This booklet is part of the ‘Innovations in Practical Work’ series published by the Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme (SEP). Composites are made by physically combining two or more materials. Many composite materials are used to provide strength and rigidity while using thinner, lighter components. However, they...

In this 5-minute video interview, Dr Drew Purves, Head of the Computational Ecology and Environmental Science Group at Microsoft Research in Cambridge, UK, discusses how his research can help us predict the effects of climate change on natural ecosystems,...

Programmers can program computers to learn to do certain tasks.  Although the programmer writes the initial program, as it is fed more data the computer changes the way that it carries out the task in order to improve its ability to perform it.  However, ...

This concept cartoon, from the Association for Science Education (ASE), is focusing on food and vegetarianism. Concept cartoons provide a new approach to teaching, learning and assessment in science, they feature cartoon-style drawings showing different characters...

These diagnostic questions and response activities (contained in the zip file) support students in being able to:

• Select a particle diagram to correctly show the rearrangement of atoms during a chemical reaction.

• Interpret the quantitative meaning of a chemical equation.

  ...

From the Centre for Science Education, the RA3 project aims to bring parents together with their children and teachers to explore the worlds of science and technology.

The aim of this activity is to help children and parents think about the area they live in and how it could be improved. They work together...

A Year Ten module from the Salters’ double award science course. A surveyor’s report on a proposed barn conversion is used to introduce different materials used in construction and issues associated with their use. The lessons which follow then consider each type of...

This resource from Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute is a hands-on classroom activity for Key Stage Two students that aims to support the teaching of topics such as microbes and hand hygiene. This interactive, practical activity demonstrates how microbes, such as bacteria and viruses, can be spread through surface...

These resources were developed by the Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme in collaboration with Keele University in order to provide support for teaching aspects of ‘How Science Works’. The emphasis of the materials is on ‘data, evidence, theories and explanations’ linked to ‘applications and implications of...

This Nuffield Pathways Through Science module began with the study sound waves and vibrations including how the ear works and the properties of ultrasound. This led on to activities related to how sound vibrations are captured, recorded, and produced. The final group of...

A Year 11 module from the Salters Key Stage Four double award science course. This module introduces ideas about how living organisms control their internal environment and respond to changes in their external environment. Students are reminded that few living things...

These activities, produced by The Centre for Industry Education Collaboration (CIEC), are based on a BASF chemical plant at Seal Sands, Middlesbrough. They enable students to see how and why chemical reactions are controlled in a chemical plant. The materials contain full teacher guidance, student notes and...

This resource contains poems written by children on science themes. The poems look at scientists, science lessons, an electrical circuit and an eclipse. They show how learning in science could be linked to literacy.
Originally published by ASE as part of the ASE/Pfizer poetry competition they are part of the...

In this activity, students learn about heat transfer from jet engine turbine blades. The blades reach temperatures as high as 1000 ºC. How do the blades cool, and how do scientists measure the rate of cooling at such high temperatures?