A hands-on and fun-filled resource for teaching science to middle and high school students
New in the 5-Minute Fundamentals Series, The Science Teacher's Activity-A-Day, Grades 6-12, includes 180 easy, five-minute hook or sponge activities to capture learners' attention and introduce lessons. Divided into three units, Physical Science, Life Science, and Earth and Space Science; the activities cover topics based on the National Science Education Standards.
- All the book's activities can be done with materials that are inexpensive and easy to find
- Includes quick and fun "sponge" activities that are designed to engage students
- All the activities take about 5 minutes to complete
The Science Teacher's Activity-a-Day is an ideal resource for middle and high school science teachers.
Table of Contents:
About This Book iii
About the Authors iv
Correlations of Activities to the National Science Content Standards xii
Unit I. Physical Science
Section 1: Organization of Matter
1.1 Boyle’s Gas Law: Marshmallow Under Pressure 3
1.2 Buoyancy: Ketchup Packet Cartesian Divers 4
1.3 Counting Molecules and Atoms: Number of Molecules of Chalk in Your Signature 5
1.4 Identifying and Naming Isotopes: ‘‘EggCeptional’’ Isotopes 6
1.5 Chemical and Physical Changes: Examining Paper for Change 7
1.6 Physical Properties of Matter: Tootsie Roll Properties 8
1.7 Density: Can’t Hold a Good Ping-Pong Ball Down 9
1.8 Atomic Size in Picometers: Cutting Paper to Atom Size 10
1.9 Surface Tension: Why Some Insects Can Walk on Water 11
1.10 Birds in Flight: How Birds’ Wings Enable Them to Fly 12
1.11 Mendeleev’s Periodic Table: It Was All in the Cards 13
1.12 Volume of a Cylinder: The Long and Short of Volume 14
Section 2: Interactions of Matter
2.1 Acids and Bases: Cabbage Juice Indicators 16
2.2 Polymers: Water-Loving Chemicals in Diapers 17
2.3 Freezing Point: Why We Sprinkle Salt on Icy Roads 18
2.4 Exothermic and Endothermic Reactions: Hot Packs and Cold Packs 19
2.5 Chemical Reactions: Alka-Seltzer and Water Temperature 20
2.6 Balancing Chemical Equations: Rearranging Atomic Dots 21
2.7 Limiting Reactants: Putting a Halt to the Reaction 23
2.8 Writing Ionic Formulas: Equating the Ions 24
2.9 Single Replacement Reactions: Turning Iron into Copper 25
2.10 Double Replacement Reactions: Trading Partners 26
2.11 Polarity and Solubility: Breaking Bonds of Packing Peanuts 27
2.12 Surface Area and Solubility: Sweet Solutions 29
Section 3: Energy of Motion
3.1 Potential Energy and Kinetic Energy: Bouncing Golf Balls 31
3.2 Potential Energy: The Energy of Falling Objects 32
3.3 Friction Through a Fluid: Fluids and Falling 33
3.4 Newton’s First Law of Motion: Inertia—the Magician’s Friend 34
3.5 Law of Conservation of Momentum: Marble Collisions 35
3.6 Static Friction: Going Against the Grain 36
3.7 Newton’s Second Law of Motion: Acceleration of the Coffee Mug 37
3.8 Using the Speed Formula: Speedy Manipulations 38
3.9 Newton’s Third Law of Motion: What Is a Reaction? 39
3.10 Inclined Planes: Making Lifting Easier 41
3.11 Levers: First-Class Machines 42
3.12 The Three Classes of Levers: Lots of Levers and Lots of Class 43
Section 4: Heat, Light, and Sound Waves
4.1 Thermal Energy: What Does Temperature Really Measure? 46
4.2 Measuring Temperature: Human Thermometers 47
4.3 Refraction: A Real Light Bender 48
4.4 Concave and Convex Mirrors: An Up-Close Look at the Spoon 49
4.5 Magnifying Lens: Water Drop Microscopes 51
4.6 Mechanical Waves: The Stadium Wave 52
4.7 Transverse Waves: Anatomy of a String Wave 53
4.8 Compressional Waves: Making Waves with a Slinky 54
4.9 Sound and Its Mediums: Sound Matters 55
4.10 Sound Vibrations: Rubber Band Music 56
4.11 Sound and Water: Tuning Forks and Water 57
4.12 Energy Conductors and Insulators: The Cook’s Choice 58
Section 5: Magnetism and Electricity
5.1 Charging by Friction: Balloons and Dancing Salt Grains 60
5.2 Closed Circuits: A Battery, a Bulb, and a Paper Clip 61
5.3 Electrochemical Cell: Nine-Volt Battery Electrolysis 62
5.4 Resistance: Series and Parallel Circuits 63
5.5 Making Electricity: A Shocking Activity 64
5.6 Schematic Circuit Diagrams: Seeing the Circuit 65
5.7 Electromagnets: The Art of Magnetizing a Nail 67
5.8 Magnetic Field: Long-Distance Attraction 69
5.9 Magnets: What’s in a Refrigerator Magnet? 70
5.10 Magnetizing Metals: The Magnetic Nail 71
5.11 Magnets and Compasses: Which Way Is North? 72
5.12 Magnetic Forces: Force Blockers 74
Unit II. Life Science
Section 6: The Cell
6.1 Characteristics of Life: Is It Alive? 77
6.2 Energy Molecules: ATP and ADP 78
6.3 ATP and Lactic Acid: Muscle Fatigue 79
6.4 The Cell Cycle, Part One: Getting Started 80
6.5 The Cell Cycle, Part Two: The Process 81
6.6 Cell Transport: When It Comes to Cells, Small Is Good 82
6.7 Proteins as Enzymes: Saltine Crackers and Amylase 83
6.8 Plant Cell or Animal Cell: Shoestring Venn Diagram 84
6.9 Enzymes: Temperature and Paperase 86
6.10 The Mitochondria: Surface Area and the Folded Membrane 87
6.11 Photosynthesis and Respiration: Formula Scramble 88
Section 7: Genetics
7.1 DNA: Candy Nucleotides 90
7.2 Chromosomes: Learning to Speak ‘‘Chromosome’’ 92
7.3 Genetic Diversity: Crossing Over During Meiosis 93
7.4 Genetic Combinations: Tall and Short Pea Plants 95
7.5 Mendel’s Law of Segregation: Cystic Fibrosis 96
7.6 Dominant and Recessive Genes in Cat Breeding: Curly-Eared Cats 97
7.7 Pedigrees: The Higgenbothum Hairline 98
7.8 Sex-Linked Traits: Flipping Over Color Blindness 99
7.9 Gene Splicing: Human Growth Hormone and Recombinant DNA 100
7.10 Protein Synthesis: Modeling Transcription 101
Section 8: Evolution
8.1 Natural Selection: Life as a Peppered Moth 103
8.2 Advantageous Traits: Which Creature Is the Fittest? 105
8.3 Primate Adaptations: The Importance of the Opposable Thumb 106
8.4 Steps of Natural Selection: Natural Selection Sequencing 107
8.5 Plant Adaptations: Features for Survival in the Rain Forest 108
8.6 Adaptive Radiation: The Beaks of Darwin’s Finches 109
8.7 Variations and Survival: Pine Needle Variation 110
8.8 Horse Evolution: Horse Height Over Time 111
8.9 Fossil Dating: Stacking Up Rock Layers 112
8.10 Antibiotic Resistance: Present-Day Evolution 115
Section 9: Diversity of Life
9.1 The Six Kingdoms: Kingdom Match Game 117
9.2 Vascular Plants: Checking Out a Fern Frond 119
9.3 Flower Parts: Dissecting the Flower 120
9.4 Food Storage in Seeds: Dissecting a Dicot 122
9.5 Seed Dispersal: Where Plants Come From 123
9.6 Animal Symmetry: What Symmetry Is This? 124
9.7 Viruses: Nuts and Bolts of a Bacteriophage 125
9.8 Bird Digestion: Why Birds Don’t Need Teeth 126
9.9 Examining a Fungus: Close-Up Look at a Mushroom 127
9.10 Taxonomic Categories: Addressing Classification 129
Section 10: Ecology
10.1 Energy Flow Through the Food Chain: The 10 Percent Rule of Energy Flow 131
10.2 Population Growth Rate: Growing Exponentially 132
10.3 Food Web: Piecing Together a Food Web Puzzle 133
10.4 Population Estimations: Mark and Recapture of Wildlife 134
10.5 The Importance of Niches: Extinction and the Paper Clip Niche 135
10.6 Symbiosis: Want Ads for Mutualism 136
10.7 Human Pollution: Plastic Killers 137
10.8 Plant Growth Requirements: When Seeds Get Too Crowded 138
10.9 Packaging and the Environment: Convenience or Conservation? 139
10.10 Arthropod Behavior: Response of the Pill Bugs 140
Section 11: Body Systems
11.1 The Role of Bile in Digestion: Emulsifying Fat 143
11.2 Tendons: Visualizing How the Fingers Work 144
11.3 The Heart: The Strongest Muscle of the Body 145
11.4 Partnering of the Brain and Eyes: Putting the Fish in the Bowl 146
11.5 Lung Capacity During Exercise: Balloons and Vital Capacity 148
11.6 Blood Vessels: Arteries or Veins? 149
11.7 Muscle Interactions: Pairing of the Biceps and Triceps 150
11.8 Mechanical Digestion: The Initial Breakdown of Digestion 152
11.9 Peristalsis During Digestion: Moving Food Through the Esophagus 153
11.10 Why We Sweat: Staying Cool with the Sweat Glands 155
Unit III. Earth Science
Section 12: Structure of Earth Systems
12.1 Core Sampling: Seeing Inside the Cupcake 158
12.2 Metamorphic Rocks: Pressure and the Candy Bar 159
12.3 Sedimentation: Making Sedimentary Rocks 160
12.4 Soil Conservation: How Much of the Earth Is Usable Soil? 161
12.5 Physical Weathering of Rocks: Sugar Cube Breakdown 162
12.6 Mineral Hardness: Mineral Ranks 163
12.7 Cross Section of the Earth: Egg Modeling 165
12.8 Porosity of Soil Samples: Soil’s Holding Power 166
12.9 Groundwater and Permeability: Just Passing Through 167
12.10 Water in the Ocean: Sink or Float? 168
12.11 Ocean Currents: Temperatures Start the Motion 169
12.12 Bottle Eruption: Volcanic Activity 170
Section 13: Earth’s History
13.1 Inferences from Fossils: Who Was Here? 172
13.2 Magnetic Rocks: Lodestones 173
13.3 Radioactive Rocks: The Age of Rocks 174
13.4 Continental Drift: Puzzling Over the Continents 175
13.5 Strength of Earthquakes: It’s the Cracker’s Fault 176
13.6 Fossil Molds and Casts: Making Fossils 177
13.7 Glaciers: Ice in Motion 178
13.8 Deformation of Rocks: Rocks Under Stress 179
13.9 Geologic Time Scale Model: Earth’s History on a Football Field 181
13.10 Graded Bedding: Breaking the Law 182
13.11 Seismic Waves: Human Wave Form 183
13.12 Mountain Building: Paper Peaks 184
Section 14: Meteorology
14.1 Temperature Inversions: Weather Patterns and Pollution 186
14.2 Cloud Formation: The Cloudy Bottle 187
14.3 Warm Air Rises: Refrigerated Balloons 188
14.4 Water Vapor: Dew on the Beaker 189
14.5 Rain Gauge: Let It Pour 190
14.6 The Loss of Ozone: Oxygen Is Not Just for Breathing 191
14.7 Temperature: Do You Want That in Celsius or Fahrenheit? 192
14.8 Heat Transfer: Spiraling Upward 194
14.9 Read a Climatogram: Quick Take on Climate 195
14.10 Air Has Weight: Living Under Pressure 197
14.11 Make It Rain: Bottle Rainstorm 198
14.12 Winds: Air Masses in Motion 199
Section 15: The Universe
15.1 Telescopes: An Eye on the Universe 201
15.2 Light-Years: Universal Time 202
15.3 Star Constellations: How Many Do You Know? 203
15.4 Viewing Constellations: Moving Patterns in the Sky 204
15.5 The Gyroscopic Effect: Spacecraft Navigation 206
15.6 Space Shuttle Orbits: Holding Onto Your Marbles 207
15.7 Gravity and Space Instruments: Writing in Space 209
15.8 Visible Light: A Blend of Colors 210
15.9 Infrared Light: Feel the Heat 211
15.10 Star Magnitude: The Brightness of Stars 212
15.11 Inertia in Space: Objects Keep Moving 213
15.12 The Parallax Effect: A Different Perspective 214
Section 16: The Solar System
16.1 Planetary Revolutions: Birthdays on Mercury and Jupiter 216
16.2 Jupiter’s Atmosphere: A Stormy Planet 217
16.3 Orbiting the Sun: Earth’s Trip Around the Sun 218
16.4 Planet Formations: How the Planets Were Made 220
16.5 Surviving on the Moon: Lunar Trek 221
16.6 Solar Eclipse: Blocking the Sun 222
16.7 Astrolabe: Medieval Measurements 223
16.8 Precession of Earth: Spinning on the Axis 225
16.9 Lunar Surface Regolith: After the Meteorites Hit the Moon 227
16.10 Weight and Gravity: Weighing In on the Earth, Moon, and Sun 228
16.11 Auroras: Party Lights in the Sky 229
16.12 Moon Face: The Moon’s Revolution and Rotation 231
Teacher’s Notes 232
Answer Key 239
About the Author :
PAM WALKER and ELAINE WOOD each have more han twenty years of science teaching experience. They are the authors of dozens of books for middle and high school science teachers and students, including Crime Scene Investigations and Hands-On General Science Activities with Real-Life Applications, both from Jossey-Bass.
Review :
"Each activity begins with a concise explanation of the concept upon which it focuses and includes a materials list, the procedure, follow-up questions, and extensions. These high-interest investigations use materials that are inexpensive, easily accessible, and familiar to students" (National Science Teacher's Association.org, October 2010)
