Using common materials (spools, string, soap), students learn how a pulley can …
Using common materials (spools, string, soap), students learn how a pulley can be used to easily change the direction of a force, making the moving of large objects easier. They see the difference between fixed and movable pulleys, and the mechanical advantage gained with multiple/combined pulleys. They also learn the many ways engineers use pulleys for everyday purposes.
This is a lesson about Saturn. Learners will organize their knowledge of …
This is a lesson about Saturn. Learners will organize their knowledge of Saturn and Cassini to prepare to write one of the following types of nonfiction for their final piece: descriptive (poetry), compare and contrast, or summary. This is lesson 11 of 12 in the Mission to Saturn Educators Guide, Reading Writing Rings, for grades 3-4.
Pumps are used to get drinking water to our houses every day! …
Pumps are used to get drinking water to our houses every day! And in disaster situations, pumps are essential to keep flood water out. In this hands-on activity, student groups design, build, test and improve devices to pump water as if they were engineers helping a rural village meet their drinking water supply. Students keep track of their materials costs, and calculate power and cost efficiencies of the prototype pumps. They also learn about different types of pumps, how they work and useful applications.
Developed for third and fourth grade. There will be a sheep heart …
Developed for third and fourth grade. There will be a sheep heart available for the students to look at, so that they can see the different parts of the heart. It will be used to describe the process involved when the heart pumps blood to the rest of the body. Students will be taught how to take his or her pulse. They will then be comparing their pulses at rest to their pulse after doing several different activities. After recording their findings on a data table (see Figure 1), they will graph this recorded data(their heart rate after each activity.) The class will the share their data and calculate the average heart rate for the entire class after each activity was completed.Biology In Elementary Schools is a Saint Michael's College student project. The teaching ideas on this page have been found, refined, and developed by students in a college-level course on the teaching of biology at the elementary level. Unless otherwise noted, the lesson plans have been tried at least once by students from our partner schools. This wiki has been established to share ideas about teaching biology in elementary schools. The motivation behind the creation of this page is twofold: 1. to provide an outlet for the teaching ideas of a group of college educators participating in a workshop-style course; 2. to provide a space where anyone else interested in this topic can place their ideas.
Students observe and test their reflexes, including the (involuntary) pupillary response and …
Students observe and test their reflexes, including the (involuntary) pupillary response and (voluntary) reaction times using their dominant and non-dominant hands, as a way to further explore how reflexes occur in humans. They gain insights into how our bodies react to stimuli, and how some reactions and body movements are controlled automatically, without conscious thought. Using information from the associated lesson about how robots react to situations, including the stimulus-to-response framework, students see how engineers use human reflexes as examples for controls for robots.
This lesson focuses on the conservation of energy solely between gravitational potential …
This lesson focuses on the conservation of energy solely between gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy, moving students into the Research and Revise step. Students start out with a virtual laboratory, and then move into the notes and working of problems as a group. A few questions are given as homework. A dry lab focuses on the kinetic and potential energies found on a roller coaster concludes the lesson in the Test Your Mettle phase of the Legacy Cycle.
This lesson contains background about the blood vascular system and the heart. …
This lesson contains background about the blood vascular system and the heart. Also, the different sizes of capillaries, veins, and arteries, and how they affect blood flow through the system. We will then proceed to talk about the heart's function in the blood vascular system. This will lead into a discussion of heart valves, how they work and what might cause them to fail. Then we will discuss prosthetic heart valves.
On the topic of energy related to motion, this summary lesson is …
On the topic of energy related to motion, this summary lesson is intended to tie together the concepts introduced in the previous four lessons and show how the concepts are interconnected in everyday applications. A hands-on activity demonstrates this idea and reinforces students' math skills in calculating energy, momentum and frictional forces.
In this culminating activity of the unit, students bring together everything they've …
In this culminating activity of the unit, students bring together everything they've learned in order to write the code to solve the Grand Challenge. The code solution takes two images captured by robots and combines them to create an image that can be focused at different distances, similar to the way that humans can focus either near or far. They write in a derivative of C++ called QT; all code is listed in this activity.
Students learn about the concept of pushing, as well as the relationship …
Students learn about the concept of pushing, as well as the relationship between force and mass. Students practice measurement skills using pan scales and rulers to make predictions about mass and distance. A LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT robot is used to test their hypotheses. By the end of the activity, students have a better understanding of robotics, mass and friction and the concept of predicting.
The Innocence Project, founded in 1992 by Peter Neufeld and Barry Scheck …
The Innocence Project, founded in 1992 by Peter Neufeld and Barry Scheck at Cardozo School of Law, exonerates the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and reforms the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice. The Innocence Project's mission is to free the staggering number of innocent people who remain incarcerated, and to bring reform to the system responsible for their unjust imprisonment.
Students learn how simple machines, including wedges, were used in building both …
Students learn how simple machines, including wedges, were used in building both ancient pyramids and present-day skyscrapers. In a hands-on activity, students test a variety of wedges on different materials (wax, soap, clay, foam). Students gain an understanding of how simple machines are used in engineering applications to make our lives and work easier.
Travel back in time and explore the last standing ancient world wonder …
Travel back in time and explore the last standing ancient world wonder through Google Maps Treks. Learn more about the history, location, purpose, materials, and labor required to build the magnificent structures.
In this lesson, students analyze land cover change in order to help …
In this lesson, students analyze land cover change in order to help them grasp the extent, significance, and consequences of land cover change; and to introduce them to the perspective of space-based Earth observations. Students learn to identify kinds of land cover (such as roads, fields, urban areas, and lakes) in Landsat satellite images. They decide which land cover types allow the passage of water into the soil (pervious) and which types do not allow it (impervious). They consider some effects of increasing impervious surface area on ecosystem health. Students then make land cover maps using two Landsat satellite images taken about a decade apart, and quantify the change of land cover from pervious to impervious surface. They also make predictive maps of what they think the nature and extent of land cover change in the area will be in the year 2025, and speculate about the consequences for the availability of water for people and ecosystems. Students justify in writing their predictive maps and their thoughts about the consequences of change. This activity uses Landsat images of Phoenix, Arizona; links are also provided for finding Landsat images of other cities.
Students learn the relevant equations for refraction (index of refraction, Snell's law) …
Students learn the relevant equations for refraction (index of refraction, Snell's law) and how to use them to predict the behavior of light waves in specified scenarios. After a brief review of the concept of refraction (as learned in the previous lesson), the equations along with their units and variable definitions, are introduced. Student groups work through a few example conceptual and mathematical problems and receive feedback on their work. Then students conduct the associated activity during which they practice using the equations in a problem set, examine data from a porous film like those used in biosensors, and apply the equations they learned to a hypothetical scenario involving biosensors.
Louisianas Highway 1 carries a significant fraction of the gas and oil …
Louisianas Highway 1 carries a significant fraction of the gas and oil that comes from the Gulf of Mexico to distribution points in the United States. Faced with rising seas and sinking land, would the cost of rebuilding the road be worth the investment it required?
Explore the properties of quantum "particles" bound in potential wells. See how …
Explore the properties of quantum "particles" bound in potential wells. See how the wave functions and probability densities that describe them evolve (or don't evolve) over time.
Students are introduced to the physical concept of the colors of rainbows …
Students are introduced to the physical concept of the colors of rainbows as light energy in the form of waves with distinct wavelengths, but in a different manner than traditional kaleidoscopes. Looking at different quantum dot solutions, they make observations and measurements, and graph their data. They come to understand how nanoparticles interact with absorbing photons to produce colors. They learn the dependence of particle size and color wavelength and learn about real-world applications for using these colorful liquids.
Students explore the applications of quantum dots by researching a journal article …
Students explore the applications of quantum dots by researching a journal article and answering framing questions used in a classwide discussion. This "Harkness-method" discussion helps students become critical readers of scientific literature.
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