1st Grade Virtual Lessons with

Educational Programs Staff

Our educational program staff are former teachers that have designed virtual lesson plans for your classroom.

To schedule a virtual lesson with our educational program staff for your class or grade level, click here.

To schedule a virtual field trip with the Old Santee Canal Park Staff, click here.


Simple Science Experiments with Materials You Have at Home

Lava Lamps

  • Description: Our educational program staff will lead your class through an experiment with a lava lamp. Each student will make a lava lamp with the materials they have at home. After making the lava lamp, the staff will take the students through an experiment with the lava lamp that aligns with your grade level standards.

  • Duration: 20-45 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • Materials needed:

      • Vegetable Oil (or other oil)

      • Water

      • Food Coloring

      • Original Alka Seltzer Tablets (or vinegar and baking soda)

      • A clear container with a lid (like a water bottle)

  • SC Education Standard:

      • 1st Grade:

        • 1.P.2A. Objects can only be seen when light shines on them. Some materials allow light to pass through them; others allow only some light to pass through; and some do not allow any light to pass through and will create a shadow of the object. Technology such as mirrors can change the direction of a beam of light.

Moon Sand

  • Description: Our educational program staff will lead your class through an experiment with moon sand. Each student will make moon sand with the materials they have at home. After making moon sand, the staff will take the students through an experiment with the moon sand that aligns with your grade level standards.

  • Duration: 20-45 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • Materials needed:

      • 1 cups all-purpose flour (not gluten free)

      • 1/8 cup baby oil or another oil that you'd prefer

      • A Ziploc gallon bag

  • SC Education Standard:

      • 1st Grade:

        • 1.E.4B.1 Obtain and communicate information to summarize how natural resources are used in different ways (such as soil and water to grow plants; rocks to make roads, walls, or buildings; or sand to make glass).

Static Electricity Balloons

  • Description: Our educational program staff will lead your class through a grade level appropriate discussion on electricity and being safe around electricity. Student will make a model to show how static electricity works to understand the need to be safe around electricity in their home, school and neighborhood.

  • Duration: 20-45 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • Materials needed:

      • Tissue paper or tissues or toilet paper or a paper towel

      • A balloon

      • A pen or a marker

      • Scissors (kid friendly if you have them)

      • Tape

      • Piece of paper

  • SC Education Standard:

      • 1st Grade:

        • 1.S.1A. The practices of science and engineering support the development of science concepts, develop the habits of mind that are necessary for scientific thinking, and allow students to engage in science in ways that are similar to those used by scientists and engineers.

Water Filter

  • Description: Our educational program staff will lead your class through a grade level appropriate discussion on water quality, how water is delivered to their home and the water cycle. Then students will make a water filter and experiment with materials to determine which items are better for filtration.

  • Duration: 30-60 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • Materials needed:

      • A plastic bottle, empty and clean (may be a two liter or smaller)

      • Utility knife or scissors (make sure a parent comes to the video to help you our with this part)

      • Dirty water (make your own with stuff like coffee grounds, dirt, crunched-up old leaves, cooking oil, or tiny pieces of foam)

      • Measuring cup

      • Spoon

      • Pencil and paper

      • Any of the following filter materials as you can get: activated charcoal (available in the fish section at a pet store), gravel, rocks, pebbles, sand (coarse and / or fine), cotton balls

      • Coffee filter (A bandanna, old sock, napkin, or paper towel works too!)

  • SC Education Standard:

      • 1st Grade:

        • 1.S.1: The student will use the science and engineering practices, including the processes and skills of scientific inquiry, to develop understandings of science content.

        • 1.E.4A.1 Analyze and interpret data from observations and measurements to compare the properties of Earth materials (including rocks, soils, sand, and water).

        • 1.E.4B.1 Obtain and communicate information to summarize how natural resources are used in different ways (such as soil and water to grow plants; rocks to make roads, walls, or buildings; or sand to make glass).


Solar Oven

  • Description: Our educational program staff will lead your class through a grade level appropriate discussion on the sun, heat transfer, energy sources and how electricity is produced. Then students will make a solar oven and experiment with the solar oven to determine best placement and time of day to harness the energy from the sun.

  • Duration: 30-60 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • Materials needed:

      • Shoe box with lid (or some kind of box)

      • Scissors

      • Roll of aluminum foil

      • Thick clear plastic sheet, plastic wrap or freezer zip lock bag

      • Clear tape

      • Thin wire, stick or pencil

  • SC Education Standard:

      • 1st Grade

        • 1.S.1: The student will use the science and engineering practices, including the processes and skills of scientific inquiry, to develop understandings of science content.

        • 1.S.1B.1 Construct devices or design solutions to solve specific problems or needs: (1) ask questions to identify problems or needs, (2) ask questions about the criteria and constraints of the devices or solutions, (3) generate and communicate ideas for possible devices or solutions, (4) build and test devices or solutions, (5) determine if the devices or solutions solved the problem, and (6) communicate the results.

        • 1.E.3A.1 Use, analyze, and interpret data from observations to describe and predict seasonal patterns of sunrise and sunset

Electrical Safety in Your Neighborhood

  • This is an electrical hazard demonstration for kindergarten, first and second grade students where we will use santeecooperkids.com to discuss electrical hazards that students may see in daily life.

  • Duration: 20-45 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • SC Education Standard:

    • 1st Grade

      • 1.S.1A.4 Analyze and interpret data from observations, measurements, or investigations to understand patterns and meanings.

      • 1.E.4B.1 Obtain and communicate information to summarize how natural resources are used in different ways (such as soil and water to grow plants; rocks to make roads, walls, or buildings; or sand to make glass). 1.E.4B.2 Obtain and communicate information to explain ways natural resources can be conserved (such as reducing trash through reuse, recycling, or replanting trees).


Who Came Down That Road

  • This environmental presentation will take students in grades five through eight on a historical walk through South Carolina's past. They will learn how Santee Cooper brought electrical power to the rural areas of South Carolina and played a major role in revitalizing a dying region.

  • Duration: 20-45 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • SC Education Standard:

    • 1st Grade

      • 1.E.3 Research and describe how goods and services differ in rural, suburban, and urban areas in South Carolina.

      • 1.H.1 Identify similarities and differences between one’s community and other South Carolina communities over time

Community Helpers

  • Take an inside look at what it is like to be a line technician for an electric company.

  • Duration: 20-30 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • SC Education Standard:

    • 1st Grade

      • 1.E.3 Research and describe how goods and services differ in rural, suburban, and urban areas in South Carolina.


Careers in the Electric Industry

  • Spend time with our educational programs staff as they discuss the many career opportunities at an electric utility.

  • There is also an option to have a virtual job shadowing with and employee:

      • Marketing

      • Line Technicians

      • Mechanics

      • Information Technology (Computer Science)

      • Human Resources

      • Legal (Lawyers and Paralegals)

      • Engineering

      • Accounting

      • Biologist

      • Park Management

      • Medical

      • Equipment Operating

      • Training

  • Duration: 45-60 minutes depending on the grade level and depth

  • SC Education Standard:

      • XXXX