Lab Activity Master List

I was asked if I would post my "master list" of lab activities. These are not necessarily lab activities I have for sale, though you may find a couple in my TpT store. Most of them I found by Googling free resources or by browsing Teachers Pay Teachers. If you search the terms, most of the time, you should get some kind of idea for an activity. Some activities I do with all grade levels (such as "Saving Fred" and microscope skill activities), I just make alterations to make them more challenging for older students. If you have a question about a specific activity, let me know and I'll try to get back with you. (I'm a lot more active on Instagram, so if you have an account, try messaging me there. I'm not a regular blogger.) I'll try to add links to things as I have time and make this a growing list.

General Science

Lab Safety-Kesler escape room on TpT

Microscope Skills-Letter E activity (Google for lots of versions), CSI mystery powder 

STEM-Egg Drop Challenge, Ship a Chip, foil boats, paper bridges, cup challenges, Saving Fred gummy worm activity (Google for lots of versions of each activity)

Writing Lab Procedures-Students build an animal using marshmallows and toothpicks, then write step-by-step directions for their process. Cover original animals (or take photos, if your school is 1:1 with technology) and have groups trade directions to see if they can correctly build each other's animals.

Physical Science

Visible Light-Use red, green, and blue bulbs to experiment with light color mixing; test opacity/reflection/transmission/etc. of various materials (foil, wax paper, plastic wrap, etc.) using a flashlight

Electromagnetic Spectrum-Use spectroscopes to observe different types of lights (LED, incandescent, fluorescent, etc.). If you do not have spectroscopes, I ordered some inexpensive ones from Home Science Tools or you can make them from old CDs and cardboard paper towel tubes (Google how-tos).

Sound Waves-To visibly observe sound waves, hit tuning forks on table and quickly submerge in a bowl of water. To observe how sounds travels more efficiently through solids than gases, tie a string to a metal dinner fork so that there are two long "tails". Hold the ends of the strings against ears and press ears closed. Have partner tap the fork. If your students have iPads, Garageband is a fun app to experiment with.

Properties of Waves-Use slinkies to observe transverse vs. longitudinal waves.

Physical vs. Chemical Changes-Mystery white powder activity; a version of this is available in my TpT store. If you don't like my version (it's pretty sparse), I'm sure there are plenty of others.

Atomic Structure-Make edible diagrams using Skittles for protons/neutrons and Red Hots for electrons. Practice identifying different information on periodic table to create atoms for different elements.

Periodic Table & Metals/Nonmetals/Metalloids-Alien Periodic Table

Elements/Compounds/Molecules-Paperclip models

Acids, Bases, & pH-Identify pH and neutralize common acids and bases with red cabbage indicator. 

Chemical Bonds-Drop on a Penny activity (Google for lots of ideas.)

Balancing Chemical Equations-Use candy or math manipulatives to model.

Balanced/Unbalanced Forces-Experiment with bouncy balls, dominoes, and spring scales (I'll try to remember to post my activity when I find it).

Motion & Acceleration-Calculate speed of toy cars on ramps.

Newton's Laws-I do the simpler of these activities that I have materials for.

Potential/Kinetic Energy-Build marble runs.

Simple Machines-Design Rube Goldberg machines.

Work-Calculate work and horsepower of each student as they climb a staircase.

Earth & Space Science

Catastrophic Events-Hurricane shelter STEM activity

Nonrenewable Resources-Renew-a-bean activity (pretty sure there are plenty of these if you Google)

Renewable Resources-Have a town hall meeting debate on fracking/nuclear power; Kesler station labs here and here

Earth’s Layers-Make edible diagrams using cookies and frosting

Rock Cycle-Make diagram using Starburst candy (cut into pieces to make sediment, compress to make sedimentary rock, apply heat and pressure with hands to make metamorphic rock, melt in microwave to make lava/magma, and allow to harden to make igneous)

Continental Drift-USGS Pangaea puzzle

Geologic Time Scale-Chocolate chip excavation (available in my TpT store)

Fossils-Archaeopteryx puzzle

Tectonics-Candy bar models/graham cracker demo

Earthquakes/Volcanoes-Build a seismograph

Erosion-Skittles activity

Ground/Surface Water-Here

Heat Transfer-Convection demo with hot and cold water, design a thermos STEM challenge

Convection Currents-Pinwheel/paper spiral and candle activity

Atmosphere-Analyze cloud types in famous landscape paintings, similar to this

Weather Maps-Interactive simulators (I'll have to look for these)

Asteroids-Crater activity

Eclipses-Research how past cultures reacted to eclipses; model eclipses with flashlight and balls of clay on skewers

Galaxies & Lightyears-Kesler has activities for this here and here.

Life Cycle of a Star-Celebrity HR charts by Kesler here

Lunar Cycle-Oreo lunar cycle diagram

Seasons-Flashlight/beans surface area activity; model with heat lamp and globes

Solar System & Planets-Model relative sizes of planets using Play-Doh

Life Science

Characteristics of Living Things-Analyze photos to determine COLT, argue whether or not viruses are living or nonliving

Classification-Mystery kingdom sorting activity using microscopes

Dichotomous Keys-Create a dichotomous key for unfamiliar items (aliens/monsters) and familiar items (candy)

Cell Theory-View cheek, elodea, and cork cells using microscope

Cells & Organelles-Make edible diagrams using candy

Organ Systems: Circulatory-Make a model of a heart with plastic bottle, clay, and straws

Organ Systems: Respiratory-Create a model of a lung using balloons and plastic cups

Organ Systems: Skeletal-Play-Doh towers with/without skeletal support

Organ Systems: Muscular-Create articulated hand with cardstock, straws, and string.

Biotic/Abiotic Factors-Scavenger hunt around campus (if weather does not permit, use Jonathan Bird ocean videos or similar); plant grass seed and alter different abiotic factors to observe results

Biomes-Animal cracker biomes and graphing

Food Webs-Card game (I'll have to find)

Organism Relationships (Symbiosis)-Card sort (I'll have to find)

Short & Long Term Environmental Impacts-Kesler lab

Succession-Card sort (I'll have to find)

Biodiversity-Black-footed ferret activity (This came from a Project Learning Tree book, and I'm not if it's available online.)

Food Webs/Energy Pyramids-Dissect owl pellets; I also order fried crickets every year for us to eat just for fun

Photosynthesis/Cellular Respiration-Elodea and yeast experiments; observe stomata under microscope (Google how to do this using pathos leaves, tape, and clear nail polish.)

Water Cycle-Calculate personal water “footprint” and discuss water conservation strategies (This came from a Project Wet workshop; not sure if it's available online.)

Carbon Cycle-"Dinosaur Breath" (Google to find a version you like; this involves grinding up chalk and mixing with vinegar to inflate a balloon.)

Nitrogen Cycle-Passport game

Reproduction-Lily dissection (Lots of YouTube tutorials on this.)

Mitosis/Meiosis-Oreo mitosis diagrams (Google for details.)

Genetics-Reebops (Google for several different versions.)

Inherited/Acquired Traits-Student traits checklist (make a list of dominant/recessive traits and see how many students have each), do a PTC strip taste test

Natural Selection-Peppered moths newspaper dot activity (Google for several versions.)

Anatomical Positions-Pickle autopsy (Google for several versions.)

Zombie Day-"Fizz Virus" activity (Google), The Crazy Science Lady survival activity, CDC epidemiology activities

Pickle Autopsy: Teaching Anatomical Position Vocabulary

So, anatomical position vocabulary isn't actually in any of the standards I'm supposed to be teaching. But, my 8th graders had their state test April 16, more than a month before we get out of school, and I had to have all 8th grade standards taught and reviewed by then. So, what's a gal to do with 8th graders for the next month of school?

Start teaching high school standards, of course!

Our students have a choice between two different high schools in our district, and they won't all necessarily go straight into the same class in the 9th grade. Some may end up in Biology, while others may end up in an intro or general science class. So I had to decide which skills would serve them all.

I figured Greek & Latin root words and anatomical position vocabulary would be the most useful basic skills for them. We already cover Greek & Latin root words throughout middle school, so I decided they might not be very engaged in what would just seem like end-of-the-year review, so I narrowed my focus to just the anatomy vocabulary.

I made a PowerPoint and guided notes outline to introduce the topic. We practiced labeling a few diagrams, and the unit culminated in an autopsy...a pickle autopsy.

Now, I could have done an actual dissection (frog, etc.) except for these caveats:

• It's the end of the school year, so funds are a little low for ordering a bunch of preserved specimens.
• It's the end of the school year, and last minute orders might not arrive in time.
• I have some dissection tools, but not scalpels, which could be necessary for many specimens.
• I'm not comfortable introducing scalpels to my students at this point.
• I don't want to steal the thunder of a high school biology teacher who is looking forward to doing students' first "real" dissection with them. High school teachers are better equipped than I am. I need to leave it to them.

Hence, pickles. It's the perfect way to review anatomical position vocabulary and introduce dissection skills without dissecting an actual preserved specimen.

Here's the basic setup:

Each team got a dissection tray, plastic knife, tweezers, pick, hand lens (not shown), dropper, Petri dish, and a "victim" (pickle). Each victim had its own "punny" toe tag with identifying information. Some of the victims had the same last name so different student teams could confer to decide if they were related or not.

I made a very basic reference sheet for each table.

One station was a "Toxicology Lab" where students would get a sample of their victim's body fluid (pickle juice) and test it with red cabbage indicator to check pH. Some of the victims had been "poisoned" (soaked in baking soda solution), so they would get an alkaline result. I had a pH scale and a few samples already set up. My 8th graders have learned about pH, but it was in 7th grade, so it had been a while.

I added a little food coloring to the body fluid samples because the "poisoned" samples were a little lighter in color, and I didn't want it to be obvious that there was a difference. (Food coloring shouldn't affect the results much.)

I had a few pre-made samples set out in a chem plate so my students would know what to look for.

Here are my very hilarious toe tags. I don't know if my students "got" it. I didn't see any of them roll their eyes. 🙃 Vinnie Gar is perhaps my favorite.

Here, the students are dissecting. They recorded their observations on a lab sheet.

It wasn't obvious at first, but every victim had a variety of wounds. They had all been cut with a knife and stabbed with toothpicks (I left pieces of them embedded). Some had tiny balls of aluminum foil that I had inserted by poking them into the pickle with a toothpick. A couple of them had a gherkin inside (baby pickles!). A few had even been poisoned (the baking soda solution I mentioned above). Students had to draw and label dorsal and ventral wounds and describe each wound using superior/inferior, proximal/distal, medial/lateral, etc.

This was one of my favorite labs we have ever done. I'm so glad we had a chance to do it.

I'd like to share it with you, as well!

This is based off a file from The Forensic Teacher Magazine. This is the original. I simplified and shortened it a little for my middle schoolers. You can access all of my anatomical position vocabulary and pickle autopsy files here.

Your lab/classroom is going to smell like pickles afterward, but that's a small price to pay for such an engaging activity.

Um...It's been a while

I'm a bad blogger.

Has it really been more than a year since I last blogged?

Anyway, I've been thinking that I'd try to do better and start posting some of the cool things my students do here. It would also be a good way to share activities with everyone that I don't necessarily want to post on Teachers Pay Teachers. Click here for my store. There's not a lot there, but you might find something useful.

I'm a lot more active on Instagram, so during my next hiatus, that's probably where I'll be. My handle is @middleschoolmadscientist.

How I organize the one million papers that cross my desk each day

These carts are my best (inanimate) friends. They're available for a reasonable price of around $34 each at Amazon, but I got mine at Sam's Club for $25 each. My desk is never buried under papers because every scrap of paper has a home in one of these carts. Below is a color-coded chart to explain how exactly how I use these bad boys.

Cart 1
8th Grade-Handouts  
8th Grade-Graded Work to be Returned to Students  
7th Grade-Handouts  
7th Grade-Graded Work to be Returned to Students  
6th Grade-Handouts  
6th Grade-Graded Work to be Returned to Students  
Master Notebooks (by this, I mean my copies of Interactive Notebooks)
8th Grade-Extra Work (in case I am out unexpectedly)
7th Grade-Extra Work  
6th Grade-Extra Work

Cart 2  
Attendance Slips  
Nurse Referral Slips
Discipline Forms Detention (I have detention duty, so the clipboard students use to sign in is here) Sub (useful info for subs) 
Sub (more stuff for subs)  
Visual Aids (Root Word of the Week, Famous Scientist Quotes, etc. that I use for Bellwork)
Receipts (for all the various fundraisers)
Misc. (anything that doesn't already have a home)  
Announcement Sheets*

You may notice a category that is missing. Where do I keep papers that haven't yet been graded? I do one of two things: A. I grade them right away and put them in the correct drawer. B. I paperclip them together, stick them inside my gradebook, grade them at my earliest opportunity, and then put then in the correct drawer. I rarely keep them more than 24 hours. I make sure to grade them promptly and return them to students the next school day. One caveat: if many students are absent on test day, I wait until every student has made up the test to avoid students who have already received their graded test passing it along to "assist" the absentees. I keep my copy basket on top. As I come across things I need to copy, I just drop them into the basket.

*What are announcements sheets, you ask? They're only the greatest idea ever. I wish every school I've ever worked at had done these. Instead of interrupting class time to rattle off announcements no one listens to over the intercom, my school prints up the announcements (along with the list of absent students, students' birthdays that day, etc.), and an office helper delivers them. They stick mine to my doorframe with a magnet, so class is never disrupted. Brilliant!

About me

My teaching experience

My name is Ms. K. I teach 6th, 7th, and 8th grade in a small, rural school in Mississippi. I have been working in schools in some capacity or another since 2010. I spent four years working in kindergarten, as an assistant to begin with, and then as a teacher. I then transferred to a second grade position and spent another three years there. While I did enjoy teaching kindergarten and second grade, I had always wanted to teach older students, and science is my passion. I incorporated a lot of science into our literary units in the primary grades, but deep down I knew I would be happier if my sole focus could be science. In 2017, opportunity knocked, and I moved up to middle school.

Why I want to blog

With every position I've had, I've tried my best to improve each year. I feel like I have grown as an educator each year. Second grade was different from teaching kindergarten, but there were still many similarities. Middle school has been a completely new animal. I feel like I need a more intentional means of reflection in order to master this new job and do my best for my students. Reflection is always a part of teaching, but we often do it almost unconsciously. I want a platform to meaningfully reflect in a direct, intentional way. I thought perhaps a blog would be a way to do this. Another benefit of blogging is the ability to share my ideas with others and learn from them. It takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a village to teach one, too. The world of education has always been dynamic, but it is changing now more rapidly than ever. I don't want to sit on my laurels; I want to grow.

About the outside-of-school Ms. K

Our students seem to think we teachers live at school (they're always so surprised when they see us at Walmart, aren't they?), but of course every teacher also wears many other hats. When I'm not planning lab activities and picking up pencils off my classroom floor, you can probably find me reading a book/listening to an audiobook (or podcast). I love food, working outside, DIY, and loving on my spoiled dog, Rico.

Look at that sweet baby.