Laura Rogers
We know that bringing practical activities into your science lessons can be challenging. That’s why we’ve created nine easy to follow lesson plans, all with minimal equipment, to help you get your learners thinking like scientists.
Each worksheet includes learning objectives, a list of things you will need, and a breakdown of the lesson which ends with an opportunity for learners to assess what they have learnt. Each lesson also has a ‘Scientific Enquiry Focus’ which cover a variety of skills including making comparisons, taking measurement and planning a fair test.
Let’s take a quick look at the different topics covered in these nine practical activities:
1. Growing seeds – learners will explore what seeds need in order to grow by comparing the results of seed growth with and without water and light
2. Heartbeat and pulse – help learners understand the importance of repeating measurements for reliability as they record their heartbeat for one minute
3. Measuring shadows – on a sunny day, learners will measure how the length of a shadow changes throughout the day
4. Heating and cooling – learners will hold different foods wrapped in cling film in their hands to observe changes, make comparisons and identify patterns
5. Exercise and sleep – working in pairs, learners will observe their partners breathing and heartbeat before and after exercise
6. A habitat for snails – ask learners to design a choice tray of a few different habitats, such as leaves, sand, stone etc., and observe the snails choices
7. Loud and soft sounds – learners will explore how sounds can be made louder of softer by carrying out tests
8. Why evaporation is useful – encourage learners to make predictions about how it will feel when they breathe or blow onto the back of their hand
9. How does grain size affect dissolving? – learners will plan and conduct their own experiment to find out if large grains dissolve faster than small grains
Download them today and get your learners hands on with science.
We would love to see photos of your practical experiments! Follow and tag us on Twitter @CambridgeInt or email us at educationmarketing@cambridge.org.
