October
Spring growth
Measure, estimate and investigate what grows in spring: seedlings, buds, flowers and new leaves.
Free tools: Plant Growth Journal, Class Graph Maker
Through the year · South Africa
Seasonal science and maths, month by month
The seasons run the other way round in South Africa: June is the shortest day and December the longest. The school year starts in January, so the calendar below follows it.
October
November
November
Warmer weather
Track the weather as it warms and sort the signs of the season.
Free tools: Weather Station, Venn Diagram Maker
December
About December 21
The longest day
The summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere: the most hours of daylight all year.
Free tools: Sun and Shadow, Solar System Scale
December
End of the year
Celebrate what the class learned and send home something to keep practising.
Free tools: Certificate Maker, Word Search Maker, Flashcard Maker
February
Late January or February
Back to school
Term 1 begins. Routines, a first look at the year's science, and getting to know a new class.
Free tools: Name Wheel, Team Maker, Visual Schedule, Lesson Timer
February 2
Groundhog Day
Separate fact from folklore, then measure real shadows.
Free tools: Sun and Shadow
March
March 14
Pi Day
Measure round things and find that the circumference is always a bit more than three times the diameter.
Free tools: Measurement Converter, Mean, Median and Mode
About March 20
Autumn equinox
Day and night are nearly equal again, and the days are getting shorter. Compare with your spring shadow log.
Free tools: Sun and Shadow, Moon Phase Finder
April
April 22
Earth Day
Food webs, habitats, the water cycle and what a class can measure about its own waste.
Free tools: Food Web Builder, Water Cycle, Predator and Prey
June
June to August
Frost and ice science
Frost, melting, freezing and insulation in the coldest months. Every activity has a version that needs no snow, just a freezer.
Free tools: States of Matter, Weather Station
About June 21
The shortest day
The winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere: the fewest hours of daylight all year.
Free tools: Sun and Shadow, Solar System Scale
July
June or July, the hundredth school day
100th day of school
Make 100, count to 100 many ways and see what you can do in 100 seconds.
Free tools: Hundred Chart, Ten Frames, Place Value Blocks
August
August to September
Science fair season
Plan a fair test, collect data and present it.
Free tools: Fair Test Planner, Class Graph Maker, Lab Stopwatch
September
About September 22
Spring equinox
Day and night are nearly equal, and the days are getting longer. A good day to start a shadow or daylight log.
Free tools: Sun and Shadow, Moon Phase Finder
September to October
Planting season
Spring is the time to grow seeds, keep a plant journal and graph the growth.
Free tools: Plant Growth Journal, Class Graph Maker
Want a lesson for a date that isn't here? Tell us.