Exploratorium
Magnetic Pendulums
Passing a copper wire coil through a magnetic field influences another coil to also sway. It is with this demonstration that you can teach your physical science fans about electromagnetism. Note that the assembly requires about an hour,...
Curated OER
Magnets
Students explore magnetism by observing a series of 8 magnet "tricks" performed by the instructor. In this magnets lesson, students predict which items will be attracted to a magnet and experiment to see if they predicted correctly. They...
Curated OER
Strange Attractor
Young scholars explore magnetism. In this magnet lesson, students assemble a magnet pendulum. Young scholars observe the pendulum noting the location of the magnetic poles as they construct the pendulum so that the free-swinging magnet...
Curated OER
Strings and Springs
Ninth graders explore physics with springs and strings. In this force and motion lesson, 9th graders rotate through four stations exploring how various springs stretch and bounce, and how mass and length affect a pendulum's swing. They...
Curated OER
Science: Einstein's Big Idea
Students explore the various aspects of Einstein's energy equation and discover how energy is transferred from one form to another. In teams, they rotate through seven stations to experience such aspects of energy change through...
Curated OER
Map Field of Current
Students determine that moving charges create a magnetic field. They discover that the speed and direction of motion, the amount of charge, and the deflection angle observed are closely linked. A voltmeter, pendulum, and a constructed...
Rice University
College Physics for AP® Courses
Take a look at an organized physics course. The 34-section electronic textbook covers material in AP® Physics 1 and 2. Teachers use the text to supplement lectures and have the class work through the labs. Each section contains...
K12 Reader
Galileo and His Telescope
Learn about Galileo Galilei's contribution to modern science with a reading passage that focuses on reading comprehension. After kids read several paragraphs about his life, they answer five questions about the information they have just...
K12 Reader
Galileo and His Telescope
Readers are asked to identify how a key detail reveals the main idea of a paragraph about Galileo.
Curated OER
Series Solution of the Time-Independent Schrödinger Equation
In this math worksheet, students find the solutions to the problems that apply the time-independent Schrödinger equation. They examine the relationship between the mass and energy.
Curated OER
Electricity
The presentation begins with a circuit building activity and two data tables for young scientists to copy and complete. Full of clever animations, it will definitely spark student interest! However, the information is incoherent. You may...
Curated OER
What is Energy?
In this energy worksheet, students will determine if 7 examples represent kinetic energy or potential energy. Then students will study an illustration of a child coming down a slide and answer 5 energy questions based on the illustration.
Exploratorium
Exploratorium: Science Snacks: Magnetic Pendulums
See how electricity and magnetism interact with this activity. Activity has students creating a current by swinging a copper coil through a magnetic field. The copper coil will start a second coil swinging as well.
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Magnet Academy: Lorentz Force
Learn about the Lorentz force with the help of this tutorial, in which a wire fashioned into a pendulum moves inside a magnetic field. (Java tutorial)
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Magnet Academy: Foucault's Disk
Leon Foucault, a French physicist much better known for his pendulum demonstrating the rotation of the Earth, also created in 1855 a device that illustrated how eddy currents work. (Java tutorial)
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Magnet Academy: Inductive Pendulum
Get the swing of electromagnetic induction with this simple tutorial. (Java tutorial)
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Magnet Academy: Torsion Balance
Experiment with the torsion balance and see what happens first by giving the rod a charge, and then by moving the charged rod closer to the outer metal sphere of the instrument. Observe what happens to the needle as the charge increases.
Exploratorium
Exploratorium: Science Snacks: Strange Attractor
Explore the chaotic motion of a pendulum that is swinging above several magnets that are fixed in place and see what patterns you can find.
Walter Fendt
Walter Fendt: Apps Zur Physik
This site, in German, offers numerous apps that illustrate common physics principles. Apps are organized into categories: mechanics, oscillations and waves, electrodynamics, optics, thermodynamics, the theory of relativity, physics of...
Discovery Education
Discovery Education: Physical Science
The Discovery Channel provides numerous lesson plans dealing with the physical sciences. Content is organized by grade level, but all lesson plans include suggestions for adaptations for older or younger audiences.