The Cornell Science Sampler Series (CSSS) is a collaboration between several of the outreach offices of Cornell's research centers and departments to provide teacher professional development in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.
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Garbage to Gadgets (Middle School)
Experience the challenges and rewards of engineering by constructing kinetic contraptions out of recycled materials. With the help of batteries, motors, magnets and other materials, generate functional devices and explore possible refinements to your innovative apparatus. |
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BrachyBio! (Middle and High School)
Brachypodium distachyon is a model grass related to important crops like rice, wheat, oats and barley. By simple experiments in the classroom, teachers and students can help researchers discover genes that are important to our food supply. In this workshop teachers learn about Brachy biology and are eligible to receive equipment and mutant seeds to grow and observe phenotypic variation in plants. An on-line database allows students to share their data with us. |
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Resonance in Transverse Waves (High School)
This experiment is designed to develop the student's understanding of resonance. Students explore the conditions needed to establish standing waves on a string and discover the relationship between nodes and antinodes for different resonant modes. Students also determine the relationship between frequency and wavelength for a fixed length of string. |
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Nanoparticles: Are they safe? (Upper Middle and High School)
Nanoparticles are now being used in the manufacture of a variety of consumer products including eyeglasses, sunscreen and fabrics. But are they safe? At the nanoscale, the properties of particles may change in unpredictable ways. In this session, we will explore the uses and safety of nanoparticles. Students play the role of nanotoxicologists, researching the effects of nanoparticles. |
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| Inexpensive Labs to Motivate Students - Session 1 Cell Biology (Middle School)
Looking for labs and activities to get your students motivated? After this session you will walk away with these ready-to-use labs and activities: Cellopoly (a board game for review), the Cell Organelle Play, and Gummy Bear Osmosis Lab. Participants will take home materials from this workshop that they can use in their classrooms. If you are looking for labs on a shoestring budget, this session is for you.
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| Inexpensive Labs to Motivate Students - Session 2 Forensics (Middle School)
Looking for labs and activities to get your students motivated? After this session you will walk away with these ready-to-use labs and activities: Case of the Missing Candy Jar (a forensics-type lab) and Money & the Microscope. Participants will take home materials from this workshop that they can use in their classrooms. If you are looking for labs on a shoestring budget, this session is for you.
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| Friction (Middle and High School)
In this workshop, we will discuss the concept of friction and introduce an activity you can take back to your classrooms. The activity allows students to explore friction through a series of hands-on activities: first acting like scientists by doing experiments to learn about friction and thinking about how it works, then acting like engineers as they design their own car to win a “slow” race down a ramp.
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