Convection: Conceptual Change Teaching

Book Chapter | February 2010

Two bottles of different-colored water are placed vertically, one on top of the other with open ends together. They remain stable if the bottle with the hotter (red-colored) water is placed on top of the bottle with the…

Convection: Transfer of Heat From Earth’s Interior

Book Chapter | March 2011

In this activity, students conduct experimental trials involving a drop of food coloring moved by convection in a pan of water to observe convection cells. Students record their observations on this model and relate…

Modeling Convection

Journal Article | August 2004

Typically, teachers use simple models that employ differences in temperature and density to help students visualize convection. However, most of these models are incomplete or merely hint at (instead of model)…

Convection Connections

Journal Article | April 2010

Children are fascinated with large bodies of water, such as lakes and oceans. They feel the wind on their faces and observe lake and ocean water as it moves in waves. But do they know what makes the air and water move?…

Idea Bank: Convection in a Fish Tank

Journal Article | December 2007

Understanding convection is fundamental for students to fully grasp the science behind large-scale events on Earth, such as global wind patterns, plate tectonic movement, ocean current patterns, and hydrothermal vent…

Science 101: What causes convection?

Journal Article | January 2011

Convection is when different parts of a fluid move in a more-or-less circular path, with parts of the fluid at the bottom moving to the top and vice versa. Here fluids refer to both liquids and gases. Convection happens…

Using Key Features to Analyze and Modify Curriculum for the NGSS

Journal Article | January 2022

Q: How Does the Sun’s Heat Get To Us Here on Earth?

Journal Article | January 2023

Models for Developing Explanations of Earth’s Dynamic Plate System

Journal Article | March 2022

Up and Away!

Journal Article | May 2022