BBC historic figures : Isaac Newton
This concise biography includes an image of Newton and related links in the right navigation bar including: one to an article Newton papers revealed; The Newton Project; and to a lengthier biography, Isaac Newton.
Critical Evaluation of a Web Site : Middle School Level
This is a checklist designed to help middle school users critically evaluate web resources. By answering the questions in the checklist, students can then assess if the site would be a good one to use for their science research projects. There is a series of How does it look? questions and a series of What did you learn? questions that challenge students to think critically about what they are looking at and then summarize the effectiveness of the web site.
Cosmic Evolution - From Big Bang to Humankind
This site features excerpts from Eric Chaisson's book Cosmic Evolution and includes photos, illustrations and movies. The seven sections includes topics like galaxy formation, the birth and death of stars, the origins of life, and the evolution of intelligence. The site includes follow-up activities for teachers to use in the classroom.
Finding Patterns
Build a pattern to complete a sequence of patterns. Study a sequence of three patterns of squares in a grid and build the fourth pattern of the sequence in a grid.
A Natural Fusion: Math and Science Across the Curriculum : Northwest Teacher, volume 4 number 1
Articles in this issue of Northwest Teacher focus on integrating math and science across the curriculum. Teachers create learning experiences for students, of all grade levels, that transcend the power of any one of them taught in isolation. With todays national spotlight on improving students reading and math skills, the potential for cross-disciplinary teaching of these subjects may be readily apparent. But science, too often nudged to the hinterlands of the curriculum when state standards and
Observe an exploded star at different wavelengths
This Earth science resource enables students to observe and compare the appearance of the Crab Nebula under different wavelengths. The introduction explains how the nebula is the remains of an exploded star (supernova). It also reveals how temperature variations in the nebula are detected by different wavelengths. Students are instructed to move the cursor across the spectrum to see images of the nebula captured using radio and microwaves; infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light; and gamma rays
Fases de la luna (Alternate title: Lunar phases)
What causes the phases of the moon? This informational piece, part of an interactive laboratory series for grades 8-12, introduces students to three interactive lab activities about moon phases. In the first activity, students virtually view the moon from a fixed location in space to determine which half of the moon is lighted by the sun as it moves through its phases. In the second activity, students choose the shading of the moon as it would appear from the Earth. Nine questions with printable
Box model (grades 6-8)
This virtual manipulative enables the student to randomly generate data that is displayed on a chart. The chart shows the results of a simulated drawing with replacement from a set of numbers selected by the student. The manipulative can be used to simulate flipping a coin or tossing a die. A pause button stops the simulation. A button for showing theoretical probability places an outline on the theoretical probabilities chart, which allows the student to compare the theoretical and experimental
Box and Whisker Plots
Construct a box-and-whisker plot to match a line plots, and construct a line plot to match a box-and-whisker plots. Manipulate the line plot and examine how the box-and-whisker plot changes. Then manipulate the box-and-whisker plot and examine how the line plot changes.
Written division
Factsheets emphasize the meaning of place value in division, the concept of division as repeated subtraction, division by 10 and 100, and well explained examples of both short and long division. A game as well as worksheets and quizzes are provided for practice.
The baby's brain : infant vision
In this feature, the user explorers how a baby's sense of sight develops. By dragging a slider bar to each of six different age markers, the user can see how the same image looks for babies as they get older. There is also a paragraph-long explanation of vision at each of the six ages shown: newborn, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 6 months, and adult. These explanations reveal what a baby can and cannot see at each age. They also discuss how a baby's brain and eyes mature, providing improved focus
Dr. Saul's Biology in Motion
This site offers an interactive simulation activity, which examines how natural selection works to bring about the evolution of adaptations. Using the simulation tool, the student can slow down the process to watch all the steps involved or can speed it up to watch how a population evolves over time. Links are provided to a variety of useful sites.
Smart Move!
This is a simple activity to visualize a communication system. In order to do this the students encode, decode, transmit, receive and store messages. They will use a code sheet and flashlight for this process. They will also maintain a storage sheet from which they can retrieve information as and when it is required.
Water reclamation plant
In this video clip, students see how wastewater is treated at a water reclamation plant. One of the plant's operators gives Bob the Vid Tec (a children's programming host) a tour of the plant, describing along the way what happens at each step in the water treatment process. For example, the operator explains that microorganisms are used to consume human waste in the biological nutrient removal step. Bob also talks with another plant operator about why kids should learn about wastewater treatmen
Box Plot 2
This activity allows the user to explore maximum, minimum, median, upper quartile, lower quartile and outliers while learning how to draw box plots.
A Private Universe
This site describes and provides access to a twenty-minute video documentary on education research for grade 5-12 educators. With its opening scene at a Harvard graduation, this video program explores why so few students truly grasp basic science concepts. The program traces the problem through interviews with Harvard graduates and their professors, as well as with a bright ninth-grader who has some confused ideas about the orbits of the planets. This site also provides individual program descri
University of Iowa : burn oat hulls for economic, environmental benefit
What is an alternative energy source that is available today? This article, part of a series about the future of energy, introduces students to a pilot project of burning oat hulls at the University of Iowa power plant. Students read that the burning of oak hulls instead of coal provides for cleaner air and additional space in landfills. Copyright 2005 Eisenhower National Clearinghouse
Blue Planet Challenge - A natural history of the oceans
This very interactive site uses a variety of games to explore ocean related subjects. The games cover such topics as tidal zones, deep ocean species, ocean currents, general animal life of the ocean, symbiotic relationships, water pressure, human impact on ecosystems, and the habitats found at the South Pole and along the California coastline. There are help tabs added to the games called Species Fact Files and Infobursts where a player can find out more information on a particular topic if need
Lobster's Violin: Why They do it
This two-minute radio show focuses on why spiny lobsters make sounds using soft body parts. While the sounds of a lobster play in the background, the show's guest scientist explains that the spiny lobster, being an arthropod, goes through a molting process in order to grow. It produces these sounds to ward off predators when its new outer skeleton is not yet hard. The show, which is from the Pulse of the Planet radio program, is available here in audio and text. Copyright 2005 Eisenhower Nationa
Tessellate!
This Java applet enables students to create tessellations, which are patterns on a plane that do not overlap. The student selects a hexagon, rectangle, or triangle to distort by dragging edges and the newly formed corners. Users can select colors for the pattern, and a button displays information in a second window. The window lists the coordinates of the vertices, angle measures, side lengths, area, and perimeter for the shape. From the applet page, What, How, and Why buttons open pages that ex
