In this Catalyst article, students at La Sainte Union Catholic School in North London investigate the link between lichen species and air pollution around their school.

Lichens are indicators of changes in air quality; tolerant species replace those which are sensitive to a given pollutant. This effect is...

Produced by The Centre for Industry Education Collaboration (CIEC), this booklet offers advice and guidance for:
* teachers who wish to bring industrial speakers into school
* industrial speakers who would like an insight into the needs of teachers and their...

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

• Describe how the sensation of hotness is caused by vibrating particles.
• Describe the mechanism of thermal conduction that can occur in all solids.
• Explain why metals are...

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

• Describe the arrangement and movement of particles in a substance in the solid, liquid and gas states.
• Use the particle model to describe what happens to a substance when it...

This resource contains two activities and accompanying teachers’ notes.

Spectra: A tale of two elements
Students must...

This quick game is provided by ASE and it aims to recap and reinforce students' knowledge of some aspects of physical processes. The resource comprises of cards and instructions for playing the game. Students compete to collect the beginning and end of statements or questions. Areas covered are electricity, forces...

In this podcast from the Planet Earth Online collection and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Sue Nelson hears about the birth of an ocean in the Afar depression in the Horn of Africa. The continental crust is being ripped apart at a phenomenal rate – one metre every year over the last five years. In...

A Catalyst article looking at which type of radiation is absorbed and emitted through spectroscopy. This is the study of the wavelengths of light which allows us to identify the substances present in the source. This investigation provides a lot of useful information about a compound. It is used in a very wide...

A Year 11 module from the Salters’ Key Stage Four double award science course. The context for this module is the use of scientific ideas to explain human performance. Students discuss what is meant by being ‘fit’. They compare different uses of the word 'work' and are...

Chris Holmes is a sports technologist for sports equipment manufacturer Adidas. This Department for Education clip is useful in showing students how a career such as this relies on a background of STEM study. Chris describes how he specialises in the development of sports balls. His job is to investigate the best...

Teaching and learning...

This podcast from the Planet Earth Online collection and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) looks at how hikers and walkers could be unwittingly changing the landscape by spreading alien species; what it's like to work as a marine biologist in the Arctic in temperatures of minus 40°C; and exactly how...

This teamwork-based activity provides a quick introduction to a teacher-led discussion focusing on the spread of disease and the importance of water treatment in preventing epidemics. Students use post-it notes to sort diseases into those that are water-borne and those...