Science Unit Ideas

1. Nature’s Fuel

This unit would explore the process of photosynthesis. After learning about the ways that plants get food from the sun, students would prove this by experimenting with their own plants. The class would put damp cotton balls in 3 large class jar lids and then sprinkle alfalfa sprouts on top. One lid would go in a sunny windowsill, one in a dark cupboard, and the third in a cardboard box with a small hole cut into it to let some light in. The seeds would be left to grow for week but kept damp and photos should be taken every day and journal entries should be made about the state of the plants. At the beginning of the weeks students should make predictions of what they think will happen to the plants and at the end of the week the students will compare the three samples and write a conclusion. The photos, hypothesis, journal entries, and conclusion will then be made into a blog journal.

2. Alternative Energy

This unit would start with a class on various types of alternative energy and ways to conserve energy. The students should use the internet and library to research the types of alternative energy and a list of general information should be compiled by the class. These facts will be made into an informational website by the class as a whole. To demonstrate a different type of energy students will be broken into groups (probably 2 or 4) with one or two groups making a wind-powered winch to demonstrate how wind power can be used to lift objects into the air. The other group(s) will construct a waterwheel using a soda bottle to see how a dam works and how water power can lift objects. Videos will be taken of the process as well as the final product which will be posted on the website along with instructions for other classes to do the same thing.

3. The 3 Rs

In this unit the students would learn about recycling. They could go on a field trip to a recycling center and see the different types of things that are recycled and how they are reused. They could also visit a dump to see how much waste their town makes and think about ways they could help change that. The students would compile the information they have about recycling and waste and make it into brochures or flyers on the computer. The brochures/flyers could then be hung up around the school and brought to other classes to share what the students learned with their peers. They could also make videos and slide shows of what they learned to make a presentation.

4. Frog Comics

For this unit the class would raise pollywogs in the class while they learned about the lifecycles of frogs and other amphibians. They could about natural predators to amphibians and how humans have encroached on the frogs habitats and are polluting their ponds. The students could then use comic strip makers on the computer to make a story of a frog’s life and use the comic to show other students how frogs are threatened by endangerment and ways we could help.

5. A Bug’s Life

This unit would allow students to study specific bugs and choose one bug to focus on for each student. The class could take some time to go outside and look at the bugs in the area and see what type of habitat they live in. The class would then make a wiki about bugs and their specific bugs. They could also make drawings of the bugs or the bug’s life cycle to add to the wiki.