Curated OER
Volume of Gas
Eighth graders investigate the effect of temperature on the volume of a gas in a closed container. They measure the height of the water in their beaker/container, conduct their experiment, and create a graph to illustrate their data.
Curated OER
Enzyme Labs Using Jello
Young scholars test for the presence of enzymes in fruit and the specificity of those enzymes, as well as to identify and show the susceptibility of enzymes to certain environmental factors (temperature and pH) originating in the...
Creative Chemistry
Simple Calorimetry to Find the Enthalpy of Combustion of Alcohols
Accomplished chemistry learners set up a calorimeter and measured the energy released by various alcohols: methanol, ethanol, and either propanol or butanol. Lab masters will first need to design their tables for recording data. Consider...
Chymist
Energy of a Peanut
Are you nuts? An engaging experiment burns nuts to find their kilocalories. Young chemists analyze at least two different types of nuts with their experimental results versus what is on the package. The resource offers a great lab...
Curated OER
Barometer and Boiling Points
Diagrams bring barometers to light in this PowerPoint. Several slides explain the structure and function of this apparatus. The relationship of air pressure to the processes of evaporation and boiling are also explained. This would be an...
Curated OER
A New Phase In Town
Middle schoolers explore heat energy and how it is used to change the phase of matter, and discover that temperature does not increase or decrease until the phase change is complete. This extremely well-written plan is packed with great...
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...
California Academy of Science
Global Climate Change and Sea Level Rise
Ice is nice, and its condition on the planet has a significant effect. Junior geoscientists experiment with ice melting in both water and on land to discover how each affect the rising sea level. This detailed lesson outline even...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Historical Climate Cycles
What better way to make predictions about future weather and climate patterns than with actual climate data from the past? Young climatologists analyze data from 400,000 to 10,000 years ago to determine if climate has changed over...
Curated OER
What Makes a Seed Breathe Faster?
Here's a five-star lesson plan in which inquisitors conduct sophisticated experimentation with cellular respiration in plant seeds. Placing seeds in a closed system they measure the amount carbon dioxide produced and relate it to...
Curated OER
Hot and Humid, That's Manu
Elementary and middle schoolers participate in a demonstration of the heat and humidity of the Manu rainforest environment. They watch and discuss a video, calculate the humidity and temperature in the humidified tent, and write a...
Curated OER
Molecules And Temperature
Students explain that molecules are in everything living and nonliving. They explain that molecules are too small to see but we can watch their movement.
Curated OER
Spectrophotometer Determination of an Equilibrium Constant
Students determine an equilibrium constant using a spectrophotometer. In this equilibrium lesson plan, students calibrate a spectrophotometer with 5 solutions in order to prepare the spectrophotometer for the experiment. Students measure...
University of Georgia
Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions
Equip your chemistry class with the tools to properly understand endothermic and exothermic reactions. Young chemists collect, analyze, and graph data to determine how the Law of Conservation of Matter is applied to chemical...
Curated OER
Global Warming Experiment
Students examine the changes in Earth's temperature. In this global warming instructional activity, students perform an experiment testing temperatures of soil. Students record their findings and discuss what made the differences in the...
Polar Trec
Do You See What Icy?
Here is a lesson that kicks off with a question. "How does ice floating on the ocean act as it melts?" As learners investigate this natural phenomenon, they'll discover that it has a lot to do with temperature, salinity, and the effect...
Nuffield Foundation
How Much Energy Is There in Food?
People associate calories with food, but what is a calorie? Young scientists measure the number of calories in samples of food to better understand the concept. They test a variety of samples, take measurements, and compare their results...
Curated OER
Build a Thermometer
Students build a thermometer. In this weather lesson, students use red food coloring, rubber stoppers, and hard plastic tubing to build a thermometer. Students use their homemade thermometer to measure the temperature.
Curated OER
Diurnal Cycling Experiments
Students carry out an experiment to monitor diurnal fluctuations in dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide, pH, and water temperature. They determine the CO2 and pH of the samples (and optionally, dissolved oxygen). Students complete their...
Curated OER
Chemical Weathering
Learners measure the effect of water temperature on the rate of a chemical reaction, similar to the interaction of a weak acid and carbonate rock, using hot water and effervescent antacid tablets.
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...
Curated OER
Burning Snacks in Chem Lab
Students determine the energy content of various snack foods. They measure the temperature changes in various snack foods as the foods are burned in order to determine the foods' energy content. Students create graphs and data tables of...
NOAA
Through Robot Eyes
How do robots assist ocean explorers in collecting data and images? The final installment in a five-part series has science scholars examine underwater images collected by robots and identify the organisms shown. Groups then calculate...
Curated OER
Make a Refrigerator
Third graders explore the concept of heat transfer as experienced in wearing winter clothing and analyzing the refrigerator.