Lesson 3: Measuring Temperature

How Hot?

Introduction

Hello scientists!  Today, you will learn more about measuring temperature using thermometers.  Take a look at this video, where a young scientist creates her very own thermometer!  You can even try this experiment at home.

What happened to the liquid in the girl’s thermometer when it heated up?  What happens when the liquid cools down?

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Visual

Take a look at this liquid tube thermometer.  It works just like the homemade thermometer from the video.  As the liquid absorbs heat energy, the liquid expands, and it moves up the tube.  As it cools down again, it contracts and moves down the tube. 

What is different about this thermometer and the thermometer that the girl made?

Yes!  It has numbers marked off on a scale.  These numbers help scientists to assign a number value to different temperatures, so they can collect similar data.

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Assignment

Use the interactive below to learn more about using thermometers to measure temperature.

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Video Source Links to an external site.