Weekly Science Challenge: investigating soil
In this episode, Mary ellen shows you how to use a Munsell soil chart and create a sediment jar to investigate the contents of soil in your yard.
Materials Needed:
Print these resources.
Water Chemistry Lesson Packet
Get The Lesson
Learn about the unique chemsitry of water through this lesson.
Get this lesson: You can download the full packet here or read a condensed version of this unit below.
Worksheet: Download just the worksheet or there’s a copy included in the packet.
Overview:
Water covers 71% of Earth’s surface and is unique because it exists in all three states: solid, liquid, and gas. Below freezing at 32 degrees F it is a solid, and above the boiling point (212 degrees F) it is a gas. Water molecules are composed of one oxygen atom and two hydrogen atoms, giving it the chemical symbol H20. Water is a “polar molecule” meaning there is an uneven distribution of electron density. The ability of ions and other molecules to dissolve in water is due to polarity. Because of this, water is referred to as the “universal solvent”.
The hydrologic cycle describes how water is transferred over the Earth, and also explains how human impacts on one part of the water cycle can affect more than just the surrounding area.
Because of water’s solvent properties, it can dissolve elements like nitrogen and phosphorous, which enter waterways through farm runoff containing fertilizer. This can create many harmful effects on humans and organisms.
Video resources:
The Chemistry of Water – An easily digestible chemistry lesson with visual diagrams explaining the chemical makeup of water and what makes it unique.
Great Lakes Now: The Algae Crisis – A detailed video on issues caused by farming leaking phosphorous into the nearby Great Lakes.
What is Nitrogen Pollution – An animated visual diagram explaining how Nitrogen impacts waterways
Sample Research Project:
Studying pH and alkalinity for rivers – find a nearby waterway and test for pH and alkalinity in samples you collect. This project from the Massachusetts Water Watch Partnership contains methods and a materials list to complete the experiment.
Sample Research Questions:
- Is water near civilization in an urban stream more acidic or more basic than water in a rural stream?
- How do pH and alkalinity correlate?
- Are there more species living in acidic or basic water?
- Are there more species living in more or less alkaline water?
NGSS Standards:
HS-ESS3-6: Earth and Human Activity
SEPs: Analyzing and interpreting data
Constructing Explanations and designing solutions
Engaging in argument from evidence
Planning and carrying out investigations
Asking Questions
CC: Cause and effect
Stability and change
Patterns
Weekly Science Challenge: 7-day science journal project
In this very special episode, we put Headwaters’ research methods to the test! Begin by creating your own science journal, then observe nature and use what you see to create a 7-day research project.
Materials Needed
- scissors
- a large needle
- yarn or twine
- paper, cardboard or cardstock
- fabric or construction paper
- a ruler
- a blade like a boxcutter or x-acto knife
- these printed journal sheets
Global Circulation Lesson Packet
What’s inside:
Learn about the global patterns that impact earth’s temperature, wind, currents, and climate, known as Global Circulation.
Get this lesson: You can download the full packet here, or read a condensed version of this unit below.
Worksheet: Download just the worksheet, or there’s a copy included in the packet.
Overview:
Global circulation is the worldwide system of winds which transports heat from the tropics to the polar regions. This circulation explains how air and storm systems travel over the Earth’s surface.
In each hemisphere there are three cells (Hadley cell, Ferrel cell, and Polar cell) in which air circulates through the entire depth of the troposphere. These cells greatly influence the climate of a region as they bring weather from their original locations.
In addition, the ocean also has its own system of circulation, known as the “global conveyor belt”. The ocean’s currents are interconnected, powered by winds, tides, Earth’s rotation, sun and water density differences. Surface ocean currents are usually wind driven while deep ocean currents are density-driven. The ocean greatly influences the Earth’s temperature, weather, and climate.
Video resources:
Global circulation: differential heating – A video with helpful graphics describing why parts of the Earth are heated differently.
The hadley, ferrel, and polar cells – Part two of the video above describes the three cells and their functions.
The coriolis effect and winds – The third video from Met Office, the United Kingdom’s weather service, describes the coriolis effect and how winds and jet streams work.
Sample Research Project:
Project: Headwaters’ Global Ocean Circulation Lab
Methods: Use household materials to understand ocean circulation by adding ingredients to a dish filled with water or oil and applying heat. Suggested: begin with the Ocean Circulation lesson before starting the project. Get the full packet here.
Supplies:
- Pyrex baking dish, approximately two quarts in size
- Dried thyme or other dried leaf spices
- Teaspoon measuring spoon
- Measuring cup
- About three cups of vegetable oil or water with a liquid thickener
- Spoon or whisk for stirring
- Two sturdy ceramic coffee mugs, equal in height
- Small candle (This should be much shorter than the coffee mugs.)
- Lighter or matches (Have an adult assist handling the lit candle and lighter or matches.)
- A surface that can handle oily spills, such as the kitchen counter—or towel to protect the surface
NGSS Standards:
MS-ESS2-5; MS-ESS2-6 Earth’s Systems
HS-ESS2-5 Earth’s Systems
SEPs: Analyzing and interpreting data
Constructing Explanations and designing solutions
Scientific knowledge based on empirical evidence
Planning and carrying out investigations
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information
CC: Cause and effect
Stability and change
Patterns
Systems and system models
Energy and matter: flows, cycles, and conservation
Behavioral Ecology: Bird Behavior Lesson Packet
Behavioral ecology studies why animals behave the way they do. To look deeper at this, we’ll examine the behavior and adaptation of birds.
Get this lesson: You can download the full packet here, or read a condensed version of this unit below.
Worksheet: Download just the worksheet, or there’s a copy included in the packet.
Overview:
Behavioral Ecology studies how animals develop, control and evolve their behavior. Through behavioral ecology we can ask questions like: How does their behavior contribute to theirsurvival and reproductive success? How do abiotic and biotic factors affect their behavior? Does human activity affect their behavior? Do animals compete or cooperate? These studies include how animals learn, communicate, forage, reproduce, and socialize.
To begin looking at behavioral ecology, it’s useful to select one type of animal and consider its traits. This lesson will focus on birds as an example of behavioral ecology. Until recently, many researchers believed there werebetween 9,000-10,000 different species of birds. A new study by the American Museum of Natural History instead suggested that there are almost 18,000 species of birds.
Bird behavior varies greatly between species, as some birds are mostly water dwelling animals, and others live in trees, in brush, on land, or even prefer high elevation areas like cliffs or mountains. There are five traits that define a bird, including feathers, wings, beaks or bills, laying eggs, and having an adapted skeleton suitable for flight. Because these traits vary widely between species, so does a bird’s behavior. Examples of bird behavior include nesting habits, mating, hunting, and feeding chicks. Birds have also adapted over time for species preservation and changing climate.
Video resources:
What causes behavior in animals – an explanation of behavioral ecology and why animals have differing behaviors.
Study on nesting boxes – Scientist Dr. Mark Stanback gives a talk on his research on nesting boxes to reduce competition between bird species
Sample Research Project:
Project: Headwaters’ bird feeder observation project
Methods: Make or buy a bird feeder and use it to track bird behavior over time. See how to do it in this video.
Supplies: a milk carton or plastic jug, bird seed, scissors, string.
NGSS Standards:
MS-LS2-1; MS-LS2-2; MS-LS2-4 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
HS-LS2-1; HS-LS2-2; HS-LS2-6; HS-LS2-8 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
SEPs: Analyzing and interpreting data
Constructing Explanations and designing solutions
Scientific knowledge based on empirical evidence
Planning and carrying out investigations
CC: Cause and effect
Stability and change
Patterns
