In this Solar System Investigate, students will determine ways to order the planets. Teacher directed inquiry will suggest that they first order the planets according to their distance from the sun. Students will then work on their own...

Through GEOLogic puzzles, students are given clues about properties about the terrestrial and Jovian planets respectively, and challenged to match the planet with the correct equatorial radius, mean orbital velocity, and period of rotation.

Classroom lesson for teaching astronomy uses PowerPoint presentations and illustrations of Kepler's light curves used to discover planets.

This is a student led activity in which students have to accomplish the task of choosing the most entertaining way to relay written expository information. Art/self expression along with technology are utilized to develop a classroom...

Students will study planets and moons in our solar system by working online and other resources. This lesson has students working together to generate a spreadsheet of data found. Students will use this information to describe why Earth...

This resource contains a lesson plan in which students study the effects of gravity on the planets of the Solar System. They will view movies from the lunar Apollo missions, calculate their own weight on other planets, and propose what...

The purpose of this lesson is to introduce young scholars to the planet Mars. This lesson will begin by discussing the location and size of Mars relative to Earth, as well as introduce many interesting facts about this red planet. Next,...

A series of lesson plans designed to be used with the Smithsonian Ocean Planet exhibit (available online). Lesson topics include marine ecosystems, pollution of ocean water, animal strandings, and literature.

An outdoor activity where students simulate how planets orbit around the sun using different sizes of balloons.

In this science instructional activity young scholars will work collaboratively to learn and introduce the eight planets, sizes, characteristics, and their order. They will use size comparisons, research a planet, design a poster and...

Students explore the outermost planets of our solar system: Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. They also learn about characteristics of Pluto and its interactions with Neptune. Students learn a little about the history of space travel as well...

Students will compare an informational text versus a narrative text about Earth Day. Included in this lesson plan are videos and pictures of the lesson plan in action, a printable Earth Day Venn Diagram, and a recycling activity.

Precipitation affects many aspects of our lives, from drinking water and food to devastating rain or snow storms. NASA gathered information from satellites to study factors that influence precipitation. View these narrated and unnarrated...

Students use iron filings to explore the magnetic field around a magnet and record their observations then apply their experience with the magnet to understand the magnetic field around Earth.

Smithsonian Institution presents ?Ocean Planet: Interdisciplinary Marine Science Activities?. Through this series of six interdisciplinary lessons, students will look at such things as the organisms in different marine ecosystems, the...

Download free curriculum with three modules on soil and plant science: elementary, middle, or high school. Each module includes hands-on investigations to help learners understand the importance of healthy soil and thriving plant...

A large collection of links to rubrics, and tools for making rubrics and understanding how to design and use them.

In this lesson, learn about the features of postcards. Then they design their own postcard making the visual part (by hand or computer) fit the message being sent. They then address and mail their card (with the help of the teacher).

Second graders should be able to recognize what makes one number greater or smaller than another, using place value understanding which is crucial to Common Core mastery. This lesson combines math and science by having students order...

Second graders learn about the water cycle and the role of water in nature. Through various descriptions of water's journey throughout the world and the lives that depend on it for survival, 2nd graders come to appreciate the importance...

The purpose of this lesson plan is to teach students about how a spacecraft gets from the surface of the Earth to Mars. The lesson plan first investigates rockets and how they are able to get us into space. Finally, the nature of an...

Students learn about the distance and relative size of the rest of the planets compared to the Earth and Sun. The lesson plan includes an assessment and extension activities.

In this lesson plan investigation students learn about the shapes of the planetary orbits by experimenting with ellipses of different proportions.

Students compare various options for purchasing new home appliances by comparing the energy usage of more efficient models to less energy efficient models. They calculate the payback period in cases for which the purchase price for the...