This Immersion Unit provides a coherent series of lessons designed to guide students in developing deep conceptual understanding that is aligned with the standards, key science concepts, and essential features of classroom inquiry (as defined by the National Science Education Standards). The Unit's overarching concepts are:- Naturally occurring variations of traits in a population are influenced by genetic and environmental factors and evolve over generations by selective processes.- Science knowledge advances through inquiry.Unit Supporting Concepts:- The variation of organisms within a species increases the likelihood that at least some members of the species will survive under changed environmental conditions.- Individual organisms with certain traits are more likely than others to survive and have offspring. Changes in environmental conditions can affect the survival of individual organisms and entire species.- Some variation in heritable characteristics exists within every species. One of these characteristics gives individuals an advantage over others in surviving and reproducing, and the advantaged offspring, in turn,are more likely than others to survive and reproduce.- New varieties of cultivated plants and domestic animals have resulted from selective breeding for particular traits.- Scientists differ greatly in whatphenomena they study and how they go about their work. Although there is nofixed set of steps that all scientists follow, scientific investigations usually involve the collection of relevant evidence, the use of logical reasoning, and the application of imagination in devising hypotheses and explanations to make sense of the collected evidence.- Important contributions to the advancement of science, mathematics, and technology have been made by different kinds of people, in different cultures, at different times.In Immersion Units, students learn academic content by working like scientists: making observations, asking questions, doing further investigations to explore and explain natural phenomena, and communicating results based on evidence. Immersion Units are intended to support teachers in building a learning culture in their classrooms to sustain studentsĺŐ enthusiasm for engaging in scientific habits of thinking while learning rigorous science content.The first step of this unit engages students in developing a class criteria for effective record-keeping in science by guiding an inquiry into scientists' notebooks.The unit includes very complete implementation instructions (Teacher's Guide pages), student pages, and formative and summative assessments.Students investigate:- how variation within a population is influenced by environmental factors- how environmental factors influence reproductive success in a populationThis unit was developed through the large Math and Science Partnership project called System-wide Change for All Learners and Educators (SCALE), involving a collaboration among Los Angeles School District educators, California State University science and education faculty, and UW-Madison SCALE staff.

This is a teacher demonstration used to show an example of kinetic molecular energy using food coloring and water. The students are also given opportunity to develop their own questions and tests.

In this activity students learn to use two different equations for modeling real-life situations that involve exponential decay. This is the third of three activities about Exponential Functions. The associated lesson plan and student assessment questions can be found at: https://concord.org/projects/smartgraphs#curriculum and clicking on “Algebra” and then “Exponential Functions.”

Learn how equations for several exponential functions are used to model population growth and compound interest. This is the second of three activities about exponential functions. The associated lesson plan and student assessment questions can be found at: https://concord.org/projects/smartgraphs#curriculum and clicking on “Algebra” and then “Exponential Functions.”

This video of a math lesson moves the students through several different activities. First, students differentiate between constants and variable terms. Then, students complete a group sort which leads them to a realization of like terms. Using a work mat and separate recording sheet, students then practice combining like terms. An exit ticket is included for formative assessment.
Additionally, students can practice combining and simplifying like terms utilizing the distributive property. At the end, there is an example of how to apply this lesson to real-world problems. Resources utilized in the video are available in pdf form.

You can space weights along a string so that they make a regular rhythm of beats when they strike the ground.
Through this activity several concepts can be explored: acceleration, gravity, weight, rhythm, sound.

The 9-session NASA Family Science Night program invites middle school children and their families to discover the wide variety of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics being performed at NASA and in everyday life. Family Science Night programs explore various themes on the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, and the Universe through fun, hands-on activities, including at-home experiments. Information about Family Science Night implementation and support resources, including the facilitator's guide, are available by registering on the Family Science Night Facilitators website (see Related & Supplemental Resources for link).

Play with a bar magnet and coils to learn about Faraday's law. Move a bar magnet near one or two coils to make a light bulb glow. View the magnetic field lines. A meter shows the direction and magnitude of the current. View the magnetic field lines or use a meter to show the direction and magnitude of the current. You can also play with electromagnets, generators and transformers!

Light a light bulb by waving a magnet. This demonstration of Faraday's Law shows you how to reduce your power bill at the expense of your grocery bill.

Light a light bulb by waving a magnet. This demonstration of Faraday's Law shows you how to reduce your power bill at the expense of your grocery bill.

Description and links to computer simulations that allow students to perform genetic crosses quickly. Students can use these simulations to test their genetic models developed from experiments done in the classroom with actual Fast Plants. These simulations were developed in 2000-2001 by Tom Whitaker and were tested successfully by hundreds of students at Madison West High School in Madison, Wisconsin as part of a new approach to genetics used by the Biology I team.

Students will attempt to balance the federal budget and meet political objectives while doing so.

This is a hands-on inquiry activity using zip-lock plastic bags that allows students to observe the process of fermentation and the challenge of producing ethanol from cellulosic sources. Students are asked to predict outcomes and check their observations with their predictions. Teachers can easily adapt to materials and specific classroom issues.

Young people have a profound sense of the importance of fairness. "It's not fair" is often used as a one-size-fits-all argument when a child feels victimized. In situations where the child has an interest in protecting his or her actions, "It's a free country!" is often the argument of choice. On the other hand, children are very sensitive about speech and policies they consider to have a negative effect on their well-being. Almost every day on the playground, the difficult issues surrounding our right to free speech and our responsibility to avoid harming someone else with our speech are debated with as much emotion — if not as much impact — as they have been in the courts, legislatures, and meeting halls of this land.
Balancing rights and responsibilities is difficult, even for the Supreme Court. This lesson demonstrates to students that freedom of speech is an ongoing process.
How does the right to free speech conflict with our responsibility to consider the rights of others?
How is the First Amendment interpreted differently in different contexts?
Under what conditions is some speech limited and other speech protected?
Summarize the contents of the First Amendment
Give examples of speech that is protected by the Constitution and speech that is not protected by the Constitution.

Explore pressure in the atmosphere and underwater. Reshape a pipe to see how it changes fluid flow speed. Experiment with a leaky water tower to see how the height and water level determine the water trajectory.

This food truck project ties into the Hospitality & Tourism career cluster, as it focuses on business planning, marketing/advertising, menu planning, food costing, equipment sourcing, floor planning, packaging, cooking, and food presentation. Students who are considering entering into a hospitality or tourism career will greatly benefit from the skills and knowleged gained through this project, as well as from taking the courses in the Family & Consumer Sciences department. This project also provides students with opportunities to practice teamwork, cooperation, problem-solving skills, math skills, and creativity. This project provides a unique, hands-on learning experience that reinforces skills that will be useful in many different types of careers.

This activity is a skill improvement warm up activity for grades 6-8.  It involves throwing to a moving target and catching on the move.  It requires minimal equipment(cones, a hula hoop, 2 balls for each group) and can be quickly set up and taken down.

Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing cabinet. Create an applied force and see the resulting friction force and total force acting on the cabinet. Charts show the forces, position, velocity, and acceleration vs. time. View a Free Body Diagram of all the forces (including gravitational and normal forces).

Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing cabinet. Create an applied force and see the resulting friction force and total force acting on the cabinet. Charts show the forces, position, velocity, and acceleration vs. time. View a Free Body Diagram of all the forces (including gravitational and normal forces).

Explore the forces at work in a tug of war or pushing a refrigerator, crate, or person. Create an applied force and see how it makes objects move. Change friction and see how it affects the motion of objects.