Middle School Projects, Lessons, Activities (Page 58)

Follow the Flow

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

This project is inspired by the Banaue Rice Terraces, 2,000 year old structures carved into mountainsides in the Philippines. See if you can recreate the water flow of this ancient marvel, often called the Eighth Wonder of the World, using just household materials! Looking for inspiration? You can see how other students have tackled this and other annual Science Buddies Engineering Challenges. Read more

Food Waste Audit

Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-11th

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"Fresh Food In Garbage Can to Illustrate Waste" by SpeedKingz/Shutterstock.com Have you ever thrown away food after a meal? Have you ever thrown away a whole piece of food? What are some of the reasons you threw away that food? During this Food Waste Audit, students will explore their own impact on our food system. Students will brainstorm solutions to reduce their food waste and be challenged to try out their solution! Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

MS-ESS3-3. Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.

Fool Your Vision to Find Out How It Works

Lesson Plan Grade: 6th-8th

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How is it possible that our eyes can see things that are not really there? In this fun lesson plan, your students will explore how our vision works with the help of two short experiments that involve some fascinating optical illusions. Let your students discuss why they see a hole in their hand, or why they see colors that were never there, and let them construct their own explanations. Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

MS-LS1-8. Gather and synthesize information that sensory receptors respond to stimuli by sending messages to the brain for immediate behavior or storage as memories.

Fossil Fuels: Air Pollution and the Greenhouse Effect

Lesson Plan Grade: 4th-8th

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"Nuclear Power Plant Cattenom" © 2005 Stefan Kühn In these two activities, students will explore two consequences of burning fossil fuels: air pollution and the greenhouse effect. For a comprehensive unit on fossil fuels, this lesson works especially well as an extension to Fossil Fuels: Chocolate Chip Mining. Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

4-ESS3-1. Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and that their uses affect the environment
MS-ESS3-4. Construct an argument supported by evidence for how increases in human population and per-capita consumption of natural resources impact Earth's systems.

Gear Up Your Candy

STEM Activity

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Did you know that gears are all around you? You can find them in wind-up toys, bicycles, carousels, cars and trucks, cranes, drills, wind turbines, analog watches, and so forth! If you've looked closely at a moving bicycle, you have seen gears at work. Are you curious about their purpose? In this activity you will use candy to make gears and explore why they are so versatile. Read more

Gears-Go-Round!

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Music boxes, bicycles, and clocks all have one thing in common: GEARS! You might say that gears make the world turn, since they are in so many mechanical instruments. How do they work and how do you know which gears to use? Find out in this simple experiment. Read more

Generate Recipes from YouTube Videos with AI

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

This project explores how large language models (LLMs) can generate recipes from YouTube cooking videos. In this science project, you will learn how LLMs interpret language and how prompt design can affect results. Read more

Germ Invasion

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Microbes are everywhere in our environment, but for the most part they escape our notice. This project shows you how to safely culture and study common bacteria from your everyday surroundings. Read more

Go With the Flow

STEM Activity

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Do you ever wonder why we perform tasks in a particular way? Very often, we learn by copying someone and never stop to question if there is a more efficient or easier way to do something. This activity is about the tricky task of pouring from a full container. Could there be an easier way to do it? Read more

Going Green as You Clean: Are 'Green' Detergents Less Toxic Than Conventional Detergents?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

There is strong interest in "going green," including using products that cause less environmental damage when they are disposed of. In this environmental sciences project, you will compare the toxicity of "green" and conventional liquid detergents using worms as test organisms. Read more

Middle School Projects, Lessons, Activities (1,332 results)

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