Middle School Science
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| Cereal Box Presentation |
Students will research a planet of their choice. In groups of 3, they will create a cereal box with planet information as the ingredients. They will choose an appropriate name and brand for the cereal. The majority of the box must be computer generated. Students must then present their box using one of the following: Publisher brochure, PowerPoint presentation, or a burned CD video. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3 and 5. |
| Coral Reef WebQuest |
After learning about the coral reefs and the danger they are in, students will create some type of PSA (Public Service Announcement) to inform and educate the public. They will share this PSA with the class and with the public. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6. |
| Creative Planet News |
After students learn about the planets of the Milky Way they get to be creative and create their own planet in another galaxy. The students incorporate aspects of our planets for example: atmospheric layers, plants, animals, weather, and landscape. They use their own art as well as digital pictures for the pictures of their planet. The students then create a newspaper on Microsoft Publisher to headline their new planet. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 1. |
| Earthquake Predictions |
In this lesson students will use real-time earthquake and volcano data to explore the relationship between earthquakes, plate tectonics, and volcanoes. This in an online project which allows students to access real time data, interact with experts, and publish the results of their work on the project web site.Students will need to collect data several times a week for two weeks. This should take 5-10 minutes for each data collection. The project also has four Core Activities that are designed to be used in 45 minute class periods. The final activity is an enrichment activity that asks the students to write a letter reporting what they have learned. This letter may be posted to the site’s Student Gallery. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 4. |
| Hazards WebQuest |
In this WebQuest activity, students will investigate the geologic hazards in Los Angeles, Seattle, and Hawaii to determine a location for a family move. Students will use web resources to research the hazards of each area, then come to a decision about a recommendation for their families. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 5. |
| History Big Book |
While participating in an interdisciplinary unit on space, students are fascinated by the history of space missions. Scholastic.com has created a very user-friendly timeline of these historical space events. Each student in the class will use this site to research one historical event, create a big book page, and together as a class compose a space timeline big book to share. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 5. |
| How do the biomes compare to the climatic zones around the world? |
The students will compare the biomes around the world with climatic zones through the use of maps. Using Kidspiration, Inspiration, or Word the students will create a Venn diagram to compare climate zones and biome location. The students will also rate which biome they think people inhabit the most by using the climatic information. For an extension the students will compare their hypothesis to a world population map to see if they were correct. This lesson utilizes the Cox Education Network desktop. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 3. |
| N'Sync Weather |
Students will work on a WebQuest. They will be following weather forecasters on local weather channels. In groups, they will write a thank-you letter to the station they believe has the most accurate predictions. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3, 5 and 6. |
| Parts of the Cell/Cell Theory/Significant Scientists |
In this activity students learn the basic parts of the cell and their functions. The students also examine the significant historical scientists that help aid in the discovery of The Cell Theory, cells and cell parts. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3 and 5. |
| Photo Essay |
In this lesson, students will be creating a “photo essay” depicting their experiences at the Grand Canyon. (A similar type of field trip can be done.) They will do this by placing photos of class activities placed into Power Point, adding summaries of the lesson, and then they will find music that is free public domain. This lesson can be done as a yearlong project that would result in a great classroom memory, or it can also be a one-experience lesson. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 1, 2 and 3. |
| Save the City! |
Students will participate in the WebQuest Epicenter, That Rockin’ Town. This WebQuest is based on gathering and analyzing real earthquake information for a specific city or area. The WebQuest will allow students to work as a team to organize the information gathered about earthquakes into a report to a town council that needs to make decisions regarding the possibility of future earthquake damage. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3 and 4. |
| Solar System Alphabet Books |
This lesson will be a culmination of our study of the solar system. Students will use print and electronic resources to gather information to create an alphabet book about the solar system. Students will create the book using an electronic publishing tool such as a word processor, multimedia presentation software, or publishing software. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3 and 5. |
| Students Study Genetic Disorders |
After a five-week unit on Genetics, students learn about different genetic disorders. The students are given the problem of finding about a student selected genetic disorder, collect data, and present the findings. The students also incorporated their knowledge of genetics to discuss the remedies for the disorder and the location of the disorder on the chromosomes. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 6. |
| Threats to the Ocean Internet Activity |
In this activity, students will learn about three threats to the health of the ocean: pollution, over-fishing, and global warming. Students will use Internet resources to learn more about these threats. Students will evaluate the resources and decide which threat is the greatest, based on the evidence presented. Meets Arizona State Technology Standard 5. |
| Under the Sea |
An essential question is an activity in which the students self direct their learning of a concept. In this activity students locate information on the computer to create a self selected project. The theme of this essential question is oceanography encompassing the ocean layers. After students research the ocean layers they will produce either a speech, PowerPoint, model, mural, or newspaper headline story. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3 and 5. |
| Wise About Weather |
Students will go through 2 TrackStar activities and learn about weather. Through the 2 activities, students will learn to apply their knowledge about the variables that cause weather and compare various weather maps. Meets Arizona State Technology Standards 3 and 5. |
