Did you know Seattle is ranked the most literate city in the country, with the highest percentage of residents with a college degree or higher?
Come by our Booth #208 and stop in to one or more of our hands-on workshops in Room #612 and hopefully learn something new.
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2019
pH Scale
8:00 am - 9:00 am What does pH actually measure? In this investigation, you will measure pH indirectly using indicators and absorption using the Lab-Master. Using their data, participants generate a graph of absorbance versus pH. This graph can be used to determine the pH of solutions, within the measured pH range. Join us for this activity from The Natural Approach to Chemistry program. Activity Page
Distilling Aromatic Hydrocarbons
9:30 am - 10:30 am We distill water to purify it, or so we think. So why does the clear distillate from apple cider smell like apples? Join us and find out! Using a clever test-tube distillation apparatus, we will distill the essence of vanilla and the scent of mint…and even show you how to make brandy from wine! Distillation is a crucial process in chemical engineering and technology, yet few students ever get to explore the process. Activity Page
Chemical Formula and Amino Acids
11:00 am - 12:00 pm What is the difference between subscripts and coefficients? What does “balancing” a chemical equation mean? Many students have trouble with these fundamental concepts in chemistry. If a student does not fully understand the chemical formula, then moles, reactions, and stoichiometry are hopelessly confusing. Join us for some elegant, intuitive, and well-differentiated lessons that allow students of all levels to master the chemical formula and thereby move confidently into a deeper understanding of chemistry.
NGSS Ecology: Introduction of a New Species
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Students develop a model for an ecosystem and then introduce a new species to explain how this new component in the system affects the flow of energy and cycling of matter throughout the ecosystem. This activity provides an opportunity to assess student work related to MS-LS2-3. Student Page Teacher Page
NGSS Energy: Are These Bulbs Heating Up Our Energy Bill?
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Students apply their understanding of the concepts of energy transfer and transformation to compare the efficiencies of two different types of light bulbs. They do so by measuring the amount of thermal energy produced by the two bulbs, applying the law of conservation of energy, and calculating how much of the electrical energy supplied was converted into light energy. Student Page Teacher Page
NGSS Weather and Climate: Atmosphere, Climate and Global Warming
3:30 pm - 4:30 pm Students look at historical data spanning the past 100 years to try to understand the causes of current global warming. They ask questions related to the data to figure out what the evidence indicates and to better understand how human activities relate to global warming. Student Page Teacher Page
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2019
NGSS Evolution: Embry-OH!
8:00 am - 9:00 am Students analyze and interpret skeletal and embryological images to identify patterns of similarities and differences across species that look very different as mature animals. Students identify patterns of similarities throughout developmental time to infer evolutionary relationships not obvious in the mature animals. This activity provides an opportunity to assess student work related to MS-LS4-3. Student Page Teacher Page
NGSS Chemical Reactions: Developing a Prototype
9:30 am - 10:30 am Students take on the roles of chemical engineers as they undertake a design challenge to construct and test a hand warmer device that uses the thermal energy released from an exothermic reaction using iron filings. When testing their designs, students analyze their results and brainstorm ideas for further modification. This activity, from the new SEPUP™ Chemical Reactions unit (NGSS middle level edition), addresses MS-PS1.B, MS-ETS1.B, MS-ETS1.C, and MS-PS3.A. Student Page Teacher Page
NGSS Land, Water, and Human Interactions: Cutting Canyons and Building Deltas
11:00 am - 12:00 pm Students take on the roles of civil engineers as they use a river model to investigate how flowing water erodes and deposits sediments to create common landforms. They then design erosion-control structures and use the river model to test them. Based on the results of their initial testing, students redesign and retest their structures. This activity, from the new SEPUP™ Interactions middle level unit (NGSS middle level edition) addresses MS-ESS2.A, MS-ETS1.A, and MS-ESS2.C. Student Page Teacher Page
What is a Species?
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm In this activity from the SEPUP high school biology program, learn about conditions that lead to speciation, including isolation due to temporal, geographical, and behavioral factors, and more. Then determine whether selected animal or plant pairs are in the early, mid, or late stages of speciation. Student Page Teacher Page
Cell Differentiation and Gene Expression
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Students often have trouble conceptualizing how selective gene expression works. We will use manipulatives to teach this concept and explain how it is connected to genetic engineering. Innovative activities are selected from the new Science and Global Issues: Biology program from SEPUP and Lab-Aids. Activities focus on ways to integrate selective gene expression as a relevant and engaging sustainability issue. Student Page Teacher Page
Photosynthesis and Respiration Shuffle
3:30 pm - 4:30 pm Students have major misconceptions about photosynthesis and cellular respiration, but this content is essential for understanding how matter and energy flows, both at the micro (cellular) and macro (ecosystem) levels. Using a computer simulation, a hands-on activity, and notebooking/ discussion strategies, expose student thinking—all from SEPUP’s new Science and Global Issues: Biology program from Lab-Aids. Student Page Teacher Page
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2019
Using Climate Proxies to Learn about Earth's Climate History
8:00 am - 9:00 am How can scientists tell what Earth’s climate was like thousands of years before human measurements? This activity simulates the use of fossil ocean foraminifera, tiny organisms whose growth patterns are different in warm or cold water. Analyze and graph samples of replicas of these organisms to determine relative warm and cold periods in the past 200,000 years. This activity is from EDC Earth Science, a new NSF-supported high school program from Lab-Aids. Student Page Teacher Page
Prospecting for Mineral Ore
9:30 am - 10:30 am How do geologists look for mineral ore? In this activity from EDC Earth Science, participants search for a layer of rock containing a valuable mineral called molybdenum by testing sediments collected in strategic spots along river systems—gathering data to decide where the deposit is located. This is no “cookie mining” activity! Teacher Page
Calling All Carbons
11:00 am - 12:00 pm The element of carbon is critical to life on Earth. All living organisms contain different and essential carbon-based molecules. Several Earth processes work together to cycle carbon from one carbon reservoir to another and to keep the amount in each reservoir stable. Join in to learn about and model different carbon transfer processes. Student Page Teacher Page