Activities for High School Students
Archaeology of the Mundane
Objective: Understand the source of everyday objects and the energy and effort it takes to produce and transport them.
Location: Classroom/computer lab (can also be a take-home research project)
Age Groups: Middle/High
Instructions: Have each student pick a mundane object (examples include: book, rubber duck, chalk, pen/pencil, jewelry, etc). The student will then research how that object came to be and was delivered to its final destination. Be sure to include packaging and shipping considerations
Quick Example: Rubber Ducks: Started as petroleum which was refined into plastic, molded and painted in a Chinese factory before being packaged (again in plastic), shipped to the United States on a super tanker inside a shipping container. The packages of rubber ducks were then dispersed via 18-wheeler truck to their distributors, where they were shelved.
Optional aspect to add depth: For older students, you may want to add a mathematical research component to find the true cost of the item. This could include original cost of materials, labor costs of those involved (factory workers, tanker crew, truck drivers, shelvers), fuel costs, mining, packaging cost, etc. Encourage outside-the-box thinking on possible considerations.
Location: Classroom/computer lab (can also be a take-home research project)
Age Groups: Middle/High
Instructions: Have each student pick a mundane object (examples include: book, rubber duck, chalk, pen/pencil, jewelry, etc). The student will then research how that object came to be and was delivered to its final destination. Be sure to include packaging and shipping considerations
Quick Example: Rubber Ducks: Started as petroleum which was refined into plastic, molded and painted in a Chinese factory before being packaged (again in plastic), shipped to the United States on a super tanker inside a shipping container. The packages of rubber ducks were then dispersed via 18-wheeler truck to their distributors, where they were shelved.
Optional aspect to add depth: For older students, you may want to add a mathematical research component to find the true cost of the item. This could include original cost of materials, labor costs of those involved (factory workers, tanker crew, truck drivers, shelvers), fuel costs, mining, packaging cost, etc. Encourage outside-the-box thinking on possible considerations.
Leaf Chromatography
Objective: Learn about the pigments that contribute to plant photosynthesis and separate them via chromatography.
Location: Classroom (outside to gather the leaves)
Ages: Elementary, Middle, High
Supplies: Leaves, coffee filters, rubbing alcohol, small bowls or jars, shallow pans or tubs, hot water
Instructions: Shred the leaves (around 2-3 large leaves or 5-6 smaller leaves), and place them at the bottom of the bowl or jar. Pour just enough alcohol into the jar to cover the leaves, and place the bowl in a shallow tub or pan full of hot water. Leave the jars for about half an hour, replacing the water when it cools and swirling the bowl occasionally. The alcohol will extract the pigments, so you will know the process is complete when the alcohol darkens to the color of the leaves. After this has occurred, place a strip (perhaps 3” wide) of the coffee filter into the jar so that one end is submerged in the liquid and the other is draped over the top. After the desired separation is achieved (this can take anywhere from 30-90 mins), remove the paper and allow it to dry. The larger pigments will have moved the shortest distance, and the smaller pigments will have moved the farthest.
Discussion Questions:
If a plant leaf appears to be one color, why does it have such a range of pigments?
Did you see any colors you were not expecting, such as red or orange? What do you think those pigments are for?
What function do the pigments perform for the plant?
If we were to repeat the experiment in the fall, what differences would we expect to see? Why?
Location: Classroom (outside to gather the leaves)
Ages: Elementary, Middle, High
Supplies: Leaves, coffee filters, rubbing alcohol, small bowls or jars, shallow pans or tubs, hot water
Instructions: Shred the leaves (around 2-3 large leaves or 5-6 smaller leaves), and place them at the bottom of the bowl or jar. Pour just enough alcohol into the jar to cover the leaves, and place the bowl in a shallow tub or pan full of hot water. Leave the jars for about half an hour, replacing the water when it cools and swirling the bowl occasionally. The alcohol will extract the pigments, so you will know the process is complete when the alcohol darkens to the color of the leaves. After this has occurred, place a strip (perhaps 3” wide) of the coffee filter into the jar so that one end is submerged in the liquid and the other is draped over the top. After the desired separation is achieved (this can take anywhere from 30-90 mins), remove the paper and allow it to dry. The larger pigments will have moved the shortest distance, and the smaller pigments will have moved the farthest.
Discussion Questions:
If a plant leaf appears to be one color, why does it have such a range of pigments?
Did you see any colors you were not expecting, such as red or orange? What do you think those pigments are for?
What function do the pigments perform for the plant?
If we were to repeat the experiment in the fall, what differences would we expect to see? Why?
Vegetation and Soil Stability
Objective: Understand the water retentive properties of two types of slopes (bare and vegetative) and their implications for erosion.
Location: Outside, on two slopes. One slope should be relatively bare. Roadsides and areas next to railroad tracks are usually good. The second should have ample vegetation in the form of grasses or shrubs. Check areas around your school for a suitable hill.
Age Groups: Middle, High
Supplies: Buckets/jugs of water
Optional: Plastic Wrap, stopwatch
Next Generation Science Standards: 2-ESS2-1
Instructions: Have students pour the buckets of water down each hill and take notes on the water’s passage.
Optional: For more quantitative science, start with the same amount of water in each bucket and use plastic wrap or a tarp to collect water at the bottom of the slope in a given time. Use a graduated cylinder or comparable measuring tool to determine the exact amount of water to reach the bottom of the slope. This works better on smaller hills.
Discussion Points:
Which hill allowed the most water to reach the bottom?
On which hill did the water flow faster down the hill?
On which hill did the water have the most impact in terms of erosion?
What happened to loose debris that was in the path of the water?
Given the results, what can we do to reduce erosion?
Optional: Have students design a diorama or poster of their design to reduce erosion on a hill.
Location: Outside, on two slopes. One slope should be relatively bare. Roadsides and areas next to railroad tracks are usually good. The second should have ample vegetation in the form of grasses or shrubs. Check areas around your school for a suitable hill.
Age Groups: Middle, High
Supplies: Buckets/jugs of water
Optional: Plastic Wrap, stopwatch
Next Generation Science Standards: 2-ESS2-1
Instructions: Have students pour the buckets of water down each hill and take notes on the water’s passage.
Optional: For more quantitative science, start with the same amount of water in each bucket and use plastic wrap or a tarp to collect water at the bottom of the slope in a given time. Use a graduated cylinder or comparable measuring tool to determine the exact amount of water to reach the bottom of the slope. This works better on smaller hills.
Discussion Points:
Which hill allowed the most water to reach the bottom?
On which hill did the water flow faster down the hill?
On which hill did the water have the most impact in terms of erosion?
What happened to loose debris that was in the path of the water?
Given the results, what can we do to reduce erosion?
Optional: Have students design a diorama or poster of their design to reduce erosion on a hill.
Survival Plan
Objective: For students to design a plan to survive in the wild with given parameters
Location: Classroom/ Take-home research project
Age Groups: Middle, High
Instructions: This is meant to be a large-scale research project for pairs or groups of students. Give them a survival scenario of your own devising: this could involve surviving a week on a frozen tundra, having to cross the jungles of the amazon, or simply a nature-hike-gone-wrong in your local area. You can design the project with any parameters: the students may be allowed a certain weight of supplies, only a standard survival kit, no supplies at all, or any variation thereof. Have the students write up paper as to how they would survive, noting especially the edible plants of the region, animals for game, and climate. After a plan has been devised, you can present each group with a set of in-class questions of possible scenarios (perhaps a group member falls ill, there is an out-of-season storm, an unexpected animal attack, etc), and how they would propose to handle them with their chosen supplies and methods of survival.
Optional: This can be an oral presentation that requires the group to be well-versed on their region and supplies.
Location: Classroom/ Take-home research project
Age Groups: Middle, High
Instructions: This is meant to be a large-scale research project for pairs or groups of students. Give them a survival scenario of your own devising: this could involve surviving a week on a frozen tundra, having to cross the jungles of the amazon, or simply a nature-hike-gone-wrong in your local area. You can design the project with any parameters: the students may be allowed a certain weight of supplies, only a standard survival kit, no supplies at all, or any variation thereof. Have the students write up paper as to how they would survive, noting especially the edible plants of the region, animals for game, and climate. After a plan has been devised, you can present each group with a set of in-class questions of possible scenarios (perhaps a group member falls ill, there is an out-of-season storm, an unexpected animal attack, etc), and how they would propose to handle them with their chosen supplies and methods of survival.
Optional: This can be an oral presentation that requires the group to be well-versed on their region and supplies.
We know this page is a bit lacking. Check back soon for more activities!
