Check out climate anomalies just like NASA climatologists! Investigators use a GISTEMP map from NASA to analyze one month of climate anomalies. Scientists look for data extremes and generate possible explanations for observable patterns. 

What does a beautiful sunset have to do with the atmosphere? An inquiry-based lesson has learners make observations about the visibility and color of the sky during different time periods. They then relate their observations to...

Sundials are more than just primitive clocks. Learners build their own sundials to study the location of the sun across the sky throughout the day. They use shadow evidence related to their sundials to make conclusions about solar movement.

Learners investigate the challenges of space communication with a kinesthetic modeling activity. Group members In space must communicate one word to other members on Earth while overcoming barriers such as distance, gravity, and physical...

Can you hear it now? Young scientists experiment with sound waves using metal objects and string. They strike metal objects while they hold them and as the objects hang from a string to compare the sound. They discover that sound travels...

A Reading Adventure Pack focuses on rocks. Scholars take part in three activities after reading a fiction and nonfiction text—The Jade Stone, a Chinese folktale adapted by Caryn Yacowitz, and Rocks in His Head by Carol Otis Hurst. First,...

Here's the perfect lesson for those who think the world needs faster pumps. Building on the previous activity, scholars work to make the pumps function faster in transferring water between containers. They try adding an additional solar...

Where does the money go? Learners take a look at the logo for the World Wildlife Fund and discuss characteristics of the panda in the logo. Scholars learn that cute, fuzzy endangered animals often receive the most donations. They keep...

Go green! Scholars compare pictures of two classrooms. They discuss how one classroom is more environmentally conservative than the other, and then make a list of ways they can make their own classrooms greener.

Solar art inspires! Scholars study planetary geology with an artistic analysis. Pupils view a PowerPoint presentation on the solar system and space exploration and then try their hand at planetary image analysis using art techniques. 

Launch a great lesson exploring engineering design. Using a template, young scholars create rockets that can be launched from a straw. After analyzing the function of the rocket, pupils try to modify the rocket to enhance its function.

Don't leave your classes in the dark! An inquiry-based lesson has young researchers analyze the light intensity before, during, and after a solar eclipse. They use their data to make inferences about the solar energy available during...

Since you can't go to the comet, bring the comet to you. Young scientists build models of comets using everyday materials and then participate in a simulation of the interaction between the comet and other bodies in the solar system....

Things can always be made better. The culminating installment in the seven-part Understanding Science and Engineering unit has pupils design their own water pumps. In groups, they build a prototype of a design of their choice, then test...

Get pumped about an activity with water pumps. The fifth of seven installments in the Understanding Science and Engineering unit has pupils learn how to make observations, record data, and create data displays. Each group measures the...

Heat up a lesson on solar energy by building a circuit for a cooling fan. Given a solar module and a DC motor, scholars develop hypotheses for how to make the fan turn. They test out their hypotheses, and then draw a circuit diagram to...