2nd Grade Virtual Lessons with

Educational Programs Staff

Our educational programs 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:

      • 2nd Grade:

        • 2.P.3A. Solids and liquids are two forms of matter that have distinct observable properties. Some matter can be mixed together and then separated again. Solids and liquids can be changed from one form to another when heat is added or removed

        • 2.P.3A.1 Analyze and interpret data from observations and measurements to describe the properties used to classify matter as a solid or a liquid.

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:

      • 2nd Grade:

        • 2.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.

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:

      • 2nd Grade:

        • 2.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.

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:

      • 2nd Grade:

        • 2.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.


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:

      • Kindergarten

        • K.P.4A.2 Develop and use models to describe and compare the properties of different materials (including wood, plastic, metal, cloth, and paper) and classify materials by their observable properties, by their uses, and by whether they are natural or human-made.

      • 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

      • 2nd Grade

        • 2.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.

        • 2.E.2A.1 Analyze and interpret data from observations and measurements to describe local weather conditions (including temperature, wind, and forms of precipitation).

        • 2.P.3A.3 Conduct structured investigations to test how adding or removing heat can cause changes in solids and liquids.

      • 3rd Grade

        • 3.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.

        • 3.P.2A.5 Define problems related to heat transfer and design devices or solutions that facilitate (conductor) or inhibit (insulator) the transfer of heat.

      • 4th Grade:

        • 4.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.

        • 4.E.3B.3 Construct explanations of how the Sun appears to move throughout the day using observations of shadows.

      • 5th Grade:

        • 5.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.

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:

    • Kindergarten

      • K.P.4A.1 Analyze and interpret data to compare the qualitative properties of objects (such as size, shape, color, texture, weight, flexibility, attraction to magnets, or ability to sink or float) and classify objects based on similar properties.

      • K.P.4A.2 Develop and use models to describe and compare the properties of different materials (including wood, plastic, metal, cloth, and paper) and classify materials by their observable properties, by their uses, and by whether they are natural or human-made.

      • K.P.4A.3 Conduct structured investigations to answer questions about which materials have the properties that are best suited to solve a problem or need.

    • 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).

    • 2nd Grade

      • 2.P.4A.1 Analyze and interpret data from observations and measurements to compare the effects of different strengths and directions of pushing and pulling on the motion of an object.


Don't be a Pathway for Electricity

  • This program discusses how electricity is generated, conductors and insulators, simple circuits, and the hazards of electricity.

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

  • SC Education Standard:

    • 3rd Grade

      • 3.P.2A.4 Obtain and communicate information to compare how different processes (including burning, friction, and electricity) serve as sources of heat energy

      • 3.P.3A.2 Develop and use models to describe the path of an electric current in a complete simple circuit as it accomplishes a task (such as lighting a bulb or making a sound).

      • 3.P.3A.3 Analyze and interpret data from observations and investigations to classify different materials as either an insulator or conductor of electricity.

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

    • 2nd Grade

      • 2.H.1 Identify and compare significant historical events, moments, and symbols in U.S. history.

      • 2.H.3 Analyze patterns of continuities and changes within U.S. history through the use of a variety of sources, including graphic organizers, maps, oral histories, photographs/images, texts, and timelines

    • 3rd Grade

      • 3.5.3.HS Investigate and explain the economic, social, political, and environmental motivations behind human migration and how places can change as a result.

    • 5th Grade

      • 5.2.CC Examine the continuities and changes that resulted from New Deal programs and the impact these programs had on various groups throughout the U. S. and South Carolina.

    • 8th Grade

      • 8.5.CO Compare South Carolina and U.S. wartime contributions and demobilization after World War II.

      • 8.5.P Analyze the transformation of South Carolina’s economy from the Great Depression to its current economic diversification.

Energy Conservation

  • This program discusses how electricity is generated, conductors and insulators, simple circuits, and the hazards of electricity.

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

  • SC Education Standard:

    • 3rd Grade

      • 3.P.3A.1 Obtain and communicate information to develop models showing how electrical energy can be transformed into other forms of energy (including motion, sound, heat, or light).

      • 3.E.4B.4 Define problems caused by a natural event or human activity and design devices or solutions to reduce the impact on the environment.

    • 5th Grade

      • 5.E.3B.3 Construct scientific arguments to support claims that human activities (such as conservation efforts or pollution) affect the land and oceans of Earth.

      • 5.E.3B.4 Define problems caused by natural processes or human activities and test possible solutions to reduce the impact on landforms and the ocean shore zone.

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:

    • Kindergarten

      • K.E.3 Explain why people have jobs, and describe the economic benefits for self and community.

    • 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