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Making My Own Medicine (Protein Synthesis)

Our capacity to build proteins in our body is an important component of our health. We make protein to serve important purposes in our lives. This lesson examines two very important protein synthesis processes. First, our bodies make Enzymes to help the chemical activities in our bodies. Enzymes speed up chemical reactions and lower the activation energy on chemical processes. Lactase in the enzyme we produce that allows us to process Lactose sugar in milk. This is an important enzyme, but many people have DNA allele patterns that do not allow them to make this protein. Second, antibodies are proteins that fight disease. Both vaccines and our natural response to being exposed to the virus rely on our bodies making proteins to make our own medicine.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Social Justice Biology 9-12th CA NGSS Aligned
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A Tornado In a Bottle

Air can be among the most powerful substances in existence. The powerful results of air movements can lead to hurricanes and tornados. The question is how does a hurricane work. The mixture of circular rapid air movements and a voice of space in between allows the air movement to be enhance and powerful by reducing resistance. This lesson plan and laboratory will help provide students a model for how tornados function.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physical Science Physics
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Square Bubbles – Surface Tension

Who doesn’t love bubbles! The things with bubbles is that they offer a quick and easy way to view how electrostatic forces impact small interactions. In the bubbles we see, there is an interesting effect, where the maximum distance of the surface tension is a globe. However, have you ever seen bubbles in different shapes. This lesson explores how making square bubbles might be an option.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Biology Physical Science Physics 6-8th 9-12th CA
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Smoke Rings – Air Vortex Movements

A vortex ring is a circular shaped ring of spinning gasses that move together as a unit. A vortex ring can happen in liquid or gasses, but are rarely seen because they happen inside of liquids or gases. When a vortex ring happens inside of suspended particles—as in the smoke rings which are often produced by smoke they can be seen. Visible vortex rings can also be formed by the firing of certain artillery, in mushroom clouds, and in microbursts.[1][2]

A vortex ring usually tends to move in a direction that is perpendicular to the plane of the ring and such that the inner edge of the ring moves faster forward than the outer edge. Within a stationary body of fluid, a vortex ring can travel for relatively long distance, carrying the spinning fluid with it.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physical Science Physics 9-12th K-6th CA GA IN TN
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Sling Shot Rockets

Slingshot physics involves the use of stored elastic energy to shoot a something at a high speed. This elastic energy comes from rubber bands which are specially made for slingshots. This energy is provided initially by the muscle energy of the slingshot operator. One of the goals of a slingshot is to fire the projectile at the greatest speed possible. To do this two basic physics conditions must be satisfied.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physical Physical Science 6-8th 9-12th CA IN TN
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The Science of Making Slime

Admit it, slime is simply awesome! Kids will make slime at home in their spare time, but what it the science of this uber relaxing materials. This lesson prepares your students to understand how substances engage in the formation of Polymers. The discussions of polymers can start at slime and explore environmental justice. Enjoy this engaging interpretation of slime.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Biology Chemistry 6-8th 9-12th CA
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Genetics Through Reebops

Genetics plays an important role in our life. How often have you wondered why someone’s brother or sister looks dramatically different from them? Our genes operate by a set of rules that we should talk about more often. Each parent has genes that split in half, scramble and then replicate. Even after that there are environmental factors that cause the genes to work. This lab uses simply marshmallows to teach this idea.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Biology 6-8th 9-12th CA GA IN TN
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Make Makey – Introducing Engineering Through Circuts

Circuits are central to how we interact with the world You need a closed path, or closed circuit, to get electric current to flow. If there’s a break anywhere in the path where electricity travels, you have an open circuit, and the current stops flowing — and the metal atoms in the wire quickly settle down to a peaceful, electrically neutral existence. This lesson teaches this concept in a simple and engaging way.

A closed circuit allows current to flow, but an open circuit leaves electrons stranded.
Picture a gallon of water flowing through an open pipe. The water will flow for a short time but then stop when all the water exits the pipe. If you pump water through a closed pipe system, the water will continue to flow as long as you keep forcing it to move.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physical K-6th
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The Science of Ice Cream

To make ice cream, the ingredients—typically milk (or half and half), sugar and vanilla extract—need to be cooled down. One way to do this is by using salt. If you live in a cold climate, you may have seen trucks spreading salt and sand on the streets in the wintertime to prevent roads from getting slick after snow or ice. Why is this? The salt lowers the temperature at which water freezes, so with salt ice will melt even when the temperature is below the normal freezing point of water. This is an easy way to teach phase change.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Chemistry Physical Physical Science K-6th CA GA IN TN
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Air Powered Hover Crafts

All of our most widely used modes of transportation rely on Friction to move. Airplanes, Cars, Boats, Bikes, and Skateboards all rely on generating friction against something. In the case of the Airplane, it is the friction between the air and the airplane jets. For the Car, Bike, and Skateboards it is the friction between the tires and the ground. If the tires have a good grip (another word for friction) cars, bikes, and skateboards can travel. So what would happen if a care or skateboard did not have a good grip?

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physical Physical Science K-6th
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A Cloud In a Bottle

This lesson is a great way to teach young people about gas laws and the water cycle. Using a small bottle and an air pump you can create the air pressure differential that you need to cause water droplets to move from their gas form to the liquid form of a cloud. This simple lab will teach your students to understand the states of water during the water cycle and how air pressure influence that change.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Biology Chemistry Physical Science K-6th CA
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Air Pressure Rockets

One of the challenges of teaching science involves getting students to see the value of micro level phenomenon. “Air” is among the things that is most challenging to teach. Air pressure impacts us everyday, but can be hard to understand because it is largely invisible. This lesson uses the building and launching of air pressure powered rockets as a means to give students an understanding of how air pressure impacts our world.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physical Physical Science 6-8th CA
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The Flint Water Crisis – The Water Cycle

The basic concept of the water cycle can be one that is hard for students to connect to larger sociocultural issues. In helping students set a sense of how the water cycle matters to their lives, this lesson uses the issues of The Flint Water Cycle to help students understand how the water cycle is a vital component in providing clean water for everyone. This lesson includes slides, lesson plans, and handouts to be used for instruction. All of the lessons are available in downloadable and accessible in MS Word and Powerpoint formats that you can adjust.

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Biology 6-8th K-6th CA
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Sports Science – The Physics of Landing (Newton’s 2nd Law)

Sports and dance provide a wealth of opportunities to learn science. This introductory physics  lesson explores the physics of landing. Many young people experience traumatic injuries that are the result of landing from a jump. The impact of their bodies hitting the ground after accelerating from a height magnifies the weight of their body onto…

Lab Examples Lesson Plans Physics 9-12th CA
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