Curated OER
M&M Science and Math
A series of math and science activities feature M&M's® as manipulatives to help kids work through equations. The resource includes exercises on finding averages, percent of compositions, moles in chemical reactions, genotypes and...
Royal Society of Chemistry
A Giant Silver Mirror Experiment
Mirror, mirror, on the wall ... who's the best chemistry teacher of them all? You'll get the vote for certain after your class completes the Silver Mirror experiment! Partnered pupils use Tollen's reagent and glucose to silverplate a...
Teach Engineering
Cell Membrane Experimental Design
Grandma said to gargle with salt water for a sore throat. Was she right? In the last part of the seven-part unit, lab groups design an experiment to test a cells reaction to salt solutions. The pupils conduct their experiment to answer...
DiscoverE
Building with Biology
Seeing is believing! Bring DNA to life for young biologists using a simple extraction lab. Individuals extract the DNA from wheat germ, then place it in a microcentrifuge tube for observation. They thread yarn or other material through...
National Science Teachers Association
Paper Car Crash Design
High school physical scientists collide with motion. They work in pairs to design a paper car that will protect a raw egg during a head-on collision. Measurements of distance traveled, time of run, vehicle specs, and photo gate flags are...
Carnegie Mellon University
Introduction to Climate
Begin a full instructional activity on climate change by demonstrating how carbon dioxide gas contributes to increased temperatures. Be aware that pressure inside the antacid-containing bottle in Activity 2 may cause the lid to fly off;...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Basic Electric Transformers
Life as we know it would not be possible without electric transformers, so there are fewer more pertinent topics for your eager young engineers. An astounding amount of background information is provided to help you develop a lecture on...
Teach Engineering
Earthquakes Living Lab: The Theory of Plate Tectonics
Find out if your class agrees with Ice Age: Continental Drift ... or if it's just a fun family movie! Class members research the theory of continental drift, examine evidence of plate tectonics, connect...
Teach Engineering
Earthquakes Living Lab: Designing for Disaster
Build and design to rock and roll. Pairs research building design in earthquake areas and use computer simulations to see the effects of earthquakes on buildings,. They then sketch and explain a building design that would withstand...
Nuffield Foundation
Extracting DNA from Living Things
Help! Someone's trying to take my DNA! An interesting lab experiment has scholars use basic materials to extract DNA. By applying ethanol, cold water, and a protease enzyme, like pineapple juice, they pull strands of DNA from peas,...
Teach Engineering
Light Intensity Lab
Let there be light. The last installment of a seven-part series has pupils conduct an experiment on light attenuation through different numbers of transparency sheets. They then relate the results back to how X-rays measure bone density.
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Lines on Paper - Laser Box
See what you cannot see by getting a little creative. An intriguing lesson has learners use lasers to explore X-ray diffraction. Given a box with unknown structures, they shine a laser through the box and interpret the results....
Teach Engineering
Sugar Spill!
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...
Teach Engineering
Earthquakes Living Lab: Finding Epicenters and Measuring Magnitudes
Pairs use an online simulation to determine the epicenter and magnitude of an earthquake. Using real data about the earthquake's maximum S wave amplitudes, they then determine the magnitude. The resource provides a great career...
American Chemical Society
The Energy of Evaporation
Do all liquids evaporate at the same rate? Young scientists observe the evaporation rate of three different liquids. They measure the time, the temperature, and the change in energy. After comparing the chemical formulas, scholars...
Teach Engineering
Investigating Contact Angle
Discover the properties of water-loving and water-hating surfaces. In the seventh installment of a nine-part series, scholars explore hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces by conducting an experiment. They observe surface coatings,...
It's About Time
Properties of Matter
Never trust an atom; they make up everything! Young chemists make modeling dough and add another ingredient to change the properties. Scholars then compare the properties of emulsion to composite materials. A reading passage and analysis...
It's About Time
Identifying Matter
High schoolers test wood splints that have been soaked in mystery solutions to identify the different colors it produces when lit. The lesson concludes with a reading passage and analysis questions.
Teach Engineering
Exploring Capillary Action
Explore capillary action from different perspectives. In the fourth installment of a nine-part series, scholars perform several experiments to observe capillary action. They look at the meniscus of water in a glass, observe capillary...
Teach Engineering
Battle of the Beams
Make the strongest beam possible using taffy? Groups mold a taffy-water mixture into a beam and a reinforcing material of their choice. To finish the final installment of a two-part series, participants test its strength by adding...
![Microbes in Action: Classroom Activities: Water Quality Testing [Pdf] Activity](https://d15y2dacu3jp90.cloudfront.net/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/FPO-knovation.png "Microbes in Action: Classroom Activities: Water Quality Testing [Pdf] Activity")
University of Missouri
Microbes in Action: Classroom Activities: Water Quality Testing [Pdf]
In this experiment, students will test the quality of a water sample by observing the number of coliform bacteria. Coliform bacteria are found in human intestines and a large amount can indicate water contamination. Lesson plan gives a...