This video is part of the Continue to Know with WHRO TV series. Watch Fallan Lee-Brown teach about absolute value.
The second lesson of two on Ancient Rome, students examine the geographic extent of the Roman Empire. The Orbis Web site, hosted by Stanford University, provides a map of the Roman Empire at its largest extent with the locations of key cities and transportation links. Key questions: How were places within the Roman Empire connected?; How did time and distance affect interactions within the Roman Empire?
Students use ultrasonic sensors and LEGO© MINDSTORMS© NXT robots to emulate how bats use echolocation to detect obstacles. They measure the robot's reaction times as it senses objects at two distances and with different sensor threshold values, and again after making adjustments to optimize its effectiveness. Like engineers, they gather and graph data to analyze a given design (from the tutorial) and make modifications to the sensor placement and/or threshold values in order to improve the robot's performance (iterative design). Students see how problem solving with biomimicry design is directly related to understanding and making observations of nature.
In this activity, students will discover how to determine the distance between two points on the same horizontal or vertical line.
Students' understanding of how robotic ultrasonic sensors work is reinforced in a design challenge involving LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT robots and ultrasonic sensors. Student groups program their robots to move freely without bumping into obstacles (toy LEGO people). They practice and learn programming skills and logic design in parallel. They see how robots take input from ultrasonic sensors and use it to make decisions to move, resulting in behavior similar to the human sense of sight but through the use of sound sensors, more like echolocation. Students design-test-redesign-retest to achieve successful programs. A PowerPoint® presentation and pre/post quizzes are provided.
Students develop and solidify their understanding of the concept of "perimeter" as they engage in a portion of the civil engineering task of land surveying. Specifically, they measure and calculate the perimeter of a fenced in area of "farmland," and see that this length is equivalent to the minimum required length of a fence to enclose it. Doing this for variously shaped areas confirms that the perimeter is the minimal length of fence required to enclose those shapes. Then students use the technology of a LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT robot to automate this task. After measuring the perimeter (and thus required fence length) of the "farmland," students see the NXT robot travel around this length, just as a surveyor might travel around an area during the course of surveying land or measuring for fence materials. While practicing their problem solving and measurement skills, students learn and reinforce their scientific and geometric vocabulary.
In this activity students practice measuring techniques by measuring different objects and distances around the classroom. They practice using different scales of measurement in metric units and estimation.
Students learn about how ultrasonic sensors work, reinforcing the connection between this sensor and how humans, bats and dolphins estimate distance. They learn the echolocation process sound waves transmitted, bounced back and received, with the time difference used to calculate the distance of objects. Two mini-activities, which use LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT robots and ultrasonic sensors, give students a chance to experiment with ultrasonic sensors in preparation for the associated activity. A PowerPoint® presentation explains stimulus-to-response pathways, sensor fundamentals, and details about the LEGO ultrasonic sensor. Pre/post quizzes are provided. This lesson and its associated activity enable students to gain a deeper understanding of how robots can take sensor input and use it to make decisions via programming.
Students practice their multiplication skills using robots with wheels built from LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT kits. They brainstorm distance travelled by the robots without physically measuring distance and then apply their math skills to correctly calculate the distance and compare their guesses with physical measurements. Through this activity, students estimate parameters other than by physically measuring them, practice multiplication, develop measuring skills, and use their creativity to come up with successful solutions.
This Story Map Journal emphasizes geography’s impact on United States’ strategy in fighting World War II in the Pacific. Students, through the use of Library of Congress resources explore geography’s impact on the average soldier in the Pacific. They will also chart the progress that the armed forces made in their attempt to hop over non-strategic islands in their attempts to get ever closer to the home islands of Japan. Based on the images obtained from the Library of Congress, students will be able to critically assess the toll that the geography of the Pacific took on soldiers. Contains links to student materials and teacher materials for creating lesson plans.
Students explore methods employing simple machines likely used in ancient pyramid building, as well as common modern-day material transportation. They learn about the wheel and axle as a means to transport materials from rock quarry to construction site. They also learn about different types and uses of a lever for purposes of transport. In an open-ended design activity, students choose from everyday materials to engineer a small-scale cart and lever system to convey pyramid-building materials.
Students measure the relative intensity of a magnetic field as a function of distance. They place a permanent magnet selected distances from a compass, measure the deflection, and use the gathered data to compute the relative magnetic field strength. Based on their findings, students create mathematical models and use the models to calculate the field strength at the edge of the magnet. They use the periodic table to predict magnetism. Finally, students create posters to communicate the details their findings. This activity guides students to think more deeply about magnetism and the modeling of fields while practicing data collection and analysis. An equations handout and two grading rubrics are provided.
Students learn about slope, determining slope, distance vs. time graphs through a motion-filled activity. Working in teams with calculators and CBL motion detectors, students attempt to match the provided graphs and equations with the output from the detector displayed on their calculators.
Students learn the metric units engineers use to measure mass, distance (or length) and volume. They make estimations using these units and compare their guesses with actual values. To introduce the concepts, the teacher needs access to a meter stick, a one-liter bottle, a glass container that measures milliliters and a gram scale.
The main aim of this lesson is to show students that distances may be determined without a meter stick—a concept fundamental to such measurements in astronomy. It introduces students to the main concepts behind the first rung of what astronomers call the distance ladder. The four main learning objectives are the following: 1) Explore, in practice, a means of measuring distances without what we most often consider the “direct” means: a meter stick; 2) Understand the limits of a method through the exploration of uncertainties; 3) Understand in the particular method used, the relationship between baseline and the accuracy of the measurement; and 4) Understand the astronomical applications and implications of the method and its limits. Students should be able to use trigonometry and know the relation between trigonometric functions and the triangle. A knowledge of derivatives is also needed to obtain the expression for the uncertainty on the distance measured. Students will need cardboard cut into disks. The number of disks is essentially equal to half the students in the class. Two straight drink straws and one pin per disk. Students will also need a protractor. The lesson should not take more than 50 minutes to complete if the students have the mathematical ability mentioned above. This lesson is complimentary to the BLOSSOMS lesson, "The Parallax Activity." The two lessons could be used sequentially - this one being more advanced - or they could be used separately.
Students learn about sound waves and use them to measure distances between objects. They explore how engineers incorporate ultrasound waves into medical sonogram devices and ocean sonar equipment. Students learn about properties, sources and applications of three types of sound waves, known as the infra-, audible- and ultra-sound frequency ranges. They use ultrasound waves to measure distances and understand how ultrasonic sensors are engineered.
Students design, build and test model race cars made from simple materials (lifesaver-shaped candies, plastic drinking straws, Popsicle sticks, index cards, tape) as a way to explore independent, dependent and control variables. They measure the changes in distance travelled with the addition of mass to the vehicles. Students also practice the steps of the engineering design process by brainstorming, planning, building, testing, and improving their "mint-mobiles."
Video Description: Learn about the global cooperation to build the International Space Station, or ISS. Use a simple scale model to demonstrate the amazing mathematical relationship between the Earth and moon and see how the low-Earth orbit of ISS compares. Video Length: 5:57.NASA eClipsTM is a suite of online student-centered, standards-based resources that support instruction by increasing STEM literacy in formal and nonformal settings. These free digital and downloadable resources inform and engage students through NASA-inspired, real-world connections.NASA eClips Our World videos (grades 3-5) help students understand the differences between science (the natural world) and engineering (the designed world). These video segments supplement elementary learning objectives not only in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, but also in reading, writing, visual and performing arts.
Video Description: Find out more about how our sun's position in the sky changes due to Earth's rotation, revolution and tilt. Learn from the experts -- Dr. Alex Young and Dr. Nicki Viall explain these connections so students understand patterns within the Earth-sun relationship. Video Length: 2:19NASA eClips is a suite of online student-centered, standards-based resources that support instruction by increasing STEM literacy in formal and nonformal settings. These free digital and downloadable resources inform and engage students, through NASA-inspired, real-world connections.NASA eClips Our World videos (grades 3-5) help students understand the differences between science (the natural world) and engineering (the designed world). These video segments supplement elementary learning objectives not only in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, but also in reading, writing, visual and performing arts.
Video Description: Picture this. NASA sends a spacecraft to land on an asteroid, grab a piece of that asteroid, and then send that sample back to Earth to study. Learn more about all that NASA can learn about the formation of the Solar System from the close encounter of OSIRIS-REx with near-Earth asteroid Bennu. Video Length: 3:55.NASA eClipsTM is a suite of online student-centered, standards-based resources that support instruction by increasing STEM literacy in formal and nonformal settings. These free digital and downloadable resources inform and engage students through NASA-inspired, real-world connections.NASA eClips Real World segments (grades 6-8) connect classroom mathematics to 21st Century careers and innovations. They are designed for students to develop an appreciation for mathematics through real-world problem solving.