In lesson 1 of this unit, students will explore what it means to be connected to other people with and without digital technology. They'll also start to consider the ways that their digital connections shape who they are.

In this lesson, students collect 3 samples of soil from different outdoor locations, recording observations and questions about each location in their science notebooks. On the second day of the investigation, students will work in collaborative groups to investigate the soil using hand lenses, sifters/strainers, and sorting pans. Then students will share what they have learned with their peers.

Lesson plan that uses students' step length to understand the relationship between distance, speed and acceleration. Includes graphing of data and interpretation of graphs.

This lesson outlines teacher-led discussion on the topic of migration as an adaptive behavior in response to changes in the animal's environment. Journaling questions are also provided to help build each student's individual understanding.

This video clip is meant to serve as a writing or discussion prompt during a unit on forces and motion. This can be used at varied grade levels, with the expectation that student responses would be more complex in higher grade levels.

This is an introductory activity / lesson for a larger investigation into the properties of air. Students build a equal arm balance from simple materials to demonstrate that air has mass.

In this activity students compare plant growth under two conditions. Through the activity students will observe the life cycle of seed plants and determine in which conditions plants grow well. Students will also collect data such as number of days to germination for each plant and daily plant height.

In this activity, students will work in collaborative groups to create 9M x 9M models of plant and animal cells. Class population can be split into 2 or 4 groups, with half the students constructing animal cells and the other half constructing plant cells. Students must organize and assign duties, provide materials for this activity, and write a written report. They will also give "Cell Tours" to other students and/or classroom guests.

This hands-on activity is designed for students to demonstrate the concepts of bonding amino acids to create proteins, and to model protein synthesis. This activity cab be used as an assessment of the students' understanding of peptide and disulfide bonds formed during protein synthesis, and the structure of an amino acid (R-group plus the common structure that all amino acids share). Students will demonstrate the process of dehydration synthesis by combining amino acids. They will synthesize one molecule of the protein ADH (antidiuretic hormone) by reading the mRNA sequence, cutting out the -OH on the carboxyl group on amino acid one, and the -H on the amino group of amino acid two. These two pieces (-OH and -H) will combine to form a water molecule. The students will connect the two amino acids by taping a peptide bond label between the carbon of the carboxyl and the nitrogen of the amino group on amino acid. This process is continued until the stop codon on the mRNA is read. If the synthesis is done correctly, the student will produce eight peptide bonds creating one chain, and eight molecules of water. If this activity is used for biology, the tRNA, and rRNA molecules can be added to the process.

This resource provides background information on how a sundial works and includes directions for making a basic paper sundial.

In this lesson, students will learn that forces can change the speed or direction of motion. Students will observe what happens to a toy car as it moves down a ramp and then encounters "speed bumps" that are added at different lengths away from the ramp. Students will also add a clay figure to the top of the cars to see what effect the ramp and "speed bumps" will have on the figure.

In this activity students will observe how temperature affects different types of gases. First students will blow up a round balloon. They will need to measure the circumference in centimeters of the fattest part of the balloon. Then they will put the balloon in the freezer for approximately 30-60 minutes. (A chest freezer tends to work best) They will remove the balloon from the freezer and quickly measure the circumference of the balloon again in centimeters, recording beginning and end results in a journal.

In this activity students will investigate how different materials are changed when heated or cooled. Students will choose from a variety of materials and devise a method of data collection.

In this activity, students will explore how to prove that light travels in a straight line using 3 index cards, with a hole punched in each one, and a flashlight.

In this lab activity, students will investigate chemical changes that occur when acids and bases react. It is meant to introduce the concepts of chemical changes, mass of gases, conservation of mass, and balancing equations. Students will make qualitative observations and quantitative measurements.

In this geochemistry activity, students explore a STELLA model of anhydrite-solution equilibrium. They find ways to illustrate several points about chemical equilibrium that address common misconceptions using this model. Then they write a mock research paper about addressing common misconceptions about chemical equilibrium in the classroom. Note: A free demo of STELLA can be downloaded at: http://www.iseesystems.com/

In this activity, students will work in pairs to discover the indicators of chemical reactions. Each pair of students is assigned either an exothermic or endothermic reaction. Based on their observations, students are then asked to explain the evidence that a chemical reaction occurred. Students then perform 10 more chemical reactions with unknown powders (labeled A - F) and liquids (labeled 1 - 6). They must collect data and then develop a testable question based upon all of the data collected. Finally, they answer their question by performing more experiments. For higher grade levels, the lesson may be modified to use appropriate equipment to demonstrate the conservation of matter.

In this lab activity, students will investigate the characteristics of a chemical change. Students will also provide a definition of what constitutes a physical change through observation of several examples. Students will develop (through discussion) and use the criteria for identifying a chemical change. Several examples of a chemical change will also be observed for students to compare to physical changes. The students will use the five characteristics of chemical change to determine/judge whether or not baking soda, citric acid and water creates a chemical change. Students will write down observations of the reaction and use the five characteristics to explain why it is in fact a chemical reaction (The five characteristics will be listed for use).

With this activity, students use integers to solve problems about times in different world time zones.

In this activity, students will study how temperature and concentration affect reaction rates and then design a procedure to get the reaction to occur in a specified amount of time. This activity is meant to be used as a performance-based assessment. Detailed student instructions, handouts, and a grading rubric are included.