Big Idea 3: The Role of Theories, Laws, Hypotheses, and Models

Students will use information related to weather patterns and the climate of Greece to explore weathering and erosion as potential contributing factors to the change in appearance of Pnyx Hill over time. They will then consider how similar factors could impact stone structures at the U.S. Capitol in this integrated lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will be introduced to Pnyx Hill in Athens, Greece, a historic political meeting site. They will explore how weathering and erosion have likely changed its appearance over time using scientific and creative thinking with models based on archaeological and historical information. After learning that Pnyx was the site of early democratic meetings, students will conduct a visual and structural comparison to our current Congressional halls in this integrated lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will be able to find locations and waterways pertinent to the Kissimmee-Lake Okeechobee-Everglades (K-O-E) watershed on a map after watching a video and reading a story.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will recognize the concern for water quantity and water flow to the Everglades through a demonstration and activity.

Type: Lesson Plan

A two day STEM lesson where students get a hands-on experience understanding positive and negative integers. Students will understand how temperature demonstrations and their own created models are used to visualize positive and negative integers in relation to 0 in real-world settings. Students will summarize their understanding of the relationship between positive and negative integers in relation to 0 for the evaluation of this lesson in a journal format.

Type: Lesson Plan

The student will investigate Earth's five spheres through a hands-on activity in which they collect data and construct explanations through a lab simulating how interactions occur on the planet from one sphere to another. Students will discuss picture examples of the five Spheres, collect data to generate their own bar graph, and experience interactions between the five Spheres on Earth. Students will be able to identify and differentiate impacts and interactions between the Biosphere, Hydrosphere, Geosphere, Cryosphere, and Atmosphere.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this 5E lesson, students will model the layers of the atmosphere through an interactive lab that looks at characteristics of the atmosphere by analyzing the atmospheric temperature profile and the special features that can be found in each layer. Students will look at the different layers of the atmosphere to determine how the atmosphere helps sustain life on Earth.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will design a floor plan of their dream house using compositions of basic geometric shapes. They will also calculate the area of the plan to determine flooring costs. Students will conduct research on alternative energy sources and determine the best fit for their dream house location.

Type: Lesson Plan

The student will investigate the processes of deposition and erosion through a hands-on activity and lab simulating the impact on Earth's surface. This activity leads students to a rich understanding of both the erosion and deposition processes and how they change the Earth's surface. Students will relate erosion and deposition to how Earth is changed by the building up and tearing down of its surface. Students will identify unique landforms that are created as a result of erosion and deposition.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will explore various types of organisms, and collaborate with peers to create a system (model) of classifying those organisms. Students will use scientific models and tools to organize, classify, and identify organisms. Students will identify methods of classification used for living things by sorting and classifying everyday objects, exploring organisms through a digital scavenger hunt, creation of a graphic organizer, and through collaborative engagement. Students will understand that all organisms are classified based on shared characteristics.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this one-day lesson, students will investigate Newton's First Law of Motion as they observe the spinning behaviors of uncooked and hardboiled eggs to consider what a scientific law is and how scientific laws are condition specific.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson will begin with a presentation to discuss the major differences between hypotheses, theories and laws in science and society and identify several examples of laws and theories. The students will then go outside and make/write down/photograph examples of nature supporting these laws/theories.

Type: Lesson Plan

Your students will participate in two group activities choose one concept to investigate examples of models related to sixth grade science concepts. They will describe the benefits and limitations of models and will work collaboratively on a group presentation to share their knowledge.

Type: Lesson Plan

During this two-day lesson, students will watch a video defining the definition of Scientific Law and identify various examples of scientific laws. Students will participate in various activities, including being scientists around the world to develop sentences with an increasing number of words (showing how scientists share ideas, tossing balls in the air to write a law, and then develop a presentation about a scientist and his law).

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will complete a card sort activity to classify societal laws vs. scientific laws. Students will then read descriptions of scientific laws and identify the cause and effect relationship.

Type: Lesson Plan

The students will first watch a brief video about "The War on Science." They will then view a PowerPoint titled "Scientific vs. Societal Laws" and engage in a class discussion about the differences between these two types of laws. In small groups, students will then read short passages and determine if they are scientific laws or societal laws.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students are asked to evaluate and test several rocket fin designs to determine the most effective design. After launch, the students are asked to test an additional design and also design their own rocket fin. Additionally, students will record and graph their results.

Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson allows students to investigate the Cell Theory.

Type: Lesson Plan

This Engineering Design Challenge is intended to help students apply the concepts of protecting human life from hazardous weather from SC.6.E.7.8 as they build levees to prevent flooding. It is not intended as an initial introduction to this benchmark.

Type: Lesson Plan

This Engineering Design Challenge is intended to help students apply the concepts of the human body and organ systems from SC.6.L.14.5. It is not intended as an initial introduction to this benchmark.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students manipulate sealed "mystery" boxes and attempt to determine the inner structure of the boxes which contain a moving ball and a fixed barrier or two. The nature and sources of uncertainty inherent in the process of problem-solving are experienced. The uncertainty of the conclusions is reduced by student collaboration. The students are asked to relate this activity to how to learn about "mystery boxes" in nature (interior of the earth, the atom, etc).

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will analyze an informational text, a simulation and a video intended to support reading in the content area. The article addresses the use of computer models to predict that the Earth's tectonic plates will cease to move in the future. The evidence provided by these resources will be used to write an argument supporting the theory of plate tectonics. This lesson includes a note-taking guide, text-dependent questions, a writing prompt, answer keys, and a writing rubric.

Type: Lesson Plan

Explore how we define and describe scientific phenomena using scientific laws in this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn about scientific theories and how they can change in this space-themed, interactive tutorial

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn to identify models and their use in science with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn to identify the importance of scientific laws and how they are different from societal laws.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Resource provides a succinct overview of the nature of science; what science is and is not. Information includes the aims of scientific pursuits, principles, process and thinking.

Type: Presentation/Slideshow

These activities will help students understand how the processes of weathering and erosion change and move materials that become soil.

Type: Teaching Idea

These classroom activities will help students understand 4 types of weather processes: wind, running water, plant growth, and freezing water. Students will learn how the processes of weathering and erosion change and move materials that become soil.

Type: Teaching Idea

This text is intended to support reading in the content area. The text describes future possible outcomes for the tectonic plates and the movement of the Earth’s crust. Using computer models, the article first discusses when crustal plate movement is thought to have begun. Then, it provides the reader with an account of some of the ways the Earth has changed due to the movement of plate tectonics. It then continues to use computer models to produce a simulation to show that these plate movements may stop millions of years from now.

Type: Text Resource

This informational text resource is intended to support reading in the content area. Scientific models predict that El Niño will cause fewer hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean—but more in the Pacific Ocean—in 2014. This is because El Niño events affect water temperatures and wind shear, which affect hurricane formation. The article gives the chances of named storms forming in both the Pacific and Atlantic.    

Type: Text Resource