In this activity students discover that the types and relative proportion of minerals that occur together in a rock tell scientists the story of how that rock was formed. They also learn that rocks are named based on how they formed and by the types, amounts, and sizes of minerals in the rocks. Students will realize that one of the most important skills a geologist needs when studying a rock is the ... Full description.

This resource explains the nature of the universe from the point of view of ancient Greeks and Copernicus, and the birth of the universe based on the Big Bang and inflation theory. It discusses the origin of matter and formation of elements in the universe, the different types of galaxies, and how dark matter may affect the death of the universe. Full description.

This open-ended laboratory activity is useful in demonstrating how solar wind particles are deflected by the Earth's magnetosphere and how charged particles are aligned within it. After this lesson, students should be able to discuss and describe the components of solar wind particles, explain why the magnetosphere and ionosphere protect the Earth, and explain how moving particles behave (and align) ... Full description.

This site discusses how meteorites reveal the processes at work deep inside planets. Under the topics crust, mantle, and core, students can watch an animation showing differentiation. Some meteorites come from pre-planetary bodies that melted, causing the rock and metals to separate into distinct parts. This is the same process that caused the separation of planets into layers. In regard to iron crystals, ... Full description.

This site contains a mineral database with access to 4,339 individual mineral species descriptions with links and a comprehensive image library. Mineral data on individual species are linked to a mineral table by crystallography, X-Ray powder diffraction, chemical composition, physical and optical properties, Danas new classification, Strunz classification, mineral specimen images, and alphabetical ... Full description.

This rock cycle unit was designed to be used with a college course in physical geography. From this module, students learn to distinguish between minerals and rocks, how rocks are classified, and how rocks are constantly recycled providing raw materials for other rocks. Igneous rocks are discussed on the basis of being intrusive or extrusive, sedimentary rocks are divided into clastic and non-clastic, ... Full description.

In this activity students investigate the facts behind erosion, and observe, record and report their findings. Examples include the Grand Canyon's erosion effects due to wind, glaciers, animals, and humans. Observation and report sheets contain questions to guide students in their work. There are also examples of student reports and a teacher guide. Full description.

In this experiment students measure the relative densities of water, snow, and ice. They can then submit their results online for comparison with data contributed by students from all over the world. Full description.

These teacher tools from the National Science Center (NSC) are categorized by chemistry, air pressure and fluids, electricity, energy, light, magnetism, mathematics, motion, sound, wave phenomena, and science soup (miscellaneous topics). The resources are lesson plans, activities, videos, and opportunities to register for distance learning. There is also a teacher forum to share lessons and activities. ... Full description.

In this activity students will learn how cold and warm water behave in the marine environment due to convection currents by conducting an experiment that demonstrates the formation of a convection current. They will discover that around the steeply rising sides of some submarine mountains, cold waters from the depths often flow upward, mixing with warmer surface waters to create upwelling due to swiftly ... Full description.