A pinch of adenine, a dash of thymine and ta-da, you have life! Well, it's not quite that simple, but through this series of activities and experiments young scientists learn about the structure of DNA and how it contains the recipe...

For as small as they are, plankton sure play an enormous role in maintaining marine ecosystems. Dive into an investigation of these tiny organisms with a hands-on life science activity in which children cut out pictures of sea...

Breath new life into your class's study of dinosaurs with this extensive collection of materials. Offering everything from a printable T-rex mask, word searches, and connect-the-dots activities to informational handouts, hands-on...

You will find a viewer-friendly PowerPoint on the growth rings and other features found in a cross-section of a tree trunk, affectionately known as a "tree cookie." A few worksheets are provided for practice counting tree rings and a...

Roll up your sleeves and get a little dirty with this elementary and middle school compost lesson. All you need is a large plastic container, a couple old newspapers, some organic waste, and a few hundred worms and you're ready...

Blow the minds of young scientists with this collection of inquiry-based investigations. Based on a series of eight videos, these "hands-on, minds-on" science lessons engage young learners in exploring a wide range of topics...

Life comes in all different shapes and sizes, and fish are no exception. Here, young scientists create fish prints as they learn how specific characteristics allow different species to survive in their particular habitats.

Energy comes in many forms, but how do living things get the energy they need to survive and thrive? In a simple, controlled experiment with yeast, water, and sugar, groups make observations about how yeast reacts with water alone, then...

A great way to incorporate math into life science, this instructional activity has learners measure migratory routes on a map and calculate the actual distance that shorebirds on the routes would cover. Learners compute the distance...

Using the prairie dog community as an example, middle school ecologists examine the food web. Pairs of learners take one species in the community and research its role in the ecosystem. They share their findings with the rest of the...

Some interesting reading on the history of barcodes opens this technology lesson plan. Readers find out how engineers contribute, and then they gather into groups to discuss possible improvements to our current UPC barcode system. Know...

For this complex game about the carbon cycle, the playing field is divided into air, living, and earth zones. Children are assigned to be either plants or animals, and collect carbon tokens as they proceed from zone to zone. While the...

Students discover that science is part of everyday life. For this science lesson, students create a science collage, draw a scientist, and write about science in the news.

What better way to learn about ecosystems than by getting outside and observing them first hand? Accompanying a field trip to a local park or outdoor space, this series of collaborative activities engages children in...

Students discover cells make up all living things. For this life science lesson, students investigate living organisms and the cells that create them. Finally the students create a testable question, conduct an investigation, and draw...

At a glance, this cut-out paper model of a nautiloid looks promising. Know, however, that it requires manual dexterity for cutting out neatly and for folding and attaching the tabs. This particular mollusk model is quite difficult to...

Beginning botanists are introduced to the world of plants with this PowerPoint. Some of the information is most appropriate for primary learners, such as the needs of a plant. Some of the information, however, is more directed at...

Students research and identify ocean animals characteristics and life styles using the Internet and books. They create a PowerPoint presentation and an iMovie to present to the class.

Students investigate the characteristics of living things. In this life science lesson, students examine several living and non-living specimens. Students determine which things are living and non-living.

Energize an environmental science unit on natural resources with this collection of instructional materials. From simple coloring sheets for primary grade children, to guiding questions for a high school research...

Students explain how the earth makes fossils and how dinosaur remains become fossils. In this Bringing Dinosaurs Back to Life instructional activity, students solve paleo-puzzles which ask students to solve problems as if they were...

Fourth graders examine a variety of cycles. They take a look at life cycles of plants and animals, the cycle of the moon and tides, and other sequences of events in their daily lives. An interesting part of the lesson is how kids keep...

Students evaluate their differences, then look at differences in plants. In this class team building and life science lesson, the class play a game that focuses on similarities and differences in the group, then students plant three...