Nano for Elementary and Middle School
Activities
Activities
NNCI Education Resources
NNCI has numerous nanotechnology educational resources in nanoHUB.
What is nanoscience?
NEATEC and Trinity College Module 1
NEATEC Learning Modules include topics on Nanotechnology, Semiconductors, Photovoltaic, Alternate Energy, Mathematics, General Science and Technology.
Microscopy
NEATEC and Trinity College Module 2
NEATEC Learning Modules include topics on Nanotechnology, Semiconductors, Photovoltaic, Alternate Energy, Mathematics, General Science and Technology.
Thin Films
NEATEC and Trinity College Module
In this activity students will learn the correlation between color wavelengths and measurement. They will effectively learn how to solve real-world and mathematical problems involving volume of spheres.
Scale Cards Activity
Center for Probing the Nanoscale, Stanford University (2014)
These cards can be used in various ways to help students learn about size and scale. To address the focus on argumentation in the Common Core on Science Literacy, some teachers have had students compare and defend their object placements. Some have also distributed one object card per student and had the students arrange themselves in a line of ascending size by discussing their objects with each other. Other teachers have used the cards in a Pokemon-like trading game where larger (or smaller) objects are more “powerful”.
Using nanoHUB to Introduce Elementary and Middle School Students to Models and Simulations
Purdue University (2014)
Instructions for an activity that combines the use of physical models and the Crystal Viewer Simulation tool to make models and simulations of carbon nanostructures including graphene, buckyballs, and carbon nanotubes more accessible to middle school students.
Take the nanoHUB Carbon Nanotube Dance Challenge!
For National Nanotechnology Day - October 9 (for 10 -9)
Learning About Surface Area and Volume Using, "Spaghetti and Meatballs for All!"
The purpose of this lesson is to help students extend their knowledge of area, perimeter, and volume to include surface area. The understanding of these concepts begin in the elementary grades and helps students understand events such as why a hot potato cools down quicker when it is spread out in smaller pieces and why a cell is triggered to divide. This understanding is even more important when students begin to understand the micro and nano scales in middle and high school. This lesson is aimed at students in grades 3-5.
Small Scale Stencilling Mask Lab
This lab is analogous with some nanofabrication processes. This lab will help students understand some of the challenges encountered while making semiconductor chips and waveguides, both of which are found in electronic circuits. The content is appropriate for students in middle school or high school.
Nanotechnology in Biology
By Elizabeth Gardner, University of Texas at El Paso
Developed for junior high school students, the presentation begins with an introduction to the nanoscale and the importance of nanotechnology. This is followed by several exercises focused on manipulating matter on the nanoscale.
Nano Model-Eliciting Activities (MEAs) for Middle School
Inspire K-12 Institute, Purdue University (2016)
Nano Model-Eliciting Activities (nano MEAs) introduce middle school students to nano scale science and technology while reinforcing their mathematics skills. These MEAs integrate science, technology, engineering and mathematics and are aligned with math and science standards. Model-Eliciting Activities (MEAs) are open-ended modeling problems that help students develop conceptual foundations for deeper and higher order ideas in mathematics, science, engineering, and other disciplines. Students complete pre-readings and individual activities and then work in teams to solve complex problems with realistic applications (Diefes-Dux, Hjalmarson, Miller, Lesh, 2008).
Nano-Roughness MEA
The Nano-Roughness MEA is a model-eliciting activity that was originally developed for undergraduate students and then modified for use with middle school students. The middle school version of the MEA has been mapped to math and science standards and has been tested and researched in many classrooms to ensure that it is appropriate for middle school students. The Nano-Roughness MEA challenges students to define what roughness is on the nanoscale and then determine the roughness of sample materials based on data collected through an Atomic-Force Microscopy (AFM).
The materials for this MEA can be found here: http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/enewp/
The version of the MEA that was developed for college students can be found in the higher education section of nanoHUB. It is also further described by Zawojewski, Diefes-Dux, and Bowman (2008) throughout their book about mathematical models in engineering education.
Aluminum Bat MEA
The Aluminum Bat MEA is a model-eliciting activity that was originally developed for undergraduate students and then modified for use with middle school students. The middle school version of the MEA has been mapped to math and science standards and has been tested and researched in many classrooms to ensure that it is appropriate for middle school students. In this MEA, students learn that engineers use the size of crystals to determine the strength of the material found in an aluminum bat. Students consider how to measure the average crystal size of aluminum crystal images of three different samples in order to determine which sample is the strongest.
More information about this MEA including the materials for this MEA can be found here: http://www.nctm.org/Publications/mathematics-teaching-in-middle-school/2013/Vol18/Issue6/Model-Eliciting-Activities_-A-Home-Run/
Magiera, M. T. (2013). Model eliciting activities: A home run. Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School
The version of the MEA that was developed for college students can be found in the higher education section of nanoHUB. It is also further described by Diefes-Dux, Bowman, Zawojewski and Hjalmarson (2006) in their article in the Journal of STEM Education and Research.