Curated OER
Technology (Post Lab): Utility Companies
Students study physics. For this utility company research lesson, students discover how their local utility company charges for electricity. They listen to a presentation and then conduct internet research to find more information on...
Curated OER
Bouncing Balls
Students work together to examine how different types of balls react to colliding with different surfaces. They discover the difference between elastic and inelastic collisions. They practice calculating momentum as well.
Urbana School District
Electrostatics
Why did lightning shock the man? Because it didn't know how to conduct itself. Presentation covers electric charges, insulators, conductors, electroscopes, lightning, generators, grounding, static electricity, and more. Presentation is...
National Science Teacher Association
Middle School Sampler: Science
Focus on inquiry-based learning in your science class with a series of activities designed for middle schoolers. A helpful packet samples four different texts, which include activities about predator-prey relationships, Earth's axis and...
Curated OER
Balancing Bottles
Pupils explore the Law of Conservation of Matter using effervescent tablets. In this mass and energy instructional activity, students investigate how mass is conserved in the reaction of effervescent tablets and water. They will discuss...
Curated OER
Stop Heat from Escaping
Students explore the uses of insulation and describe how insulation helps to conserve energy. They work in groups and use plastic, wool, paper and aluminum to experiment with the heat-retaining properties of various materials.
Curated OER
The Physics of Hummingbirds: Magic in the Air
Students study hummingbirds and how they use Newton's law. In this motion lesson plan students complete several activities and view videos of hummingbirds.
Curated OER
See the Wind
Young scholars explore alternative energy sources. For this wind energy lesson, students will investigate the difference in the speed and smoothness of wind at different altitudes above earth. Young scholars will use kites, helium...
Teach Engineering
Beating the Motion Sensor
I bet I can cross the room without having the lights come on. Class members set up an experiment in which they try to determine what materials will mask motion detected by a sensor. Groups predict how materials will interact with light,...
Curated OER
Chemical Composition of American Coins
Students investigate the chemical composition of pennies dated 1983 or later. For this chemical composition of American coins lesson plan, students scratch the surface of the penny to expose the zinc core. They put the penny in...
Curated OER
Momentum
Students learn the concepts of momentum and its conservation, using the recoil of a cannon as an example. They examine how momentum is a vector, allowing its conservation to be applied to problems in 2 and 3 dimensions.
Curated OER
Activity Seven -- Picturing Particles (Student Page) A LAB Worksheet
This activity lists background information for a lab on the topics of atom smashers, accelerators or colliders. It clearly states the Rules of the Game -- science laws that apply. Student do the lab and track their results in the given...
Curated OER
GUM: More, Less, or the Same?
Students confirm the law of conservation of matter by weighing chewing gum before and after it is chewed.
Curated OER
Ice Ain't Easy
Students are introduced to the laws of thermodynamics. The 1st law of thermodynamics states that the energy must be conserved when two objects of different temperatures come in contact. If one object gains energy, the other object must...
Curated OER
Thermodynamics
In this thermodynamics worksheet, students review enthalpy, state functions, bond energy, and heat capacity. This worksheet has 2 multiple choice, 6 matching, and 12 problems to solve.
US Department of Energy
Building the Basic PVC Wind Turbine
Here is a comprehensive and well-written lesson plan that results in learners building a standard wind turbine. Once built, teens can design a variety of experiments to test different factors. This activity is a noble undertaking that...
Curated OER
Ammonium Nitrate - Heat of Solution
Students quantify the relationship between temperature, energy and heat
and define an endothermic reaction. They measure the energy change caused by dissolving one mole of ammonium nitrate in water.
Curated OER
Impulse and Momentum
Learners are introduced to the concepts of impulse and momentum and problem solving strategies for these types of problems. In groups, they discover the law of conservation of momentum and share their answers with the class.
Curated OER
Resources - A Reading Guide
In this resources worksheet, high schoolers compare and contrast physical and chemical properties and changes. Students review the periodic table, pattern of atomic numbers and chemical reactivity. This worksheet has 56 short answer...
Curated OER
Circle of Pong
Students, in groups, use given materials to devise a way to deposit a ping-pong ball into a paper cup that is located in the middle of a 6-foot diameter circle, while standing outside the circle.
Curated OER
Slam On the Brakes!
Fifth graders study the concept of momentum and its application by Newton in his studies. They view a demonstration and complete an experiment with toy cars on a racetrack that shows them the properties of momentum and how velocity and...
Kenan Fellows
What Is Heat?
If objects have no heat, how do they can gain and lose it? Scholars experiment with heat, temperature, and specific heat of various substances. They create definitions for these terms based on their own conclusions to complete the fourth...
Curated OER
Rover Landing Design Challenge
Students examine the concepts of forces and motion. They work together to design protective devices for their egg rovers as they are dropped from a specific height. They record their observations and discuss.
Curated OER
Keys and Webs
Students explore and classify organisms found in a Rocky Mountain Ecosystem. Through discussions, students examine the effects upon an ecosystem if a component was removed or a new component was added. As a class, they survey reasons...