National Academies Press: OpenBook

Resources for Teaching Middle School Science (1998)

Chapter: 1. Physical Science

« Previous: PART 2. MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE CURRICULUM MATERIALS
Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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CHAPTER 1
PHYSICAL SCIENCE

Physical Science—Core Materials

1.1 Chemistry of Matter.

3rd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series is a program for middle school or junior high school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this program consists of 19 books, each in a particular topic area, such as sound and light, the planet earth, and chemistry of matter. Seven science themes are incorporated into the program; the themes are energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. For each unit, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8+. Reading level: 12. The textbook Chemistry of Matter, which introduces students to the chemical properties of matter, is organized in 5 chapters: (1) "Atoms and Bonding," (2) "Chemical Reactions," (3) "Families of Chemical Compounds," (4) "Petrochemical Technology," and (5) "Radioactive Elements." Students learn about ionic, covalent, and metallic bonds and about how to predict bond type. They also learn about chemical reactions, chemical equations, and the energy associated with chemical reactions. They study the nature of solutions and the factors that affect the rate of solution and solubility. Students also investigate acids, bases, and salts, as well as carbon compounds, petrochemical technology, and polymerization. They are introduced to the properties of radioactive elements, find out how nuclear reactions (including transmutation, fission, and fusion) occur, and learn about the uses and dangers of radioactivity.

Each chapter includes a lab investigation. Students explore the melting points and conductivity of ionic and covalent compounds, and they see how the concentration of a substance affects reaction rate. They also experiment with acids and bases to discover their properties, and discover how natural and synthetic polymers compare in strength, absorbency, and resistance to chemical damage.

Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Suggestions are provided for activities in which students "find out by doing," "find out by reading," and "find out by writing." Other skills-oriented activities are also suggested—for example, growing salt crystals and testing the pH of common household substances.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Determining freezing point

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Other features include problem-solving challenges, science career descriptions, and science connections to real-world events or issues. The student edition closes with readings on 3 topics: the "bucky ball" carbon molecule, the use of plant material for fuel, and silicon-based plastics and other new materials.

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 15 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples of investigations include the synthesis of copper oxide by heating copper metal in air, the decomposition of water by electrolysis, performing a double replacement reaction, determining the effect of temperature on the solution process, and determining the amount of vitamin C in a sample of fruit juice.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of materials, including some optional components, is available. A teacher's resource package contains the student edition

ABOUT THE ANNOTATIONS IN "PHYSICAL SCIENCE—CORE MATERIALS"

Entry Numbers

Curriculum materials are arranged alphabetically by title in each category (Core Materials, Supplementary Units, and Science Activity Books) in chapters 1 through 5 of this guide.

Each curriculum annotation has a two-part entry number: the chapter number is given before the period; the number after the period locates the entry within that chapter. For example, the first entry number in chapter 1 is 1.1; the second entry in chapter 2 is 2.2; and so on.

The entry numbers within each curriculum chapter run consecutively through Core Materials, Supplementary Units, and Science Activity Books.

Order of Bibliographic Information

Following is the arrangement of the facts of publication in the annotations in this section:

  • Title of publication

  • Number of edition, if applicable

  • Authors (an individual author or authors, an institutional author, or a project or program name under which the material was developed)

  • Series title

  • Series developer, if applicable

  • Place of publication, publisher, and date of publication

Recommended Grade Level and Reading Level

The grade level for each piece of material was recommended by teacher evaluators during the development of this guide. In some instances, the recommended grade level may differ slightly from the publisher's advertised level. The Fry Readability Scale was used to determine the approximate reading level of core materials.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

The key lists the content standards for grades 5-8 from the National Science Education Standards (NSES) that are addressed in depth by the item. A key is provided for core materials and supplementary units. (See appendix C.)

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Price and Acquisition Information

Ordering information appears at the end of each entry. Included are—

  • Prices (of teacher's guides, student books, lab manuals, and kits or units)

  • Publisher/supplier (The name of a principal publisher/supplier, although not necessarily the sole source, for the items listed in the price category. Appendix A, "Publishers and Suppliers," provides the address, phone and fax numbers, and electronic ordering information, where available, for each publisher and supplier.)

  • Materials (various sources from which one might obtain the required materials)

Readers must contact publishers/suppliers for complete and up-to-date listings of the program resources and support materials available for a particular unit. Depending on the developer, these items may be required, optional, or both; they may be offered individually and/or in kits, packages, or boxes. Materials may change with revised editions. The prices given in this chapter for selected resources or materials are based on information from the publishers and suppliers but are not meant to represent the full range of ordering options.

Indexes of Curriculum Materials

The multiple indexes on pp. 449-78 allow easy access to the information in this guide. Various aspects of the curriculum materials—including titles, topics addressed in each unit, grade levels, and standards addressed—are the focus of seven separate indexes. For example, titles and entry numbers are listed in the "Title Index" on pp. 450-54. The "Index of Authors, Series, and Curriculum Projects," on pp. 455-57, provides entry numbers of any annotated titles in a particular series.

Overviews of Core and Supplementary Programs

Appendix D, "Overviews of Core and Supplementary Programs with Titles Annotated in This Guide," on pp. 441-48, lists, by program or series, the individual titles annotated in the sections "Core Materials" and "Supplementary Units" in the five curriculum chapters.

and annotated teacher's editions of both the textbook and the lab manual, as well as a test book, an activity book, a review-and-reinforcement guide, and English and Spanish audiotapes for auditory and language learners. Other available materials include interactive videodiscs, transparencies, assessment materials, English and Spanish guides for language learners, a study guide, a teacher's desk reference, and a booklet of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Natural hazards; risks and benefits; science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; history of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-423351-4), $9.97. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-423120-1), $22.97. Teacher's resource package, $112.97. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.2 Electricity and Magnetism.

3rd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series is a program for middle school or junior high school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this program consists of 19 books, each in a particular topic area, such as sound and light, the planet earth, and electricity and magnetism. Seven science themes are incorporated into the program; the themes are energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. For each unit, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8+. Reading level: middle 10. Concepts that students explore in Electricity and Magnetism include the atomic basis of electric charge, static electricity, voltage, current, and resistance. They also learn about magnetism and magnetic poles, fields, lines of force, domains, the earth's magnetic force, and compasses. Then they are introduced to electromagnetism and electromagnetic induction. Students gain an understanding of the real-world application of these concepts as they learn how electronic devices such as vacuum tubes, transistors, integrated circuits, radios and televisions, and computers work. The safe use of electricity is discussed.

In laboratory investigations, students produce electricity from a lemon, they plot a magnetic field using a bar magnet, and they investigate what factors affect the strength of an electromagnet and what materials are attracted to it.

Electricity and Magnetism has 4 chapters: (1) "Electric Charges and Currents," (2) "Magnetism," (3) "Electromagnetism," and (4) "Electronics and Computers." Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Suggestions are provided for activities in which students "find out by doing," "find out by reading," and "find out by writing." Other skills-oriented activities are also suggested—for example, using common materials to observe static electricity and writing a report about the discovery and history of lodestones. Each chapter includes a formal lab investigation.

Other features include problem-solving challenges, science career descriptions, and science connections to real-world events or issues. The student edition closes with readings on 3 topics: the search for superconductors, the possible danger of electromagnetic radiation to humans, and the potential for the development of a "living" computer some day.

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 7 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples of activities include constructing series and parallel circuits and measuring their current and voltage, using bar magnets and iron filings to explore magnetism and magnetic fields, investigating electromagnetic induction, and constructing a simple computer circuit that converts decimal numbers into binary numbers.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of materials, including some optional components, is available. A teacher's resource package contains the student edition and annotated teacher's edition of both the textbook and the lab manual, as well as a test book, an activity book, a review-and-reinforcement guide, and English and Spanish audiotapes for auditory and language learners. Other available materials include videotapes, interactive videodiscs, transparencies, assessment materials, English and Spanish guides for language learners, a study guide, a teacher's desk reference, and a booklet of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Risk and benefits; science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science; history of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-423344-1), $9.97. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-423112-0), $22.97. Teacher's resource package, $112.97. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.3 Exploring Physical Science.

2nd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Exploring Life, Earth, and Physical Science series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Exploring Life, Earth, and Physical Science series is a program for middle school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this integrated program consists of 3 textbooks (1 for each major discipline) and incorporates 7 science themes—energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. Each of the 3 year-long courses contains about 6 units. The units are also available, possibly with some modifications, as individual textbooks in the Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series (see, e.g., 1.1). For each course, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 7-8. Reading level: middle 7. Exploring Physical Science offers a complete course on matter and energy. The units in this textbook are entitled (1) "Matter: Building Block of the Universe"; (2) "Chemistry of Matter"; (3) "Motion, Forces, and Energy"; (4) "Heat Energy"; (5) "Electricity and Magnetism"; and (6) "Sound and Light." Throughout the course, students learn about physical and chemical changes, the classification of matter, atoms and bonding, radioactivity, energy and its role in motion, forces and machinery, electricity and magnetism, electronics and computers, the nature and characteristics of waves, and optical instruments.

Examples of the lab investigations that students conduct during the 6 units are these: determining how concentration affects reaction rate, producing electricity from a lemon, building a shoe-box-sized model of a solar collector, exploring the connection between mass and inertia, observing the physical and chemical properties of a lighted and an unlighted candle, exploring how a change in mass affects the velocity of an object if its kinetic energy is kept constant, and recording the temperatures of different regions of an electromagnetic spectrum.

Each of the 6 units in Exploring Physical Science typically has 4 to 6 chapters. Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Other skills-oriented activities are also suggested for discovering, doing, calculating, thinking, and writing about science. The activities range from observing and explaining how many paper clips can stick to the surface of a bar magnet to writing a report about quarks. Each chapter includes a laboratory investigation as well as a review and study guide.

Other features of this textbook include problem-solving challenges, science connections to real-world events or issues, and careers in science. An "Activity Bank" at the back of the book provides at least 1 additional laboratory investigation for each chapter. Examples include calculating the density of objects with an irregular shape, growing and observing crystals, testing foods for fats and starches, measuring the effects of phosphates on plant growth, building and flying paper airplanes to calculate speed and distance, and building a simple model of a passive solar heating system.

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 61 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples include investigating phase changes; examining the properties of ionic and covalent compound polyester threads; determining the center of gravity of an irregularly shaped object; using balls to investigate energy and falling motion; constructing series and parallel circuits and measuring their current and voltage; and constructing a pinnacle viewer and a periscope.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of support materials is available, including a box of teaching resources (with activities, worksheets, and assessment materials for each chapter), a teacher's desk reference, an integrated science activity book, a computer test bank, videos, videodiscs, transparencies, a classroom manager guide, and a book of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understanding about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; motions and forces; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; nature of science; history of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-418716-4), $41.47. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-422-8332), $70.47. Lab manual, teacher's edition (1995), $24.47. Teaching resources, $306.47. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.4 Floating and Sinking.

Science and Technology for Children (STC) series. Developed by National Science Resources Center (Washington, D.C.). Burlington, N.C.: Carolina Biological Supply, 1995.

Program Overview The Science and Technology for Children (STC) series consists of 24 inquiry-centered curriculum units for grades 1-6, with 4 units at each grade level. Students learn about topics in the life, earth, and physical sciences. The technological applications of science and the interactions among science, technology, and society are addressed throughout the program. The STC units, each of which takes about 16 class sessions to complete, encourage participatory learning and the integration of science with mathematics, language arts, social studies, and art. The components of an STC unit are a teacher's guide, a student activity book with simple instructions and illustrations, and a kit of materials.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-6. Reading level: 7. Floating and Sinking introduces students to the phenomenon of buoyancy through a series of investigations with freshwater and saltwater. Students first make and test predictions about which objects will float or sink. Then they consider the variables involved. After calibrating a spring scale for weighing objects, they use the scale to investigate weight and buoyant force. Students design and construct clay boats and explore how weight can be distributed to make a sinker into a floater. They load the boats with marbles to test the efficiency of the designs. To investigate the effect of size on buoyancy, students build and test aluminum-foil boats of different sizes but with the same design. They measure buoyant force by pulling objects under water, compare the apparent weights of objects in and out of water, and construct a hydrometer to compare the buoyancy of objects in freshwater and saltwater. In the final activity, students apply what they have learned to predict whether a mystery cylinder will float or sink. Throughout the unit, students make and test predictions, record observations and test results, and construct charts and graphs to facilitate data analysis.

Floating and Sinking is a 16-lesson unit. The teacher's guide includes a unit overview, the 16 lesson plans, an annotated bibliography, reproducible masters, and instructions on repairing the spring scale. The module includes science background information, detailed instructions on planning for and conducting each activity, an extensive assessment component, and extensions for integration and enrichment. The student activity book that accompanies this unit provides helpful illustrations and directions for completing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement; form and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; motions and forces.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; nature of science; history of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-89278-726-0), $24.95. Student activity book (ISBN 0-89278-727-9), $3.75. Unit, $429.95. Publisher/supplier: Carolina Biological Supply. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.5 Food Chemistry.

Science and Technology for Children (STC) series. Developed by National Science Resources Center (Washington, D.C.). Burlington, N.C.: Carolina Biological Supply, 1994.

Program Overview The Science and Technology for Children (STC) series consists of 24 inquiry-centered curriculum units for grades 1-6, with 4 units at each grade level. Students learn about topics in the life, earth, and physical sciences. The technological applications of science and the interactions among science, technology, and society are addressed throughout the program. The STC units, each of which takes about 16 class sessions to complete, encourage participatory learning and the integration of science with mathematics, language arts, social studies, and art. The components of an STC unit are a teacher's guide, a student activity book with simple instructions and illustrations, and a kit of materials.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-6. Reading level: 6. In Food Chemistry, students investigate the basic nutrients in foods they eat. They conduct a series of physical and chemical tests to discover which nutrients—starches, glucose, fats, and proteins—are in common foods. They learn about the role nutrients play in human growth and development, read about the importance of vitamins and other nutrients, and examine food labels for nutritional information. In a final activity, students apply testing techniques they learn in the unit to analyze the nutritional components of a marshmallow. Throughout the unit, students gather, organize, and interpret data. By comparing results from tests, they learn the important concept that chemical tests are not always clearly positive or negative.

Food Chemistry is a 16-lesson unit. The teacher's guide includes a unit overview, the 16 lesson plans, an annotated bibliography, reproducible masters, and instructions for making test solutions and papers. The module includes science background information, detailed instructions on planning for and conducting each activity, an extensive assessment component, and extensions for integration and enrichment. The student activity book that accompanies this unit provides helpful illustrations and directions for completing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement; form and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Personal health; science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; nature of science; history of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide, $24.95. Student activity book, $3.75. Unit, $349.95. Publisher/supplier: Carolina Biological Supply. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.6 Glencoe Physical Science.

Charles W. McLaughlin and Marilyn Thompson. Glencoe Life, Earth, and Physical Science series. New York, N.Y.: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 1997.

Program Overview The Glencoe Life, Earth, and Physical Science series includes 3 full-year courses—one in life, one in earth, and one in physical science—for students in grades 8 and above. Four major themes are developed: (1) energy, (2) systems and interactions, (3) scale and structure, and (4) stability and change. An extensive set of materials and resources, including many optional components, is available for students and teachers.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8. Reading level: middle 9. Glencoe Physical Science is divided into 7 units: (1) "Physical Science Basics"; (2) "Energy and Motion"; (3) "The Nature of Matter"; (4) "Kinds of Substances"; (5) "Interactions of Matter"; (6) "Waves, Light, and Sound"; and (7) "Electricity and Energy Resources."

During this course, students learn about motion and forces; acceleration and momentum; energy; simple machines; solids, liquids, and gases; atomic structure; chemical bonds; organic and biological compounds; solutions; chemical reactions; acids, bases, and salts; waves and sound; light; mirrors and lenses; electricity; magnetism and its uses; electronics and computers; nuclear reactions; and energy sources.

Sample lab activities in this textbook include making a model of a simple accelerometer, constructing a pendulum to compare the exchange of potential and kinetic energy, and constructing and analyzing a model of a 4-stroke engine. Students also design an experiment to show the relationship between the temperature and volume of a gas, they compare the solubility of a solute at different temperatures, and they distinguish between weak and strong acids by comparing ease of ionization.

Glencoe Physical Science has 25 chapters in its 7 units. Each chapter begins with a self-guided activity in which students make observations and generate questions about chapter concepts and topics. Reading sections on science concepts are then interwoven with various types of activities, including open-ended activities, minilabs (activities that can be done in class or at home). and skill-building or problem-solving activities. In activities for designing their own experiments, students brainstorm hypotheses, make a decision to investigate a hypothesis that can be tested, plan procedures, and think about why their hypothesis was supported or not. At the end of each unit is a cooperative "project" investigation, designed for students to work on throughout the unit.

Special features of the textbook include "connect to" marginal notes that relate basic questions in physics, chemistry, earth science, and life science to one another. The book also provides "science and society" features that invite students to confront real-life problems; profiles of people in science; and reading selections about connections between science, history, literature, and the arts.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Teacher's Edition The wraparound teacher's edition provides information on curriculum integration, assessment, planning, and meeting the diverse needs of students. Each chapter contains a 4-page planning guide; strategies for preparing, teaching, and closing lessons; answers to in-text questions; tips on connecting physical science to other sciences, disciplines, or community resources; and different assessment options.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual offers 1 or more additional labs for each chapter. It has set-up diagrams, data tables, and space for student responses. Examples of investigations include observing how the concentration of a liquid affects its viscosity, using a calorimeter to determine the specific heat of a metal, distinguishing between physical and chemical changes, and using indicators to test unknown solutions for starch and sugar. In other investigations, students determine the relationship between reaction rate and temperature for the decomposition of sodium hypochlorite, measure the effects of distance and direction on light intensity, and record the growth patterns of plants grown from seeds that have been exposed to different amounts of radiation.

Program Resources and Support Materials Glencoe Physical Science offers an extensive list of support materials and program resources, including the following: activity and reinforcement worksheets, science integration activities that relate earth and life science to specific physical science chapters, a critical-thinking/problem-solving book, a concept-mapping book, chapter review masters, a study guide, enrichment worksheets, a book on multicultural connections, technology-integration masters, assessments, computer test banks, color transparencies, a Spanish resources book, and interactive CD-ROM and videodisc programs.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; motions and forces; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; nature of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-02-827879-8), $41.79. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-02-827880-1), $57.86. Student lab manual, $8.25. Teacher's lab manual, $14.00. Teacher's classroom resources, $321.87. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.7 Hard As Ice.

Michigan Science Education Resources Project. New Directions Teaching Units. Lansing, Mich.: Michigan Department of Education, 1993.

Program Overview The New Directions Teaching Units focus on developing scientific literacy and conceptual understanding. They were designed to reflect the ideas about teaching, learning, and curriculum in the Michigan Essential Goals and Objectives for K-12 Science Education, which were developed by the Michigan Science Education Resources Project. Several New Directions Teaching Units can be used with middle school students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-6. Hard As Ice introduces students to the concept of molecules and the molecular structure of matter. It helps them develop an understanding of the many different forms of water on earth and of the changes that occur when solids melt into liquids and liquids freeze into solids. During the unit, students write detailed descriptions of the different forms of water found on earth; they observe and measure the weight and temperature of different forms of water (such as slush, crushed ice, and snow); and they discuss ways in which people use water in everyday life. They construct an explanation in molecular terms for why ice is hard and water is flowing, and they make ice and develop an explanation of what happens when water freezes. Students experiment with chocolate or crayons to observe the process of melting in substances other than water. They also freeze substances other than water and explain the change in terms of molecules. They figure out whether snow is a solid, a liquid, or something else.

Although some lessons in Hard As Ice refer to examples from the history and geography of Michigan, these lessons could easily be adapted for other regions of the country.

This unit has 11 lessons and requires approximately 17 class sessions to complete. The teacher's guide contains background information; lab preparation notes; answers to questions posed in the unit's separate, reproducible student pages; and information about student misconceptions and how to address them.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

Price: $18 (including an audiotape). Publisher/supplier: Battle Creek Area Math/Science Center. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.8 Heat Energy.

3rd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series is a program for middle school or junior high school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this program consists of 19 books, each in a particular topic area, such as sound and light, the planet earth, and heat energy. Seven science themes are incorporated into the program; the themes are energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. For each unit, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8+. Reading level: early 8. Heat Energy introduces students to heat as a form of energy as they learn about conduction, convection, and radiation. Students study about the nature of temperature as a measure of the kinetic energy of molecules, and they learn to measure heat transfer indirectly by measuring changes in temperature. They also relate heat transfer to phase changes and identify heat of fusion and heat of vaporization. Then they explore thermal expansion and its practical applications. Students also study practical applications of heat, such as the use of the principles of heat energy in direct and indirect heating systems, insulation, cooling systems, and heat engines.

In lab investigations, students measure the temperature of a mixture of hot and cold water, comparing it with the temperatures of the original hot and cold samples. In a second investigation they build a shoe-box-sized solar collector.

Heat Energy has 2 chapter: (1) "What is Heat?" and (2) "Uses of Heat." Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Suggestions are provided for activities in which students "find out by doing," "find out by reading," and "find out by writing." Other skills-oriented activities are also suggested—for example, calculating the number of calories in a food product and finding out what the R-value of insulating materials is based on. Each chapter includes a lab investigation.

Other features of this book include problem-solving challenges, science career descriptions, and science connections to real-world events or issues. The student edition closes with readings on 3 topics: (1) a female scientist who is doing research on a sulfur-eating microbe, (2) the "greenhouse effect," and (3) solar energy houses.

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 5 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples include determining the heat of combustion of a candle and constructing a solar furnace with the capacity to boil water.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of materials, including some optional components, is available. A teacher's resource package contains the student edition and annotated teacher's editions of both the textbook and the lab manual, as well as a test book, an activity book, a review-and-reinforcement guide, and English and Spanish audiotapes for auditory and language learners. Other available materials include interactive videodiscs, transparencies, assessment materials, English and Spanish guides for language learners, a study guide, teacher's desk reference, and a booklet of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science; history of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-423294-1), $9.97. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-423104-X), $22.97. Teacher's resource package, $112.97. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.9 Introductory Physical Science.

6th ed. Uri Haber-Schaim, Reed Cutting, H. Graden Kirksey, and Harold A. Pratt. Belmont, Mass.: Science Curriculum, 1994.

Program Overview Introductory Physical Science is a full-year course focused on the study of matter leading to the development of the atomic model. The course addresses 3 broad areas: the empirical framework for developing an atomic model, an introduction to the atomic model, and the electric dimension of the atomic model. This division provides natural breaking points for spreading the course over more than a year, if preferred.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8+. Reading level: middle 7. The central theme of Introductory Physical Science, a lab-centered textbook, is the study of matter leading to the development of the atomic model. The topics that students study include the following: volume and mass, mass changes in closed systems, properties of substances and objects, solubility, the separation of mixtures, compounds and elements, radioactivity, the atomic model of matter, sizes and masses of molecules and atoms, electric charge, atoms and electric charge, and cells and charge carriers.

Students perform 47 experiments. Sample lab activities include using the water displacement method to measure the volume of a solid, finding the density of a liquid, and comparing the concentrations of saturated solutions. In other lab activities, students distill a mixture of liquids and examine the properties of the fractions. They also examine the mass ratio of reactants and products in a single replacement reaction, conduct flame tests, and determine the quantity of charge needed to release one atom of zinc from a solution containing zinc.

In its 12 chapters, Introductory Physical Science offers reading sections that lay the groundwork for new concepts and for labs. Also provided are directions for experiments and a large selection of problems designed to reinforce ideas immediately after the ideas are encountered in the text or laboratory. The introduction of new ideas is based on students' experiences in the laboratory; new terms are consistently introduced after the need for them has been established.

The laboratory instructions in this textbook provide a minimum of directions and raise questions to call students' attention to the important parts of an experiment. Most labs take between 45 and 50 minutes and can be completed by students individually or in pairs. Some experiments are designed to familiarize students with an instrument or technique; others require them to record data carefully, draw graphs, and calculate results. Each chapter ends with a set of problems for review, as well as applications and extensions.

Teacher's Guide and Resource Book The teacher's guide and resource book includes the following: information on the structure of the course; science background information for each chapter or experiment; suggestions for guiding students' experiments; tips on conducting prelab and postlab discussions; and answers to the problems at the end of each chapter.

Assessment Guide The Assessment Guide contains 2 sets of tests—multiple choice questions and essay questions—for each of the 12 chapters. The sets differ in degree of difficulty. In addition, a series of lab tests is available, as is diagnostic software for Macintosh computers for the chapter tests. The software allows teachers to provide individual test scores, overall class results, and a diagnostic interpretation, or analysis, of many of the wrong choices.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 1-882057-04-X), $31. Teacher's edition (ISBN 1-882057-05-8), $60. Assessment package, $35. Publisher/supplier: Science Curriculum (textbooks and guides). Delta Education (materials kit). Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.10 Levers and Pulleys.

Full Option Science System (FOSS) series. Developed by Lawrence Hall of Science (Berkeley, Calif.). Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1993.

Program Overview The Full Option Science System (FOSS) program is a K-6 science curriculum consisting of 27 stand-alone modules. The 8 modules for grades 5-6 are organized under topics in the life, physical, and earth sciences and in scientific reasoning and technology. They can be used in any order. The FOSS program is designed to engage students in scientific concepts through multisensory, hands-on laboratory activities. All modules of the program incorporate 5 unifying themes—(1) pattern, (2) structure, (3) interaction, (4) change, and (5) system. The components of a FOSS module are a teacher's guide and a kit of materials.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-6. In Levers and Pulleys, students discover that these 2 types of simple machines are important in their daily lives. They are first introduced to the parts of a lever. Then they construct their own Class 1 levers and experiment to determine the relationship between load and effort for maximum advantage. Subsequently, they explore Class 2 and Class 3 levers, determine the advantage gained by using each, and look at common tools that are applications of each class. Students apply their knowledge of load, effort, and advantage to assemble and investigate 4 different 1- and 2-pulley systems. They discover the mechanical advantages and disadvantages of each system. Throughout the unit, students work in pairs or in small groups to construct their own simple machines; conduct their own experiments; and gather, record, and interpret their own data.

Levers and Pulleys consists of 4 activities, requiring a total of 16 class sessions of about 45 minutes each. The teacher's guide includes a module overview, the 4 individual activity folios, duplication masters (in both English and Spanish) for student sheets, and an annotated bibliography.

The module includes science background information, detailed instructions on planning for and conducting each activity, an extensive assessment component, and extensions for integration and enrichment.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement; form and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-7826-0059-X), $101. Complete module, $539. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.11 Magnets and Motors.

Science and Technology for Children (STC) series. Developed by National Science Resources Center (Washington, D.C.). Burlington, N.C.: Carolina Biological Supply, 1991.

Program Overview The Science and Technology for Children (STC) series consists of 24 inquiry-centered curriculum units for grades 1-6, with 4 units at each grade level. Students learn about topics in the life, earth, and physical sciences. The technological applications of science and the interactions among science, technology, and society are addressed throughout the program. The STC units, each of which takes about 16 class sessions to complete, encourage participatory learning and the integration of science with mathematics, language arts, social studies, and art. The components of an STC unit are a teacher's guide, a student activity book with simple instructions and illustrations, and a kit of materials.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6. Reading level: 7. In Magnets and Motors, students are introduced to electromagnetism and electromagnetic motors. They experiment with magnets, make a compass, observe and investigate magnetism's connection with electricity. They develop an understanding of how a motor works, and they experiment with 3 different electric motors, including 2 that they make. During the unit, students apply previous learning to make and test hypotheses and learn how to design and conduct controlled experiments. Students use activity sheets and a science journal to record their questions, ideas, observations, and results of experiments.

Magnets and Motors is a 16-lesson unit. The teacher's guide includes a unit overview, the 16 lesson plans, an annotated bibliography, and reproducible masters. A well-organized student activity book provides instructions for carrying out the activities. Appendixes include background information and instructions for setting up a classroom learning center.

The module includes science background information, detailed instructions on planning for and conducting each activity, an extensive assessment component, and extensions for integration and enrichment.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; motions and forces; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; nature of science; history of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-89278-726-0), $24.95. Student activity book (ISBN 0-89278-727-9), $3.75. Unit, $479.95. Publisher/supplier: Carolina Biological Supply. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.12 Matter: Building Block of the Universe.

3rd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series is a program for middle school or junior high school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this program consists of 19 books, each in a particular topic area, such as sound and light, the planet earth, and matter—building block of the universe. Seven science themes are incorporated into the program; the themes are energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. For each unit, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8+. Reading level: middle 7. Matter: Building Block of the Universe introduces students to the nature of matter. They study the general properties of matter (mass, weight, volume, and density); inertia; phases of matter and phase changes; chemical properties and chemical changes; the classification of matter (as mixtures, solutions, elements, and compounds); the use of chemical symbols, formulas, and equations; the development of the atomic model; and the forces that govern the behavior of subatomic particles. Students also read about the development of the periodic table and gain an understanding of metals, nonmetals, and metalloids.

In lab investigations, students explore the connection between mass and inertia, and they also observe the physical and chemical properties of a lighted and an unlighted candle and use marshmallows to make models of chemical reactions. Students then perform exercises with mystery objects in a shoe-box to see how indirect evidence is used to build a model, and they identify elements using flame tests.

Matter: Building Block of the Universe has 5 chapters: (1) "General Properties of Matter"; (2) "Physical and Chemical Changes"; (3) "Mixtures, Elements, and Compounds"; (4) "Atoms: Building Blocks of Matter"; and (5) "Classification of Elements: The Periodic Table." Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Suggestions are provided for activities in which students "find out by doing," "find out by reading," and "find out by writing." Other activities are also suggested—for example, making models of the Thomson atom and the Rutherford atom and reading a poem by Carl Sandburg about fog (a colloid). Each chapter includes a formal lab investigation.

Other features include problem-solving challenges, science career descriptions, and science connections to real-world events or issues. The student edition closes with 3 readings: about physicist Shirley Ann Jackson, acid rain, and the possibility of factories in space.

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 12 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples include determining the density of several liquids; observing physical and chemical changes; determining the solubility of potassium nitrate; relating electrons and probability; and investigating the relative activities of zinc, copper, and lead.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of materials, including some optional components, is available. A teacher's resource package contains the student edition and annotated teacher's editions of both the textbook and the lab manual, as well as a test book, an activity book, a review-and-reinforcement guide, and English and Spanish audiotapes for auditory and language learners. Other available materials include interactive videodiscs, transparencies, assessment materials, English and Spanish guides for language learner, a study guide, a teacher's desk reference, and a booklet of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; history of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-423369-7), $9.97. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-423138-4), $22.97. Teacher's resource package, $112.97. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.13 Mixtures and Solutions.

Full Option Science System (FOSS) series. Developed by Lawrence Hall of Science (Berkeley, Calif.). Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1993.

Program Overview The Full Option Science System (FOSS) program is a K-6 science curriculum consisting of 27 stand-alone modules. The 8 modules for grades 5-6 are organized under topics in the life, physical, and earth sciences and in scientific reasoning and technology. They can be used in any order. The FOSS program is designed to engage students in scientific concepts through multisensory, hands-on laboratory activities. All modules of the program incorporate 5 unifying themes—(1) pattern, (2) structure, (3) interaction, (4) change, and (5) system. The components of a FOSS module are a teacher's guide and a kit of materials.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-6. Mixtures and Solutions introduces students to some concepts of basic chemistry—mixture, solution, concentration, saturation, and chemical reaction. Activities include separating mixtures using the techniques of sifting, dissolving, filtering, and evaporating. Other activities involve making saturated solutions of salt and citric acid and then comparing the solubility of these 2 substances in water; determining the relative concentration of salt solutions; and observing chemical reactions that result in the formation of a gas and a precipitate and then applying the techniques of filtering and evaporation to separate some of the reaction products.

Mixtures and Solutions consists of 4 activities, requiring a total of 13 class sessions to complete. The teacher's guide includes a module overview, the 4 individual activity folios, duplication masters (in both English and Spanish) for student sheets, and an annotated bibliography.

The module includes science background information, detailed instructions on planning for and conducting each activity, an extensive assessment component, and extensions for integration and enrichment.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-7826-0081-6), $101. Complete module, $469. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.14 Motion, Forces, and Energy.

3rd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series is a program for middle school or junior high school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this program consists of 19 books, each in a particular topic area, such as motion, forces and energy; the planet earth; and cells—building blocks of life. Seven science themes are incorporated into the program; the themes are energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. For each unit, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 8+. Reading level: late 6. Motion, Forces, and Energy introduces students to the interactions of forces that make all physical activity possible. Students explore motion, frame of reference, and the difference between speed and velocity. They learn about the concepts of acceleration and motion, about force and its relationship to motion, and about Newton's 3 laws of motion and the concept of gravitation. Students study forces in fluids and learn about Archimedes' principle and Bernoulli's principle. They explore the subjects of work, power, mechanical advantage, and simple machines; kinetic energy and potential energy; energy conservation; and the law of conservation of energy.

In lab investigations, students make a distance-time graph of constant speed and compare the falling rates of objects with different masses. They also explore the relationship between the density of an object and its buoyancy in a fluid. They observe and measure how pulleys can make work easier, and they explore how a change in mass affects the velocity of an object if its kinetic energy is kept constant.

Motion, Forces, and Energy has 5 chapters: (1) "What Is Motion?"; (2) "The Nature of Forces"; (3) "Forces in Fluids"; (4) "Work, Power, and Simple Machines"; and (5) "Energy: Forms and Changes." Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Suggestions are provided for activities in which students "find out by doing," "find out by reading," and "find out by writing." Other skills-oriented activities are also suggested—for example, calculating the velocity and acceleration of a falling drop of water and writing a report about people who developed an accurate understanding of the solar system. Each chapter includes a formal lab investigation.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Other features include problem-solving challenges, science career descriptions, and science connections to real-world events or issues. The student edition closes with 3 readings: about the African-American astronaut Guion Bluford, the use of robots in manufacturing, and hypersonic planes.

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 14 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples of investigations include: constructing an accelerometer and using it to determine the direction of acceleration; exploring how surface area, texture, and weight influence friction; determining how buoyancy relates to the apparent loss of mass of an object; investigating how different positions of the effort, resistance, and fulcrum affect the mechanical advantage of the lever; and experimenting to determine how various factors affect the behavior of a pendulum.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of materials, including some optional components, is available. A teacher's resource package contains the student edition and annotated teacher's editions of both the textbook and the lab manual, as well as a test book, an activity book, a review-and-reinforcement guide, and English and Spanish audiotapes for auditory and language learners. Other available materials include interactive videodiscs, transparencies, assessment materials, English and Spanish guides for language learners, a study guide, a teacher's desk reference, and a booklet of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-423278-X), $9.97. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-423088-4), $22.97. Teacher's resource package, $112.97. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.15 Sound and Light.

3rd ed. Anthea Maton, Jean Hopkins, Susan Johnson, and others. Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1997.

Program Overview The Prentice Hall Science Integrated Learning System series is a program for middle school or junior high school students. Designed to cover all relevant areas of science, this program consists of 19 books, each in a particular topic area, such as sound and light, the planet earth, and cells—building blocks of life. Seven science themes are incorporated into the program; the themes are energy, evolution, patterns of change, scale and structure, systems and interactions, unity and diversity, and stability. For each unit, teaching materials, ancillary student materials, and some optional components are available.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 7-8. Reading level: middle 7. Sound and Light introduces students to the nature, characteristics, types, and interactions of waves. Students learn about the properties of sound, the wave nature of sound, and the mechanism of hearing. They also explore the wave nature of light, the electromagnetic spectrum, light reflection and refraction, light and color, the mechanism of vision, mirrors, lenses, optical instruments, and light technology (such as lasers, fiber optics, and holography).

In lab investigations, students use a Slinky to observe the characteristics of a wave; they experiment with tuning forks to explore sympathetic vibration, resonance, interference, beats, and the Doppler effect; they record the temperatures produced by different colors of light; and they observe the images formed by a convex lens.

Sound and Light has 4 chapters: (1) "Characteristics of Waves," (2) "Sound and Its Uses," (3) "Light and the Electromagnetic Spectrum," and (4) "Light and Its Uses." Each chapter contains comprehensive reading sections that introduce major science concepts. Suggestions are provided for activities in which students "find out by doing," "find out by reading," and "find out by writing." Other skills-oriented activities are also suggested—for example, using a barometer to forecast the weather and examining 2 microclimates in a neighborhood. Each chapter includes a formal lab investigation.

Other features include problem-solving challenges, science career descriptions, and science connections to real-world events or issues. The student edition closes with 3 readings: about a sculptor who uses light and colors to create his art, the dangers of noise pollution, and "solar sailing" rockets.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Teacher's Edition In the teacher's wraparound edition, each chapter begins with a 2-page planning guide and a 2-page preview that summarizes each section within the chapter. The teacher's edition also provides suggestions for teaching, guiding, integrating, and closing lessons, as well as enrichments, extensions, and answers to questions in the student text.

Supplementary Laboratory Manual The supplementary lab manual provides 7 additional investigations directly correlated with the information presented in the student textbook. Examples of investigations include observing the behavior of water waves in a ripple tank, determining the speed of sound in air, measuring the heating effects of the sun and observing how different materials change these effects, and comparing the images formed by convex and concave lenses.

Program Resources and Support Materials A variety of materials, including some optional components, is available. A teacher's resource package contains the student edition and annotated teacher's editions of both the textbook and the lab manual, as well as a test book, an activity book, a review-and-reinforcement guide, and English and Spanish audiotapes for auditory and language learners. Other available materials include interactive videodiscs, transparencies, assessment materials, English and Spanish guides for language learners, a study guide, a teacher's desk reference, and a booklet of product-testing activities.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement; from and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-13-423286-0), $9.97. Teacher's edition (ISBN 0-13-423096-5), $22.97. Teacher's resource package, $112.97. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Prentice Hall. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.16 Structures.

Insights series. Developed by Education Development Center (EDC). Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1997.

Program Overview The Insights program, for grades K-6, consists of 17 modules, several of which are appropriate for middle school. Topics in the program reflect a balance of life, physical, and earth sciences. Insights modules integrate science with the rest of the curriculum, particularly with language arts and mathematics. The activities support cultural, racial, and linguistic diversity. Each module requires about 25 class sessions to complete. The components of an Insights module are a teacher's guide and a kit of materials.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6. Students develop an understanding of some of the basic principles of structures in this unit. The concepts covered include live load (the weight of a structure's own materials) and dead load (added weight), tension and compression, and the relationship of materials and shape to structure and strength. Students first look at structures in their school neighborhood and record the variety of sizes, shapes, materials, and functions they find. Then they explore how these characteristics affect a structure's ability to remain standing. Students learn to build standing structures using straws and paper clips, index cards, and other materials. Next they explore how dead load and live load affect the stability of their straw structures. They are challenged to increase the ability of their structures to support live loads while increasing the dead load as little as possible. Then students eliminate any extra straws until they reduce the structure to only the "necessary" straws. In the process they learn that the arrangement of beams, columns, and diagonal supports in a framework is important in helping make the structure strong enough to support loads. Students work primarily in groups of 4. They have many opportunities for drawing and recording information.

Structures consists of 13 Learning Experiences, requiring at least 24 class sessions to complete. The teacher's guide includes a unit overview, the 13 Learning Experiences, reproducible masters for student sheets, and annotated lists of additional resources to use with the module.

The module includes science background information, detailed instructions on planning for and conducting each activity, an extensive assessment component, and extensions for integration and enrichment.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; form and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-7872-3345-5), $68.90. Materials kit, $209.90. Publisher/supplier: Kendall/Hunt. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Physical Science—Supplementary Units

1.17 Bubble Festival.

Jacqueline Barber and Carolyn Willard. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1992.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-7. In Bubble Festival, students participate in a variety of bubble activities in a learning-station format. The unit's 12 classroom tabletop activities provide open-ended explorations in an informal, student-centered setting. Students experiment with bubble formation, bubble behavior, and bubble geometry. They make bubble measurements, investigate surface tension, and discover different colors and patterns. "Activity Task Cards for Volunteers" explain the learning goals of each activity, suggest additional questions to ask students, and explain how to maintain stations so they are safe and ready for successive groups. Blackline masters of

ABOUT THE ANNOTATIONS IN "PHYSICAL SCIENCE—SUPPLEMENTARY UNITS"

Entry Numbers

Curriculum materials are arranged alphabetically by title in each category (Core Materials, Supplementary Units, and Science Activity Books) in chapters 1 through 5 of this guide.

Each curriculum annotation has a two-part entry number: the chapter number is given before the period; the number after the period locates the entry within that chapter. For example, the first entry number in chapter 1 is 1.1; the second entry in chapter 2 is 2.2; and so on.

The entry numbers within each curriculum chapter run consecutively through Core Materials, Supplementary Units, and Science Activity Books.

Order of Bibliographic Information

Following is the arrangement of the facts of publication in the annotations in this section:

  • Title of publication

  • Number of edition, if applicable

  • Authors (an individual author or authors, an institutional author, or a project or program name under which the material was developed)

  • Series title

  • Series developer, if applicable

  • Place of publication, publisher, and date of publication

Recommended Grade Level

The grade level for each piece of material was recommended by teacher evaluators during the development of this guide. In some instances, the recommended grade level may differ slightly from the publisher's advertised level.

Key to Content Standard: 5-8

The key lists the content standards for grades 5-8 from the National Science Education Standards (NSES) that are addressed in depth by the item. A key is provided for core materials and supplementary units. (See appendix C.)

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Price and Acquisition Information

Ordering information appears at the end of each entry. Included are—

  • Prices (of teacher's guides, student books, lab manuals, and kits or units)

  • Publisher/supplier (The name of a principal publisher/supplier, although not necessarily the sole source, for the items listed in the price category. Appendix A, "Publishers and Suppliers," provides the address, phone and fax numbers, and electronic ordering information, where available, for each publisher and supplier.)

  • Materials (various sources from which one might obtain the required materials)

Readers must contact publishers/suppliers for complete and up-to-date listings of the program resources and support materials available for a particular unit. Depending on the developer, these items may be required, optional, or both; they may be offered individually and/or in kits, packages, or boxes. Materials may change with revised editions. The prices given in this chapter for selected resources or materials are based on information from the publishers and suppliers but are not meant to represent the full range of ordering options.

Indexes of Curriculum Materials

The multiple indexes on pp. 449-78 allow easy access to the information in this guide. Various aspects of the curriculum materials—including titles, topics addressed in each unit, grade levels, and standards addressed—are the focus of seven separate indexes. For example, titles and entry numbers are listed in the "Title Index" on pp. 450-54. The "Index of Authors, Series, and Curriculum Projects," on pp. 455-57, provides entry numbers of any annotated titles in a particular series.

Overviews of Core and Supplementary Programs

Appendix D, "Overviews of Core and Supplementary Programs with Titles Annotated in This Guide," on pp. 441-48, lists, by program or series, the individual titles annotated in the sections "Core Materials" and “Supplementary Units" in the five curriculum chapters.

signs for the learning stations are provided for each activity. Literature and writing extensions are included.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

Price: $16 (ISBN 0-912511-80-X). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.18 Bubble-ology.

Reprinted with revisions. Jacqueline Barber. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1992.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-8+. In Bubble-ology, students use bubbles to investigate light and color, aerodynamics, chemical composition, surface tension, and technology. During this unit, they create an ideal bubble-blowing instrument, determine which brand of dishwashing liquid will make the biggest bubble, test the effect of different amounts of glycerin on the size of bubbles, apply Bernoulli's principle to keep a bubble aloft, and use color to predict bubble survival.

Bubble-ology consists of 6 activities requiring 8 to 10 class sessions of 45 to 60 minutes each. The module includes a brief introduction, a materials list, detailed instructions for preparing and conducting the lessons, and extension ideas. Useful summary outlines and reproducible student worksheets are included.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

Price: $9 (ISBN 0-912511-11-7). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.19 Changes in Matter.

Mary Atwater, Prentice Baptiste, Lucy Daniel, and others. Unit 32. Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Science series. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan/McGraw-Hill School Publishing, 1995.

Program Overview The Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Science series is a comprehensive, activity-based, K-8 science curriculum made up of 42 stand-alone units, 18 of which are designed for grades 6-8. The series is constructed around 7 major themes: (1) systems and interactions, (2) scale and structure, (3) stability, (4) energy, (5) evolution, (6) patterns of change, and (7) models. The subject of each unit—for example, changes in matter—is presented from the perspective of one or more of these themes. One theme is designated as the "major theme" for a unit, and any others are treated as "related themes." For each unit, a wide range of materials, including some optional components, is available for students and teachers.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 7-8. Changes in Matter contains 7 lessons that discuss the physical and chemical properties of matter and examine how the chemical properties of matter determine its interaction with other substances. The organizing themes for this unit are systems and interactions (major theme) and scale and structure (related theme).

Each of the 7 lessons in this unit typically requires 5 days for completion. During the unit, students observe and identify the physical properties of different materials, describe the effect of temperature changes on the 3 phases of matter, and distinguish between chemical and physical properties of matter. They also learn about the structure of atoms, discover how different elements are categorized in the periodic table, and explore the interaction of elements in chemical systems to form compounds. Students then study acids and bases, and learn to describe and distinguish different mixtures (such as solutions, colloids, and suspensions).

Sample activities include comparing the densities of corn oil, baby oil, corn syrup, and water; identifying an unknown substance using chemical properties of matter; and classifying substances as metals or nonmetals. Other activities include observing copper plating, identifying acids and bases using red cabbage juice as an indicator, and observing the separation of a mixture using paper chromatography.

Each lesson contains narrative information and a series of sequential, hands-on activities—such as an introductory "minds-on" activity, short "try this" activities, and a longer "explore" activity. The latter, which is a lab activity, takes a class period to complete. Students use activity logs to record ideas, observations, and results.

Special unit features include curriculum links to language arts, literature, mathematics, music, and art; information about science careers; and narrative sections highlighting science, technology, and society connections.

Teacher's Planning Guide The teacher's planning guide, a spiral-bound, wraparound edition, provides information and strategies for teaching the 7 lessons in the student edition. Each lesson is introduced by a 4-page section that offers background information, a lesson planning guide, and assessment options. Marginal notes on the lesson pages provide discussion ideas, tips on meeting individual needs, suggestions for addressing misconceptions, assessment ideas, and curriculum connections.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Program Resources and Support Materials A wide range of materials, including some optional components, is available. Examples include consumable and nonconsumable activity materials; audio- and videotapes; interactive videodiscs; color transparencies; assessment materials; a teacher anthology of short stories, poems, fingerplays, and songs; trade books; teacher resource masters; activity cards; activity logs; a staff development package; concept summaries and glossaries for students acquiring English; and software with problem-solving simulations for students.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: History of science.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-02-276132-2), $7.06. Teacher's planning guide (ISBN 0-02-276080-6), $55.98. Unit package, $116.88. Activity materials kit, $94.00. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: McGraw-Hill. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.20 Chemical Interactions.

Judith Mabel. Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 7-8. Chemical Interactions introduces students to the world of chemical reactions. In this module, students compare the densities of 3 different liquids, explore the inverse relationship between the pressure and volume of a gas, and differentiate between solutions and suspensions. Students then learn about the structure of an atom and the properties of protons, neutrons, and electrons, and are introduced to the concept of an isotope. They build models to demonstrate the 3-dimensional structure of molecules and test various covalent and ionic compounds to see how the type of bond between atoms in the compounds affects the characteristics of those compounds. Then students simulate chemical reactions with models, draw and construct models of isomers of organic compounds, distinguish between saturated and unsaturated fats, and explore the effect of double bonds on their melting points. They use indicators to measure pH and identify common household acids and bases, they discover that bases neutralize acids, they conduct a controlled experiment to determine the factors necessary for oxidation to occur, and they carry out a double replacement reaction and observe the formation of a precipitate.

The 13 activities in Chemical Interactions generally take between 30 and 60 minutes each and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to directions for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor; history of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-160-4), $27.95. Kit, $379.00. Refill package, $52.00. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.21 Chemical Reactions.

Reprinted with revisions. Jacqueline Barber. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1993.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 7-8+. Chemical Reactions contains directions for a 2-part activity that is, in essence, an observation and investigation of a dramatic chemical reaction. In part 1 of the activity, students carefully observe 3 chemicals—calcium chloride, baking soda, and phenol red. They then combine these chemicals in a Ziplock bag and observe the reaction.

In part 2 of the activity, students experiment to find out which of the reactants caused the reaction to release heat. Combining the chemicals in different ways, they encounter different reactions with respect to temperature, color, and the production of gas. Through their own experiments and deductions, students discover which reactants cause the reaction to get hot.

Each part of the activity takes 45 to 60 minutes, plus follow-up sessions. The guide includes directions, extensions, brief background information, and student record sheets.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

Price: $9 (ISBN 0-912511-13-3). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.22 Color Analyzers.

Reprinted with revisions. Cary I. Sneider, Alan Gould, and Cheryl Hawthorne. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1993.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-8+. In Color Analyzers, students investigate light and color while experimenting with diffraction gratings and color filters. The unit's activities include using diffraction gratings to look at light sources and using colored light filters to decipher and invent secret messages. These activities draw students into investigations of light and color and help them discover why different objects appear to be different colors. Activities to provide additional experiences with light perception are suggested.

Color Analyzers includes 4 sessions of 30 to 60 minutes each. The lesson plan for each session includes an overview, a list of materials, blackline masters of student worksheets, and complete instructions for planning and conducting the activity. Background information for the teacher, summary outlines, and reproducible student worksheets are included. A class set of diffraction gratings and color filters accompanies the teacher's guide.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

Prices: $31.50 (ISBN 0-912511-14-1). Consumable kit, $5.50. Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.23 Color and Light.

National Learning Center. Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-6. In Color and Light students investigate the relationships between pigments, color filters, and the light that strikes them. In this module, students observe the properties of light by experimenting with prisms; they mix different colors of pigments, observing the new colors that form; and they use paper chromatography to separate a mixture of pigments. Students also use color filters and light sources to investigate and compare the processes of subtractive and additive color mixing. They see how colored light can affect the way colored objects look, observe how primary colors can be used to produce full-color images, and learn to create colors by combining primary colors. Students then observe the effect that color filters have on what we see, apply their knowledge of how color filters affect sight to create the illusion of a 3-dimensional object from a 2-dimensional drawing, explore afterimages, and make and use multicolored wheels to observe the "persistence of vision" phenomenon.

The 13 activities in Color and Light generally take 30 to 60 minutes each and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to directions for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-113-2), $27.95. Kit, $309.00. Refill package, $42.00. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.24 Discovering Density.

Reprinted with revisions. Jacqueline Barber, Marion E. Buegler, Laura Lowell, and Carolyn Willard. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1993.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6-8+. In Discovering Density, students learn about the concept of density through 5 hands-on activities using liquids. In the first activity, students layer colored "mystery liquids" of different densities in a drinking straw and discover that some liquids float on top of others. They experiment with colored salt solutions and discover that water containing different amounts of salt also forms layers. Drawing on these 2 experiments, students learn to define density and to distinguish weight from density. In the third and fourth activities, they create their own mixtures of liquids of different densities using "secret formulas." They predict how the liquids will layer and then test their predictions. In the final activity, students observe how temperature affects the density of a liquid, then apply their understanding of density to explain some real-life situations. Directions for the activities are clear and concise.

Discovering Density contains 5 sessions of 25 to 50 minutes each. The lessons include helpful suggestions for group work, discussion, and classroom management. Background information, literature connections, and reproducible student record sheets are also contained in the guide.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

Price: $10.50 (ISBN 0-912511-17-6). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.25 Electrical Connections.

Bob Roth. Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6-8. Electrical Connections offers 13 activities to increase students' understanding of static and current electricity, electrical circuits, and simple electrical energy converters. The activities are designed to give students concrete experiences building, operating, and analyzing electrical circuits and their applications.

Students first construct an electroscope to detect and investigate the behavior of static charges. Then they are introduced to the concepts of electrical energy source, energy receiver, and energy converter as they construct simple, then more complex, electrical circuits using batteries, bulbs, wires, and switches. Students build a galvanometer and use it to compare currents in different circuits, they test various arrangements of lightbulbs and a galvanometer and determine that current is conserved in both series and parallel circuits, and they investigate various factors (such as resistors or batteries) that affect current in electric circuits. Students then construct a simple motor and infer that a motor is an energy converter. Finally, they use simple circuits to model and analyze the operation of a 3-way switch and a dimmer switch.

The 13 activities in Electrical Connections take 30 to 60 minutes each and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to directions for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: History of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-158-2), $27.95. Kit, $379.00. Refill package, $59.50. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.26 Electromagnetism.

Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-7. In Electromagnetism, students explore the unique relationship between electricity and magnetism and how this relationship can be manipulated to produce an electric current or a magnetic field. Students first review the properties of magnetism as they observe the interaction of magnets with ferrous and nonferrous objects; then they use iron filings and a magnet to explore magnetic-field patterns. They explore compasses and how they interact with magnets, and they discover that a ferrous object placed within the magnetic fields of 2 stacks of magnets becomes magnetized. Students then construct a circuit and observe that electric current flowing through a wire deflects a compass needle. They make and use an electromagnet and then a telegraph and a buzzer. Then they construct a simple motor, followed by a more elaborate motor with a 2-coil armature and brushes. They experiment to determine the effect of 2 electromagnetic fields on 1 ferrous object. Finally, they observe that a magnetic field can produce an electric current (that is, induction).

The 12 activities in Electromagnetism take 30 to 60 minutes each and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to directions for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-130-5), $27.95. Kit, $349.00. Refill package, $37.00. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.27 Energy and Communications: How Can We Send and Receive Information?

New York Science, Technology and Society Education Project (NYSTEP). Problem-Solving Activities for Middle-Level Science series. Albany, N.Y.: NYSTEP, 1993.

Program Overview The Problem-Solving Activities for Middle-Level Science series consists of 8 stand-alone modules. Each module contains 2 to 6 units focused on technological and/or ethical aspects of issues involving science, technology, and society. The series was designed so that teachers might select modules and units that address local needs and draw on local community resources. A module requires 3 to 8 weeks to complete, depending on the units selected. Supplies and equipment may be required that are not typically part of a school's science inventory.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 7-8. Energy and Communications introduces students to different types of electronic communication and technology. During the module, students explore some of the trade-offs in communication technologies of different time periods. They build a series circuit and a parallel circuit to light a bulb, and then design, construct, and use a lightbulb telegraph communications system. In a unit on electromagnetism and sound, students make an electromagnet and use it to build a working speaker. Students then use lenses and other devices to investigate the various ways that light can be amplified, reduced, or manipulated. They also build a photophone and use it to send and receive messages. In a final unit they design, construct, and refine a telecommunications system that uses Lucite rods as an analogue for systems employing fiber optics.

Energy and Communications is designed to be completed over a 4-to 6-week period. The module is divided into 4 units, each of which has directions for its activities, a bibliography, interdisciplinary connections (to technology, social studies, language arts, mathematics, health, home and career skills, arts, and foreign languages/culture), and suggestions for extensions.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

Prices: Teacher's guide: In New York State, free with attendance at workshop; outside New York, $7. Publisher/supplier: New York Science, Technology and Society Education Project. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.28 Experimenting with Model Rockets.

Reprinted with revisions. Cary I. Sneider. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1991.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6-8+. Experimenting with Model Rockets is a "nuts-and-bolts" guide that introduces students to the concept of controlled experimentation. During the activities, students work in teams as they design, build, and launch different model rockets (and a control rocket) to find out why some rockets fly higher than others do. Students measure the altitude of each rocket as it is launched, compute the altitude of each rocket in meters, and display the results on graphs. They also discuss other rocket experiments they would like to perform.

A prerequisite for this unit is Height-O-Meters, another module in the GEMS series, in which students build simple cardboard instruments to measure the altitude of objects

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

that are too high or far away to measure directly. In this rocketry unit, students use Height-O-Meters to track the altitudes of their model rockets.

The teacher's guide includes background information, step-by-step directions for the activities (which require 7 sessions of 50 minutes each), a Model Rocketry Safety Code, and a reproducible "Experimenter's Guide" for student work. Information on obtaining model rocketry materials and supplies is provided.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Evidence, models, and explanation; form and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Price: $16 (ISBN 0-912511-20-6). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.29 Flight Lab.

Science Technology and Reading (STAR) series. Developed by Reading Is Fundamental (Washington, D.C.). Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1996.

Program Overview Designed for the upper elementary grades, the Science Technology and Reading (STAR) series consists of 8 thematic "labs" in the natural and physical sciences. Each lab focuses both on science activities and on a genre of children's literature, developing correlations between the science process and the process of reading. In addition to a teacher's guide for each of the 8 labs, the STAR program includes a mentor's guide for scientists, engineers, and others assisting in the classroom.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-7. Flight Lab introduces activities on the science of flight with a collection of historical anecdotes tracing the development of flight science and technology. Students experiment with kites, parachutes, airfoils, gliders, and balloon rockets to learn about 4 forces acting on an aircraft in flight—lift, drag, thrust, and gravity. They measure altitude, wind speed, rate of descent, and flight distance. Information, procedures, and test data are recorded in student flight logs. Examples of cross-curricular activities include analyzing the elements of science fiction stories, constructing a flight history timeline, calculating and comparing flight times for airplanes throughout history, and drawing a scene as viewed from a hot air balloon.

Flight Lab provides a list of resources, including books, computer software, and audiovisual materials.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: History of science.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-7872-1457-4), $21.90. Mentor's guide, $3.90. Publisher/supplier: Kendall/Hunt. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.30 Forces and Machines.

Mary Atwater, Prentice Baptiste, Lucy Daniel, and others. Unit 39. Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Science series. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan/McGraw-Hill School Publishing, 1995.

Program Overview The Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Science series is a comprehensive, activity-based, K-8 science curriculum made up of 42 stand-alone units, 18 of which are designed for grades 6-8. The series is constructed around 7 major themes: (1) systems and interactions, (2) scale and structure, (3) stability, (4) energy, (5) evolution, (6) patterns of change, and (7) models. The subject of each unit—for example, forces and machines—is presented from the perspective of one or more of these themes. One theme is designated as the "major theme" for a unit, and any others are treated as "related themes." For each unit, a wide range of materials, including some optional components, is available for students and teachers.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 7-8. Forces and Machines contains 5 lessons in which students explore the forces of friction and gravity and their interaction with objects in different systems. The organizing themes for this unit are systems and interactions (major theme) and energy (related theme).

Each of the 5 lessons in this unit typically requires 5 days for completion. During the unit students develop an understanding of friction and gravity; find out how one form of energy can be transformed into another; discriminate between potential and kinetic energy; calculate and measure energy using joules; define work, power, and momentum; and explore levers, pulleys, the wheel and axle, and the inclined plane as simple machines.

Sample activities include investigating the variables involved in frictional forces; observing if mass and

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

height affect the motion of a skate rolling down a ramp; calculating the amount of work done in walking up stairs and the rate at which it was done; exploring how a lever changes the amount of force needed to do work; and investigating how an inclined plane affects the effort force.

Each lesson contains narrative information and a series of sequential, hands-on activities—such as an introductory "minds-on" activity, short "try this" activities, and a longer "explore" activity. The latter, which is a lab activity, takes a class period to complete. Students use activity logs to record ideas, observations, and results.

Special unit features include curriculum links to language arts, literature, mathematics, music, and art; information about science careers; and narrative sections highlighting science, technology, and society connections.

Teacher's Planning Guide The teacher's planning guide, a spiral-bound, wraparound edition, provides information and strategies for teaching the 5 lessons in the student edition. Each lesson is introduced by a 4-page section that offers background information, a lesson planning guide, and assessment options. Marginal notes on the lesson pages provide discussion ideas, tips on meeting individual needs, suggestions for addressing misconceptions, assessment ideas, and curriculum connections.

Program Resources and Support Materials A wide range of materials, including some optional components, is available. Examples include consumable and nonconsumable activity materials; audio- and video-tapes; interactive videodiscs; color transparencies; assessment materials; a teacher anthology of short stories, poems, fingerplays, and songs; trade books; teacher resource masters; activity cards; activity logs; a staff development package; concept summaries and glossaries for students acquiring English; and software with problem-solving simulations for students.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-02-276087-3), $55.98. Student book (ISBN 0-02-276139-X), $7.06. Teacher's resource package, $91.92. Activity materials kit, $99.00. Publisher/supplier: McGraw-Hill. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.31 Inventor's Lab.

Science Technology and Reading (STAR) series. Developed by Reading Is Fundamental (Washington, D.C.). Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1996.

Program Overview Designed for the upper elementary grades, the Science Technology and Reading (STAR) series consists of 8 thematic "labs" in the natural and physical sciences. Each lab focuses both on science activities and on a genre of children's literature, developing correlations between the science process and the process of reading. In addition to a teacher's guide for each of the 8 labs, the STAR program includes a mentor's guide for scientists, engineers, and others assisting in the classroom.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 3-6. The story of Lewis Latimer, an African-American inventor who was a colleague of Thomas Edison, provides the context for a series of investigations using electrical circuitry in Inventor's Lab. As apprentices, students construct simple electric circuits and an electromagnet. As journeymen they apply their skills and knowledge to build a model cottage with electrical sources, an electromagnetic crane, or an electronic quiz game. As inventors they are challenged to create an invention or a prototype of an invention. The unit includes additional activities to tie the inventor's lab to reading, social studies, art, and mathematics, including learning more about inventors by reading about their lives and careers, wiring a dollhouse, and building a better book bag.

Inventor's Lab provides a list of resources, including books, computer software, and audiovisual materials.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Science as a human endeavor.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-7872-1455-8), $21.90. Mentor's guide, $3.90. Publisher/supplier: Kendall/Hunt. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.32 Lenses and Mirrors.

National Learning Center. Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-7. In Lenses and Mirrors , students investigate the refraction and reflection of light by lenses and mirrors as they come to understand how light can be manipulated to help us see things. In this module students investigate how light rays behave when they strike a reflective surface. They discover the connection between the location of an object and the apparent location of its reflection. Then they construct a pinhole viewer and learn why rays passing through a very small hole produce an inverted image. Students discover what happens when light is reflected off more than 1 mirror, investigate the reflection patterns produced by 2 mirrors joined at 1 edge, examine the reflections produced by 2 vertical mirrors and 1 horizontal mirror positioned to form a 3-way corner mirror, and observe the results when light rays strike concave and convex mirrors. In other activities they investigate lenses and discover that lenses change the appearance of things by causing light rays to converge or diverge. They also learn the difference between real and virtual images and the types of lenses and mirrors that produce them. They learn the different parts of the eye and how they work with the brain to produce images, and then learn how eyesight is tested and discuss how lenses are used to correct eyesight. Finally, students design and conduct their own experiments with lenses and mirrors.

The 12 activities in Lenses and Mirrors take 30 to 60 minutes each and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to direction for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-115-9), $27.95. Kit, $379.00. Refill package, $33.00. Publisher/Supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.33 More Than Magnifiers.

Reprinted with revisions. Cary I. Sneider and Alan Gould. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1991.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6-8+. In More Than Magnifiers, students investigate the properties and practical applications of lenses. Using readily available and inexpensive materials, students experiment and find out how lenses are used in magnifiers, simple cameras, telescopes, and projectors. They learn that lenses have properties that can be measured and that some lenses are better than others for certain purposes.

The 4 activities in More Than Magnifiers take 30 to 45 minutes each. The teacher's guide provides step-by-step directions for the activities and background information on the properties and functions of the lenses in the 4 devices constructed during the unit. "Going further" ideas at the end of each activity can help teachers design a unit for more advanced students. Summary outlines and reproducible student data sheets are provided.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

Prices: $9 (ISBN 0-912511-62-1). Box of lenses, $21. Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.34 Newton's Toy Box.

Carolyn Sumners. Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 6-8. Newton's Toy Box introduces students to Newton's laws of motion as they experiment with familiar toys and objects. For example, they use wooden balls to review gravity, motion, and the relationship between mass and force; investigate the variables that affect air resistance when they construct a parachute and use it to slow the speed of falling objects; examine the parabolic path of a tossed ball; and experiment with a traditional "ball and cup" toy and explain how gravity and Newton's second law affect the toy. Students then calculate the speed of a toy car in 3 different situations and identify the degree of friction as the variable accounting for differences in speed. They use gravity (via ramps) to accelerate toy cars and determine which factors, such as starting height on the ramp, affect the cars' speed. They explore Newton's third law of motion—action and reaction—as they construct a come-back-can, and describe its behavior in terms of potential and kinetic energy. Action and reaction is examined further with spring jumpers and student-assembled paper models of grasshoppers. Students experiment with clacking balls and describe the behavior in terms of momentum and transfer of energy, and create collisions with balls of different masses to test the law of conservation of momentum.

In conjunction with the unit's activities, students watch a video, Toys in Space, in which real astronauts experiment with some of the toys students are using. Students compare the behavior of the toys on earth with that of toys in a microgravity environment and see that many of the techniques they use to operate their toys depend on the earth's gravitational force.

The 15 activities in Newton's Toy Box each require 30 to 60 minutes and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to directions for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-156-6), $27.95. Kit, $349.00. Refill package, $5.50. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.35 Of Cabbages and Chemistry.

Reprinted with revisions. Jacqueline Barber. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1993.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 4-8. In the module Of Cabbages and Chemistry, students discover acids and bases and some of their properties by conducting experiments with red cabbage juice (a natural indicator) and common household liquids. In the first of 4 activities, students mix cabbage juice with various household liquids, then classify the liquids into groups according to the colors of the resulting mixtures. Next they share and compare their results in a classroom "scientific convention," relate their classifications to the terms

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

"acid," "base," and "neutral," and then discover through hands-on experimentation that acids and bases are not discrete categories but points along a continuum. In the third and fourth activities, students investigate the concepts of concentration and neutralization and apply what they have learned by testing a variety of new liquids and household products. A short game, "Acids and Aliens from Outer Space," included at the end of the unit can be used as an assessment.

Of Cabbages and Chemistry includes 4 activities, requiring 4 to 8 sessions of 30 to 60 minutes each. The guide contains appropriate science background information, detailed lesson plans, reproducible masters of student data sheets, and ideas for extensions.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

Price: $10.50 (ISBN 0-912511-63-X). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.36 Oobleck: What Do Scientists Do?

Reprinted with revisions. Cary I. Sneider. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1994.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 4-8. In this unit, students investigate an unknown substance (said to come from another planet) called Oobleck, describe its physical properties, experiment to identify its unique characteristics, and hold a scientific convention to discuss the similarities and differences among their findings. Students then design a spacecraft that would be able to land and take off again on an ocean of Oobleck. They compare the scientific methods they employed with those of real scientists.

The format for the 4 activities (requiring 5 or 6 class sessions of 20 to 45 minutes each) includes a list of materials, suggestions for preparation, and directions for the activity. Background information and summary outlines are also provided.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Price: $9 (ISBN 0-912511-64-8). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.37 Simple Machines.

Delta Science Module (DSM) series. Hudson, N.H.: Delta Education, 1994.

Program Overview The Delta Science Module (DSM) series has 51 life, physical, and earth science units for grades K-8 that emphasize science concepts, science content, and process skills. The series includes 12 modules for grades 5-6 and 8 modules for grades 6-8. Each requires about 3 to 4 weeks to complete and includes a teacher's guide and materials for a class of 32 students.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 5-7. Simple Machines introduces students to simple machines and the concepts of force, work, friction, energy transfer, and mechanical advantage. During the module, students determine the amount of force necessary to move objects and calculate the amount of work done when an object is moved over a measured distance. They construct a lever and investigate mechanical advantage by experimenting with the position of the fulcrum, load, and effort. Students experiment with friction, and discover how wheels reduce the amount of friction between an object and the surface over which it moves. Students then assemble a toy tractor and discover the mechanical advantage of a wheel-and-axle simple machine, and they experiment with traction and how it improves the performance of their tractors. They also examine the structure of a gear and observe how gears interact to transfer force, and construct and use a pulley. They perform experiments with an inclined plane, finding that it allows them to do the same amount of work while exerting less force; discuss the properties of a wedge that permit it to be classified as a simple machine; discover that a screw consists of an inclined plane wrapped

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

around a cylinder; and compare lists of simple machines found at home.

The 12 activities in Simple Machines generally take from 30 to 60 minutes each to complete, and can be done by students working individually or in groups. In addition to directions for activities, the teacher's guide provides a module overview, a schedule of activities, objectives for each activity, background information, materials management and preparation tips, sample answers to discussion questions, teaching suggestions, and reinforcement activities. Also included are reproducible activity sheets for student work and a performance-based assessment. A "connections" feature at the end of each activity provides suggestions for extending or applying the concepts addressed.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Systems, order, and organization; evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Motions and forces.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-87504-119-1), $27.95. Kit, $279.00. Refill package, $15.00. Publisher/supplier: Delta Education. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.38 Using Energy.

Mary Atwater, Prentice Baptiste, Lucy Daniel, and others. Unit 42. Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Science series. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan/McGraw-Hill School Publishing, 1995.

Program Overview The Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Science series is a comprehensive, activity-based, K-8 science curriculum made up of 42 stand-alone units, 18 of which are designed for grades 6-8. The series is constructed around 7 major themes: (1) systems and interactions, (2) scale and structure, (3) stability, (4) energy, (5) evolution, (6) patterns of change, and (7) models. The subject of each unit—for example, using energy—is presented from the perspective of one or more of these themes. One theme is designated as the "major theme" for a unit, and any others are treated as "related themes." For each unit, a wide range of materials, including some optional components, is available for students and teachers.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 7-8. Using Energy contains 5 lessons in which students discover how thermal energy is produced and investigate the effect of thermal energy on matter, examine the relationship between thermal energy and other forms of energy, and discuss different types of energy resources. The organizing theme for this unit is energy (major theme).

Each of the 5 lessons in the unit typically requires 5 to 8 days for completion. During the unit students define thermal energy and develop an understanding of the relationship between thermal energy and temperature. They also learn the difference between temperature and heat; compare and contrast conduction, convection, and radiation; and learn about the main sources of thermal energy, their relationships, and how they occur. Students discuss the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources, and learn about the importance of energy conservation.

Sample activities include observing that objects become warmer with increasing motion, and experimenting with hot and cold water in plastic bags to discover that thermal energy moves from warmer objects to cooler objects. Other activities include designing and testing an insulated box made to slow the melting of an ice cube, observing that different materials conduct heat at different rates, constructing a solar collector and comparing how long the solar collector and a traditional heat source such as a hot plate take to heat water, and calculating daily energy consumption and its cost.

Each lesson contains narrative information and a series of sequential, hands-on activities—such as an introductory "minds-on" activity, short "try this" activities, and a longer "explore" activity. The latter, which is a lab activity, takes a class period to complete. Students use activity logs to record ideas, observations, and results.

Special unit features include curriculum links to language arts, literature, mathematics, music, and art; information about science careers; and narrative sections highlighting science, technology, and society connections.

Teacher's Planning Guide This teacher's planning guide, a spiral-bound, wraparound edition, provides information and strategies for teaching the 5 lessons in the student edition. Each lesson is introduced by a 4-page section that offers background information, a lesson planning guide, and assessment options. Marginal notes on the lesson pages provide discussion ideas, tips on meeting individual needs, suggestions for addressing misconceptions, assessments ideas, and curriculum connections.

Program Resources and Support Materials A wide range of materials, including some optional components, is available. Examples include consumable and nonconsumable activity materials; audio- and videotapes; interactive videodiscs; color transparencies; assessment materials; a teacher anthology of short stories, poems, fingerplays, and songs; trade books; teacher

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

resource masters; activity cards; activity logs; concept summaries and glossaries for students acquiring English; and software with problem-solving simulations for students.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter; transfer of energy.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Understandings about science and technology.

SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES: Science and technology in society.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-02-276142-X), $7.06. Teacher's planning guide (ISBN 0-02-276090-3), $55.98. Unit package, $115.68. Activity materials kit, $86.00. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: McGraw-Hill. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.39 Vitamin C Testing.

Reprinted with revisions. Jacqueline Barber. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1990.

Program Overview The Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series includes more than 50 teacher's guides and handbooks for preschool through grade 10. About 35 of these are appropriate for middle school. The series also includes several assembly presenter's guides and exhibit guides. New guides and handbooks continue to be developed, and current titles are revised frequently. The series is designed to teach key science and mathematics concepts through activity-based learning. The time needed to complete GEMS units varies from about 2 to 10 class sessions.

Teacher's Guide Recommended grade level: 4-8. Vitamin C Testing offers an introduction to chemistry and nutrition by providing students with the materials and techniques needed to test the vitamin C content in common juices. Students learn to use the chemical technique titration. They compare the vitamin C content of different juices and graph the results. For more advanced study, students examine the effects of heat and freezing (or other treatment) on vitamin C content.

The skills developed in this unit include performing chemistry lab techniques, experimenting, analyzing data, and graphing and drawing conclusions. Summary outlines help the teacher guide students through the activities. All materials are available in local stores except for the indicator chemical (indophenol) and plastic vials, which can be ordered from a scientific supply company.

The lesson plans for the 4 sessions of 45 minutes each include an overview, a materials list, and detailed instructions for preparing for and conducting the activity. The guide includes reproducible masters of student data sheets.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Evidence, models, and explanation; change, constancy, and measurement.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE: Nature of science.

Price: $9 (ISBN 0-912511-70-2). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.40 What's in Our Food?

Module 2.4. Foundations and Challenges to Encourage Technology-based Science (FACETS) series. Developed by American Chemical Society (Washington, D.C.). Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1996.

Program Overview The Foundations and Challenges to Encourage Technology-based Science (FACETS) program consists of 3 series of 8 modules each for grades 6-8. Each module focuses on a topic in the life, earth, or physical sciences. The time needed to complete FACETS modules varies from 2 to 4 weeks. Each module consists of a student book and a teacher's guide.

Student Edition Recommended grade level: 6-7. The module What's in Our Food? introduces students to the subject of food additives. The major focus is on thickening agents used in commercial brands of vanilla ice cream. Working in teams, students investigate the effects of several variables—type and amount of thickener, temperature of the mixture, and mixing technique—on the thickness of the final product.

Among the activities in the unit, students examine food labels and identify and categorize additives. They conduct a controlled experiment to determine the effects of 3 thickening agents on a basic ice cream mixture, and they explore the effect of different mixture temperatures and mixing techniques on the thickening property of an additive. They also design and carry out a consumer-preference survey on the desirable thickness of ice cream. In the unit's final activity, students use their knowledge of thickeners to develop their own brand of vanilla ice cream.

What's in Our Food? is a 4-week module divided into 5 activities, which each take between 1 and 5

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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class periods to complete. A narrative section at the end of the module provides background information for students on mixtures, food additives, and consumer opinion surveys.

Teacher's Guide The wraparound teacher's guide includes a unit overview, a time line for completing the module, a materials list, background information, and teaching suggestions.

Key to Content Standards: 5-8

(see app. C)

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES: Form and function.

SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry; understandings about scientific inquiry.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE: Properties and changes of properties in matter.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Abilities of technological design; understandings about science and technology.

Prices: Student edition (ISBN 0-7872-1449-3), $7.90. Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-7872-1463-9), $14.90. Publisher/supplier: Kendall/Hunt. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Physical Science—Science Activity Books

1.41 Analysis.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 10. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1991.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. In the 16 easy-to-follow activities in Analysis—which is one of the many units in the Task Card Series—students practice and become familiar with the analytical and problem-solving skills that scientists use in identifying substances. For example, students separate a mixture of salt and sand quantitatively, following directions on a flowchart; they develop a reaction table to use as a reference for identifying unknown powders; and they qualitatively analyze the composition of various mixtures of white powders, using testing agents that react in characteristic ways. They also investigate the properties of cabbage water as an acid–base indicator, and they study how beet juice interacts with acids and bases.

The activities in Analysis require commonly available materials (such as baking soda, sand, beets, and red cabbage leaves). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for each activity, a reproducible pH scale for use in some activities, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $8 (ISBN 0-941008-80-0). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

ABOUT THE ANNOTATIONS IN "PHYSICAL SCIENCE—SCIENCE ACTIVITY BOOKS"

Entry Numbers

Curriculum materials are arranged alphabetically by title in each category (Core Materials, Supplementary Units, and Science Activity Books) in chapters 1 through 5 of this guide.

Each curriculum annotation has a two-part entry number: the chapter number is given before the period; the number after the period locates the entry within that chapter. For example, the first entry number in chapter 1 is 1.1; the second entry in chapter 2 is 2.2; and so on.

The entry numbers within each curriculum chapter run consecutively through Core Materials, Supplementary Units, and Science Activity Books.

Order of Bibliographic Information

Following is the arrangement of the facts of publication in the annotations in this section:

  • Title of publication

  • Number of edition, if applicable

  • Authors (an individual author or authors, an institutional author, or a project or program name under which the material was developed)

  • Series title

  • Series developer, if applicable

  • Place of publication, publisher, and date of publication

Recommended Grade Level

The grade level for each piece of material was recommended by teacher evaluators during the development of this guide. In some instances, the recommended grade level may differ slightly from the publisher's advertised level.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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Price and Acquisition Information

Ordering information appears at the end of each entry. Included are—

  • Prices (of teacher's guides, activity books, and kits or units)

  • Publisher/supplier (The name of a principal publisher/supplier, although not necessarily the sole source, for the items listed in the price category. Appendix A, "Publishers and Suppliers," provides the address, phone and fax numbers, and electronic ordering information, where available, for each publisher and supplier.)

  • Materials (various sources from which one might obtain the required materials)

Readers must contact publishers/suppliers for complete and up-to-date ordering information, since prices are subject to change and materials may also change with revised editions. The prices given in this chapter are based on information from publishers and suppliers but are not meant to represent the full range of ordering options.

Indexes of Curriculum Materials

The multiple indexes on pp. 449-78 allow easy access to the information in this guide. Various aspects of the curriculum materials—including titles, topics addressed in each unit, and grade levels—are the focus of seven separate indexes. For example, titles and entry numbers are listed in the "Title Index" on pp. 450-54. The "Index of Authors, Series, and Curriculum Projects," on pp. 455-57, provides entry numbers of any annotated titles in a particular series.

1.42 "The Best of Edison" Science Teaching Kits.

East Orange, N.J.: Charles Edison Fund, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. "The Best of Edison" is a compilation of more than 65 hands-on activities relating to electricity, energy sources and conservation, the environment, nuclear energy, and some of Thomas Edison's inventions. Among the activities, for example, students make a solar-powered hot dog cooker, build and test a model solar hot water heater, and investigate the water-holding capacity of soils. They also conduct a home energy audit, build a DC motor, and use a simple electroscope to detect the presence of static electricity on the surface of a phonograph record. The teacher's guide also includes a biography of Lewis Latimer, an African-American inventor and associate of Edison, and provides activities based on some of Latimer's experiments, such as building an air cooler.

"The Best of Edison" is presented in 3-ring-notebook format. It provides directions and limited background information. No student record sheets are supplied.

Price: $1. Publisher/supplier: Charles Edison Fund. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.43 Brick Layers: Creative Engineering with LEGO Constructions.

Sheldon Erickson, Tom Seymour, and Martin Suey. Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science (AIMS) series. Fresno, Calif.: AIMS Education Foundation, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. Brick Layers contains 26 activities for students to explore mechanical and structural engineering concepts by experimenting with LEGO Dacta kits. In the first 18 activities, which focus on mechanical engineering principles, students learn about force, work, friction, and mechanical advantage by constructing and working with inclined planes, levers, wheels and axles, and gears. They discover, for example, how the effort position on a lever affects the amount of effort required, how the size of a slot car's drive wheel affects its performance, and how changing the size of the gears on a fishing reel affects the rate at which the line is reeled in.

In the last 8 activities, which focus on structural engineering, students learn that certain geometric shapes—such as the cycloid and the triangle—have special properties that make them useful in construction. They also learn that tension and compression are forces that are present and need to be considered in building structures. They build polygons and test them to see which ones are stable, use a LEGO gear and racks to draw a cycloid so that they can conceptualize what the ride of a bug would be like if it were on the rim of a moving bicycle, and construct the longest boom possible that has the least possible deflection.

Each activity includes background information, procedures, discussion questions, extensions, and reproducible student pages. Each activity also has a "guiding documents" section, which lists the activity's relevance to specific NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) standards and Project 2061 Benchmarks (developed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science).

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 1-881431-62-2), $16.95. Publisher/supplier: AIMS Education Foundation. Materials: Available in LEGO Dacta kits.

1.44 Crime Lab Chemistry.

Reprinted with revisions. Jacqueline Barber. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1989.

Recommended grade level: 4-8. In Crime Lab Chemistry, students play the part of crime lab chemists to solve a mystery. They discover which of several black pens was used to write a ransom note. This guide capitalizes on students' enthusiasm for solving mysteries to develop such skills as analyzing data and making inferences. They use the process of paper chromatography to separate the pigments contained in the ink on the ransom note. This same technique is then used to analyze the ink in several pens. Students compare the chromatograms to determine which pen was used to write the note.

Crime Lab Chemistry requires 2 class sessions of 35 to 45 minutes each. The teacher's guide includes an introduction, detailed information on time and materials needed and on steps in advance preparation, as well as suggestions for other mysteries to be solved and summary outlines for both sessions.

Price: $9 (ISBN 0-912511-16-8). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.45 Electricity and Magnetism.

Robert Gardner. Yesterday's Science, Today's Technology Science Activities series. New York, N.Y.: Twenty-First Century Books, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Electricity and Magnetism contains 17 simple activities in which students investigate some of the science and technology associated with electricity and explore how electricity is related to magnetism. The activities involve topics such as magnets and magnetic fields, electric charge, the connection between electricity and magnetism, battery technology, electromagnets, and the future of electricity generation. Students magnetize a needle and use it to make a simple compass, experiment with static charges, plate copper on old spoons using a battery, and build a simple electric generator, among other activities. This book was written for students, and they can do most of the activities without supervision, although several may require adult assistance because of the materials involved.

Each activity includes a brief historical or science background section on the scientific discoveries of people such as Michael Faraday and Thomas Edison. The narrative then guides students through the activity. A list of 15 follow-up activities and ideas is included.

Price: $16.98 (ISBN 0-8050-2850-1). Publisher/supplier: Von Holtzbrinck (VHPS). Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.46 Energy Bridges to Science, Technology and Society.

3rd ed. Florida Middle School Energy Education Project. Tallahassee, Fla.: Florida State University and Florida Energy Office, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Energy Bridges to Science, Technology and Society contains 26 activities related

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

to different types of energy technologies, conservation, solar electricity, and the social implications of energy production and consumption. Among these activities, students make a model wind energy machine and also identify some of the problems in cleaning up ocean oil spills. They build and use a simple calorimeter, and they measure the ability of some common materials to hold heat. In other activities, students make recycled paper, compare the transmission of solar radiation through different materials, and build and use a solar box cooker.

Energy Bridges was designed to supplement existing middle or junior high school texts and laboratory investigations. The activities are independent of one another and are designed to be used in class, as laboratory experiments, or as out-of-class assignments.

Presented in a 3-ring-binder format, Energy Bridges includes reproducible student data sheets and instructions, as well as a brief teacher's guide with an answer key. Some of the information and examples in the unit are specific to Florida, where the volume was developed, but the unit can be used in other areas of the country as well.

Price: Free. Publisher/supplier: Energy and Environmental Alliance. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.47 Experiments with Balloons.

Robert Gardner and David Webster. Getting Started in Science series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. In Experiments with Balloons, 1 of 4 books in the series Getting Started in Science, about 50 simple activities with balloons help students learn about topics such as the properties of gases, air pressure, electricity, density, and sound. Among other activities, students measure the "floating strength" of liquid-filled balloons. They also compare the densities of air, "lung air," and carbon dioxide. Students build a pressure gauge to compare the pressure of a small balloon with that of a big one, make a model lung, and use balloons to investigate static and electric charge.

Experiments with Balloons was written for students. They can do most of the activities without supervision, although several may require adult assistance because of the materials involved. The activities are largely narrative in form. Each contains questions to help guide students' inquiry. Some experiments are preceded by an explanation of a scientific principle.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-669-0). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.48 Experiments with Bubbles.

Robert Gardner. Getting Started in Science series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. In Experiments with Bubbles, 1 of 4 books in the series Getting Started in Science, about 50 simple activities with bubbles help students investigate topics such as light, color, Bernoulli's principle, and surface tension. Among other activities, students measure the surface tension of a liquid using a balance beam, they explore how humidity and temperature affect the life span and size of bubbles, and they compare the images one sees in a bubble with those seen in concave and convex mirrors. They also see whether bubbles made from a colored liquid are the same color as the liquid.

Experiments with Bubbles was written for students. They can do most of the activities without supervision, although several may require adult supervision because of the materials involved. The activities are largely narrative in form. Each contains questions to help guide students' inquiry. Some experiments are preceded by an explanation of a scientific principle.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-666-6). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.49 Experiments with Motion.

Robert Gardner. Getting Started in Science series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. In Experiments with Motion, 1 of 4 books in the series Getting Started in Science, about 50 simple experiments help students investigate Newton's laws of motion, speed, gravity, acceleration, and friction. Among the activities, students see what effect mass has on a toy truck's acceleration, they make and experiment with a model parachute, and they compare the acceleration of falling objects of different masses. They also investigate inelastic and elastic collisions by experimenting with a homemade "rolling-sphere" toy. The activities involve materials such as bicycles, toy cars and trucks, wagons, marbles, modeling clay, and balloons.

Experiments with Motion was written for students. They can do most of the activities without supervision, although several may require adult supervision because of the materials. The activities are largely narrative in form. Each contains questions to help guide students' inquiry. Some experiments are preceded by an explanation of a scientific principle.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-667-4). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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1.50 The Exploratorium Guide to Scale and Structure: Activities for the Elementary Classroom.

Barry Kluger-Bell and the School in The Exploratorium. Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 4-8. In the 36 open-ended activities of The Exploratorium Guide to Scale and Structure (The Exploratorium is San Francisco's museum of science, art, and human perception.), students explore many of the physical principles of structure and experience how changing the scale of a structure affects its strength, stability, and design. The principal concepts addressed in this guide include balancing the forces of weight with the strength of materials; stability, tension, and compression; and the distribution of weight (torques) and balancing points (centers-of-mass).

Activities in the guide are organized in three parts: (1) "The Physics and Engineering of Structure," (2) "The Mathematics of Scale," and (3) "The Effect of Scale on Structure." Among the activities, students build structures such as towers or bridges using various materials (blocks, straws, toothpicks and clay, newspaper, and bamboo garden stakes). They use a variety of balance boards to explore the concept of balance. They also work with cubes and cones to understand the relative changes in length, area, and volume as an object scales up or down. Finally, students investigate the effect of scale on structure through a variety of simple activities involving the surface tension of water.

Each activity includes background information for the teacher, procedures, discussion suggestions, and extensions. Sample student record sheets and a resource guide with short descriptions of books for teachers and students and audiovisual materials are provided. Many of the activities require special work areas to accommodate the large scale of the building projects.

Price: $29.50 (ISBN 0-435-08372-4). Publisher/supplier: Heinemann. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.51 Flights of Imagination: An Introduction to Aerodynamics.

Rev. ed. Wayne Hosking. Washington, D.C.: National Science Teachers Association, 1990.

Recommended grade level: 5-8+. Flights of Imagination provides instructions for its 18 activities, which use student-constructed kites, gliders, and airfoils to investigate fundamental principles of aerodynamics. Students explore questions such as how the wind makes a kite rise; why some kites require a tail; how a dihedral adds stability; and what effect different materials have on a kite's durability, construction time, and flight performance. The more quantitative investigations on topics such as aspect ratio, weight-to-area factor, wind speed and lift, and angle of elevation are more appropriate for secondary school students.

Flights of Imagination includes appendixes on when, where, and how to fly a kite. It also provides a safety code, glossary, and resource list.

Price: $10.50 (ISBN 0-87355-067-6). Publisher/supplier: National Science Teachers Association. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.52 Floaters and Sinkers: Mass, Volume, and Density.

Rev. ed. Betty Cordel, David Lile, Mike McKibban, and others. Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science (AIMS) series. Fresno, Calif.: AIMS Education Foundation, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. During the 34 activities in Floaters and Sinkers, students investigate the basic concepts and principles of mass, volume, and density by working with familiar things. For example, they find out if the peel of an orange affects whether and why the orange will float or sink. Students also figure out how to make a fresh egg float in water, design an aluminum-foil boat to hold the maximum amount of cargo, and determine how much cargo a ship made from a tin can will carry so that the ship's waterline is at a predetermined level.

Each activity in Floaters and Sinkers includes background information for the teacher; procedures, discussion questions, and extensions; and reproducible student pages containing instructions, data sheets, and graphs. Each activity also has a "guiding documents" section, which lists the activity's relevance to specific standards of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and to Project 2061 Benchmarks.

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 1-881431-58-4), $16.95. Publisher/supplier: AIMS Education Foundation. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.53 Flying Tinsel: An Unusual Approach to Teaching Electricity.

Grant Mellor. White Plains, N.Y.: Cuisenaire, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Many of the 29 sequential activities on electricity in Flying Tinsel are adapted from or based on historic experiments by well-known scientists of the seventeenth through the nineteenth century. Flying Tinsel is organized in 3 units: (1) "Static Electricity," (2) "Current Electricity," and (3) "Electromagnetism." Students explore topics such as positive and negative charges; voltage, current, resistance, and their relationship to

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

Ohm's law; applications of the electromagnet; and electromagnetic induction. Among other activities, students work with acrylic rods to investigate electric charges, build a pie-tin electrophorous or "charge carrier," and make a Leyden jar out of a plastic milk jug. They also recreate the world's first battery by building a 2-layer voltaic pile and feeling its moderately shocking force. Then they observe that electric current can produce a magnetic force, and use their electromagnets to construct simple buzzer circuits and a telegraph. They also build a working speaker out of a metal wastepaper basket, a permanent magnet, and an electromagnet.

The activities in Flying Tinsel range from being strongly teacher-directed to being free-form investigations. The required materials are generally easy to find and relatively inexpensive. Each activity includes background information for teachers, historical notes when relevant, procedures, discussion suggestions, and extensions. Three short assessments are provided.

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-938587-33-1), $12.95. Publisher/supplier: Cuisenaire/Dale Seymour. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.54 Fundamentals of Physical Science.

2nd ed. Janet Z. Tarino, with Iona R. Shawver. Science Is Fun series. Mansfield, Ohio: The Ohio State University Research Foundation, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 5-7. The 40 simple experiments in Fundamentals of Physical Science introduce students to the nature of scientific investigation; the classification and identification of matter; and the properties of solids, liquids, and gases. During the first few experiments, which introduce science as a process, students calculate the number of beans in a jar as an introduction to sampling and variability in measurement; they develop an understanding of a grid or coordinate system; they collect data and prepare a graph, and interpret the data and the graph in order to determine the relationships between variables; and they design an experiment to find out how many drops of water can fit on a penny. These introductory experiments are freestanding and could be used by all science teachers regardless of program content.

In the book's 35 physical science experiments, which are designed to be performed in sequence, students do a series of simple activities to discover that air is a substance which takes up space, and they use air pressure to implode a metal can. They also investigate surface tension and capillary action in liquids, and they compare the crystalline patterns of solids. Other experiments teach students how scientists separate and identify substances in mixtures with techniques such as paper chromatography or through knowledge of the physical and chemical properties of substances.

Each activity includes numbered teaching steps, teaching hints, questions for the students, and extensions.

Price: $20. Publisher/supplier: The Ohio State University at Mansfield. Materials: Available locally.

1.55 Fun with Chemistry: A Guidebook of K-12 Activities. Vol. 1.

Compiled and edited by Mickey Sarquis and Jerry Sarquis. Madison, Wis.: Institute for Chemical Education, University of Wisconsin, 1991.

Recommended grade level: 5-8+. This first volume of Fun with Chemistry includes 53 chemistry activities and demonstrations. The activities in the first part of the book are arranged in sections on carbon dioxide, chemistry with foodstuffs, color changes, density, and "from the five and dime." Among these activities, students observe that carbon dioxide extinguishes the flame from a candle, compare the dissolving rate of sugar cubes with that of powdered sugar, experiment with density columns, and boil water in a paper pot.

The activities in the second part of the book, most of which are demonstrations, are intended for use by teachers familiar with handling special chemicals, supplies, and equipment, such as concentrated acids, reactive chemicals, or gas cylinders. Students "race" 3 balloons filled with 3 different gases (helium, air, and carbon dioxide). They also observe the effect of extremely low temperature on objects cooled with liquid nitrogen (such as a banana or a racquet ball).

Most of the activities in Fun with Chemistry take fewer than 15 minutes to set up. Activities have a grade-level recommendation, instructions for doing the activity, safety and disposal guidelines, extensions or variations, curriculum integration ideas, and an explanation of the chemical concepts involved. The volume also provides a list of suppliers; a list of readily available, inexpensive chemicals (such as common household chemicals); and an activity index sorted by key concepts.

Prices: $23 ($45 for volumes 1 and 2). Publisher/supplier: Institute for Chemical Education. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.56 Fun with Chemistry: A Guidebook of K-12 Activities. Vol. 2.

Compiled and edited by Mickey Sarquis and Jerry Sarquis. Madison, Wis.: Institute for Chemical Education, University of Wisconsin, 1993.

Recommended grade level: K-8+. The second volume of Fun with Chemistry is a collection of 54 classroom-tested activities that can enhance teaching, are enjoyable and easy to do, and help make science relevant for students. Many of the activities take 15 minutes to set up and not much longer to conduct. The activities are arranged in 8 sections on the following themes: colorful separations, dyeing eggs, polymers, Cartesian divers, physical properties and changes, observing chemical changes, crystals, and our everyday world. Examples of these activities include analyzing the component colors of candy coatings (such as M&Ms) using chromatography, making and studying the properties of a polymer gel similar to Slime, putting an egg into a bottle with a neck smaller than the diameter of the egg, and simulating a tornado in a bottle.

Each activity has a recommended grade level, step-by-step procedures, an explanation of the chemical concepts involved, alternative methods for doing the activity, extensions, references, and a list of sources for finding materials. Safety and chemical disposal guidelines are included. An appendix provides a detailed list of where inexpensive materials can be acquired. The activities are indexed by key concept.

Prices: $27 ($45 for volumes 1 and 2). Publisher/supplier: Institute for Chemical Education. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.57 The Fusion Series: Personal Science Laboratory (PSL) Explorer Investigations for Grades 6-9.

Personal Science Laboratory (PSL) series. Boulder, Colo.: Team Labs, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 6-8+. This curriculum guide contains 12 computer-based investigations—each on a different topic—that integrate science, mathematics, and technology. The investigations use special probes, interfaced with a personal computer, that allow students to conduct measurements and enter data directly into the software program—PSL Explorer—that guides students through the experiments. Topics covered include the electromagnetic spectrum, phase changes, rotational velocity, electrovoltaic cells, photosynthesis, seismic waves, and exothermic and endothermic reactions.

Among the activities, students devise a method to map out a landing zone for a prototype flying saucer using a distance probe as a surveying tool. They also identify sources of electromagnetic radiation outside of the visible range and measure the intensity of this radiation using a light probe. In other activities, they construct a battery from a banana, graph the phase change of a special type of chocolate from a liquid to a solid, construct a pendulum seismograph, use probes to explore the temperature at which water has the greatest density, and replicate the reactions that occur in hot packs and cold packs.

Students complete experiments by logging onto the computer, selecting an experiment, following a series of prompts or directions, entering data from activities or by having the probes directly transmit the information, and completing follow-up activities. The computer program also organizes student-generated experimental data into charts, graphs, and tables. Each activity includes step-by-step procedures, student pages, assessments, and extensions.

The entire series of investigations comes in a hard-copy version, on a CD-ROM, and on diskettes. In order to use the program, a school must acquire both the Personal Science Laboratory software and equipment (such as probeware).

Prices: Curriculum guide, $288. Middle School Comprehensive Pak, $3,390. (Contact the publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Team Labs. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or from Team Labs.

1.58 Gears.

Enfield, Conn.: LEGO Dacta, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 4-6. This booklet contains information about gears, simple hands-on gear activities, and appropriate diagrams and illustrations. It is designed to be used with the LEGO Dacta Gear Set, which uses the popular LEGO construction blocks to teach about gears. Students first learn the definition of a gear. Then they build models that will gear up (increase speed) and gear down (increase force). They arrange gears so they turn in the same direction, in opposite directions, or at 90-degree angles to each other. They discover that how fast or how slowly one gear makes another turn depends on the number of teeth on the gear. Students are challenged to design and build a spinning sign and a moving target.

Each activity in Gears states the main idea involved and provides illustrated instructions, additional information, and extension ideas. The guide lists the process and critical-thinking skills involved in the activities.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-914831-82-8), $5.25. Classroom pack, $183.75. Individual set, $15.75. Publisher/supplier: LEGO Dacta. Materials: Available from LEGO Dacta.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.59 How Everyday Things Work: 60 Descriptions and Activities.

Peter Goodwin. Walch Reproducible Books. Portland, Maine: Walch, 1992.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. How Everyday Things Work describes the scientific principles behind 60 everyday objects, systems, and events. The simple exercises and activities in the book help increase students' understanding of these principles. Some of the topics and their everyday applications are mechanics (how trees stand up in the wind); electricity and magnets (2-way switches, television pictures); sound and light (how a stereo speaker works, printing color pictures); thermodynamics (ice skates, avalanches); and environmental science (how cars are made more fuel-efficient, how smog forms).

Each of the 60 topics consists of a reproducible student section and a teacher section. The section for teachers gives a further explanation of scientific ideas, background information, and answers to questions.

Price: $22.95 (ISBN 0-8251-1974-X). Publisher/supplier: Walch. Materials: Available locally.

1.60 Ice Cream Making and Cake Baking.

Bernie Zubrowski. Models in Physical Science (MIPS) series. White Plains, N.Y.: Cuisenaire, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Ice Cream Making and Cake Baking is 1 of 4 volumes in the Models in Physical Science (MIPS) series. Through the 7 activities in this unit, students investigate the 3 basic types of heat transfer—conduction, convection, and radiation. During these activities, students try to determine the best conditions for removing heat from a container, and they investigate how to prevent heat transfer. Students test containers of different materials, shapes, sizes, and thicknesses to see how these factors affect the melting rate of ice cubes. Then, in an investigation led by the teacher, they test ways of obtaining a temperature high enough to bake a cake in a card-board-box oven.

Next, students move to an investigation of the best way to cool cream to make ice cream. They observe the cooling rate of hot water when ice is added to the coolant water, and they observe the cooling rate of hot water when an ice-salt-water solution is used as the coolant. At the end of the unit, students use what they have learned to make ice cream and bake a cake. For several of the activities, students represent data graphically and mathematically.

The activities in Ice Cream Making and Cake Baking include reproducible student pages and a section for teachers providing background information, discussion guidelines, assessment suggestions, and extensions.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-938587-36-6), $12.50. Kit, $115.00. Publisher/supplier: Cuisenaire/Dale Seymour. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.61 Identification of Chemical Reactions Kit.

Ronkonkoma, N.Y.: Lab-Aids, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. This simple kit—the Identification of Chemical Reactions Kit—contains instructions and lab materials for a single, hands-on activity: students mix or combine a variety of solutions, observe what happens, and determine if a chemical reaction has taken place. When deciding if a chemical reaction has taken place, students are asked to provide evidence (such as a color change or the formation of a gas or precipitate) in support of their answer. If students are advanced in the study of chemistry, they should also be able to write an equation for the chemical reactions that take place. The kit comes with 7 solutions, which can be combined in 21 different ways to test for reactions. Some of the mixtures do not react. In most cases, however, a chemical reaction does occur with clear evidence for the student to observe and interpret.

The kit includes a short booklet for the teacher, 50 student worksheets/guides, 12 plastic trays with wells for mixing chemicals, and the 7 solutions (hydrochloric acid, sodium carbonate, sodium hydroxide, potassium chromate, calcium chloride, sodium hydrogen sulfite, and copper sulfate). Little background information or discussion of general principles is provided.

Price: $49.95. Publisher/supplier: Sargent-Welch. Materials: Available in kit.

1.62 Integrating Aerospace Science into the Curriculum: K-12.

Robert D. Ray and Joan Klingel Ray. Gifted Treasury Series. Englewood, Colo.: Teacher Ideas Press, 1992.

Recommended grade level: 6-8+. Integrating Aerospace Science into the Curriculum is a resource guide designed to help incorporate in the K-12 science curriculum ideas, activities, and interdisciplinary projects related to the science and story of aerospace advances. The format consists of reading sections interwoven with ideas for activities and projects. Topics addressed in the book's 7 chapters include the history of flight; principles learned from experimenting with objects, such as balloons and kites, often thought to be simple toys; the development of aircraft during periods of war; and the development of today's space programs, including the Space Shuttle and the

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

National Aerospace Plane. Many of the project and activity ideas are suggestions rather than fully developed teaching outlines, although some do provide simple directions—for example, for students to design a space station, to make and fly a "heli-pencil," and to construct a wind vane. Each chapter has a bibliography. An appendix lists addresses for obtaining aerospace resource materials.

Price: $21.50 (ISBN 0-87287-924-0). Publisher/supplier: Teacher Ideas Press. Materials: Available locally.

1.63 Introduction to pH Measurement Kit.

Ronkonkoma, N.Y.: Lab-Aids, 1971.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Introduction to pH Measurement Kit is a lab kit for a 1-period activity that introduces students to different types of acid–base indicators. Students experiment by adding various combinations of solutions to wells in plastic lab trays, repeating the procedures with cabbage juice and a fresh red or blue flower (which contain anthocyanin, a "natural" indicator).

The kit contains materials, solutions, and instructions for the activity. It includes multiple copies of the student instruction sheet, pH paper, litmus paper, solutions (phenol red, phenolphthalein, bromthymol blue, hydrochloric acid, and sodium hydroxide), and 12 plastic lab trays. The chemicals are clearly marked and accompanied by safety data sheets.

Price: $40.10. Publisher/supplier: Sargent-Welch. Materials: Available in kit.

1.64 LEGO Technic I Activity Center.

Enfield, Conn.: LEGO Dacta, 1990.

Recommended grade level: 4-6. LEGO Technic I Activity Center helps students learn fundamental concepts, skills, and processes related to physical science and technology. The Activity Center consists of 110 activity cards, designed to be used with the LEGO building materials that come in the Technic I kit. A teacher's guide and a supplement accompany the activity cards.

The activity cards are color-coded in 4 categories by activity type: (1) exploration cards introduce students to building materials and mechanical principles through informal activities; (2) during guided investigations students use step-by-step instructions to build models that demonstrate important mechanical principles, and then they conduct formal investigations and formulate concepts; (3) simulation activities require students to apply what they have learned in a problem-solving setting by building a working model or simulation of a machine from the real-world; (4) invention activities require students to apply what they have learned in a more difficult problem-solving setting by inventing a machine or device that performs to given specifications.

In addition to activity type, cards can be grouped by curriculum areas or contextual themes. Curriculum topics include forces and structures, levers, pulleys, gears, wheels and axles, and energy and enrichment. Contextual themes include the following: Medieval Castle, The Farm, The Harbor, The Amusement Park, Getting Around, The Big Race, and Enrichment. The teacher's supplement contains additional information about each of the curriculum areas. Activities are suggested for teachers to explore in preparing for class.

Price: Activity center, $110. (Contact the publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: LEGO Dacta. Materials: Available in LEGO Dacta kits.

1.65 Levers.

Enfield, Conn.: LEGO Dacta, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 5-6. This booklet contains information about levers, simple hands-on lever activities, and appropriate diagrams and illustrations. It is designed to be used with the LEGO Dacta Pulleys Set, which uses the popular LEGO construction blocks to explore the 3 classes of levers. Students first learn the definition of a lever. Then they construct working models of first-, second-, and third-class levers and build models of devices that incorporate them. Students are challenged to design and build 2 devices: one that can pick up a weighted brick while being operated with one hand, and another that can be raised and lowered and locked into a raised and lowered position.

Each activity in Levers states the main idea involved and provides illustrated instructions, additional information, and extension ideas. The guide lists the process and critical-thinking skills involved in the activities.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-914831-83-6), $5.25. Classroom pack, $183.75. Individual set, $15.75. Publisher/supplier: LEGO Dacta. Materials: Available from LEGO Dacta.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.66 Light.

Robert Gardner. Investigate and Discover series. New York, N.Y.: Julian Messner/Simon & Schuster, 1991.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. Many of the investigations and features in Light are related to exhibits at the Science Museum at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. Through the experiments and activities in this guide, students explore the shadows cast by objects in bright light and try to explain the shadows' shapes and sizes. They investigate how light is reflected, how images are formed, and where those images are. They produce pinhole images, experiment with refraction of light, and examine and attempt to explain the behavior of colored light and colored objects. In a final activity, students are introduced to the wave and particle models as explanations of the properties of light.

Each chapter features extensive science background information and up to 7 investigations, including experiments with step-by-step instructions and less-structured activities that encourage students to explore on their own, at home, or at school.

Price: $9.95 (ISBN 0-671-69042-6). Publisher/supplier: Silver Burdett Ginn. Materials: Available locally.

1.67 Light.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 17. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1991.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. During the 36 activities in Light—which is one of many units in the Task Card Series—students learn about the properties of light as they investigate the visible spectrum, lenses, reflection, refraction, waves, and how light is transmitted. For example, students discover that the angles of incidence and reflection are equal for light reflected by a plane mirror. They examine how water waves in a pan model the behavior of light waves; and they create concave, planar, and convex water surfaces in a test tube and find out why these shapes produce images of different sizes. Students distinguish between color addition and subtraction as they mix colors by subtracting them from white light and adding them to a white background. In other activities, they construct and use working models of telescopes and microscopes.

The activities in Light require commonly available materials (such as rubber bands, dinner forks, and plastic soda bottles). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for each activity, a reproducible protractor, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $16 (ISBN 0-941008-87-8). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.68 Machines.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 22. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1989.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. During the 16 activities in Machines—which is one of many units in the Task Card Series—students explore simple machines and find that machines save effort but never reduce work. For example, they build a simple lever (a meterstick that pivots on a rubber stopper) to discover how this lever either reduces effort or reduces the distance through which the effort is applied. They evaluate the efficiency of a movable wheel pulley, and they graph how the effort required to pull a cart up an inclined plane changes with its angle of inclination. Students also classify common machines (stairs, scissors, door knob, hatchet) as levers or inclined planes, and build a working model of a wheel and axle.

The activities in Machines require commonly available materials (such as paper clips, thread, cans, and baby food jars). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for each activity, a reproducible protractor, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $8 (ISBN 0-941008-99-1). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.69 Machine Shop.

Donna Battcher, Sheldon Erickson, Karen Martini, and others. Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science (AIMS) series. Fresno, Calif.: AIMS Education Foundation, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. Journal entries about the uses of various simple machines and the forces that affect them provide a story line for the activities in Machine Shop, an activity book on the mechanics of physics, in which mathematics and science skills are tested and other disciplines are integrated. Students investigate the following topic areas: simple machines; friction; inclined planes; levers and leverage; force, energy, and energy conservation; wheels and belts; gears and tooth ratios; wheel and axle systems; and pulleys, wedges, and mechanical advantage. Among the activities, for example, students use a seesaw to explore the properties of effort, resistance, and torque; they construct and test a high-performance catapult; and they determine the mechanical advantage for different nuts and bolts.

Machine Shop provides reproducible student worksheets, including

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

data charts, tables, and graphs. A complete lesson plan is included for each of the 23 activities.

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 1-881431-39-8), $16.95. Publisher/supplier: AIMS Education Foundation. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.70 The Magic Wand and Other Bright Experiments on Light and Color.

Paul Doherty, Don Rathjen, and The Exploratorium Teacher Institute. The Exploratorium Science Snackbook Series. New York, N.Y.: John Wiley, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. The Magic Wand and Other Bright Experiments on Light and Color contains 25 activities for experimenting with and making observations about light and how it behaves. These activities are miniature versions of some of the most popular exhibits at The Exploratorium, San Francisco's museum of science, art, and human perception. For example, students investigate what happens when light waves meet and mix—in the thin film of a soap bubble or in the gap between two plates of glass. They make a pinhole in an index card and use it like a magnifying glass. They also use a colored filter to decode secret messages written with colored pens, and experiment with a cylindrical mirror to understand how light bounces off different surfaces.

Each activity begins with a drawing of the original full-sized exhibit at The Exploratorium and a photograph of the scaled-down version that students can make. Most of the activities require basic materials such as mirrors, magnifying glasses, fish tanks, and water. Each 15- to 30-minute activity includes a materials list, assembly directions, descriptions of how to use the completed exhibits, and explanations of the science involved in the exhibits. A section called "etc." offers additional scientific and historic facts. Most of the activities can be completed by one student, although some indicate the need for a partner or adult assistance.

Price: $10.95 (ISBN 0-471-11515-0). Publisher/supplier: Wiley. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.71 Magnetism.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 20. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1991.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. During the 28 activities in Magnetism—which is one of many units in the Task Card Series—students learn about magnets, magnetic forces, and the connection between electricity and magnetism. For example, they construct a pin compass and observe how it can be magnetized and remagnetized to assume different orientations in earth's magnetic field. They also define and measure the angle of declination for various geographic locations to understand that earth's magnetic poles are paired with unlike geographic poles, and use index cards to construct a 3-dimensional model of a magnetic field. In other activities, students investigate the lines of force associated with electricity flowing through a coil, build and operate an electromagnet with a removable solenoid, and construct a reverse-poles motor. They also graph how the force of repulsion between 2 magnetic poles increases as the distance between them decreases.

Each activity in Magnetism has between 2 and 5 steps and requires commonly available materials (such as straight pins, aluminum wire, and washers). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs.

The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for each activity, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $13 (ISBN 0-941008-90-8). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.72 Metals.

Robert C. Mebane and Thomas R. Rybolt. Everyday Material Science Experiments series. New York, N.Y.: Twenty-First Century Books, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Metals, 1 of 5 activity books in a series on everyday materials, contains 16 simple experiments that help students learn about metals as materials—what they are made of, how they behave, and why they are important. For example, students explore how increasing temperature can change the size of a copper wire. They also make and test a fuse made from steel wool, copperplate a dime, and turn a nail into an electromagnet.

Designed to be student-directed, many of these stand-alone activities could be done at home or as teacher demonstrations. Experiments requiring adult supervision are clearly identified. Activities are narrative in form, containing questions to help guide inquiry. Science concepts or brief explanations for the results observed in the experiments are provided in the text. The text for each activity also includes a description of real-world applications related to the experiments—for example, how a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine uses superconducting magnets to allow a doctor to "see" inside a person's body.

Price: $15.98 (ISBN 0-8050-2842-0). Publisher/supplier: Von Holtzbrinck (VHPS). Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.73 Methods of Motion: An Introduction to Mechanics, Book One.

Rev. ed. Jack E. Gartrell, Jr. Washington, D.C.: National Science Teachers Association, 1992.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Methods of Motion contains 27 hands-on activities and demonstrations and 14 readings that introduce students to the concepts of mechanics. Organized in 6 modules, the activities address such topics as mass and force; constant speed versus acceleration; interactions of force, mass, and acceleration; applying the laws of motion; and "hidden" forces (such as friction and gravity) affecting motion. Sample activities include the following: building a simple inertial balance to demonstrate the concept of inertia, using a drip timer to calculate the speed and acceleration of a toy car, conducting marble races to discover if an object's mass affects the rate at which it rolls down an incline, and experimenting with a hair dryer blowing straight up to oppose the downward force of gravity acting on a ping-pong ball.

The readings give detailed explanations of the concepts presented in the activities, and may be used as background information for the teacher or reproduced as student handouts.

Each of the 6 modules in Methods of Motion begins with an overview. Each activity includes a reproducible student worksheet and an activity guide for teachers. Activities typically require 40 to 60 minutes to complete. Each activity guide includes background information, teaching procedures and tips, technical notes, suggestions for extensions, and answers to activity questions. The equipment required for the activities consists mainly of inexpensive toys and other low-cost materials.

Price: $18.50 (ISBN 0-87355-085-4). Publisher/supplier: National Science Teachers Association. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.74 Metric Measure.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 6. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1992.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. The 20 short activities in Metric Measure —which is one of many units in the Task Card Series—help students learn about using the metric system. For example, students define and write metric prefixes in terms of the decimal ladder, and practice translating these prefixes to their numerical equivalents. They model cubic meters, centimeters, and millimeters using cubes and string; and they discover that dry measure in cubic centimeters is equal to liquid measure in milliliters. In other activities, students construct a light-duty equal-arm balance sensitive to 5 milligrams, and they estimate the number of rice grains in a baby food jar by counting the grains in a small mass and multiplying by the whole.

The activities use readily available materials (such as newspaper, a meter stick, and string). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for each activity, several reproducible centimeter grids, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $9.50 (ISBN 0-941008-76-2). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.75 Motion.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 21. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1990.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. The 36 short activities in Motion—which is one of the many units in the Task Card Series—help students explore and learn about Newton's 3 laws of motion. For example, students track elastic collisions between spheres of equal and unequal mass, and compare static friction with moving friction. They also study vectors, speed, and acceleration. In other activities, students build a rotating jet balloon and describe its motion in terms of Newton's third law, they construct a rubber band catapult for use in a study of force and mass, and they show on a graph how acceleration is directly proportional to force and inversely proportional to mass.

The activities, which each have 2 to 5 steps, require commonly available materials (such as marbles, pennies, and index cards). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions and data charts for each activity, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $16 (ISBN 0-941008-98-3). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.76 Mystery Festival.

Kevin Beals and Carolyn Willard. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) series. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 2-8. Mystery Festival contains instructions for organizing 2 make-believe crime scenes, or "mysteries," in a classroom. Student-detectives subsequently observe, investigate, and attempt to solve the mysteries. The mystery "Who Borrowed Mr. Bear?" is for younger students (grades 2-3), and "The Mystery of Felix" is for older students (grades 4-8). Working in teams, students gather evidence at the crime scene and then conduct hands-on forensic tests, such as a thread test, fingerprint comparisons, chromatography, pH tests, and powder tests at activity stations. Students

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

learn to distinguish between evidence and inference. They develop their critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Preparation for the 2 mysteries is substantial when using the unit for the first time.

Mystery Festival provides detailed information and planning instructions, and includes suggestions for pre-teaching games and for the use of parent volunteers.

Price: $25.50 (ISBN 0-912511-89-3). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.77 Nuclear Energy: Student Activities.

Rev. ed. New York Energy Education Project (NYEEP). Albany, N.Y.: NYEEP, 1988.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. Nuclear Energy introduces students to facts and issues related to nuclear energy. For example, students learn the parts and structure of the atom, as well as basic terms related to radioactivity. They model the process of radioactive decay, and develop an awareness of the various sources of radiation. They also investigate nuclear fission and model the production of energy in a nuclear reactor through a game. They learn about the types and sources of radioactive waste and role-play the problems associated with waste disposal and storage. In other activities, students analyze the costs involved in the construction of a nuclear power plant, and learn about breeder reactors and nuclear fusion.

In addition to presenting science concepts, Nuclear Energy explains both the risks and benefits of nuclear energy. This activity book is interdisciplinary; many activities can also help teach reading for comprehension, group decision making, or use of shop tools (students construct models in class).

Each of the 7 activities in Nuclear Energy includes reproducible data sheets for students, as well as background information for the teacher and discussion points, answers, and evaluation suggestions. A list of sources of energy information is provided.

Prices: In New York State, free with attendance at workshop; outside of New York, $4. Publisher/supplier: New York Science, Technology and Society Education Project. Materials: Available locally.

1.78 Off the Wall Science: A Poster Series Revisited.

Harold Silvani. Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science (AIMS) series. Fresno, Calif.: AIMS Education Foundation, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. Off the Wall Science consists of 30 physical science activities from AIMS Science Posters, compiled in book form for ease of use. The open-ended activities cover topics such as buoyancy, surface tension, change of state, inertia, and center of gravity. For example, students compare the weights of objects when weighed in and out of water, investigate whether an orange floats or sinks in water, and observe the mixing of hot and cold water. They also make a homemade fire extinguisher; they measure whether a burning walnut shell or burning walnut meat produces more heat energy; and they make an electrical circuit using a battery, a bulb, foil wire, and a clothespin.

Most materials needed for the short investigations in Off the Wall Science are commonly available and inexpensive. Each activity includes background information, procedures, discussion questions, extensions, reproducible pages for students, and a "guiding documents" section that lists the activity's relevance to Project 2061 Benchmarks.

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 1-881431-50-9), $16.95. Publisher/supplier: AIMS Education Foundation. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.79 Optics.

Robert Gardner. Yesterday's Science, Today's Technology Science Activities series. New York, N.Y.: Twenty-First Century Books, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Optics, an activity book in a series written for students, contains 15 activities for investigating scientific principles and technology involved in optics. Students learn about topics such as light and color, how light travels, reflections, refraction, sight, cameras, and color combinations. Among the activities, for example, they build a small camera obscura, design and construct a periscope, and make a microscope from 2 convex lenses. They also construct an apparatus to show that water can be used as a light guide, and they learn about the mathematics of color by experimenting with colored water in plastic tumblers.

For each activity in Optics, students read a brief historical or science background section. Colorful illustrations, together with directions and questions in the narrative, then guide them through the activities. Although students can do most of the activities without supervision, the materials involved in several may require the assistance of adults. The book includes a list of 9 follow-up activities and ideas; some of them might be appropriate for science fair projects.

Price: $16.98 (ISBN 0-8050-2852-8). Publisher/supplier: Von Holtzbrinck (VHPS). Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.80 Pendulums.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 1. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1992.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. The 20 easy-to-follow activities in Pendulums—one of many units in the Task Card Series—relate to the science of pendulums. In the first activity, students construct a support for a pendulum from a cereal box; the support has a length and amplitude background grid. Then they use this support for many activities in the module. For example, students explore and graph how the frequency of a pendulum varies with length. They evaluate the relative effects of length, amplitude, and bob weight on the period of a pendulum. They also examine a pendulum system with 2 distinct pivot points and develop an equation for calculating its period.

The activities in Pendulums require a stopwatch and readily available materials (such as paper clips, masking tape, and washers). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for students, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Prices: $9.50 (ISBN 0-941008-71-1). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.81 Personal Science Laboratory Light Experiments.

2nd ed. Personal Science Laboratory (PSL) series. Boulder, Colo.: Team Labs, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. This annotated teacher's guide on Light Experiments, part of the Personal Science Laboratory series, is designed to help teachers run and teach 8 microcomputer-based investigations that explore light. The investigations use special photometric and radiometric light probes, interfaced with a personal computer, that allow students to enter measurements or data directly into the software—PSL Excelerator—linked to the experiment. Topics covered include specular and diffuse reflection, angle of incidence, the relationship between light intensity and distance, polarization, the relationship between scattering and polarization, and light absorption by colored materials.

Among the investigations, students measure and compare light reflected from a planar mirror, a white surface, and a black surface. They also compare the reflective properties of planar, concave, and convex mirrors, and use a light probe and polarizing film to test the light passing through a box filled with soapy liquid to determine whether the light is polarized. In other experiments they use polarized light to distinguish between "left-handed" and "right-handed" chemicals, and measure how the intensity of transmitted light varies as the concentration of dye in a liquid increases.

Students complete the experiments by logging onto a computer, selecting an experiment, following a series of prompts or directions, entering data from the activities or having the probes directly transmit the information, and completing follow-up activities. The computer program also organizes student-generated experimental data into charts, graphs, and tables. The guide contains teaching notes and an introduction to Personal Science Laboratory hardware and software.

Prices: Teacher's guide, $44. Student-version master, $226. PSL hardware, $520. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Team Labs. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or from Team Labs.

1.82 Personal Science Laboratory Motion Experiments.

2nd ed. Personal Science Laboratory (PSL) series. Boulder, Colo.: Team Labs, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. This annotated teacher's guide on Motion Experiments, part of the Personal Science Laboratory series, is designed to help teachers run and teach 10 microcomputer-based investigations that explore motion. The investigations use special distance probes (they emit ultrasound pulses), interfaced with a personal computer, that allow students to enter measurements or data directly into the software—PSL Excelerator—linked to the experiment. Topics covered include velocity; acceleration; vectors; harmonic motion; the relationship among acceleration, force, and mass; and kinetic and potential energy.

Among the investigations, students study distance-versus-time and velocity-versus-time graphs and write descriptions of movements that would produce those graphs. They experiment with rolling cylinders on ramps and measure their acceleration. They also explore (and graph) the up-and-down movements made by a mass on a spring, and calculate the acceleration of free fall of a rolling cart with a mass on it.

Students complete the experiments by logging onto a computer, selecting an experiment, following a series of prompts or directions, entering data from activities or having the probes directly transmit the information, and completing follow-up activities. The computer program also organizes student-generated experimental data into charts, graphs, and tables. The guide contains teaching notes, limited background information on Newton's first

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

law of motion, and an introduction to Personal Science Laboratory hardware and software.

Prices: Teacher's guide, $44. Student-version master, $226. PSL hardware, $455. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Team Labs. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or from Team Labs.

1.83 Personal Science Laboratory pH Experiments.

2nd ed. Personal Science Laboratory (PSL) series. Boulder, Colo.: Team Labs, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. This annotated teacher's guide on pH Experiments, part of the Personal Science Laboratory series, is designed to help teachers run and teach 10 microcomputer-based investigations that explore acids, bases, and pH. The investigations use special probes for pH and temperature, interfaced with a personal computer, that allow students to enter measurements or data directly into the software—PSL Excelerator—linked to the experiment. Topics covered include properties of acids and bases, titration as a method of analysis, acid-base indicators, antacids and neutralization, acid rain and the aquatic environment, volumetric analysis, and the molar heat of acid-base reactions.

Among the investigations, students determine the pH range of several indicators and compare the neutralization rates of several commercial antacids. They also determine the relative buffering capacity of a simulated lake system to observe the effects of acid rain, and they determine the concentration of phosphoric acid in colas.

Students complete the experiments by logging onto a computer, selecting an experiment, following a series of prompts or directions, entering data from activities or having the probes directly transmit the information, and completing follow-up activities. The computer program also organizes student-generated experimental data into charts, graphs, and tables. The guide contains teaching notes, limited background information on the meaning and measurement of pH, and an introduction to Personal Science Laboratory hardware and software.

Prices: Teacher's guide, $44. Student-version master, $226. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Team Labs. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or from Team Labs.

1.84 Personal Science Laboratory Temperature Experiments.

2nd ed. Personal Science Laboratory (PSL) series. Boulder, Colo.: Team Labs, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. This annotated teacher's guide on Temperature Experiments, part of the Personal Science Laboratory series, is designed to help teachers run and teach 8 microcomputer-based investigations that explore heat and temperature concepts. The investigations use special temperature probes, interfaced with a personal computer, that allow students to enter measurements or data directly into the software—PSL Excelerator—linked to the experiment. Topics covered include temperature versus heat content, insulation, how heating and cooling affects liquids and solids, heat of crystallization, the relationship between heat and motion, regulating body temperature, and temperature changes in soil and water.

Among the investigations, students compare the cooling curves of water and paraffin. They mix various chemicals with water and discover which reactions are endothermic and which are exothermic. They measure the insulating effect of a glove on the skin, and they also measure the temperature change of air as it is compressed in a flask.

Students complete the experiments by logging onto a computer, selecting an experiment, following a series of prompts or directions, entering data from activities or having the probes directly transmit the information, and completing follow-up activities. The computer program also organizes student-generated experimental data into charts, graphs, and tables. The guide contains teaching notes, background information on heat and temperature, and an introduction to Personal Science Laboratory hardware and software.

Prices: Teacher's guide, $44. Student-version master, $226. (Contact publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: Team Labs. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or from Team Labs.

1.85 Physical Science Activities for Elementary and Middle School.

2nd ed. Mark R. Malone. CESI Sourcebook V. Washington, D.C.: Council for Elementary Science International (CESI), 1994.

Recommended grade level: 1-7. Physical Science Activities for Elementary and Middle School, a sourcebook of physical science activities, contains materials developed for teachers by teachers who have tested them with their own students. Topics include sound, light and color, electricity, forces and motion, simple machines, heat, matter, chemistry, and space. Activities include making a kazoo from a cardboard tube to investigate sound, making paper dolls dance from static electricity, predicting the velocity of a rolling ball by observing its motion along a rail, using shadows

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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to tell time, and learning about bonding by making slime.

The lesson plan for each of the 119 activities in this guide includes the following components: a short description of the concepts and/or skills developed by the activity; a list of materials and equipment needed; suggestions for planning, organizing, and implementing the activities; ideas for extending the lesson; and a list of references.

Price: $19. Publisher/supplier: CESI. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.86 Plastics and Polymers.

Robert C. Mebane and Thomas R. Rybolt. Everyday Material Science Experiments series. New York, N.Y.: Twenty-First Century Books, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Plastics and Polymers, 1 of 5 activity books in a series on everyday materials, contains 16 simple experiments that help students learn about the physical properties of polymers and plastics. Examples of these experiments include examining some of the differences between high-density and low-density polyethylene, and using a polymer present in flour (that is, starch) to thicken a liquid. Students also compare the flow of heat through 2 different forms of polystyrene, and determine how the bouncing height of a tennis ball is affected by temperature.

Designed to be student-directed, many of these stand-alone activities could be done at home or as teacher demonstrations. The activities are narrative in form, and contain questions to help guide inquiry. No background material is supplied, but science concepts or brief explanations for the results observed in the experiments are provided in the text.

Price: $15.98 (ISBN 0-8050-2843-9). Publisher/supplier: Von Holtzbrinck (VHPS). Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.87 Pressure.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 16. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1992.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. In the 32 easy-to-follow activities in Pressure—one of many units in the Task Card Series—students become familiar with some of the concepts and principles associated with pressure. For example, they estimate the average pressure, in newtons per square centimeter, that one exerts while standing on the floor. They use sandwich bags and rubber tubing to demonstrate how force increases as pressure is applied over larger areas, and they construct a model to understand how the diaphragm regulates air pressure in the chest cavity. Students also construct a U-tube manometer to investigate the relationship between pressure and fluid depth, and they design and build a vacuum pump. In other activities, they observe how changes in temperature and volume affect pressure, and they build an instrument that measures atmospheric pressure.

The activities in Pressure require readily available materials (such as Ping-Pong balls, candles, and cereal boxes). Each activity has between 2 and 5 steps. Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for activities, a reproducible pressure scale, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $14.50 (ISBN 0-941008-86-X). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.88 Project SEED: Sourcebook of Demonstrations, Activities, and Experiments.

2nd ed. Alan Cromer and Christos Zahopoulos. Boston, Mass.: Northeastern University Center for Electromagnetics Research, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 6-8+. Project SEED (which stands for Science Education through Experiments and Demonstrations) describes dozens of inexpensive physical science demonstrations, activities, and experiments. This sourcebook was originally written for workshop leaders and teachers participating in a Project SEED teacher-training program but will be of value to other teachers as well. Although it does not include complete lesson plans and might need some adaptations for the classroom, it is useful for teachers who wish to increase their use of concrete demonstrations and experiments in teaching science.

Topics covered in Project SEED include measurement, density and buoyancy, pressure, work and simple machines, motion, earth as a planet, elements and compounds, sound, optics, temperature and heat, electricity, and magnetism. Teachers can learn, for example, how to use plastic soda bottles with holes to demonstrate Pascal's law, or how to set up an experiment that shows the decomposition of water, measure the sun's diameter by using a pinhole in a piece of paper, or make a battery with a copper wire, iron nail, and a lemon. Throughout, the emphasis is on ways of clarifying fundamental science concepts and principles rather than on pedagogy. The book makes regular use of the mathematics of ratios and proportions.

Price: $16.48 (ISBN 1-56870-117-9). Publisher/supplier: RonJon. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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1.89 Projects That Explore Energy.

Martin J. Gutnik and Natalie Browne-Gutnik. An Investigate! Book. Brookfield, Conn.: Millbrook Press, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. Projects That Explore Energy is a small activity book, written for students, containing directions for 11 simple science projects or experiments about what energy is and how it works. The book begins by introducing students to components of the scientific method: observation, classification, making an inference, prediction, formulating a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis, and drawing a conclusion. Simple directions that follow the scientific method then allow each student to complete the projects. (The projects could also be useful for individual student research or for hands-on activities for a whole class.)

The topics addressed in Projects That Explore Energy include the first law of thermodynamics, photosynthesis, food chains, fossil fuels, and alternative forms of energy. Among the projects, for example, students make and use a calorimeter, create and observe an aquatic food chain, observe the effect of motor oil on Elodea plants, build and use a solar cooker, and build and use a wind vane. Limited background information is provided.

Price: $15.40 (ISBN 1-56294-334-0). Publisher/supplier: Millbrook Press. Materials: Available locally.

1.90 Pulleys.

Enfield, Conn.: LEGO Dacta, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 5-6. This booklet contains information about pulleys, simple pulley activities, and appropriate diagrams and illustrations. It is designed to go with the LEGO Dacta Pulley Set, which uses the popular LEGO construction blocks. Students first learn the definition of a pulley. Then they arrange pulleys to investigate the direction of rotation of the driver and the follower. They also find out how the turning ratio of one pulley to another is determined by the size of the pulleys. Students are challenged to design and build 2 devices: a conveyor-belt system that uses a belt drive to carry packages, and a boat mover that winches a boat onto the shore.

Each activity in Pulleys states the main idea involved and provides illustrated instructions, additional information, and extension ideas. The guide lists the process and critical-thinking skills involved in the activities.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-914831-84-4), $5.25. Classroom pack, $183.75. Individual set, $15.25. Publisher/supplier: LEGO Dacta. Materials: Available from LEGO Dacta.

1.91 Quick Energy and Beyond: Ideas for the 90's.

Rev. ed. Compiled by Colorado Energy and Resource Educators. Estes Park, Colo.: Colorado Energy and Resource Educators, 1991.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. Quick Energy and Beyond contains 41 interdisciplinary activities related to energy. Among other activities, students observe the formation of oxygen as an aquatic plant carries out photosynthesis in a Ziplock bag. They also study the way a rubber band absorbs and releases heat, construct simple electric circuits, and observe the cooling effect of an ice-salt mixture. In other activities, students look for energy words hidden in a puzzle, and use multiplying skills to solve problems based on electric rates schedules. The "starter" activities in the book are designed to stimulate students' thinking about energy, its sources, and its future. Other activities focus on issues of energy consumption and on various aspects of energy production.

Many of the activities in Quick Energy and Beyond take fewer than 15 minutes to complete, require readily available materials, and require little teacher preparation (although there are some exceptions). Each activity includes brief information for the teacher, a reproducible page for students (with blank charts and directions), and extension ideas.

Price: $10. Publisher/supplier: National Energy Foundation. Materials: Available locally.

1.92 Renewables Are Ready: A Guide to Teaching Renewable Energy in Junior and Senior High School Classrooms.

Rev. ed. Union of Concerned Scientists. Cambridge, Mass.: Union of Concerned Scientists, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8+. Renewables Are Ready is a "pick-and-choose" guide of 12 multidisciplinary activities that emphasize group work and help teachers introduce students to various renewable energy technologies as well as to some of the political and economic conditions necessary for their implementation. Among the activities, for example, students discover where and how they get the energy they use. They also build a solar box cooker from simple materials, construct a wind machine for generating electricity, play a game that simulates some of the economic changes necessary to make renewables succeed as large-scale electricity sources, and participate in a mock public meeting to determine a site for a new energy facility in a community.

The guide provides directions for the activities. It also offers a list of lesson ideas on topics such as

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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researching photovoltaic efficiency and designing a model waterwheel. It contains suggestions for student-led education and action projects, such as organizing a renewable energy fair and writing articles, and presents a short resource bibliography. Most of the activities in the guide take between 1 and 5 periods of 45 minutes each. They include instructions for teachers and reproducible handouts for students. The ideas suggested for the additional lessons and projects are often in note form rather than filled out.

Price: $5. Publisher/supplier: Union of Concerned Scientists. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.93 Science Experiments: Chemistry and Physics.

Tammy K. Williams. Science Experiments Book 1. Lewistown, Mo.: Mark Twain Media, 1995.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Science Experiments: Chemistry and Physics is an activity book containing 36 simple experiments that introduce students to concepts in chemistry and physics. The activities also help students become familiar with models, carefully controlled experiments, and simulations. A section on laboratory skills is also included.

In the section on chemistry, students create hydrogen gas from a chemical reaction, collect it in a balloon, and explode it; make an acid-base indicator from red cabbage; and separate salt from saltwater. In the physics section, students simulate the decay of radioactive particles, make convex and concave lenses from water drops, and investigate the properties of magnets. In the section on reviewing and strengthening laboratory skills, students classify objects by different appearances, conduct experiments to measure a water droplet's splatter size, and construct balloon rockets to investigate Newton's third law.

The experiments in this volume involve both individual and group work. Reproducible directions, data charts, and graphs are supplied on tear sheets. No background material is provided.

Price: $10.95. Publisher/supplier: Carson-Dellosa. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.94 Science Investigations for Intermediate Students.

Rev. ed. Carl Pfeiffer. SciQuest series. Fort Atkinson, Wis.: Nasco, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Science Investigations for Intermediate Students, presented in 3-ring-binder format, provides directions for more than 100 physical science activities. Each activity is categorized by grade level. A wide range of concepts is covered: the properties of air and water, motion, simple machines, heat, light, sound, magnetism, electromagnetism, electricity, acids and bases, and earth and space science. Seven activities on food and nutrition are included. Among the activities, students investigate the periodic motion of a pendulum, explore the relationship between heat and temperature, experiment with magnets and iron filings to determine a magnetic line of force, build and use a sundial, and conduct simple chemical tests to identify the presence of carbohydrates in food.

Each activity in the volume includes reproducible directions, data sheets, and evaluation forms. No background material for teachers is supplied.

Prices: Teacher's guide, $25.00. Complete kit, $420.05. Set of 14 teacher videos (optional), $280.00. Publisher/supplier: Nasco. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.95 Science Projects about Chemistry.

Robert Gardner. Science Projects series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Science Projects about Chemistry, 1 of 6 in a series written for students, contains 34 simple experiments or activities related to chemical concepts, including matter, solutions, chemical composition, chemical reactions, and acids and bases. Among the activities, students compare the densities of air and carbon dioxide; they test a number of solids (such as starch, flour, and baking soda) to see if they are soluble in water; and they investigate the effect of temperature on the speed at which a seltzer tablet reacts with water. In other activities, they explore 4 acid-base indicators (cabbage juice, unsweetened grape juice, tumeric, and phenolphthalein); and they determine what fraction of air is oxygen.

Designed to be student-directed, many of the stand-alone activities in Science Projects about Chemistry could be done at home or as teacher demonstrations, or used as the basis for science fair projects. The activities are narrative in form; the text contains questions to help guide inquiry. No background material is supplied, but brief explanations for the results observed in the experiments are provided in the text. Most activities include suggestions of further investigations for students to conduct on their own.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-531-7). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×
1.96 Science Projects about Electricity and Magnets.

Robert Gardner. Science Projects series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Science Projects about Electricity and Magnets, 1 of 6 in a series, contains 23 simple experiments or activities that allow students to investigate electricity and magnetism. For example, students test a number of materials to see how they behave with respect to magnets. They also build series and parallel circuits, investigate the conductivity of different materials, make a lightbulb, and build a tiny electric motor.

Designed to be student-directed, many of these stand-alone activities could be done at home or as teacher demonstrations, or used as the basis for science fair projects. The activities are narrative in form; the text contains questions to help guide inquiry. No background material is supplied, but brief explanations for the results observed in the experiments are provided in the text. Most activities include suggestions of further investigations for students to conduct on their own.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-530-9). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.97 Science Projects about Light.

Robert Gardner. Science Projects series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Science Projects about Light, 1 of 6 in a series written for students, contains 37 short experiments or activities related to light. The topics addressed in these activities, which emphasize the processes of science, include mirrors and lenses, light and color, absorbed heat and light, and the human eye and how it works. For example, students conduct experiments with curved mirrors, pinholes, and convex lenses. They also use a diffraction grating to find out which colors of light are absorbed and which are transmitted by a colored liquid. In other activities, they build a model solar collector and experiment with afterimages.

Designed to be student-directed, many of these stand-alone activities could be done at home or as teacher demonstrations, or used as the basis for science fair projects. The activities are narrative in form; the text contains questions to help guide inquiry. No background material is supplied, but brief explanations for the results observed in the experiments are provided in the text. Most activities include suggestions of further investigations for students to conduct on their own.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-529-5). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.98 Science Projects about Temperature and Heat.

Robert Gardner and Eric Kemer. Science Projects series. Springfield, N.J.: Enslow, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. Science Projects about Temperature and Heat, 1 of 6 in a series written for students, contains 24 simple experiments or activities related to temperature and heat. Among these activities, which emphasize the processes of science, students explore how changes in temperature affect the volume of solids and liquids. They also build and use an air expansion thermometer, compare the specific heats of different metals, determine the latent heat of vaporization of water, and investigate how heating by radiation depends on color.

Designed to be student-directed, many of these stand-alone activities could be done at home or as teacher demonstrations, or used as the basis for science fair projects. The activities are narrative in form; the text contains questions to help guide inquiry. No background material is supplied, but brief explanations for the results observed in the experiments are provided in the text. Most activities include suggestions of further investigations for students to conduct on their own.

Price: $18.95 (ISBN 0-89490-534-1). Publisher/supplier: Enslow. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.99 Simple and Motorized Machines Activity Pack.

Enfield, Conn.: LEGO Dacta, 1997.

Recommended grade level: 4-8. This literature pack is designed to teach students the principles of simple and motorized machines. The pack includes a teacher's guide with 31 sequential activities and student worksheet copymasters for each activity. The pack is designed to support LEGO Dacta simple and motorized machines sets. The activities are organized in 6 units: (1) "Structures and Forces," (2) "Levers," (3) "Wheels and Axles," (4) "Gears," (5) "Pulleys," and (6) "More Mechanisms." Students, for instance, can build models of a deck chair and a drawbridge and use them to investigate rigidity, flexibility, and linkages; construct a model of a wheeled vehicle and use it to explore friction, flywheels, and energy; design and build a mixing mechanism; and assemble a motorized model of a conveyor belt and use it to investigate how a motor can drive a system of pulleys.

Each activity requires students to identify a problem related to a simple machine and its principles, and then design, implement, and evaluate a solution. The activities are intended to be used by students

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

working in pairs, and take approximately 45 minutes each. Some activities require the use of a 9-volt LEGO motor. The teacher's guide provides background information, notes on the student worksheets, sample answers to worksheet questions, and extension ideas.

Prices: Activity pack, $37.50. Motorized simple machines resource pack, $462.50. (Contact the publisher/supplier for complete price and ordering information.) Publisher/supplier: LEGO Dacta. Materials: Available in resource pack.

1.100 The Sky's the Limit! with Math and Science.

Rev. ed. Stan Adair, Bill Barker, Dennis Ivans, and others. Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science (AIMS) series. Fresno, Calif.: AIMS Education Foundation, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. The Sky's the Limit! with Math and Science offers 23 classroom activities on the science of aerodynamics. Among the activities, students make and use a clinometer to find the heights of various objects. They also construct various symmetric shapes and explore their flight properties, investigate the behavior of a paper rotor, construct various parachutes and calculate their rates of descent, use toy water rockets to explore the effects of variables on thrust, and discover how the design of a paper airplane affects how long it will stay in the air. In other activities, students manipulate design features of paper airplanes so the airplanes can perform certain stunts, and they explore the flight characteristics of 3 simple paper kites.

Each activity includes procedures, discussion questions, extensions, and reproducible student record sheets or handouts. Connections to standards of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and to Project 2061 Benchmarks are also listed.

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 1-881431-44-4), $16.95. Publisher/supplier: AIMS Education Foundation. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.101 Soap Films and Bubbles.

Ann Wiebe. Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science (AIMS) series. Fresno, Calif.: AIMS Education Foundation, 1990.

Recommended grade level: 4-8. Students learn about molecules, surface tension, light waves, air pressure, and patterns by experimenting with soap film in Soap Films and Bubbles. In a series of introductory activities, students first explore the effects of wet and dry surfaces on bubbles. They discover that all free-floating bubbles are spherical in shape, and they explore various combinations of bubbles and the structures and patterns they form. Students construct models of water and soap molecules as they investigate surface tension and the chemistry of soap film. In advanced activities, students take a quantitative look at geometric shapes; they discover the mathematical relationship between the size of 2 equal rings and the distance soap film will stretch between them (catenary curves). They experiment to determine the minimum distances between given numbers of points (Steiner's problem). They find a formula relating the parts of polyhedrons.

Soap Films and Bubbles provides reproducible student worksheets, including data charts, tables, and graphs. A complete lesson plan is included for each of the 21 activities.

Price: Teacher's guide (ISBN 1-881431-25-8), $16.95. Publisher/supplier: AIMS Education Foundation. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.102 Solutions.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 12. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1990.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. The 28 easy-to-follow activities in Solutions—which is one of many units in the Task Card Series—constitute a mini-overview of the chemistry of solutions, including the subjects of solvents, solutes, dissolving, filtering, and purifying processes. For example, students compare and contrast a coarse suspension, colloidal dispersion, and a true solution. They clear a mixture of soil and water by settling and filtration so that they can observe how soil particles tend to sort by size. They build a simple solar distillation apparatus that will purify a true solution. They also discover how temperature influences the rate of dissolving, analyze various sources of drinking water for the presence of dissolved minerals, read and interpret a solubility graph, and find out that the solubility of some solutes in water decreases with increasing temperature.

The activities in Solutions require readily available materials (such as rice, sugar cubes, and plastic straws). Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" that include directions for each activity, teaching notes, and review questions.

Price: $13 (ISBN 0-941008-82-7). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.103 Sound.

Ron Marson. Task Card Series 18. Canby, Oreg.: TOPS Learning Systems, 1990.

Recommended grade level: 7-8. The 20 short, easy-to-follow activities in Sound help students learn about the properties of sound, including frequency,

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

pitch, and intensity. For example, students discover that sound is produced by vibrating objects; they measure frequency by counting cycles over measured units of time; and they discover that sound intensity increases with the amplitude of the vibrating source. In other activities, they observe how objects with the same natural frequency resonate as one is sounded in the presence of another; they investigate the mathematical relationship between vibrating wires that sound octaves apart; and they build a working model of a phonograph with cans, a piece of rolled paper, and a straight pin.

The activities, which have between 2 and 5 steps each, require readily available materials (such as dinner forks, plastic soda bottles, and rubber bands). Some basic mathematical skills are needed to conduct the activities. Certain activities can be omitted or sequences changed to meet specific class needs. The unit contains reproducible "task cards" with directions for each activity, teaching notes with answers, and review questions.

Price: $9.50 (ISBN 0-941008-6). Publisher/supplier: TOPS Learning Systems. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.104 Sparks and Shocks: Experiments from the Golden Age of Static Electricity.

Developed by The Bakken Library and Museum (Minneapolis, Minn.). Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 6-8+. Sparks and Shocks, a well-organized, sequential activity book, contains 6 investigative experiments and 12 demonstrations on static electricity, adapted by the Bakken Library and Museum from the original studies of scientists who lived during the eighteenth century. Concepts covered include positive and negative charge, conductors, electrization by induction, potential, and capacitance. During the experiments, students discover what materials attract what things when rubbed; they learn that some substances transmit electricity whereas others do not; and they make and use a Leyden jar.

In addition to clear and detailed instructions on how to conduct the demonstrations and experiments, the book offers historical background and anecdotes about famous scientists and their experiments. It also includes tricks on getting static-electricity experiments to work in unfavorable weather and provides student handouts, a chronology of the study of static electricity, and a resource guide. An equipment kit and video can be purchased but are not required, since the book contains a separate chapter of instructions for inexpensively building the equipment needed—for example, a thread electroscope, an electrostatic generator, Leyden jars, an electrophorous, and an electrometer.

Sparks and Shocks is an expanded, revised version of The Bakken 18th Century Electricity Kit and Curriculum published in 1991.

Prices: $14.95 (ISBN 0-7872-1644-5). Kit, $200.00. Publisher/supplier: Kendall/Hunt (book). Bakken Library and Museum (materials kit). Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.105 Structures.

Bernie Zubrowski. Models in Physical Science (MIPS) series. White Plains, N.Y.: Cuisenaire, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 5-8. Structures contains 5 model-building activities. These activities introduce students to the basic concepts of force, tension, compression, and equilibrium of forces underlying structures they see in their everyday environment—for example, houses, apartment buildings, bridges, and television towers. Using simple, inexpensive materials such as plastic drinking straws, students build a model house and test its strength. In another activity, they investigate how a single column of straws responds to the force of a cup of nails. They also build and test a model bridge, build and test a model tower, and assemble and use a testing apparatus to compare the strength of several different kinds of truss designs. Students must solve a variety of problems in order to keep their drinking-straw models rigid and strong. The overall concept that connects all the investigations is that of the truss as a basic structural system. In the course of these activities, students also have opportunities to practice proportional reasoning and graphical representation.

The guide includes directions for the assembly and use of equipment and materials, suggestions for ways of introducing and leading the activities, ideas for follow-up discussions, and embedded assessments.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-938587-35-8), $11.50. Complete kit, $225.00. Publisher/supplier: Cuisenaire/Dale Seymour Publications. Materials: Available locally, or in kit.

1.106 Students and Research: Practical Strategies for Science Classrooms and Competitions.

2nd ed. Julia H. Cothron, Ronald N. Giese, and Richard J. Rezba. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 8+. Students and Research contains background information, activities, experiments, and strategies designed to help educators teach students the skills they need to successfully conduct, analyze, and report an experiment. (See also 5.74—the student version of

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

this teacher's guide.) The book is a guide to teaching the major concepts of experimental design. It helps students acquire better understanding of the ideas of variables, control, hypothesis, and methods of gathering and analyzing data.

Topics covered in Students and Research include techniques for helping students design experiments, generate ideas, construct tables and graphs, write simple and formal reports, use library resources, and apply descriptive and inferential statistics. Other topics include management strategies for classroom teaching and independent research, assessments, how to encourage parental and community support, methods for maximizing student success and attitudes about science competitions, and ideas for making effective oral presentations and displays. The volume includes blackline masters for the activities.

Price: $25.14 (ISBN 0-7872-0170-7). Publisher/supplier: Kendall/Hunt. Materials: Available locally.

1.107 Sweet Success.

Terry Hilton. Making Use of Science and Technology series. Heslington, York, England: Chemical Industry Education Centre, University of York, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 8+. In Sweet Success, a unit with 3 activities, students investigate why large sugar crystals sometimes form in the fondant of Cadbury creme eggs. During the activities, students use a microscope to investigate the structure of fondants in products bought from local stores. They design an experiment to test the hypothesis that large crystals grow at the expense of small crystals in confectionery products. They also investigate the effects of temperature and agitation on crystal growth. In the role of chemical engineers, students devise specifications for an industrial sugar crystallizer that would produce sugar crystals all the same size.

The equivalent of 2 or 3 lessons of 40 to 60 minutes each is needed if all 3 activities are used. The unit includes teacher directions, a list of required materials, instructions for preparing solutions, and student record sheets.

Price: $10 (ISBN 1-85342-536-2). Publisher/supplier: Chemical Industry Education Centre. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.108 Targeting Students' Science Misconceptions: Physical Science Concepts Using the Conceptual Change Model.

Joseph Stepans. Riverview, Fla.: Idea Factory, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 6-8+. Targeting Students' Science Misconceptions, a teacher's guide containing directions for approximately 100 activities, is designed to help students identify and change their common, naive preconceptions and misconceptions about science topics. In doing these activities, students first state their ideas about a wide range of physical science concepts, and then they rethink or reconsider them after experimentation in the classroom.

Topics addressed in this guide include matter, density and buoyancy, air pressure, liquids, forces, levers, motion, pendulums, electricity, magnetism, heat, waves, sound, light and color, transformation of energy, and geometry. In an activity about force, work, and machines, for example, students are asked to decide which is the easiest way to move a heavy box from the floor to the top of a table (lifting straight up, using a pulley, or using an inclined plane). They try out the various options and come up with an answer based on their observations.

In addition to directions for activities, Targeting Students' Science Misconceptions includes background information for the teacher, a listing of representative student misconceptions related to each concept, a listing of sources of students' confusion and misconceptions, and teaching notes.

Price: $24.95 (ISBN 1-885041-12-8). Publisher/supplier: Idea Factory. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.109 Thrill Ride!

Russell G. Wright. Event-Based Science series. Menlo Park, Calif.: Innovative Learning Publications, 1997.

Recommended grade level: 7-8+. In Thrill Ride, an event-based unit on force and motion, students design an exciting but safe amusement park ride that demonstrates Newton's laws of motion. First they watch a videotape and read actual newspaper stories about thrill rides and amusement parks. Then they are told that the major task of the module will be to design and build, in teams, a model of a thrill ride that demonstrates some of the basic laws of physics. Thrill Ride contains 5 science activities to provide students with the background information and skills they need for this task.

Among the activities, for example, students use Newton's laws of motion to design a ramp that can transport fragile materials safely. They analyze the energy transformations experienced on a slide, and they investigate the forces exerted on a person riding on a revolving ride. They also study the forces that influence the motion of a pendulum, and apply Newton's second law of motion to falling objects.

The module contains short reading sections called "discovery files," explanatory graphics, and profiles of

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
×

professionals—a roller coaster engineer, an amusement park manager, and a physicist, for example—involved in developing and running amusement parks. Other information that students need to complete the task must be obtained from encyclopedias, textbooks, films, and other sources that they locate. Students can also engage in several interdisciplinary activities, such as determining the geographic factors that affect the success of theme parks, or writing a description of a trip to an amusement park.

The wraparound teacher's guide provides brief overview information on the module's structure and activities. It includes suggestions for guiding specific student activities, a scoring rubric for a performance assessment at the end of the unit, and a list of resources.

Prices: Teacher's guide with video, $18.00. Student book, $7.95. Classroom package, $115.00. Publisher/supplier: Addison Wesley/Longman. Materials: Available locally.

1.110 Tops and Yo-Yos.

Bernie Zubrowski. Models in Physical Science (MIPS) series. White Plains, N.Y.: Cuisenaire, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Tops and Yo-Yos contains 8 activities that help students learn about rotational motion while collaboratively building and launching tops and yo-yos. The required materials are inexpensive, familiar objects such as plastic plates and drawer knobs, so students can easily experiment with them and alter their characteristics. Among the activities, students launch and time different tops to determine the characteristics that produce different spin times. They also design their own tops to see which kinds spin longest. They investigate the relationship between weight and spin time, and they assemble different kinds of yo-yos and compare their spin times. Several of the investigations in Tops and Yo-Yos require data collection and representation.

The guide includes reproducible pages for students, directions for teachers on the assembly and use of equipment and materials, suggestions for introducing and leading the activities and for follow-up discussions, and embedded assessments. Many of the activities also include ideas for further investigations.

Prices: Teacher's guide (ISBN 0-938587-37-4), $12.50. Kit, $225.00. Publisher/supplier: Cuisenaire/Dale Seymour Publications. Materials: Available locally, from commercial suppliers, or in kit.

1.111 Transportation.

Robert Gardner. Yesterday's Science, Today's Technology Science Activities series. New York, N.Y.: Twenty-First Century Books, 1994.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. In Transportation, 17 activities written for students help them investigate some of the science and technology associated with different types of transportation, such as cars, trains, boats, and airplanes. Topics addressed in the unit include friction, wheels, gears, ball bearings, air pressure, levitating magnets, Archimedes' principle, and aerodynamics. Among the activities, for example, students compare the forces needed to move a wagon on wheels or on rollers. They use a bicycle and a pair of spring scales to see how changing gears changes both speed and the force one has to exert on the pedals. They also compare the forces involved in floating a block of wood and a ball of clay in water, design paper airplanes, and use a water hose to demonstrate the action of a jet engine.

Each activity includes a brief historical or science background section on the scientific discoveries of people such as James Watt, Henry Ford, and the Wright Brothers. Colorful illustrations, directions, and questions in the narrative then guide students through the activity. Although students can do most of the activities without supervision, several of them may require the assistance of adults. Some of the activities require materials such as a bike, wagon, or playground seesaw that may not be readily available. Many activities also need to be done outside.

Price: $16.98 (ISBN 0-8050-2853-6). Publisher/supplier: Von Holtzbrinck (VHPS). Materials: Available locally.

1.112 Using the Learning Cycle to Teach Physical Science: A Hands-on Approach for the Middle Grades.

Paul C. Beisenherz and Marylou Dantonio. Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 6-8. Using the Learning Cycle to Teach Physical Science discusses and gives examples of a science teaching strategy—the learning cycle—that emphasizes science as a process of inquiry rather than as a body of knowledge, and uses questions, activities, and experiences to guide students in constructing science concepts on their own. The first part of the book discusses the rationale for this approach and its use in teaching science. The second part then gives examples of how the cycle can be used to teach 6 basic physical science concepts: (1) Bernoulli's principle, (2) acids and bases, (3) properties of gases, (4) expansion and contraction of gases, (5) circuits, and (6) density.

A series of between 9 and 17 short activities is given for each of the 6 basic concepts. For example, for the learning cycle sequence on circuits, students are asked to see how many ways they can make a bulb light using a battery and copper wire

Suggested Citation:"1. Physical Science." Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 1998. Resources for Teaching Middle School Science. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/5774.
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(exploration phase). Following a discussion of student observations, the concept of circuit is introduced (concept introduction). Then they engage in a number of activities that lead to an understanding of the term "series circuit" or "parallel circuit" (application phase). Examples of questioning techniques to encourage thinking and understanding are also given.

The last part of the book offers an opportunity for teachers to develop their own learning cycle sequence. Randomly sequenced activities related to the concept of surface tension are presented. Using these activities and others they create, teachers can construct their own learning cycle sequence.

Price: $26.50 (ISBN 0-435-08376-7). Publisher/supplier: Heinemann. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.113 The Wizard's Lab: Exhibit Guide.

Reprinted with revisions. Cary Sneider and Alan Gould. Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS)/Exhibit Guides. Berkeley, Calif.: Lawrence Hall of Science, 1992.

Recommended grade level: K-8. The Wizard's Lab provides 10 interactive exhibits that can be used in a variety of settings—for example, at a science center, at a classroom learning station, in a discovery room, or on family science night. The wide spectrum of stimulating activities in physical science offered in this guide includes the spinning platform, solar cells and light polarizers, resonant pendulums, magnets, lenses, the "human battery," the oscilloscope and sound, and the harmonograph. Most of the exhibits utilize common materials and equipment available from most hardware, electronics, or variety stores and lumberyards. The skills developed include observing, analyzing, and finding patterns.

The Wizard's Lab provides background information recorded on cards with cartoon wizard figures that briefly explains the principles behind each exhibit. Detailed and illustrated instructions for constructing each exhibit are included in the teacher's guide.

Price: $21 (ISBN 0-912511-71-0). Publisher/supplier: LHS GEMS. Materials: Available locally, or from commercial suppliers.

1.114 World of Science and Electronics Integrated Learning System.

2nd ed. Educational Technology Systems, Peter Michael Kellen, and Leslie Ivor Kacev. Teach Yourself Electronics Series. San Diego, Calif.: PLANETS Educational Technology Systems, 1993.

Recommended grade level: 8+. This wire-bound instruction manual—World of Science and Electronics Integrated Learning System—comes with a small box of 50 electronic components and contains directions for 26 electronic building projects. Starting with very basic circuits, students can build electronic sirens, flashing LEDs (light-emitting diodes), an electronic time-delay circuit, a sound synthesizer, and other projects. Students also learn how transistors, capacitors, diodes, resistors, integrated circuits, and silicon-controlled rectifiers work.

The projects, designed to be followed in sequence, each include step-by-step assembly directions, a pictorial guide, assembly diagrams, and electronic schematic diagrams. A teacher's guide, student workbook, and add-on modules are available.

Prices: Teacher's guide with student workbook, $30.00. Software version of book, $99.95. Power kit (AC power), $99.95. Dura-kit (Battery-powered), $89.95. Publisher/supplier: PLANETS. Materials: Available in kit.

1.115 Young America Hands-on Activities.

PACT 95. Glenview, Ill.: Scott Foresman, 1996.

Recommended grade level: 5-8+. Young America Hands-on Activities is a teacher's resource guide that offers an 11-week series of interdisciplinary activities related to boats and sailing. (The activities were originally part of an educational program based on the America's Cup Race in 1995. Students were to complete the activities as the America's Cup trials unfolded.) The activities, which are categorized by grade level, help students learn the science involved in how a boat floats and stays upright, what makes a sailboat move, how a fast boat can be designed and built, and what navigational skills a sailor needs. The importance of teamwork in building and sailing a boat is also emphasized. Among the activities, for example, students make an anemometer and use it to measure wind speeds, locate the center of mass and the center of buoyancy of a wooden hull, determine the best rudder design for a model boat, learn how to build a miniature plug (the male mold of a boat's hull) from a lines plan (a drawing of the shape of a boat's hull), find out how to use a navigation chart, and learn how to organize effective cooperative teams.

One activity per week is provided for each of 3 grade levels (grades K-4, 5-8, and 9-12). For each activity, directions, extensions, cross-curricular connections, and information on careers and people related to the world of boats and sailing are provided.

Prices: $15.95 (ISBN 0-673-40240-1). Publisher/supplier: Scott Foresman/Addison-Wesley.

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Next: 2. Life Science »
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With age-appropriate, inquiry-centered curriculum materials and sound teaching practices, middle school science can capture the interest and energy of adolescent students and expand their understanding of the world around them.

Resources for Teaching Middle School Science, developed by the National Science Resources Center (NSRC), is a valuable tool for identifying and selecting effective science curriculum materials that will engage students in grades 6 through 8. The volume describes more than 400 curriculum titles that are aligned with the National Science Education Standards.

This completely new guide follows on the success of Resources for Teaching Elementary School Science, the first in the NSRC series of annotated guides to hands-on, inquiry-centered curriculum materials and other resources for science teachers.

The curriculum materials in the new guide are grouped in five chapters by scientific area—Physical Science, Life Science, Environmental Science, Earth and Space Science, and Multidisciplinary and Applied Science. They are also grouped by type—core materials, supplementary units, and science activity books.

Each annotation of curriculum material includes a recommended grade level, a description of the activities involved and of what students can be expected to learn, a list of accompanying materials, a reading level, and ordering information.

The curriculum materials included in this book were selected by panels of teachers and scientists using evaluation criteria developed for the guide. The criteria reflect and incorporate goals and principles of the National Science Education Standards. The annotations designate the specific content standards on which these curriculum pieces focus.

In addition to the curriculum chapters, the guide contains six chapters of diverse resources that are directly relevant to middle school science. Among these is a chapter on educational software and multimedia programs, chapters on books about science and teaching, directories and guides to science trade books, and periodicals for teachers and students.

Another section features institutional resources. One chapter lists about 600 science centers, museums, and zoos where teachers can take middle school students for interactive science experiences. Another chapter describes nearly 140 professional associations and U.S. government agencies that offer resources and assistance.

Authoritative, extensive, and thoroughly indexed—and the only guide of its kind—Resources for Teaching Middle School Science will be the most used book on the shelf for science teachers, school administrators, teacher trainers, science curriculum specialists, advocates of hands-on science teaching, and concerned parents.

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