Jump to main content

Lesson Plans (256 results)

Free science lesson plans designed to engage students through hands-on experiments and activities. Chemistry, life sciences, physics, engineering and more, for elementary, middle and high school teachers.

Search
Refine Results
Filter by
Sort by
Paper Roller Coasters: Kinetic and Potential Energy
Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th
1
2
3
4
5
43 reviews
What goes up, must come down in this thrill-seeking lesson plan! How much energy does a roller coaster car need to make it through a loop? In this lesson your students will learn about kinetic and potential energy as they build their own roller coasters from simple classroom materials. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • MS-PS3-2. Develop a model to describe that when the arrangement of objects interacting at a distance changes, different amounts of potential energy are stored in the system.
  • MS-PS3-5. Construct, use, and present arguments to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object.
Design a Paper Airplane Launcher
Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th
1
2
3
4
5
10 reviews
Aircraft carriers are much shorter than a typical airport runway. How do airplanes manage to gain enough speed for takeoff over such a short distance? A catapult gives them an extra boost! In this lesson, your students will practice engineering design as they build their own paper airplane launchers, while learning about kinetic and potential energy. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • MS-PS3-2. Develop a model to describe that when the arrangement of objects interacting at a distance changes, different amounts of potential energy are stored in the system.
  • MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.
New!
AI-powered Formative Feedback in Science Project Pathways

Instant project feedback generated with AI, guided by Science Buddies rubrics!

Your students now have access to enhanced workbooks that provide an evaluation and guiding questions to help them improve their project question, hypothesis, prediction and variable identification!

Learn More & Try It!

Solve a Mirror Maze Challenge with the Law of Reflection
Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th
1
2
3
4
5
18 reviews
When light interacts with an object, it can be absorbed, transmitted, or reflected. This lesson focuses on materials that reflect light. Specifically, students will use mirrors and flashlights to investigate how light is reflected from a surface. By doing that, they will discover that when a light ray hits a reflective surface, its angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection, which is stated by the law of reflection. Students will then use their gained knowledge in a mirror maze… Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • MS-PS4-2. Develop and use a model to describe that waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials.
  • MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for the iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.
Animal Habitats
Lesson Plan Grade: Kindergarten
1
2
3
4
5
44 reviews
In this lesson, students play a game. Each classroom corner represents a habitat. After selecting an animal card, students have to move to the matching habitat while acting out the animal displayed on their card. By explaining why they selected a certain habitat, students realize that a habitat is a place that helps an animal survive. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • K-ESS3-1. Use a model to represent the relationship between the needs of different plants and animals (including humans) and the places they live.
  • 2-LS4-1. Make observations of plants and animals to compare the diversity of life in different habitats.
Balloon Car Lesson Plan
Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th
1
2
3
4
5
36 reviews
Your students will design, build, and race balloon-powered cars in this fun lesson plan that teaches about engineering design and kinetic and potential energy. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • MS-PS3-5. Construct, use, and present arguments to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from that object.
  • MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.
Teaching Engineering Design with an Egg Drop
Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th
1
2
3
4
5
18 reviews
The egg drop project is a time-honored tradition in many science classrooms. Students build a device to protect an egg and prevent it from breaking when dropped. This project typically relates to lessons about Newton's laws of motion or potential and kinetic energy. However, it is also a great way for students to practice the engineering design process, and learn about the importance of design iteration and learning from failure. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • MS-ETS1-2. Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
  • MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.
Flowers Seeking Pollinators
Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-7th
1
2
3
4
5
9 reviews
"European honey bee extracts nectar" by John Severns In this activity, students learn about plant reproduction and use real data to construct explanations about which flowers are the most attractive to different pollinators. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-LS1-1. Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death.
  • 4-LS1-1. Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
  • MS-LS1-4. Use argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support an explanation for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants, respectively.
Invent an Insect
Lesson Plan Grade: 2nd-5th
1
2
3
4
5
8 reviews
"Grasshopper" by Ryan Wood There are thousands of species of insects in our world, and each are adapted to survive in their habitat. In this activity, students will learn what an insect is and what some of their adaptations are. Then they will put their knowledge into play by "creating" an insect that is adapted to live in their assigned environment. Read more
Make an Anemometer to Measure Wind Speed
Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd
1
2
3
4
5
19 reviews
Help the budding meteorologists in your classroom learn how to measure wind speed by building their own anemometers (wind speed meters) with paper cups and straws. Then do a simple experiment in which students change the "wind" speed using a fan and measure how fast their anemometer spins. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-ESS2-1. Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season.
Paper Rockets to Learn the Scientific Method
Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th
1
2
3
4
5
43 reviews
Do you need a fun, easy way to teach your students about the scientific method? Try this lesson that uses rockets made from nothing but paper, tape, and straws. An elementary school version of this lesson plan is also available. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • MS-Science Practices.
1 2 3 4 5 ... 26 >

Explore Our Science Videos

Quick Links X
Top
Free science fair projects.