners examine ways to protect fresh drinking water. For this clean drinking water lesson, students listen to the story of Lauren Fry  about building a springbox to collect groundwater.  Learners build a springbox.

Students use a sponge and water model to explore the concept of relative humidity and create a percent scale. They define humidity and saturation, build a simple humidity/saturation model, collect, predict and interpret data, and create...

Students engage in a lesson which shows them that celestial navigation is the art and science of finding one's geographic position by means of astronomical observations, particularly by measuring altitudes of celestial objects - sun,...

Young scholars explore solid waste and its effects on the environment. They explain some of the major problems caused by waste disposal and the use of landfills. They suggest ways to reduce the amount of solid waste going into a landfill.

Students examine how they use and waste natural resources. They participate in a class discussion about natural resources, in small groups complete a worksheet identifying ways students misuse natural resources, and create an...

Learners explore the concept of air pressure. Using candy or cookie wafers to model how air pressure changes with altitude, they conduct an aluminum can crushing experiment, compare the magnitude to gravitational force per unit area,...

Students discover that recycling is using a product more than once so that natural resources can be saved and so that we won't need so many garbage dumps and landfills. They see that there are different ways to recycle. Students design a...

Students investigate different methods (aeration and filtering) for removing pollutants from water. They design and build their own water filters. Students identify the pollutants in a water sample using sight and smell, explore what...