Polyethelene. Most people would be hard pressed to NOT to have some in their possession at any given moment. This chance discovery has completely revolutionized the “stuff” in our lives over the last 65 years. Let students discover how by using the assets in this lesson package, part of the “Chemistry Now” series created by the partnership of NBC Learn, NSF, and NSTA.

Use the video Chance Discoveries: Polyethylene in your chemistry or physical science course when discussing monomers and polymers. Or use it along with the other videos and materials in the package to spark debates in your environmental science class or emphasize the history of science. One video on the Pacific garbage patch that first aired in 2007 provides background for 2012 news releases on the same subject.

And don’t forget your teammates and colleagues in other disciplines. With plastic’s connection to the economics of WWII, develop a cross-curricular project using these assets as a springboard.

However you decide to incorporate them in your instruction, let us know how it worked out!

—Judy Elgin Jensen

Photo of art installation made of plastic collected on beaches near Nye Beach, Oregon by Maureen Moca.

Video: “Chance Discoveries: Polyethylene,” tells how three different chemists in two countries over more than 30 years happened to make a white, waxy substance during lab experiments that, once recognized as potentially useful and developed, became polyethylene—the most common plastic in the world.

Video: In the news report “Water Fight: bottled vs. Tap,” environmentalists urge people to drink tap water from refillable containers instead of disposable plastic bottles.

Video: In the news report “In the Bag: Are Paper or Plastic Bags Better for the Environment?” the pros and cons of each are described.

Video: The news report “Discarded: Nondegradable Plastic a Hazard to Marine Life” describes the so-called Pacific garbage dump and the impact of discarded and nondegradable plastics on marine life.

Video: The 1945 General Electric filmstrip “The Kingdom of Plastics” uses the graphics and descriptions of the day to explain the chemistry of plastics and their importance in WWII and the future.

Middle school lesson: This lesson guides students in making their own polymers.

High school lesson: In this lesson, students conduct an investigation about polymers.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:

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