Fun Interactives

Please check out the following links for resources you can use in your classroom. You can also search all available resources. If you are a member of NESTA, you can submit resources to share with others, as well as save resources you'd like to use in "My NESTA". If you're not a member of NESTA, join NESTA today.

  • Orbit Shapes Interactive Animation
    Fun Interactives
    Website
    This interactive animation shows two important features of orbits - shape and size. Use the sliders in the interactive animation to change the shape and size of the orbit of "your planet". Earth's orbit is shown for comparison.
  • Sea Floor Spreading Interactive
    Fun Interactives
    Website
    Earth's magnetic field reverses itself from time to time; North becomes South and South becomes North. Lava that cools and becomes rock at a given time in Earth's history stores a record of our planet's magnetic polarity at the time of the rock's formation. Rocks on the seafloor on either side of a mid-ocean spreading ridge preserve a record of the Earth's magnetic field over time. The discovery of this phenomenon was an important bit of evidence that helped confirm the theory of plate tectonics.

    The interactive animation illustrates this concept.

  • The Secret Lives of Wild Animals
    Fun Interactives
    Website
    Take a behind-the-scenes peek into the secret lives of five different animals and the habitats in which they live. This interactive features zebras, seals, deer, dragonflies, ocelots and agoutis.
  • The View Through the Telescope: Images from NSF Observatories
    Fun Interactives
    Website
    Check out these fantastic images captured by astronomical observatories supported by the NSF. You can see and learn more about the observatory that made each picture.