This Mathematics Matters case study, from the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, looks at how mathematicians' understanding of knots can help unravel potentially fatal knots in DNA molecules. Understanding how to manipulate tangles of DNA could help us create new treatments for diseases, so...

Students test crystal (alum) deodorants using either a red cabbage indicator or a universal indicator. The universal indicator suggests that the deodorant reacts as an acid, whereas the red cabbage suggests that the deodorant reacts as a base. What is happening here?

This resource can be used with different...

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this uses understanding of Kepler’s third law and the Doppler equation guide a lesson on plotting and interpreting a velocity vs radius graph for the Andromeda galaxy. A brief overview of the lesson is provided for the teacher as well as key questions to ask students...

Rockets are used to launch satellites, probes and even astronauts into space. A rocket launch is extremely impressive. Thousands of kilograms are burned in just a few minutes in order to provide the force that the rocket needs in order to overcome the gravity of the Earth. Rockets provide an exciting context to...

Whey is a waste product from the cheese industry. In this experiment students upgrade whey, by converting the lactose into glucose and galactose, or by growing the microorganism K.lactis on agar containing whey.

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Urban Spaces Near You, published by the Nuffield Foundation, was produced by a team led by the Nuffield Primary History Director, Jacqui Dean. The materials have been designed to support learning in history, literacy, art and design and science at Key Stage One and Key...

This resource, aimed at primary level, provides a complete guide to amphibians and reptiles in urban areas, including how to identify them, where to find them and how to create a habitat which encourages them to thrive.

The ID guide includes ideas on where to look to find reptiles and amphibians and tips on...

These resources from the European Space Agency climate change initiative education resource pack allow students to learn how a built up environment can lead to the urban heat island effect, so called urban hotspots. This phenomenon leads to temperature rises in cities that exceed those in surrounding rural...

In this resource students are provided with a table showing the efficiency of various factors in warming up or cooling down the neighbourhoods of three urban areas. Students are required to interpret the data,  manipulate the data and calculate averages. The data then has to be represented graphically. A number of...

Each book in this series provides an introduction to an aspect of the natural or scientific world, with lots of information to help answer children's questions about the world around them....

In this activity, students use the speed, distance, time equation to calculate how long it takes to travel to destinations around the globe from the UK via today's global transport options. They are then introduced to a new concept to global travel: the vacuum tube...

This booklet, with editable student worksheets and teacher's notes, gives six examples of how articles published in Catalyst could be used to help students develop their understanding of how scientists work.  It also suggests how similar activities can be developed...