Curated OER
The Magic School Bus In the Arctic
Students learn along with Ms. Frizzle's class. For this Magic School Bus lesson plan, students explore how insulation works to keep in body heat.
Curated OER
Three Little Pigs and Heat Transfer
Students use the Internet to research the ancient practices of building structures and to help them recognize what building materials serve as good conductors and insulators of heat. They build a structure using straw bale walls.
Curated OER
Insulation and Buoyancy
Young scholars predict whether their hands be warmer in ice water with or without a blubber mitten. They construct a blubber mitten using plastic, Crisco and compare their results with a control group. They observe how this affects...
Curated OER
Keep Cool
Students design an experiment to determine which type of container would be best to use to keep drinks cool on a hot day. Students test paper cups, styrofoam cups, and metal cans by filling them with ice water and they use a thermometer...
Curated OER
Adobe
In this adobe worksheet, students read about adobe soil and how it was used for building because of its insulating properties. Students complete 3 short answer questions.
Curated OER
Energy/Light/Heat/Sound
Fourth graders study the properties of heat in this series of lessons. They discuss sources of heat and experiment to determine its properties. They identify insulators and conductors by measuring temperatures, and graphing their data....
Curated OER
Keeping Warm
Students participate in an online activity to determine how objects heat and cool. They determine what objects best serve as thermal insulators.
Curated OER
Fast, Fun & Easy Fabric Bags
Students create a to-go bag for people on the go. After cutting out the bag, lining, insulation, and the flap they apply the interfacing, then sew, add finishing touches, flap and closures. They then show their finished bags.
Study Stack
Earth Science Crossword Puzzle
In this online interactive anatomy crossword puzzle activity, students use the 8 clues to find the appropriate answers to complete the word puzzle.
Teach Engineering
Capturing the Sun's Warmth
Passive solar heating is a technology that's been in use for thousands of years. Here, elementary schoolers are exposed to this type of heating, the materials that are used in passive solar heating, and they study how engineers design...
Captain Planet Foundation
Solar Cooking Race
Study heat transfer with activities that focus on how heat energy works. Using a solar cooker, ice cubes, and heat transfer bracelets, kids experiment and record what they find by keeping ice cubes cold and vegetables hot.
Curated OER
Make Your Own Temperature Scale
Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...
Curated OER
Integrating Science and Literature
Maximize time and engage learners by using children's literature in your science lessons.
Curated OER
Aerogel
Students identify how technology aids scientists in their research. Through discussion, they explain the various ways scientists use Aerogel to aid in their collection of high-speed particles. Through experimentation, students create...
Teach Engineering
How Hot is Hot?
Elementary schoolers identify the three methods of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radiation. The lesson is mostly lecture-based. When the teacher has finished the presentation, groups of pupils get into teams and they must...
Exploratorium
Magnetic Suction
Drive an electric current through a coil of wire and show how it can pull a nail right into its core. This vivid demonstration exhibits the electromagnetic field. Consider also showing your class a few of the devices that make use of...
Curated OER
Life in the Crystal Palace
Marine biologists research sea ice communities. Assign some groups to construct paper models of sea ice communities in winter, and some to construct models of them in summer. The lesson plan is simplistic, but the Internet resources...
Curated OER
#24 How Much Air Is In Foamed Polystyrene Products?
Students are challenged to come up with a good estimate of the amount of air in foamed polystyrene products. They use this gas evolution experiment and as such have students measure the gas generated when foamed polystyrene is degassed...
Curated OER
The Bean Book
A well-designed book on beans teaches kids about the anatomy of a bean. They cut out parts of a bean and paste them together. There are a lot of good descriptions of the parts of beans, such as the embryo, stored food, and the seed coat....
Curated OER
Simple Circuit: Electric Currents and Circuits
Through inquiry and exploration, 4th graders will learn and understand the functions of open and closed circuits. They will break into 2 groups, define vocabulary, hypothesize how to light a bulb, then test their hypothesis 4 different...
Curated OER
Typical Numeric Questions for Physics I - Heat
The laws of thermodynamics raise the temperature in your classroom when physics pupils complete this learning exercise! They demonstrate their understanding by calculating specific heat capacity, final temperature, amount of work done,...
Polar Trec
Sea Ice Impact
The arctic seas contain currents that are both warm (with high salinity) and cold (relatively fresh water) that circulate throughout the year. Through discussion, a lab, and a web quest, participants explore the impacts of melting and...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
Roller Coaster Mania!
Raise the energy level of your physical science class with this exciting hands-on activity. Applying their knowledge of kinetic and potential energy and Newton's laws of motion, young engineers use foam tubing and marbles to create...
Curated OER
A Simple Motor
Instructions for building a simple electromagnetic motor are provided for the teacher. Aside from some sketchy background information and a list of content standards to be met, that is about all you will find in this resource. The motor...