Curated OER
Fred the Fish -- A River Ran Wild
Students apply cause and effect relationships to water pollution in a stream. In this pollution instructional activity students recognize the importance of clean water in their daily lives. Students accompany "Fred the Fish" as he...
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"Measurement in Motion"
Ninth graders examine the rate of motion and changes in motion using a ramp and a rolling object. They conduct the demonstration, determine the average speed, and describe how a moving object can have zero acceleration and deceleration.
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The Blue Bottle: An Example of Teacher-Guided Inquiry
Students observe a demonstration in which a bottle containing a colorless solution is mixed, turns blue, then becomes colorless again. They record observations, form and discuss hypotheses, and draw a conclusion based on the evidence.
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Newton Rocket Car
Students observe a demonstration of Newton's third law of motion using a small wooden car. They discuss Newton's third law of motion and what happens to motion if the mass or acceleration is increased, construct their car, and record...
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The Energy Debate - Energy of Peanut
Students articulate the difference between the terms heat and temperature. They calculate the amount of energy associated with a given temperature rise and design an experiment to measure the energy of a fuel.
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Simple Machines
Students investigate simple machines. In this simple machines lesson plan, students construct two simple machines and describe what they do. Students show that simple changes help machines do work with less effort. Students use a paper...
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Indoor Environment: A Magazine Publication Project
Students demonstrate knowledge of Indoor Air Quality by creating a class magazine. A link to order a free Action Kit from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is provided so teachers can build background knowledge. Performance...
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TE Activity: Super Spinners!
Students make spinners to investigate rotational inertia, rotational speed, angular momentum, and velocity. They make two sets of spinners that have different mass distributions and shapes. They complete a worksheet while experimenting...
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Ocean Currents and Sea Surface Temperature
Students use satellite data to explore sea surface temperature. They explore the relationship between the rotation of the Earth, the path of ocean current and air pressure centers. After studying maps of sea surface temperature and ocean...
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Getting to the Core of Climate Change
Students investigate climate changes by graphing and analyzing ice core data from Greenland and Antarctica. They create, explain and report the pattern of data on a graph of ice core data. In addition they find relationships between the...
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IceHunters: Welcome to the Cryosphere!
Students complete an online exploration mission assigned by their teacher. In this ecology lesson, students write a newspaper article about their polar mission following certain criteria. They create a PowerPoint presentation that they...
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Blame It On El Nino
Students understand what the weather phenomenon El Nino is and what causes it. Students recognize how remote sensing technology can detect and predict El Nino. Students discover how El Nino effects weather conditions throughout the globe...
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Cold Hard Facts...What Inquiring Minds Will Know
Students work with "ice" in order to gain a practical application of math concepts that evolve into an inquiry-based study. They determine if the dimensions of the ice make a difference in the way the ice floats in the water.
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Hovercraft Racers!
Students gain first-hand experience on how friction affects motion. They build a hovercraft using air from a balloon to levitate a craft made from a compact disk (CD), learning that a bed of air under an object significantly reduces the...
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The Energy Debate - Stoichiometry
Students determine crude oil can be separated into useful fractions by a process of fractional distillation. They write a balanced equation for the reaction between a hydrocarbon and oxygen.
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Energy Motion in the Ocean
Students explore the wave energy that is generated and transferred in the ocean. Through the use video and the Internet, students explore the aspects of a wave and how its energy affects the ecology of the seashore.
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Modeling Hot and Cold Planets
Young scholars, in teams, design and construct models of two planets, one hot and the other cold, using a variety of materials. They attempt to create the models out of substances that will actually show the greatest temperature...
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Birds Around the Village
Learners observe the physical characteristics of birds and identify birds found in their village. They describe characteristics, behaviors and habitats of local birds in this series of lessons.
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Three D Constellations
Students address a major misconception in astronomy, the understanding of scale. The lesson is designed to introduce students to both celestial coordinates and to the first rung on the distance determination ladder, parallax.
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Making Life Easier
Students use a chart of the six simple machines and become aware of how the machines improve our ability to meet the following needs: shelter, food, water, and transportation. Students use model cars to experiment with force. They divide...
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Using Fulcrums
Students engage in a lesson that concentrates on the use of a lever and fulcrum. They define how a lever is used to lift a load. The lesson has background information to justify it. Students demonstrate how to use the lever while lifting...
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Floodplain Modeling
Students simulate the impact of fluctuating river volumes on structures and landforms. They experiment with table top-sized riverbed models and water. Students consider how human design can help mitigate the effects of a flood.
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TE Activity: You're in Hot Water
Learners study different ways of using solar energy. They design a solar water heater and determine how much water it can heat in a set amount of time. They examine how the heaters work by solar radiation and convection.
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Electronic Components
Students review new terminology and computer circuits and the value of a resistor. They complete three experiments, "Resistance Activities," Transistor Activities,"Diode Activities" and enter data, results and their findings on Student...