This hands-on activity shows students what happens when the fresh water of a river meets the salt water of the ocean. They will make a saturated solution of colored salt water, pour it into fresh water, and observe what happens. There are also extensions to the activity in which they add a third layer of water of intermediate salinity, and test two solutions by floating a pencil in them. There is ... Full description.

In this lesson, students will learn about sampling through an investigation of rocks found in the schoolyard. This will provide a start to understanding everyday statistics. They will first collect and analyze a sample of rocks from the schoolyard and array the collected rocks by characteristics such as size, weight, and color, to see if any generalizations can be made about the types of rocks that ... Full description.

This lesson introduces students to properties of rocks, specifically weight and density. They will select a rock, make a list of words to describe it, estimate its mass and use a balance to check their estimates, write a story about what they have learned, and group or classify the rocks according to what they have learned. Full description.

Minerals are all around us. They're in our kitchens and bathrooms, our classrooms and school buildings, and our cars and bicycles. This interactive feature lets users discover which minerals are found in items they probably encounter every day. Rolling the cursor over items in an illustrated room accesses pop-ups that describe what mineral products may be found in them. A background essay and list ... Full description.

This lesson demonstrates the effect of acid on statues and buildings. Students learn the nature of acid rain, the damage it can cause, and why it can cover large areas. The lesson includes essential elements, focus, objective, a list of materials, background information, procedure and ideas for extensions. Full description.

Earth's surface is covered with natural features formed by weathering, erosion, and deposition. Although these forces are typically associated with destruction, they have also created many of the world's natural wonders. This interactive slide show presents images of natural features (glacial valleys, petrified forests, hot springs, and others) produced by these powerful forces. A background essay ... Full description.

This lesson plan is part of the DiscoverySchool.com lesson plan library for grades 6-8. It focuses on the ecology of the Grand Canyon area. Students act as scientists investigating the damming of the Colorado River by the Glen Canyon dam and experimental flooding that took place in 1996. They then write a proposal as to whether or not more experimental flooding should be done on the area considering ... Full description.

This page contains information about Mt. Saint Helens, a volcano in Washington State which had remained silent for 120 years and came to life on May 18, 1980. The site has a question and answer section with Jim Webster, a volcanologist with the American Museum of Natural History. It also includes an activity called Rock Candy Experiment - Crystals You Can Eat in which students make rock candy to simulate ... Full description.

This activity gives students a look at the rugged terrain of the ocean floor. Using modeling clay, students create a landform model complete with mountain ridges, plateaus, rivers, and canyons in a large waterproof pan. Then they pour in blue-tinted water to see that the ocean is simply flooded land with many of the same landforms found above water. The activity includes an extension that has students ... Full description.

This experiment demonstrates that energy from the Sun can be collected and stored in a variety of ways. Using plastic bottles painted black and white and capped with balloons, students will see that the black bottle becomes warmer, heating the air inside it and blowing up the balloon. Full description.