Detecting Magnetic Materials in "Martian" Soil

Five individuals in the class are "infected" with cholera! The rest of the class serves as investigators to discover the source of the outbreak. They test drinking fountains around campus for contamination. You, of course, will secretly...

Everyone loves playing with magnets and iron filings. Here, young scientists first observe and then participate in an activity demonstrating magnetic fields. After completing their observations, they apply this knowledge...

Ready to roll up those sleeves and get your hands dirty? Dirty with soil science content, that is! Overcome those "But it's just dirt" objections with a trip outside to collect soil samples for some in-class analysis. Use the...

How much do your classes know about electricity and magnetism? A complete elementary unit on the topic begins with a pre-assessment to gauge their understanding prior to instruction. Items include questions about the properties of...

Learners list sources of phosphorus in soil. They explain how phosphorus is removed from the soil and used by plants. Students list the symptoms of insufficient or excess phosphorus. Learners perform experiments to examine the effect of...

A set of instructions and a 100-point grading rubric have been designed for writing lab reports. Appropriate for middle schoolers, this lays out what to include for each of the six steps in the scientific method: title, hypothesis,...

Provide physical science explorers an overview of magnetism with this collection of slides. The third slide posts hyperlinks to websites that cover magnetic fields in detail, so ideally this presentation would be viewed by small groups...

Here is a very good lesson on magnets, magnetism, and magnitic fields that is chock full of great activities for you to implement with your young scientists. Learners discover the properties of magnets, look at the forces of attraction...

The Mars Global Surveyor spent two years creating a mineral map of the planet Mars using thermal emission spectrometry. To help young astronomers understand this remote sensing instrument, have them simulate how data is collected and...

Teach your class the descriptive characteristics of soil. Provide information about particle size and a flow chart for assessing texture. Soil scientists then analyze samples and hypothesize which would be the best type for a rain...