Observe an animation showing evidence of the carbon cycle
In this visual resource about the carbon cycle, students are presented with an animation and accompanying text that focus on carbon and plants. The text addresses how plants fit into the larger carbon cycle, including how carbon enters and leaves the biosphere, and it explains what students are viewing in the animation. The animation shows false color images on a flat map of the world. When the viewer clicks on the image (or the play button), the animation plays, and color patterns reveal change
Our Solar System
This site contains information about the nine planets, the sun, and the moon. Included is each planet's size compared to the sun. Students can click on a picture to discover the following information: the diameter, mass, temperature, number of rings, what it's made of, can life exist there, and other interesting facts. Included for each planet are the number of moons, length of a day and year, and the average distance from the sun. Students can enter their weight to find out how much they would
Science Sampler : Thinking about students' questions
Asking questions is a vital component in any classroom, but it is absolutely essential in a science classroom. As science teachers, we know that questioning plays a major role in the inquiry process and has a positive impact on students' learning. This article discusses the importance of questioning skills and current research on questioning techniques. In addition, this article will present a series of lessons that were implemented by the author to improve the questioning abilities of middle sc
Virtual Polyhedra and the Real World
Using computer models, paper, cardboard, wood, and other media, students study and construct three-dimensional polyhedra. Students will learn to identify the platonic polyhedra (tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, dodecahedron, and icosohedron). Students will also learn to describe complex geometric solids in terms of vertices, edges, and faces.
Your Sky
This interactive planetarium can create sky maps for a given location and a given time. Once the latitude and longitude of the desired area is entered, the Web site creates a map of the sky. The names of cities can be entered in place of longitude and latitude.
Observe a lunar eclipse
This Earth science animation enables middle and high school students to observe the events of a lunar eclipse. The introduction explains why the moon's appearance changes as is moves through the Earth's shadow. The animation shows the moon darken as it enters the penumbra, turn reddish-orange as it reaches the umbra, and lighten as it leaves the other side of the penumbra. Movie controls allow students to repeat, pause, or step through the animation, which can give students more time to analyze
Pretzel Predictions
Can students predict how many pretzels they can eat in a minute? This material is part of a series of hands-on science activities designed to arouse student interest. Here students learn that pretzels contain a saliva-absorbing compound and are asked to take that fact into consideration when predicting how many pretzels they can eat in a minute. The activity includes a description, a list of science process skills and complex reasoning strategies being used, and a compilation of applicable natio
Pi = 3.14159...
What is Pi? Who first used Pi? How do you find it? How many digits is it?
Drift Seeds And Drift Fruits : Seeds That Ride The Ocean Currents
This essay explores seed dispersal by water and describes some of the physical adaptations that evolution has produced in the seeds and fruits that travel this way. There is a background essay, discussion questions, state and national standards, and links to related Teacher's Domain resources.
Electromagnetic Spectrum
Part of the larger Imagine the Universe educational site, the Electromagnetic Spectrum site is another great resource from NASA. The site gives clear and easy-to-understand explanations, while providing keywords throughout the page that are linked to a dictionary of terms for easy access to further information. Students will enjoy the colorful illustrations accompanying the text, which vertically follow the spectrum from radio to gamma rays, while teachers will appreciate the related lesson plan
Data Analysis and Measurement: Ahead, Above the Clouds
This is the Educator Guide of an archived NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) CONNECT program designed to help students discover that in predicting severe weather and tracking clouds, NASA engineers and scientists are developing technologies to collect data that will help them better understand Earth's climate. The guide includes an activity in which students play a game that will help them understand the complexity of hurricane forecasting. They will be given the coordinates fo
Cold Clouds and Water in Space
This article from Astrobiology Magazine reports on the discovery of water in cold regions of space. Using data from the European Space Agencys Infrared Space Observatory, astronomers have determined that water is abundant in these cold, or quiescent regions of space where there are no stars, and that the majority of it occurs as ice with a small amount of water vapor. It is thought that these cold regions of space might be the future birthplaces of low-mass stars like our own sun. Links to other
Science Sampler : Thriving in the co-taught classroom
Classrooms are becoming more diverse as students with specific learning needs are moved out of self-contained special education classrooms and into mainstreamed classrooms with their non-disabled peers. The use of the co-teaching model allows for extensive flexibility in structuring instructional activities and responding to the needs of diverse learners. This article provides a summary of co-teaching practices that have been effective and beneficial for many years.
Examine evidence of Earth turning about an axis
Using an animation of the classic pendulum experiment, this resource supplies middle and high school students with evidence of the Earth's rotation on its axis. The introduction explains that although pendulums are known to swing in a fixed path, on Earth their path appears to shift over time. As the animation reveals, it is not the pendulum's swing that changes--it is the Earth beneath the pendulum that moves. The animation contains three screens: two with different views of a pendulum swinging
Ohio resource center for mathematics, science, and reading
ORC provides links to peer-reviewed instructional resources that have been identified by a panel of Ohio educators as exemplifying best or promising practice. Available resources also include content and professional resources as well as assessment and general education resources that will support the work of preK to 12 classroom teachers and higher education faculty members. The resources are correlated with Ohio's academic content standards and with applicable national content standards.
The Yo-Yo Problem
Students will explore linear patterns, write a pattern in symbolic form, and solve linear equations using algebra tiles, symbolic manipulation, and the graphing calculator. This lesson plan includes the objective, overview of the lesson, needed materials, procedures, assessment, extensions and adaptations, tips, resources, ideas for discussion, and the activity sheets and answer key.
New York Times Daily Lesson Plan: Mathematics
These lesson ideas from the New York Times offer suggestions for ways to draw on real world issues and statistics to develop lessons in mathematics. For example, in one lesson students convert statistics about gun injuries into visual presentations, then use these as the basis for a poster campaign to teach children about the dangers of guns in home while another lesson idea involves designing brochures that are intended to explain specific mathematical concepts to a popular audience. Each lesso
What's That Stuff?
What's That Stuff? Well, the Web site provided by Chemical and Engineering News answers this question on many of those everyday items that are just a bit curious. For example, Silly Putty is a dilatant compound, which means it has an inverse thixotropy--that is, as a viscous suspension or gel, it becomes solid under the influence of pressure. The site explains the history and characteristics of this and over twenty other substances such as sunscreen, cheese whiz, baseballs, fluoride, new car sme
Observe some products of a Geographic Information System (GIS)
By combining a short paragraph and six enlargeable maps, this resource explains to students what a Geographic Information System (GIS) is. Introductory text explains that GIS technology enables users to plot multiple data sets onto maps of varying scales. Then six sample maps produced through GIS are provided. Among these maps is one that identifies where energy and mineral resources are located globally and another that highlights and labels the rivers that drain into the Mississippi River. Cop
Observe an animation of the Coriolis effect over Earth's surface
This pair of Earth science animations uses airline flight patterns to demonstrate the Coriolis effect in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The animations first show two planes' target destinations and intended flight paths on a stationary Earth. Then, the planet rotates, revealing that the plotted routes would take the plane in the Northern Hemisphere to the right of its intended destination and the plane in the Southern Hemisphere to the left of its intended destination. Accompanying text
