1. Put some ice and cold water in a plastic cup. As long as there is ice present and the system is well-stirred, the temperature of the water will be 0 C (check this, if you haven't done this experiment lately).

2. While you are holding the cup and stirring it, you hand will get cold. Which way is energy moving?

3. Some people think the ice will melt less rapidly if the cup is wrapped with aluminum foil. Try it! Is your hand less cold?

4. You have lots of experience carrying icy liquids in containers. What characteristics are shared by the ones that don't make your hand cold?

5. Hold a coin so that you are only touching part of it, for 20 or 30 seconds. Then lay it on the table and place the thermal sensing sheet on top of it. How different is the temperature of the different parts of the coin, where you were touching it and where not? Compare this to the behavior of a button or a small square of cardboard.

6. Check that one of your pieces of thermal sensing sheet has a color somewhere between tan and blue-green at room temperature. If not, find a room for which this is true, or bump the thermostat. Choose some items that you expect to feel cool -- the file cabinet, a metal ruler, a glass jar, ... -- and some that you would not expect to feel cool -- a newspaper, a towel, ... . Leave the items undisturbed in the room for a few hours. Meanwhile, go on to the first activity.

Check the box when you are done:  

First activity: How long does your drink stay hot?