How do you know there is air? Can you see it, smell it, feel it? To begin the investigation, learners watch a video and discuss what they know about air and the atmosphere. Then, they participate in five different hands-on, inquiry-based activities to learn how air behaves in the atmosphere. The lesson provides connections to both physical science and space science.

Concepts

the earth, the earth's atmosphere, the atmosphere, air, space, behavior of gases, gases, properties of gases

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Divide the class into small groups and set each activity up at a station while groups rotate around to each activity
• Use follow-up activity to provide more investigation, then assign research on central heating or layers of atmosphere to make a real-life connection

Classroom Considerations

• Requires materials many classrooms do not contain

Pros

• Includes interesting hook and trigger questions to engage learners
• Offers flexibility to use all or some of the activities depending on class needs

Cons

• None