Student teams make polymers using ordinary household supplies (glue, borax, water). They experiment with the semi-solid material when warm and cold to see and feel its elastic and viscous properties. Students will begin to understand how the electrical forces between particles change as temperature or the force applied to the substance changes. Is it a solid, a liquid, or something in between? How might it be used?

Students are given a variety of materials and asked to identify each material as a solid, liquid or gas. They use their five senses ‰ŰÓ sight, sound, smell, texture and taste ‰ŰÓ to identify the other characteristics of each item.

This is a lesson about using light to identify the composition of an object. Learners will use a spectrograph to gather data about light sources. Using the data they‰Ûªve collected, students are able to make comparisons between different light sources and make conjectures about the composition of a mystery light source. The activity is part of Project Spectra, a science and engineering program for middle-high school students, focusing on how light is used to explore the Solar System.

Students act as chemical engineers and use LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT robotics to record temperatures and learn about the three states of matter. Properties of matter can be measured in various ways, including volume, mass, density and temperature. Students measure the temperature of water in its solid state (ice) as it is melted and then evaporated.

Heat, cool and compress atoms and molecules and watch as they change between solid, liquid and gas phases.

In the first video segment, we describe the fundamental postulate of statistical mechanics. The direct product notation we introduce in the second segment helps us to discuss the states available to a collection of many parts, which helps us, in turn, to derive the Boltzmann factor in the third segment. The fourth video segment explains how the Boltzmann factor helps us to calculate average properties for systems in thermal contact with large baths and introduces entropy (Greek letter sigma), free energy (F), and the partition function (Z).

This site offers tons of science experiments that can be done at home.

Boot camps for:
*Chemistry
*Biology
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*Geometry

This lesson plan focuses on the concepts of atomic number, mass number, isotope, and nuclear atom. A student quiz is included as an assessment instrument. This resource is from PUMAS - Practical Uses of Math and Science - a collection of brief examples created by scientists and engineers showing how math and science topics taught in K-12 classes have real world applications.

John Orsulak's students work in groups using iodine to test for starch in an array of liquids. Students record and analyze data and conduct the test with their team.

Prior to reaching households, water is exposed to a variety of treatments designed to render it fit for human consumption and use. One of the first treatment steps is the removal of suspended solids using chemical additives called flocculants. In this activity, students learn about two commonly used flocculants and clean water collected from a local pond or river. They experiment with flocculant, stirring and pH variables.

This is a phenomenal website full of super useful information for students and teachers!

There are articles and resources for:
Science, Technology & Math
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Anything and everything is available here from how to understand percentile scores - to writing a solid argumentative essay - to grade 2 writing prompts.

Click the menu in the top left corner to sort resources for students & parents, educators or adult learners!

Vortices of water, called "eddies," form off the northwestern coast of North America in the winter, and are particularly large during El Nino winters. Users can read and view satellite imagery which explains how these eddies carry nutrient-rich water offshore, providing nourishment for phytoplankton, microscopic plants which form the foundation of the marine food chain. This is part of NASA's Earth Observatory, a collection of publications featuring satellite imagery and information about Earth.

A simulation to help understand the difference between a physical and chemical change.

Lots of great worksheets and answer keys on this site for the MS3 outcome.
Explore the nature and classification of organic compounds, and their uses in modern materials.

This EPA website provides instructions for using Secchi disks and transparency tubes to measure water clarity. The page also features a short description of each device.

Adding acidic ingredients is an important way to protect foods from dangerous toxins produced by organisms like C. botulinum, a microbe that is common and harmless in the environment but deadly when sealed with food in a jar. In the lab, testing the pH of a substance (how acidic or basic it is) provides important information for ensuring food safety. This module introduces users to proper sampling techniques when testing pH and explains how adjusting a food’s acidity can keep it safe from C. bot. Virtual Labs – Acidifying Salsa familiarizes the user with food science lab equipment and teaches standard techniques for sampling. The interactive animation guides the user through theory and practice of adjusting pH, so they will have familiarity with the equipment and procedures when encountered in a real lab.

The concept of water activity is important to food preservation. When water activity is less than 0.6, almost all microbes, including bacteria, molds, and yeasts, stop growing. Vegetables are usually dried even further, to water activity of 0.3 or 0.2, for quality and storage. Virtual Labs – Controlling Water Activity in Food explores a traditional method of preserving corn by drying. In this virtual laboratory, learners test water activity levels of dried corn and explore how they change under three different storage environments. The interactive animation guides users through the theory and practice of sampling a food product, using a water activity meter, and setting up replicates, to build familiarity with concepts and procedures used in real food science labs. Before beginning this lab, it may be useful to complete Virtual Labs – Understanding Water Activity.

Testing the pH of a substance (how acidic or basic it is) is a basic lab test and provides a important piece of information for natural science investigations. In food science, the pH of a substance – how acidic or basic it is – is key to how it functions in food recipes. This module introduces users to the pH scale and its uses in food science. Then, users learn how to use the pH meter, and calibrate it by measuring solutions of standard value. Virtual Labs – the pH Scale & Meter Calibration familiarizes the user with food science lab equipment and teaches standard techniques for this specific procedure. The interactive animation guides the user through theory and practice of using the pH scale and pH measurement, so they will have familiarity with the equipment and procedures when encountered in a real lab.

Moist foods – like fresh fruit or raw meat – often have high water activity and spoil quickly. But some foods that seem moist – like jam or pepperoni – don’t spoil as quickly. Why is this? All living things need water to survive. Enzymes and chemical reactions also require water. If water activity is less than 0.6, almost all microbes, including bacteria, molds, and yeasts, stop growing. This means that food can be preserved against spoilage by lowering its water activity – whether by evaporating water away or binding it up. Virtual Labs – Understanding Water Activity familiarizes the user with food science lab equipment and standard techniques for measuring water activity. The interactive animation guides the user through both theory and practice, preparing them for experiences in a real lab. Complete this lab first, then follow up with Virtual Labs – Controlling Water Activity.