Web Resources for Science
New! Weather Interactive
Physical Science Web Quests Life Science
TryScience
Explore many science concepts using these interactive games and activities. Try the adventures, experiments and field trips for that total science experience!
SCIENCE PORTFOLIO GUIDES FOR STUDENTS &
TEACHERS
http://www.accessexcellence.org/21st/TL/CGSE/
If you have considered having students create science portfolios, check in here for a fairly comprehensive guide on getting started. Also find formatting advice to tailor portfolios specifically to suit your needs. (CF)
Astro-Venture
VA SOL 6.10
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/projects/astrobiology/astroventure/avhome.html
This multimedia website deals with NASA careers and astrobiology research. The concept is to search for and design a habitable planet. Students enter training, are quizzed on their knowledge, and adjust the features of potentially habitable planets to see what makes a planet habitable and why. The recording of student observations ties this activity to the basics of the scientific process.
A FIELD GUIDE TO THE UNIVERSE
VA SOL 6.10
http://www.childrensmuseum.org/cosmicquest/fieldguide/index.html
Explore the planets in our solar system, visit with famous astronomers, or probe into our spacecraft, past and present, in this interactive field guide to our universe.
BUILD A SOLAR SYSTEM:
http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/
Students can make a scale model of the solar system, plugging in the diameter of their sun and automatically receiving the measurements of both space and other planetary bodies. Be warned that choosing a 10mm diameter for the sun would take up 164 feet in order to accommodate your entire solar system.
INTERACTIVE SOLAR SYSTEM
VA SOL 6.10
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/tutor/solarsystem/1/
Students can learn all about the solar sys-tem when they
visit this online, interactive tutorial.
They must correctly answer questions about the planets before advancing
to the next page. (CF)
Mars Rover Project
Links to NASA's Mars Exploration program:
http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov
ORBIT SIMULATORS
VA SOL 6.10
http://observe.arc.nasa.gov/nasa/education/reference/orbits/orbit_sim.html
Interact online in this planetary game from NASA to better
understand the reasoning behind Kepler's three laws of planetary
motion. (CF)
FOSSWEB
VA SOL 6.4; LS.3; PS.1; PS.6; PS.8; PS.10; PS.11
FOSS is an elementary and middle school science program developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science with support from the National Science Foundation. Teachers could use the FOSS website as a way of integrating aspects of this program into their own curriculum. This site contains interactive modules on topics such as Food and Nutrition, Solar Energy and Landforms, to name a few. Each module contains activities and resources including pictures and movies.
The Physics Zone
VA SOL PS.5; PS.6; PS.7; PS.8; PS.9; PS.9 PS.10; PS.11
http://www.sciencejoywagon.com/physicszone/
For those that get it when they see a simulation, or when they are able to play a tutorial over and over, this site will be a valuable aid. Lessons, review materials, and solutions to workbooks created by this company. But, this website is open to all, so take advantage of the materials online.
THEATER OF ELECTRICITY
VA SOL 6.4; PS.11
http://www.mos.org/sln/toe/toe.html
There's much to explore at this site, with the history of electricity, Tesla coils, Franklin's famous kite experiment, and more. A Teacher's Guide with student activities and investigations is also available.
http://www.creative-chemistry.org.uk/
VA SOL PS.2; PS.3; PS.4
chemistry puzzles,interactive revision quizzes, molecular models and more!
THE PARTICLE ADVENTURE
VA SOL PS.2; PS.4
http://particleadventure.org/particleadventure/
How small can we get in discussing fundamental matter? Enter the fascinating world of quarks, dark matter, and particle detectors... This interactive tour from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab can be viewed in several international languages, including Chinese, Greek, Spanish, and Russian. Question and answer formats with side pop-ups and "Did-you-know's?" keep the journey interesting. (CF)
http://www.teach-nology.com/web_tools/science_lab/
VA SOL PS.1
Use this simple generator to create Science labs for your students. It follows the scientific inquiry model of discovery. You can create the lab and copy it as a handout or have your students create their own customized version for printing! The Science Lab Generator will help provide a template for setting up an inquiry-based lesson. Fill in each section with required information for each step. Be sure to save your work in a file you create!
ONLINE METRIC CONVERTER
VA SOL LS.1; PS.1
http://www.sciencemadesimple.net/conversions.html
What do you need to convert? Weight, measurements,
temperature, speed, area, length... This site offers a handy little
online conversion tool for these and other units, with instant
conversions available. (CF)
Biology Corner
http://www.biologycorner.com
The Biology
Corner is a resource site for biology and science teachers that
contains classroom activities, labs and worksheets that you can
customize to suit your own classroom needs. There are also links to
sound and art clips that teachers can download and use in their own
projects.
Froguts
VA SOL LS.3, LS.5
Froguts is the first true virtual online frog dissection, so virtual it can gross you out. So, you're missing the smell of formaldehyde, but this site was created from recycled classroom frogs. The intent is to get to the heart of the anatomy, so to speak. This gets 5 stars for its slime factor and the use of different tools for the virtual dissection.
WhaleNet
VA SOL LS.5; LS.9
http://whale.wheelock.edu/Welcome.html
This interactive educational web site focuses on whales and marine research. Take the WhaleNet Tour to acquaint yourself with the resources available at this website, such as the Satellite Tagging Observation Program and What's It? (an identification activity).
CORAL REEF LAB
VA SOL LS.3; LS.4; LS.7
http://www.eduweb.com/jason/index.html
The location is Bermuda, where the Jason Project and Dr. Robbie Smith studied the coral reefs between 1993 and 1997. The data is now ready for your students to analyze; they must research through the images and information to assess the health of the reef.
VIRTUAL POND
VA SOL LS.4; LS.6; LS.8; LS.9
http://www.uen.org/utahlink/pond/
After learning about pond communities and the interdependence of all its living creatures, both flora and fauna, students can then choose how to populate their pond. The challenge is to keep all their chosen species alive and well at the end of (a virtual) eighteen weeks.
THE WATERSHED GAME
VA SOL LS.4; LS.6; LS.8; LS.9
http://www.bellmuseum.org/cgi-bin/start.pl?user=bellmuse&prog=start.pl&name=&submit=Let's+go!
Students will explore the many factors which affect the quality and purity of our water. In this game, those issues will be examined in relation to watersheds. The Novice Level presents to the student a series of questions, with answers clearly explainedthroughout the game whether or not they can provide the correct response. Intermediate levels allow students to select watersheds in national parks, neighborhoods, cities, and in uses for agriculture. They will become park planners, neighborhood activists, environmentalists and designers for sustainable farms, or city planners, deciding the best use of water and land in their immediate town limits.
ALL ALONG A RIVER:
http://library.thinkquest.org/28022/
This Thinkquest site offers a nice resource on river systems, from source, to drainage, to pollution issues, and includes case studies of two rivers, the Rhine and the Singapore. Also on site are student worksheets to print and use with the resources offered.
POND LIFE IDENTIFICATION KIT:
http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/pond/x_index.html
http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/ponddip/index.html
Grab the microscope and head to your nearest pond to introduce your students to an exploration of some of the tiniest life forms. If you don't have a pond nearby, try the virtual pond dip, at the 2 URLs above.
Infection Detection Protection
http://www.amnh.org/nationalcenter/infection/index.html
A cute online magazine from the American Musum of Natural History. Divided into sections: Meet the Microbes, a colorful definition of viruses, bacteria, and protozoa; Bacteria in the Cafeteria, a simple game to help children become aware of potential dangers; Infection, a board game that lets you break thru the human defense system; How Lou Got the Flu, explains how infectious diseases spread; Amazing Microbe Hunters, another game that teaches about early innovators, and the Mixed Up Microbe Mystery, which puts players into the position of Epidemiologists -- disease detectives. They track down the causes behind diseases and find ways to control them. Requires Macromedia Shockwave.
Your Genes, Your Health: A Multimedia Guide to Genetic Disorders
VA SOL LS.13
http://yourgenesyourhealth.org/
This site has a wonderful animated explanation of the causes of Sickle Cell Disease. For other disorders, such as Cystic Fibrosis, Hemophelia, Neurofibromatosis, and Huntington Disease, there are areas where patients talk about the consequences of having the disorder, treatments and tests.
FOSSWEB
FOSS is an elementary and middle school science program developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science with support from the National Science Foundation. Teachers could use the FOSS website as a way of integrating aspects of this program into their own curriculum. This site contains interactive modules on topics such as Food and Nutrition, Solar Energy and Landforms, to name a few. Each module contains activities and resources including pictures and movies.
Biomes
by Jamie Buckley
Citations for websites were provided by subscriptions to The Classroom
Flyer (CF) [classroomflyer@adm.chtah.com], SBC Pacific Knowledge
Network Explorer Blue Web’n
(BW)[http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/bluewebn/] and the Scout Report
(SR) Internet Scout Project [scout@CS.WISC.EDU]