Elementary schoolers examine the uses of rulers, scales, and measuring cups. They determine the criteria for the use of each tool and visit different areas of school to find items that can be measured with these tools. Everyone takes...

Groups use a marble to determine the viscosity of household fluids. The procedure calls for pupils to measure the amount of time it takes a marble to fall a specified distance in the fluids. Using unit conversions and algebra, the teams...

Middle schoolers are introduced to the notion of surface area and volume. Students review surface area and volume by finding the area of a two-dimensional shape. They practice using the computer to create different surface area shapes.

Fifth graders record measurements and calculate the volume. They select and use appropriate units and procedures to measure volume # use tools such as technology to solve problems

Boxing takes on a whole new meaning! The second installment of the three-part series has groups create lidless boxes from construction paper that can hold the most rice. After testing out their constructions, they build a new box....

Mass and density — aren't they the same thing? This activity has groups use balance beams and water displacement to measure several objects. The pupils use the measurements to calculate the density of the objects. 

Students measure a variety of objects using the appropriate measuring tool. In this measurement lesson plan, students explain the importance of accuracy and precision in collecting data. They discuss the difference between the two.

Weathering is not necessarily a result of the weather. Scholars conduct an experiment to explore the effect of surface area and volume on the weathering process. They create their own sugar cube rocks using the same number of cubes—but...

Join the fight to reduce plastic waste. A hands-on STEM activity first teaches scholars about the scourge of plastic waste. They then measure the dimensions of water bottles to calculate surface areas and volumes before using the surface...

Learners 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. Learners use the Internet to complete a lab activity.

Your sense of hearing depends upon tiny hairs deep inside your ear and if you lose these hairs, you lose your hearing. Here, groups explore hearing through the decibel measurement of common sounds. As a class, participants discuss...

Wrap up an engineering lesson with a worthwhile project. An engineering design task challenges groups to develop a package for a pharmaceutical company given constraints on the volume. Learners then create a presentation to highlight...

Help your young scientists learn which materials are affected by magnetic fields with an activity that presents the information about different types of materials — diamagnetic, paramagnetic, and ferromagnetic — and their interaction...

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...

Try your hand at scale models. Scholars create a scale model of an object using a scale factor of their choice. As part of the project, they give presentations on their processes and calculations. This is the last installment of the...

How much rain can that cloud make? Through a simulation, the class estimates the amount of candy rain contained in different cup clouds. After probing the clouds using different methods, class members adjust their estimates. Participants...

Students, in groups, design a procedure to calculate the mass of gas molecules in the classroom by measuring the volume of the classroom and researching the density of air. They apply changes in air density with altitude and effects on a...

Students collect and analyze data about wind speed. They build a Lego wind sail and measure the wind speed with a rotation sensor. They use software to analyze the data.

"Fore!" All right, no one really yells this out in miniature golf, but this well-defined activity will have your charges using lots of numbers in their unique design of a miniature golf hole. Included in the activity criteria is the...

Get things moving with this elementary science unit on simple machines. Through a series of nine lessons including teacher demonstrations, hands-on activities, and science experiments, young scientists learn about forces, motion,...

Every child's dream: stuffing as much candy into a bag as possible. Doing this, though, requires a nice sturdy bag. Scholars design the sturdiest bag they can and test the limits of those bag using a sweet treat!

Sugar isn't good for you, but it's great for yeast! Scholars design an experiment to investigate how variables affect the rate of sugar consumption in yeast. The last installment of a nine-part Life Science unit considers how scientists...

How do dams support bodies of water? Scholars engage in a hands-on STEM activity where they design, build, and test dams to learn about bodies of water and how humans use natural resources. They learn how criteria and constraints affect...

Build a scale model of a home built out of shipping containers. A hands-on activity has scholars watch a video about a home built from shipping containers and then design their own home. They build scale models of their designed homes...