Watch beta decay occur for a collection of nuclei or for an individual nucleus.

Watch beta decay occur for a collection of nuclei or for an individual nucleus.

This ZOOM video segment shows how to create a self-contained environment and explores evaporation, condensation, and precipitation.

This problems is an opportunity to explore triangular numbers in the familiar context of decorating a birthday cake with a number of candles corresponding to a child's age. The problem lends itself to systematic strategies and multiple representations. The Teachers' Notes page offers rationale, suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, and ideas for extension and support.

This problem provides an opportunity for students to develop problem solving skills while applying skip-counting and exploring the concepts of multiples and factors within 20. It is posed in the context of toppings on cookies ("biscuits" in the UK) and lends itself to multiple representations. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, and downloadable handouts.

In this video adapted from NASA, two members of a NASA research team working to produce carbon nanotubes share some background behind this new technology, show examples of how it will be useful, and explain the various tests being performed to ensure readiness for spaceflight.

This activity provides instructions for using a flashlight and aquarium (or other container of water) to explain why the sky is blue and sunsets are red. When the white light from the sun shines through the earth's atmosphere, it collides with gas molecules with the blue light scattering more than the other colors, leaving a dominant yellow-orange hue to the transmitted light. The scattered light makes the sky blue; the transmitted light makes the sunset reddish orange. The section entitled What's Going On? explains this phenomena.

This video segment, adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, presents basic concepts of physics behind booming sand dunes. See how surface tension affects potential and kinetic energy and how it all works together to create sound.

This problem requires a sound understanding of the fraction relationship between part and whole and can be used for finding fractions of numbers and quantities. Students are given the fractional amount of apples in a fruit bowl and the specific number of other fruit in the bowl in order to figure out how many apples are in the bowl. The Teachers' Notes page includes suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension, a link to a worksheet which provides student support, and a downloadable pdf of the puzzle.

This problem introduces children to algebra by looking for a pattern and generalizing with a rule. Students explore in how many different ways can a stick of 6, 7 or 8 different colored interlocking cubes be broken into two parts. The Teachers' Notes page offers rationale, suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, and an idea for support and extension.

In this demonstration of chemical change, the presenter blows breath into a methylene blue solution releasing carbon dioxide which acidifies the water and changes it from a bright blue color to green.

In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, use your knowledge of bridge design to match the right bridge to the right location in a fictitious city.

This problem promotes logical thinking and introduces learners to the trial and error (guess and check) problem solving strategy, especially with the interactive provided. In this problem children need to understand the difference between having a certain number of brothers and the number of boys in a family to answer the question, "How many children are there in the Brown family?" The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, and a link to a down loadable worksheet for students to table their trials.

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, the cast shows how the 34 steps in their Rube Goldberg invention use everything from gravity to carbon dioxide gas in order to accomplish one simple task: pouring a glass of milk.

In this video segment from ZOOM, Jillian explains how her simple machine uses marbles, levers, flowing sand, and a spinning wheel to water a plant.

How do you build a tunnel 32 miles long -- under water? This video segment adapted from Building Big, follows the construction of the Channel Tunnel (nicknamed "Chunnel"), the engineering wonder that connects England to France.

Table of Contents
1.0 Using This Book
2.0 Introduction to Chemistry and Science
3.0 Atoms (Standard I)
4.0 Energy Changes in Atoms (Standard II)
5.0 Bonding and Molecules (Standard III)
6.0 Conservation of Energy and Matter (Standard IV)
7.0 Chemical Reactions (Standard V)
8.0 Solutions (Standard VI)

CK-12 Physical Science Concepts covers the study of physical science for middle school students. The 5 chapters provide an introduction to physical science, matter, states of matter, chemical interactions and bonds, chemical reactions, motion and forces, and the types and characteristics of energy.

Do you know how many calories are in a macadamia nut? This video segment highlighting a Calorimetry experiment will give you the answer.

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, find out how cars made of a material stronger than steel and half the weight can help combat climate change.