A creative encounter of the numerical kind : A WebQuest for middle grades math students
In this WebQuest, students help an imaginary civilization develop a number system. They work in teams to explore place value, counting, and different number systems. After this preparation, they create and name a set of original number symbols for a base four number system and explain it in a formal presentation.
Solar two
What is a method of active solar energy production? This article, part of a series about the future of energy, describes the use of large reflector power plants in the Mohave Desert. Students are introduced to the use of large solar reflectors to heat molten salt and produce energy for homes. Students view four photographs of different aspects of the solar complex. Copyright 2005 Eisenhower National Clearinghouse
Valley Springs Snow Cream
Middle School, difficulty level 2. Compare the volume of a sphere, cone, and cylinder using ice cream.
Agronomist
This is the introductory page for a set of materials about agronomy as a career. A general description of the work done by agronomists is first provided. In the rest of the resource, students can read narratives about a field sales agronomist and a crop production specialist. Each of these agronomists has provided a challenge activity for students. In one activity, students make brochures and suggest reasons why their sales company is better than a competitor's. Another activity asks students to
Watersheds
This web page focuses on watersheds, the topic of one of the books in the curriculum series that the larger web site accompanies. The page mentions why it can be beneficial for students to investigate local watersheds. The term watershed is defined, and examples of different sizes of watersheds are given. In addition, the page explains why local governments often manage watersheds. Links are provided to water quality experiments, to related online materials on other sites, and to information abo
The future of energy, efficiency
Energy-efficient appliances and vehicles can greatly reduce the amount of energy Americans use. This informational piece, part of a series about the future of energy, introduces students to the consequences of using energy more efficiently. An example about baking a pie provides students with a practical definition of efficiency. A discussion of energy-efficient appliances and processes follows as students read about the Energy Star label. The overall efficiency of a power plant is described, sh
Light and optics
It doesn t take Superman s special strength to take light and bend it, bounce it, or divide it. Teachers and students can read this series of brief articles to learn how the properties of light allow these optical wonders to happen in everyday life. You can navigate through the sections of the module by clicking on objective statements or connect to additional readings or activities through links at the bottom of the pages. Each article has photographs that represent the objective. For example,
Maximize Student Time On Task
Student time on task is the most influential factor in student achievement. To maximize time on task, teachers need to make decisions about the systems they install in their classroom well before any students enter the room. Beginning the school year by explicitly teaching process skills and having classroom operating systems that reinforce process skills are two strategies that lay the foundation for logical thinking throughout the year, which are discussed in this article.
Stats for Schools
Stats4schools, developed by the United Kingdom's Office of National Statistics, is about helping teachers and pupils to get more from statistics. The project has posted here datasets collected by the Office for National Statistics as part of the Omnibus survey and made them available for students to download free of charge. Teachers will also find lesson plans, worksheets and datasets that can be used in their classrooms. The lesson ideas are organized by topics and involve using statistics to a
Scope on Safety : What Is Your First Aid Policy?
Would you know what to do if one of your students had an accident with a chemical that resulted in contact with the skin? What would you do if a student spilled boiling water on his or her hands? These are the types of potential challenges science teachers face every time they walk into a laboratory with students. Prepare yourself for the worst case scenario by developing a first-aid policy for your science classroom as outlined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Regulations (O
Activity : Fusion Reactions
This activity gives students an opportunity to learn about the elements created in the cores of high-mass stars by fusion reactions. They will discover that all stars start by burning hydrogen and end up creating many heavier elements inside their cores, elements that will be released into space when it dies in a supernova explosion. Students associate a layer with an element that is being produced by the high-mass star. This will illustrate that as the temperature of the star increases with dep
Don't Crack Humpty
Student groups are provided with a generic car base. The groups then design a device/enclosure that will protect an egg on or in the car as it is rolled down a ramp at increasing slopes. Students will be expected to perform basic mathematical calculations using their data.
HPLC Primer
Nice introduction to high performance liquid chromatography that includes information on the modes of separation, a comparison of normal vs. reversed phase separations, identification of analytical, semi-prep, and preparative scale LC and a very nice large glossary that includes definitions of terms related to chromatography.
Next steps After completing this unit you may wish to study another OpenLearn Study Unit or find out more about this topic. Here are some suggestions: If you wish to study formally at The Open Univ
Students on Leadership- Short
Students of OSU discuss what leadership means to them- short.
Winning secrets to teaching excellence
Using quirky metaphors, inspiring student questions and working day and night — these are some of the winning strategies that have led three Simon Fraser University professors to clinch an SFU 2010 Excellence in Teaching award.
See also: http://at.sfu.ca/cwcBOy
Renaissance Artists
An eighteen minute video that is a lecture about these artists with photos. As with most art videos, preview it first should there be an image that may not be appropriate for your class. A good video that provides great insights into the movement, artists, and style of painting.
Tijd voor taal 4 : Lesvoorbereidingen bij thema 8 en 9 Diverse lessen bij Tijd voor Taal 4: Handleiding B:
Flying T-Shirts
During this engineering design/build project, students investigate many different solutions to a problem. Their design challenge is to find a way to get school t-shirts up into the stands during home sporting events. They follow the steps of the engineering design process to design and build a usable model, all while keeping costs under budget.
