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Science is all around us, from the weather we see every day to the stars in the night sky. Help students connect the learning they do inside your classroom with what they experience in their day-to-day life by using real-world phenomena. From weather to chemistry and astronomy to engineering, help students ask questions and explore the world around them. In this blog, you’ll find examples to use in your classroom to engage and inspire your learners.
Let’s get started.
It seems like everywhere you turn these days, people are talking about phenomena in science learning. But what does that actually mean, and what does it have to do with teaching? Simply put, scientific phenomena are events or processes we can observe in real life that spark curiosity and lead to deeper understanding. They’re the questions students naturally ask when they notice something interesting in the world around them.
From weather patterns to chemical reactions, science phenomena in real life are perfect for helping learners connect classroom concepts to the world they experience every day. In the sections below, we’ll explore real-world examples of natural, biological, chemical, and even astronomical phenomena to inspire student engagement and hands-on learning.
Real-world phenomena make science exciting and meaningful. They help students ask questions and connect lessons to their everyday lives. Using these examples in your classroom can inspire curiosity and help learners see how science explains the world around them.
Natural phenomena are some of the most familiar and accessible ways to connect science to everyday life. Weather patterns, earthquakes, and other observable events in nature provide countless opportunities for hands-on exploration and student-led questions.
Weather is a part of everyday life, making it an easy and relatable way to introduce natural phenomena in the classroom. From clouds to storms, weather patterns offer endless opportunities to spark curiosity.
Young learners are naturally curious about the weather—they see it every day! Start with something simple, like how clouds form or why rainbows appear after a storm. Activities like creating a cloud in a jar or experimenting with sunlight and water to produce rainbows can make these phenomena tangible and fun.
Middle school students can dive deeper into the impact of weather patterns on the environment and people’s lives. For example, you can explore how hurricanes form, the role of air pressure in weather changes, or even how weather forecasting works. Using tools like online weather simulations or data from local meteorological stations helps make these concepts more engaging and relevant.
Earthquakes are a dramatic example of natural phenomena that capture students’ attention and lend themselves to exploring forces, energy, and the structure of our planet.
For younger learners, earthquakes can introduce the idea of forces acting on Earth’s surface. Activities like building structures with blocks and testing them on a shake table (or a homemade version using a tray and gelatin) help students understand the effects of seismic activity in a hands-on way.
Older students can explore the science behind earthquakes by studying plate tectonics and fault lines. Using maps to identify earthquake-prone areas or experimenting with models to understand how stress builds and releases along faults can make these abstract concepts more concrete.
Biological phenomena offer endless opportunities for students to explore the living world around them, from ecosystems to the processes that drive plant growth. These connections help learners see biology in action.
Ecosystems are full of fascinating interactions that students can observe and investigate. Younger learners can focus on local ecosystems close to home, while middle schoolers can explore broader ecosystem dynamics and their complexities.
Younger learners can observe local ecosystems, such as a patch of grass, a park, or the schoolyard. Watching ants build a colony, birds collecting materials for a nest, or different plants thriving in the same space helps them notice patterns and relationships. Simple activities like journaling observations or comparing plant and animal activity at different times of day encourage curiosity.
Middle school students can expand their focus to include the dynamics within ecosystems, like predator-prey relationships or the role of decomposers. Observing how animals interact with their environment or how populations fluctuate over time can connect to lessons on food chains, energy flow, and biodiversity. Analyzing real-world data, such as tracking wildlife or studying changes in plant life during different seasons, deepens their understanding.
The process of plant growth is a familiar and fascinating phenomenon that allows students to observe science in action over time.
Elementary students can observe the stages of plant growth by watching seeds sprout and grow. This simple process lets them notice changes in height, color, and leaf formation over days or weeks. Using observation journals or drawing the stages of plant development helps make the phenomenon memorable and meaningful.
Middle school learners can focus on the factors that influence plant growth in natural settings. For example, they might observe how sunlight affects different plants in their area or compare plant growth in shaded versus open spaces. Observing how plants respond to environmental changes, such as drought or temperature shifts, ties into larger lessons on ecosystems and environmental science.
Chemical phenomena are all around us, from reactions we observe in the kitchen to processes happening invisibly in nature. These real-world examples help students connect abstract concepts to things they see and experience every day.
Chemical reactions are some of the most exciting and observable phenomena in chemistry, making them a great way to explore science concepts.
Younger learners can observe reactions they see in everyday life, like the fizz that happens when soda is poured or the way fruit browns when exposed to air. Discussing why these reactions occur—like the release of carbon dioxide in bubbles or oxidation in fruit—helps make chemistry concepts relatable.
Middle school students can expand their focus to observe more complex reactions in natural and everyday settings. For example, they might notice rust forming on a metal surface, the bubbling in effervescent tablets when dissolved in water, or the way bread rises due to gas production during fermentation. Observing these phenomena can spark discussions about chemical processes like oxidation, gas formation, and the role of catalysts in reactions.
Engineering phenomena are about solving problems and designing structures that help in the real world.
Bridges are great examples of engineering that students can observe. They show how forces and designs work together to make structures strong.
Younger students can explore different bridge designs by going on a field trip or looking at pictures. They can observe how different shapes hold weight and identify which designs are the strongest. These activities help students learn about the purpose of using different bridge designs.
Middle school students can study which materials and forces make bridges strong. They can learn about tension and compression and how these forces work together. Students could explore why some bridges, like suspension bridges, are used over wide rivers. Watching videos of bridge failures can help them understand why good design is important for safety.
Transportation systems show how vehicles move and are easy-to-see examples of engineering. They are also a topic many students find exciting because they connect to things they use every day.
There are so many exciting phenomena to explore on the topic of transportation. Younger students can watch how wheels on bikes or cars help them move. They can see how ramps or hills make moving things easier or harder. Students can also notice how surfaces, like grass or pavement, change how fast something moves.
Middle school students can look at more advanced transportation ideas. They might learn how train tracks help trains move by reducing friction. They can also explore how planes lift off the ground and fly. Watching how cars are shaped to move through the air can show how design affects speed. They might even look at how cars stay steady on bumpy roads using suspension systems.
Astronomical phenomena are exciting and easy for students to observe. From changes in the Moon to stars in the night sky, they offer lots of chances to explore science.
Younger students can watch how the Moon changes shape over time. They might notice it looks full some nights and small on others. Talking about these changes helps students learn about patterns in the sky and how the Moon moves around Earth.
Middle school students can track stars and constellations. They can also learn about events like eclipses and why they happen. Watching these phenomena helps students understand how Earth moves in space and how that changes what we see.
Everyday phenomena are a powerful tool for bringing science concepts to life in the classroom. When using familiar, observable events, you will spark curiosity and encourage learners to ask meaningful questions.
Here’s how to use everyday phenomena effectively in your lessons:
STEMscopes Science™, Collaborate Science™, Kide Science™, and STEMscopes Streaming in partnership with BBC Learning, are programs from Accelerate Learning that make it easy for teachers to focus on the teaching they need to do. Accelerate Learning’s phenomena-based science programs provide everything needed to deliver well-designed and easy-to-use lessons based on phenomena and all the great learning that comes along with that. All that’s left to do is teach.
STEMscopes Science is rooted in phenomena-driven learning that follows the 5E + IA (intervention and acceleration) lesson model. Phenomena-based lessons engage students’ curiosity and encourage inquiry-based exploration. In this lesson example, 4th graders are studying plate tectonics and how they affect patterns on Earth
Collaborate Science is a project-based learning program that uses engaging, age-appropriate topics grounded in specific phenomena that will grab students’ interest. Students are presented with practical, real-world problems called Driving Questions.
Kide Science presents younger students with exciting and accessible phenomena that they will be eager to investigate through story-based, playful inquiry STEM lessons. In this lesson—Busy Bees: How Do Bees Collect Pollen?—students see a bee that’s flying around with what looks like powder stuck to it. Students ask questions about what they see and investigate what the powder on the bee is and how it got there.
BBC Learning and STEMscopes have partnered to bring a new way to explore the world of phenomena. STEMscopes Streaming contains world-class footage, news, behind-the-scenes photography, and integrated activities that engage students with the world’s most awe-inspiring scientific phenomena.
When students see science in the clouds above, the bridges they cross, or the bread they bake, learning clicks. Everyday phenomena turn curiosity into discovery—and with the right tools, you can make those “aha!” moments happen all the time. Programs like STEMscopes Science, Collaborate Science, Kide Science, and STEMscopes Streaming give you everything you need to spark questions, guide investigations, and connect lessons to real life.
Science is happening all around us—let’s inspire students to notice it, question it, and explore it every day.
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