A team of scientists from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) is studying the presence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the Antarctic. During January and February 2002 an educator travelled there to participate in the study, and posted daily reports. In addition, this site contains learning activities that you can use to find out how scientists think and work. These include research ... Full description.

This Student Activity Worksheet is part of a San Jose State University ALERT K-12 module which teaches middle school students about making reasonable estimates of numbers, volume, mass, and time. Students estimate numbers of books on shelves and jellybeans or dried beans in jars, compare masses of coins, and estimate time by taking their pulses. Full description.

This Amazing Space activity examines the Hubble Deep Field image and allows students to simulate the process astronomers go through to count, classify, and identify objects, as well as estimate distances. It seeks to convey the importance of collaboration among scientists as well as the possibility of more than one acceptable answer to any scientific inquiry. Follow-up activities, links, and an instructor ... Full description.

This lesson explores six criteria of science (Consistent, Observable, Natural, Predictable, Testable, and Tentative (CONPTT)), with definitions and self-check questions. It compares emerging science, non-science, and pseudoscience, with definitions and examples. The activity engages students in analyzing a collection of paragraphs to decide which category each fits into. Full description.

In this article, The Why Files examines amber as nature's preservative. This fossilized resin has provided scientists with important clues and evidence for ancient life on Earth. The article investigates what amber is, how it preserves, where it is found, and the discoveries about ancient DNA that have been made by using amber fossils. Full description.

This resource is part of the Science Education Gateway (SEGway) project, funded by NASA, which is a national consortium of scientists, museums, and educators working together to bring the latest science to students, teachers, and the general public. In this activity, students use their knowledge of landforms and geography to answer questions about satellite images. These quizzes were developed as ... Full description.

This lesson teaches students that scientific hypotheses are subject to being tested. A closed box is shown to the class. It can be seen that three wires run through the box lengthwise and three more run through it widthwise, creating a grid of six crossed wires. The class is told that there is a metal washer somewhere on one or two of the wires inside the box. The challenge is to propose a series ... Full description.

In this lesson, short deceptive problem stories are presented to the class and students are challenged to solve each problem by asking only yes/no questions. The key is for students to recognize: what the False Assumption is that makes the solution tricky; that many common problems are difficult to solve because we tend to assume a particular paradigm; and that science is a way to work around or through ... Full description.

Water is the most abundant, unique and important substance on Earth. It is essential to life and is a major component of all living materials. Approximately 1520 billion liters of water exist on Earth. In this lesson, students learn how water is distributed on Earth and construct a model and graph depicting this distribution. The site contains a list of materials, background information, procedure ... Full description.

This lesson explores how scientific knowledge changes in the context of abrupt climate change. Until a few years ago, it was believed that climate changes gradually on Earth. But results from ice cores and other geologic records of past temperature changes indicate that this is not necessarily the case and that abrupt climate changes may be the norm rather than the exception. Using this issue, students ... Full description.