Solid, Liquid, or Gas?

Grade: 4

*This is a lesson on matter that I taught to fourth grade students during my student teaching internship.

 

Use the ‘How Do Things Shape Up?’ worksheet to read and discuss the properties of solids, liquids, and gasses.

Divide the students into small groups and give each group different items that are solids, liquids, and gasses. I used air (in the balloon), corn syrup, water, rock, pom pom, pencil, cardboard tube, and a tongue depressor. Have the students take turns placing each item in an empty cup to determine whether or not the items take the shape of the container. This helps the students determine if the item has a definite shape and/or a definite volume.  They can also determine if the matter can be seen. The students can use these properties to determine whether the item is a solid, liquid, or gas.

Enhancement: to challenge above-level students, give them silly putty and have the observe the properties to determine if it’s a solid, liquid, or gas.

As a reinforcement, have the student complete the ‘What’s the Matter?’ worksheet.

Changes in Matter

Grade: 4

*This is a science lesson I taught to fourth grade students during my student teaching internship.

Read, discuss, and complete the ‘A Heated Discussion’ worksheet, which talks about changes in matter such a condensation, evaporation, freezing, and boiling.

Show the students a solution of water and Epsom salt. Ask the students to predict what will happen if they use the solution to paint on paper.

Have the students create a scene on dark blue construction paper using crayons. Then have the students paint on the picture using the Epsom salt solution (integrating art). As the solution dries, the water evaporates, leaving the Epsom Salt.

Air – It’s Everywhere

Grade: 4

*This is a science lesson I taught during my student teaching internship.

1. Use two plastic cups. Cut a hole in one and put two ‘balls’ of paper in the bottom of each cup.

2. Explain to the students that we are going to turn each cup upside down and place them in the water. Have them predict what is going to happen to the paper.

3. Complete the experiment discussing why one ‘ball’ of paper remained dry (the air is in the cup without holes) while the other is wet (the cup with holes lost the air and water filled the cup).

4. Read and discuss about air and how it’s everywhere.

Snack Tectonics

Grade:4

*This is a lesson I taught to fourth grade students during my student teaching internship.

1. Use the power point to discuss the characteristics of the earth. Guide the students into discussing the theory of Plate Tectonics. (Also use this power point to guide through the following activity).

2. Give student a dollop of frosting (asthenosphere), half of a fruit roll up (oceanic crust), and half of a graham cracker (continental crust). They also need a utensil to spread the frosting and a glass of water.

3. Instruct the students to cut the fruit roll up into two pieces and place them (oceanic crust) on the frosting (asthenosphere). Then have them push the two plate apart from each other. This represent divergent plate boundaries.

4. Next, instruct the students to remove one of the fruit roll up pieces and place half of the graham cracker piece (continental crust) next to the fruit roll up (oceanic crust). Now, have them push the two plates towards each other until the fruit roll up subducts under the graham cracker. This represents a convergent plate boundary at a subduction zone.

5. Now have the students dip the edges of two graham crackers (continental crust) in water. Have them place the graham crackers on the frosting (asthenosphere) with the moist sides towards each other. Have them push the two plates towards each other, the soft spots of the graham cracker will push upwards. This represents a convergent plate boundary at a mountain range.

6. Next, have the students turn the graham crackers (continental crust) around so the dry parts are facing each other. Now have them slide the plates past one another. This represents a transform plate boundary.

7. As a final review or test, have the students complete this worksheet.

Volcanoes

Grade: 4

*This is a lesson I taught during my student teaching internship.

Start by reading and discussing volcanoes, using the ’Volcanoes’ worksheet. The students will need to fill in the blanks as we read.

Have the students complete the cross word puzzle as a review and reinforcement of the concepts read and discussed.

Answer Keys:

Soil Erosion

Grade: 4

*This is a lesson I taught to fourth grade students during my student teaching internship.

1. Discuss how plants can help stop or significantly slow down soil erosion.

2. Demonstrate how plants help slow down soil erosion by getting a pan of soil and building a small hill on one end. Cover half of that hill with a towel. This towel represents plants in the soil.

3. Now, with a container of water. Pour an equal amount of water over both the bare soil and the soil with plants (towel).

4. Remove the towel and observe and discuss the differences in the soil. Compare and contrast the erosion of soil with and without plants.

Bird Glyph

Grades: 3-4

*This is a lesson I taught to third and fourth graders at six different elementary schools as part of an afterschool science program.

1. As a class, read and discuss the bird information sheet.

2. Have the students answer the questions on the worksheet. Have the students not only circle the box with the correct answer, but have them circle the box underneath the correct answer.

3. Have the students follow the directions in their circled box in order to color the birds sheet.

Hibernation Glyph

Grades: 5-6

*This is a lesson I taught to fifth and sixth graders at six different elementary schools as part of an afterschool science program.

1. As a class, read and discuss the hibernation information sheet.

2. Have the students answer the questions on the worksheet. Have the students not only circle the box with the correct answer, but have them circle the box underneath the correct answer.

3. Have the students follow the direction from their question worksheet to complete their bear coloring and drawing sheet.

Penguin Glyph

Grades: 1-2

*This is a lesson I taught to first and second graders at six different elementary schools as part of an afterschool science program.

1. As a class, read and discuss the penguin information sheet.

2. Have the students answer the questions on the worksheet. Have the students not only circle the box with the correct answer, but have them circle the box underneath the correct answer.

3. Have the students follow the directions under the correct answer box in order to color the penguin.

  

 

Animals Surviving the Cold

Grades:1-6

*This is a lesson I taught to first through sixth graders at six different elementary school's afterschool programs.

*I also taught this lesson to first through sixth grade students as part of a weeklong science camp.

1. In this activity, students will compare which type of coverings stay the warmest in cold weather.

2. Start by discussing different ways animals (including humans) stay warm in the cold weather.

3. Split students into groups, and give each group a bucket of ice water, a thermometer, and an animal covering in a “plastic glove” (see pictures).

4. Each student will also need a worksheet and pencil.

5. Have one student at each group put the thermometer inside the ‘glove’ and, when told to, put the glove into the ice water. Time them according to the times on the worksheet.

6. Repeat the previous step, rotating through students and times according to the worksheet.

7. Collect and analyze the data, answering the questions at the bottom of the worksheet.

Animals Surviving Winter

Grades: 1-6

*This is a book I wrote and a lesson I taught to first through sixth grade students at six different elementary schools as part of an afterschool program.

 

First, read and discuss the book I wrote about various ways that animals survive the winter.

Next, divide the students into two groups having them rotate through the following two activities.

The first activity is a card sort. The students have to recall the information from the book in order to sort the pictures of animals under the correct heading of how they survive the winter.

The second activity is a memory game. The students have to recall the information from the book in order to match the picture cards to the narrative description of how the animals survive the winter.

Adaptation: pair up below-level readers with above-level readers in order to complete the card games.