Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Treaty Trail: Examining an Artist's Perspective

For Teachers K - 5th
Elementary school leanrners examine artwork from the time period of the United States and Native American treaties. They discuss the causes and effects of the treaties being signed. They also examine how cultural perspective influences art.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science: Lead Shot and Waterfowl

For Teachers 8th - 9th
Students examine data to investigate the impact of lead shot pellets on waterfowl populations. They graph their findings and discover how lead in ingested by birds and poisons them. As an extension, students research legislation and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Scientific Method, Blood Typing, and Antibiotic Resistance

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students are given some components of an experiment, where they are able to identify and fill in missing parts, such as hypothesis, conclusion, results, etc. They form a hypothesis given general scientific facts. Students apply the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Effects of Pollution!

For Teachers 3rd
Learners examine pollution and how it affects the environment. They discuss how human activities lead to more pollution. They talk about the importance of recycling. There is a skit, resource links, and activities provided to make this a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Sign of the Beaver

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders read the book "The Sign of the Beaver". As a class, they identify the problems in the story and predicting what they think is going to happen next. Individually, they examine the cause and effect relationships and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

War of 1812

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders locate the major land forms and bodies of water on a map of Louisiana. In groups, they discuss the role of the Mississippi River in the Battle of New Orleans and how land and water affect the outcome of battles. To end...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Changing Planet: Ocean Acidification - the Chemistry is Less than Basic!

For Teachers 7th - 10th
A video and laboratory investigation are highlights to this lesson on acidification of ocean water due to increased atmospheric carbon dioxide. Using bromothymol blue (BTB) as an indicator, pupils analyze the amount of carbon dioxide...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Explore the Effects of Immigration

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the effects of immigration on the immigrants and on society as a whole. They will record the experiences of specific immigrant groups using an E-sheet. Groups present a summary of what they learned about their ethnic...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Floods: Rising Waters and You

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers will examine how floods work and why they can cause so much damage and destruction. They use a stream table to observe the processes that lead to flooding and the effects of floods on human-made structures. Includes a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Glaciers and Global Sea Rise

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students explain how melting glaciers affect global warming. In this earth science lesson, students investigate the change in ice density as it melts. They discuss the human and environmental impact of rising sea levels.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Plate Tectonics: Movin' and Shakin'

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students are introduced to the causes of plate movements and the hazards they present. They plot the location of 50 earthquakes and 50 volcanic eruptions on a map and explore the relationships between plate tectonics, earthquakes, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Global Warming and Climate Change

For Teachers K - 9th
Learners explore the environment by writing a persuasive letter. In this global warming lesson, students identify the key problems with our energy consumption in the United States. Learners complete worksheets and write a letter...
Lesson Plan
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Beyond Benign

Breaking the Tension

For Students 6th - 8th
The tension builds as learners experiment in your classroom. The 17th installment in a 24-part series has scholars investigate the concept of surface tension. After discovering characteristics of surface tension, they add a compound...
Lesson Plan
Friends of Fort McHenry

Political Cartoons from the War of 1812

For Teachers 8th Standards
Long before the advent of Facebook and television, political cartoons were a primary mechanism for influencing public opinion. Support your learners through a thorough analysis process and explore how these cartoons had a profound effect...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Toxicants and California Blackworms

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students determine the normal behavior of California blackworms. They determine how various concentrations of assigned toxicants affect the worm's behavior. Students are introduced to testing of potential toxicants, an important...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Changing Planet: Rising Ocean Temperatures - Rising Sea Levels

For Teachers 5th - 9th
As an anticipatory set, young environmental technicians watch a video about how ocean temperatures seem to be changing along with the global climate. They perform a laboratory demonstration with the purpose of observing what happens to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Overpopulation

For Teachers 5th - 11th
Students examine population growth and how it impacts our environment.  In this population lesson students identify the causes and consequences of overpopulation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The New Madrid Earthquakes of 1811-1812: Shaking Our Misconceptions about Earthquakes in United States History

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students Examine how earthquakes work and what plate tectonics and fault lines are.  In this earthquake instructional activity students complete an earthquake scavenger hunt.
Lesson Plan
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Smithsonian Institution

Cuban Missile Crisis

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
The United States—specifically John F. Kennedy—played a large role during the Cuban Missile Crisis. A history resource poses questions that encourage critical thinking as well as in-depth analysis of images from the time period.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Air Quality Issues

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Learners identify the different layers of the atmosphere. They examine the different types of air pollutants. They also discover laws in effect that work to protect the environment.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Flowering Phenology: How Do Plants Know When To Flower?

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students explore the biotic and abiotic factors that affect plant reproduction and the potential consequences of human activities on plant populations. The effects of urbanization are discussed as an influence in the consequences.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Living on a Cotton Farm: Mexican Americans Life In Texas

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders are introduced to the processes of cotton farming in the early 20th century. In groups, they examine the role of Mexican Americans on the farms and the impact of a boom and bust economy on cotton. They identify the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Digging Deeper: Mission San Saba

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders review their prior knowledge on the Spanish mission system in Texas. Using the internet, they examine the motives of the Spanish to establish missions in Texas, specifically the Mission San Saba. They research the reasons...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Trekking to Timbuktu: The Search for Timbuktu

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students explore the factors that contributed to the decline of Timbuktu and the myths and misconceptions about the city. Students study the obstacles that made a journey to Timbuktu a difficult one as well as discover the first European...