Colorado State University
Why Does it Get Colder on a Clear Night than a Cloudy Night?
Clouds are nature's insulator! A lab investigation asks learners to use an infrared thermometer to measure differences in infrared temperatures. They find that pointing the thermometer at a cloud has a much different result than pointing...
Columbus City Schools
What’s Up with Matter?
Take a "conservative" approach to planning your next unit on mass and matter! What better way to answer "But where did the gas go?" than with a lab designed to promote good report writing, research skills, and detailed observation. The...
Beyond Benign
The Heat Is On
Explore an exothermic reaction with a quick lab investigation. The activity builds on the previous lessons by examining an ingredient in many shampoos. Scholars record temperature data as sodium hydroxide and water interact.
Curated OER
Blast Off
In this physical science exploration, small groups place a piece of antacid tablet into a film canister and step back to time how long it takes for the top to pop. They repeat the activity, altering either the amount or temperature of...
Curated OER
Simple Calorimetry to Find the Enthalpy of Combustion of Alcohols
Accomplished chemistry learners set up a calorimeter and measure the energy released by various alcohols: methanol, ethanol, and either propanol or butanol. Lab masters will first need to design their own tables for recording data....
Curated OER
The Effect of Dissolved Salt on the Boiling Point of Water
Explore the properties of solutions with a lab activity. Chemistry fans determine the boiling point of water, add salt to create a solution, and then repeat the process four more times. They design their own data table and then graph the...
Curated OER
More on Conduction and Convection
Why do some items feel colder when they are the same temperature? How should you keep your soda cold? What makes the wind blow? These are just some of the things middle schoolers discover when completing a lesson on conduction and...
Curated OER
Measuring the Effect of Adrenaline on the Heart Rate of Zebra Fish
Students investigate the heart beat of zebra fish in timed intervals. They record the heart beats and average three counts to display in their data tables. They repeat these steps increasing the adrenaline solution.
Curated OER
Salinity Lab
In this salinity worksheet, students simulate conditions of salt and fresh water mixing and observe the various densities of these solutions based on their salinity.
Curated OER
Galileo's Thermometer: Measuring the Density of Various Unknown Liquids
Sprouting scientists explore the concept of density by making mass and volume measurements for five different liquids. From these measurements, they calculate densities. They apply their learning to explain Galileo's thermometer works...
Curated OER
temperature and the Scientific Method Lesson Plan
Sixth graders study heat, temperature, and heat transfer. Using probeware, the teacher demonstrates boiling points. Students participate in experiments and record the beginning and ending temperatures and mass of objects. After...
Curated OER
Ice Cream Lab
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Even high schoolers enjoy making ice cream. This laboratory exercise has them record the temperature changes throughout the process of liquid becoming solid, graph the results, and...
Space Awareness
Oceans as a Heat Reservoir
Oceans absorb half of the carbon dioxide and 80 percent of the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. Scholars learn how and why the oceans store heat more effectively than land and how they help mitigate global warming. Pupils...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Gas Laws in Action - Propane
Using helium as an example of propane, physical science middle schoolers experiment with and graph the relationship between temperature and volume in gases. In a whole-class demonstration, they show how molecules behave under different...
Curated OER
Water in the Geosphere
Through a PowerPoint presentation and the embedded animation and video, earth science enthusiasts find out about the moisture in the soil beneath our feet. In the animation, follow a water molecule on its path through the water cycle. As...
Curated OER
Time to lend NASA a hand
In this measurement worksheet, students complete an experiment answer questions about how they measure the units of volume, temperature, and mass of certain objects. Students answer 5 questions.
Curated OER
Endothermic and Exothermic Lab
In this endothermic and exothermic reactions worksheet, students experiment with water and a salt of choice to determine if heat is absorbed or released in the reaction. Students take the temperature of their solution over a 2 minute...
Curated OER
Molecular Movement in Water Part 1- Diffusion
High schoolers obseve and compare molecular movement within water at various temperatures and of varying salinity. They discuss the movement of water on a larger scale which can affect the movement and concentrations of microbial...
Curated OER
Water Density and Salinity
Middle schoolers observe how different water densities control the depth at which different water masses occur. They explain one fact that they comprehend about salt water. Students comprehend that temperature and salinity affect the...
Curated OER
Graphing Toad/ Frog Respiration
Learners measure respiratory rates on live toads, and the effect water temperature has on their findings. In this scientific method lesson, students record their findings and present them in a graph, comparing the results.
Curated OER
Diving, Flying, & Climbing
Students explore Boyle's Law. In this Boyle's Law lesson, students complete problems involving Boyle's Law. They examine the effects of Boyle's Law upon the human body. Students use the Internet to complete a lab activity.
Curated OER
Glacier Dynamics
Students create flubber glaciers. In this glacier dynamics lesson, students experiment factors that may affect glacier speed. Factors include slope, ice temperature, and basal conditions. Students develop hypothesis, conduct experiment,...
Curated OER
Measurement and Safety
In this measurement and safety worksheet, students find the terms in a word search puzzle for 13 statements about the SI units of measurement, the prefixes for the units and measurements of mass, length, and volume. They answer 2...
Curated OER
Instruments and Measurement
Students circulate through stations to determine the proper instrument to make a certain type of measurement. They must make measurements of mass, volume, length, area, electrical current, temperature and force.