Greenhouse Effect Lab part of Cutting Edge:Teaching Activities
In this lab, students measure temperature changes inside soda bottles (one with CO2 added, the other with only air inside) as incandescent light is shined on them to model the Greenhouse Effect.

Marine Oxygen Isotopes and Changes in Global Ice Volume part of Cutting Edge:Climate Change:Activities
Students explore marine oxygen-isotope data from cores collected by the Ocean Drilling Program. The activity gives students access to real paleoclimate data, develops their skills in organizing and graphing data, ...

A River Runs Through It: an exploration in land use and water resource management part of Cutting Edge:Environmental Geology:Activities
This is an in-class activity where students learn about the interconnectedness of land use, water quality, and water resource management. Students are assigned a river front parcel of land to develop, unaware that ...

Sea Ice Extension for the Earth as a System Learning Activity part of Cutting Edge:Visualization:Examples
The purpose is to identify global patterns and connections in environmental data contained in the GLOBE Earth Systems Poster (more info) ; to connect observations made within the Earth Systems Poster to data and ...

Investigating slope failure and landscape evolution with red beans and rice! part of NAGT:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
Students investigate the behavior of a slope profile over geological timescales using a very simple experimental apparatus. The lab allows students to understand concepts of equilibrium, controls on slope profile, ...

An Electron Microprobe in the Classroom: A Remote-Access System for Education part of NAGT:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
In 2003, the University of Minnesota's Electron Microprobe Laboratory implemented a new system for remote research and education via the Internet. The remote-access system allows real-time access to our ...

Student-centered Experiments on Earthquake Occurrence Using the Seismic/Eruption Program part of NAGT:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
Students select their own region of interest and interrogate the earthquake catalog to obtain quantitative data on the rate of occurrence of earthquakes of various magnitudes within their chosen region.

The 2004 Sumatra Earthquake and Tsunami part of Cutting Edge:Visualization:Examples
In this multi-part activity, students study seismograms from different seismic stations recording the Sumatra earthquake of December 26th, 2004 and then determine the epicenter of the quake and track the tsunami it ...

Mentos and soda eruptions- lessons on explosive volcanic eruptions part of NAGT:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
Students participate in a popular experiment with Mentos candies and soda. This helps them learn about the scientific method, gas saturation, bubble nucleation, and explosive volcanic eruptions.

Hotspot Lesson: Hotspot Theory and Plate Velocities part of ERESE:ERESE Activities
This activity provides the students with a data set of ages of some of the Hawaiian Volcanoes and seamounts and how far they are from the active volcanism (considered to be the location of the hotspot). By plotting the data on a graph and fitting the data with a line of best fit, the plate velocity can be estimated by taking the slope of the line.

A Case Study: Geology, Remediation, Investigation at a RR Repair Shop Brownfield Site, St. Paul, Minnesota part of NAGT:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
A case-study approach can be used to introduce students to the work that geologists do as environmental consultants. Data used by environmental consultants for a Brownfield site that is currently undergoing ...

Serpentinite in Subduction Zones: How do we find it, and how common is it? part of MARGINS Data in the Classroom:MARGINS Mini-Lessons
A mineralogical, petrological, and geophysical exploration of the role of serpentinite in subduction zones, as highlighted in the two NSF-MARGINS Subduction Factory focus sites.

To Drill or Not to Drill? A Case Study in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge part of Cutting Edge:Environmental Geology:Activities
To Drill or Not to Drill is a multidisciplinary problem based learning exercise, which intends to increase students' knowledge of a variety of topics through a real world environmental topic. In addition, ...

Lab 7: Future of the Cryosphere part of EarthLabs for Educators:Climate and the Cryosphere
The lab activity described here was developed by Erin Bardar of TERC for the EarthLabs project. Use the button at the right to navigate to the student activity pages for this lab. To open the student pages in a ...

Rock & Mineral Bingo part of NAGT:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
This is a rock and mineral 'Bingo' that is based on knowledge and skill (not luck). It was designed as an entertaining and interactive means of developing and improving student rock and mineral ...

Work: pre, during and post class questions part of comPADRE Pedagogic Library:Interactive Lectures:Examples
This series of questions before instruction, in-class peer instruction, and post-instruction allow students to iterate and improve their understanding of work incrementally. -

Models of the Hydrogen Atom part of comPADRE Pedagogic Library:Interactive Lectures:Examples
In this interactive lecture, models of the hydrogen atom are explored using an online Java applet. The exploration leads to qualitative and quantitative analysis of energy transitions. -

Helping Students Discover Total Internal Reflection part of comPADRE Pedagogic Library:Interactive Lectures:Examples
Students learn the basic relationship of Snell's Law, practice applying it to a situation, then are given another situation where it "doesn't work."??? This situation turns out to be one in ...

Properties of Electrostatic Charge: Interactive Lecture Demonstration part of comPADRE Pedagogic Library:Teaching with Interactive Demonstrations:Examples
This activity is an interactive lecture demonstration format which can be used to teach the first lesson of electrostatics. Students will investigate conservation of charge, charge by contact, polarization of charge and charge by induction.

Introduction to Torques: A Question of Balance, Featuring the Sledge Hammer of the Sierra Madre part of comPADRE Pedagogic Library:Teaching with Interactive Demonstrations:Examples
Interactive Lecture Demonstrations to illustrate the nature of torques and on the balancing of torques in static equilibrium.