University of Georgia
The Power of Peanuts
Measure the amount of energy in a peanut by igniting a chemical reaction. Classes use a laboratory setup to burn a peanut and measure the amount of heat it releases through a temperature analysis. They calculate the number of Joules of...
University of California
Hot! Hot! Hot!
Calories are not tiny creatures that sew your clothes tighter every night, but what are they? A science lesson plan, presented at multiple levels, has learners experiment with heat, heat transfer, and graph the function over time. It...
Curated OER
# 18 Determination of the Set Time for Epoxy Adhesive
Students recognize epoxy glue formation as two part polymerization (usually the curing agents act as co-monomers). They monitor the reaction by the changes in viscosity of the reacting mass, the temperature rise and fall, and the...
Curated OER
All The News
Learners simulate newspaper critics in the topics of heat and temperature. They write a scientific critique of evidence and claims used in a newspaper article and research using KIE software. They write notes on the letter to the editor...
Curated OER
Global Water Cycle & Heat Flow
Students experiment to discover how different variables affect the water cycle. They do hat flow experiments and construct a computer heat flow model.
Curated OER
Am I Hot or Am I Cold?
Students practice using a thermometer to determine how the air around the earth gets heated and cooled by the sun. Students chart the daily inside and outside temperature for two weeks.
Curated OER
Learning Lesson: Crunch Time
Students demonstrate the effect of heat on pressure. They use a 2-liter bottle and hot tap water to complete the experiments. They also discuss thunderstorm safety rules.
Curated OER
Electrical Energy
Students conduct an experiment to find out how well different wires radiate heat when voltage is applied across the wire. They use the results of their experiments to consider how the gauge of the wire and the type of wire affect the...
Curated OER
Go with the Flow
Students gain an understanding of the difference between electrical conductors and insulators, and experience recognizing a conductor by its material properties. They build a conductivity tester to determine whether different objects are...
Curated OER
Mystery of the Megaplume
Read through the extensive background information and then lead your geology or physical oceanography class through an investigation of actual temperature anomaly data from the Juan de Fuca ridge. They translate the data onto a plot,...
Curated OER
Transfer of Thermal Energy
Students define temperature and heat, distinguish between temperature and heat flow, calculate amount of heat energy released or absorbed in chemical process, and design procedure, through experimentation, to gather and evaluate data to...
Forest Foundation
Fire - How Does it Relate to You?
Forest fires can be a necessary step in keeping a forest healthy, but what happens when they get out of control? Learners investigate the causes and effects of forest fires in two specific areas, culminating in a report about the ways...
NOAA
Where There's Smoke, There's ...
A remotely operated vehicle approaching a volcano was engulfed by molten sulfur where the plumes of fluids contained the highest concentrations of aluminum ever recorded. This isn't science fiction or an April fools joke, though it did...
Curated OER
Science Concept Maps
A collection of concept maps has some terms filled in and others left blank for young scientists to fill in. This library can provide you with many pop quizzes for all of your middle to high school science curriculum.
It's About Time
Renewable Energy Sources - Solar and Wind
There has been a huge solar energy spill! Let's go outside to play in it. This lesson includes multiple experiments showcasing solar and wind energies. Scholars build a solar heater and an anemometer before testing the results. The...
Curated OER
Energy Transfer
Students investigate the properties of heated air. They make predictions about what they think makes the wind blow on a worksheet, and conduct two experiments to demonstrate the properties of heated air. Students heat a bottle until a...
Curated OER
Altering Climate in the Classroom
Students experiment with moderating temperature extremes in the classroom. They experiment with ways to vent and block air.
Curated OER
Hot Cans and Cold Cans
Students investigate the physics of heating and cooling through conduction, convection, and radiation. Working in groups, they determine the best way to cool a can of water and warm a can of water. Temperature is taken at five minute...
Curated OER
Gases, Liquids and Solids, evaporate, shape volume,
Young scholars conduct an online experiment to discover what happens to solids, liquids and gases in different temperatures. In this states of matter activity, students get into pairs and work in a virtual laboratory to manipulate...
NOAA
The Incredible Carbon Journey: Play the Carbon Journey Game
Class members explore the carbon cycle in the final installment of the 10-part Discover Your Changing World series. They play a simulation game where they walk through the steps carbon takes as it cycles through the different layers of...
Curated OER
The Great Ocean Conveyor
Students investigate water density. In this water density lesson, students conduct an experiment with food coloring, water and salt to see how the salt effects bodies of water.
Curated OER
(S-1A) Weather and the Atmosphere
High schoolers discuss the way vertical convection transports heat from the surface upwards, and associated pressure and temperature profiles of the atmosphere.
Curated OER
Hot Friction
Sixth graders use small electronic devices known as thermistors to measure the temperature beneath an object such as a coffee cup as it slides across a surface. By choosing different surfaces, 6th graders can compare in a quantitative...
Curated OER
The Earth's Energy Budget
High schoolers study the Earth's energy budget. In this investigative lesson students observe a lab that shows all aspects of heat transfer and light processes.