This educator?s guide details activities that allow students to explore magnets and the region of influence around a magnet called a magnetic field. Students learn that magnets exert a force on a magnetically-sensitive object without coming into direct contact with it. Students then create a map of the magnetic influence around the magnet. Full description.

This site presents a good overall introduction to hurricane science at the elementary level. Topics include: Weather Instruments, Killer Storms, Surviviors, and Inside a Hurricane. Each section has activites and/or simple explanations of the topic. Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to develop an understanding of plants' response to light. Students will do simple investigations to observe plant responses to light. Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to observe, document, and classify changes in visibility and sky color over time and to understand the relationship between sky color, visibility, and aerosols in the atmosphere. The intended outcome is that students become aware of the changes in visibility and sky color due to particles suspended in the air. Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to measure the temperature of a water sample. Students use an alcohol-filled thermometer or meter to measure the temperature of water. The meter requires calibration before use; the accuracy of the thermometer needs to be checked before use. Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to discover why an instrument shelter is built the way it is. Students construct shelters that have varying properties and place them in the same location or place similar shelters in different locations and compare temperature data taken in each shelter. Students should predict what will happen for each of the different shelter designs or placements and perform the ... Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to observe plant green-down and report greendown data to help validate estimates of the end of the plant growing season. Students monitor the change in color of selected leaves of trees, shrubs or grasses. Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to observe plant green-up and report data that will be used by scientists to validate satellite estimates of the beginning of the plant growing season. Students monitor budburst and growth of leaves of selected trees, shrubs, or grasses. Species chosen should be native, deciduous, and dominant in your area. Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to understand that soil, under different environmental conditions, plays a role in the decomposition of organic materials. Students use bottle experiments to observe changes in the decomposition of vegetable scraps. Students vary temperature, moisture, and light conditions to determine the conditions that best facilitate the decomposition of organic material in soil. ... Full description.