This activity is a mini-lab where students determine a procedure they might use to prove that air is matter.

This lab helps students to understand the density is state dependent and can change based on the state of the element.

As 5th grade students are learning about matter in science, these comprehension “mix-ups” are a great way to monitor students’ understanding of the content along with checking reading comprehension.

The purpose of this lesson is to help students understand the relationship between the mass and the weight of an object. Students will study the properties of common materials and why airplanes use specific materials.

Students calculate the viscosity of various household fluids by measuring the amount of time it takes marble or steel balls to fall given distances through the liquids. They experience what viscosity means, and also practice using algebra and unit conversions.

This activity is a lab investigation where students gather data about the masses of various solid objects found in a classroom. The students graph their data, compare their data, and draw conclusions about what kinds of materials contain more matter than others.

Through three lessons and their four associated activities, students are introduced to concepts related to mixtures and solutions. Students consider how mixtures and solutions and atoms and molecules can influence new technologies developed by engineers. To begin, students explore the fundamentals of atoms and their structures. The building blocks of matter (protons, electrons, neutrons) are covered in detail. The next lesson examines the properties of elements and the periodic table one method of organization for the elements. The concepts of physical and chemical properties are also reviewed. Finally, the last lesson introduces the properties of mixtures and solutions. A comparison of different mixtures and solutions, their properties and their separation qualities are explored.

This is a guided inquiry investigation for students to determine the state of matter of a mystery material and to make potential real world applications/products for the mystery material.

Everyone loves rock candy, especially fifth graders. Have students engage in a sequenced investigation to discover how adding heat to a sugar and water mixture creates a solution. Students will be amazed as the solution cools and forms edible crystals.

PhD Science Grade Levels K-2 is available as downloadable PDFs. The OER consists of the Teacher Edition and student Science Logbook.

Throughout the module, students study the anchor phenomenon, birds building nests, and develop an answer to the Essential Question: Why do different kinds of birds use certain materials to build their nests? As students learn about each new concept, they revisit and refine a model that represents how to describe different materials and how birds use those materials to build their nests. At the end of the module, students use their knowledge of how matter can be described, classified, and used to explain the anchor phenomenon, and they apply these concepts to a new context in an End-of-Module Assessment. Through these experiences, students learn that understanding the properties of matter and the ways matter can change helps people use materials for specific purposes.

With PhD Science¨, students explore science concepts through authentic phenomena and events-not fabricated versions-so students build concrete knowledge and solve real-world problems. Students drive the learning by asking questions, gathering evidence, developing models, and constructing explanations to demonstrate the new knowledge they've acquired. The coherent design of the curriculum across lessons, modules, and grade levels helps students use the concepts they've learned to build a deep understanding of science and set a firm foundation they'll build on for years to come.

Cross-curricular connections are a core component within PhD Science. As an example, every module incorporates authentic texts and fine art to build knowledge and create additional accessible entry points to the topic of study.

Three-dimensional teaching and learning are at the heart of the curriculum. As students uncover Disciplinary Core Ideas by engaging in Science and Engineering Practices and applying the lens of Cross-Cutting Concepts, they move from reading about science to doing science.

After reading about physical properties of matter, I wanted students to have a chance to experience what the different vocabulary words meant and gain some common experiences so that we would be able to reference these experiences in later classes. My students were also struggling with the new vocabulary words as well as the idea that melting temperature was a physical property. These six stations are designed for students to rotate through independently in small groups. The teacher will be at the gallium melting demonstration station throughout the activity while also monitoring students' progress around the room. At each station students will create a Frayer Model for the vocabulary term that includes the term, definition, a drawing, a synonym, an example, and a sentence that uses the term.

5th grade students that are learning about the phases of matter in science will read a Science A-Z book and complete an activity to show their understanding of the different phases.

The student will compare sound traveling through a solid and sound traveling through the air. After the completion of this module students will understand that sound travels fastest through solids, slower in liquids and slowest through gas. This module was developed by Sarah Donnelly as part of a Virginia Commonwealth University STEM initiative sponsored by the Virginia Department of Education.

This activity is used to introduce the different properties of states of matter, by testing an unknown substance with household materials to determine which state of matter most closely resembles the material. It also can invole data collection, reasoning, grph making, and presentation of findings.

Students act as chemical engineers and use LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT robotics to record temperatures and learn about the three states of matter. Properties of matter can be measured in various ways, including volume, mass, density and temperature. Students measure the temperature of water in its solid state (ice) as it is melted and then evaporated.

This activity is a lab investigation where students observe the four states of matter. At the end of the investigation students should be able to know that the differences among the physical states depend on the distance between the atoms or molecules and on the rate of movement of the atoms or molecules. And, that pressure and temperature control these two factors.

This activity models the states of matter and students investigate those states with a balloon/straw rocket.

This lesson connects the invention of the x-ray by Tesla to the artwork of Austrailian Aboriginals.

Students are introduced to the similarities and differences in the behaviors of elastic solids and viscous fluids. Several types of fluid behaviors are described Bingham plastic, Newtonian, shear thinning and shear thickening along with their respective shear stress vs. rate of shearing strain diagrams. In addition, fluid material properties such as viscosity are introduced, along with the methods that engineers use to determine those physical properties.