How did ancient peoples determine the height of really tall objects? Young scientists and mathematicians explore the concept of using shadows to measure height in a hands-on experiment. Paired pupils measure shadows, then calculate the...

How many unifix cubes tall are you? If you're not sure, then perform this math activity with your class and find out. Working in pairs, young mathematicians make measuring sticks out of unifix cubes in order to determine the length of...

Teams learn about the size of a nanometer by measuring objects and converting those measurements. A worksheet then tests the groups' abilities to use nanometers by having them determine the size of objects that are too small to...

It won't take young mathematicians long to learn how to measure length with this fun, hands-on activity. Working in pairs, children use Unifix® or snap cubes to measure and record the lengths of different classroom objects. To extend the...

Teach the masses about the metric system with this hands-on measurement lesson. Given a fruit or vegetable, learners estimate, measure, and convert its mass using the metric units gram and kilogram.

Can you visualize one billionth of a meter? It's not easy to understand the scale of a nanometer. Learners use a hands-on lesson to develop an understanding of the size of a nanometer in comparison to common objects. They walk away with...

How do you measure surface tension? The fifth installment of a nine-part series is an experiment where young scientists use tubes of different sizes to measure surface tension. They calculate the average and standard deviation of the...

Expand the the comparative language of young mathematicians with a hand-on weight measurement activity. Working independently or in pairs, children compare the weight of large wooden blocks to various other classroom objects, recording...

How big is that carrot? Why one hand span, of course. As an exercise in measurement, individuals trace their hand in their science journal and search the school garden for one object the same size as the span between their thumb and...

Break out the balances for this primary grade lesson plan on weight measurement. Using common elementary school manipulatives like unifix or snap cubes, young mathematicians determine the weight of four different classroom objects. A...

Not only do future engineers learn the difference between accuracy and precision, they also get some hands-on experience using different measuring tools. 

In the eyes of children the world is a simple place, objects are either big or small. This simple activity aims to expand the comparison language of young mathematicians as they use the words taller and shorter to compare their...

Seventh grade scientists weigh in on the concept of density. In a nutshell, they participate in the following activities: Measurement of the mass and volume of fruit in order to compare densities Measurement of the mass of oil and water...

Help your class understand the magnitude of the distance between Earth and Mars with an activity that asks small groups to use balloons to create scale models of the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Class members figure out the distances...

Stop and drop what is in your hand! Pupils investigate how form effects drag in the 12th part of a 22-part unit on aviation. Groups create equally weighted objects and determine which one falls the fastest by collecting data.

Mass and density — aren't they the same thing? This activity has groups use balance beams and water displacement to measure several objects. The pupils use the measurements to calculate the density of the objects. 

Slide books with a little assistance from Newton. Using books, groups create a demonstration of Newton's Second Law of motion. Pupils compare the distance traveled by one and two books when they apply a force to them.

Let your class bounce to examine the concept elastic potential energy. Individuals bounce on a pogo stick in order to calculate its elastic potential energy. Groups then compare the elastic potential energy to the gravitational...

What starts as a basic question of division and remainders quickly turns abstract in this question of related ratios and radii. The class works to surround a central coin with coins of the same and different values, then develops a...

Will it sink or will it float? Learners predict the outcome as they drop random objects into a container of water. Then, they keep track of the results and record the data in a t-chart to draw a final conclusion.

Enhance your states of matter lessons with a hands-on science investigation that compares six different balls' color, texture, size, weight, ability to bounce, and buoyancy. 

Small groups use rubber bands to accelerate an Android device along a track of books. They collect the acceleration data and analyze it in order to determine the device's velocity. 

Design and build a rover ... then eat it? This activity has groups of two design and build Mars rovers. The teams determine what instruments they want to include with their rover and plan a budget. They calculate the cost of the body of...

Try your hand at scale models. Scholars create a scale model of an object using a scale factor of their choice. As part of the project, they give presentations on their processes and calculations. This is the last installment of the...