Give your pupils a front row seat at the biggest light show in the sky this year! In addition to admiring the total solar eclipse, young astronomers can explain the phenomenon with a little help from an inquiry-based lesson. The focus of...

NASA has crafted an imaginative and memorable series of lessons, "NASA and Jamestown Education Module." This lesson is one of the five components. In it, middle schoolers connect history and science by comparing the settlement of...

Third graders draw what they believe is in space on a dry erase board. In groups, they are given a beaker half filled with water and they add a teaspoon of oil, observing the different layers that form. To end the lesson, they identify...

Students develop a timeline of all the major events involved in the formation of the Earth and the emergence of humans. In groups, they focus on a specific topic by watching a PBS program and taking notes. After the video, they list...

Learners explore the possibility of an asteroid hitting planet earth. In this planetary lesson students complete a lab activity to see the effects of an asteroid hitting earth and compare different craters.

Students study the physical properties of the Moon.  In this life on the moon lesson students describe the ways life on the Moon would be different than on Earth. 

Students investigate the Earth and the Moon. They select activities from a menu of options including viewing videos, drawing magnetic fields and plate tectonics, creating vocabulary flashcards, observing the phases of the moon over a...

Students demonstrate size and orbits of Earth, Moon, and Mars. In this space science lesson plan, students will use balloons to show how the size and distance between the planets and satellite compare.

Learners investigate craters and marea. In this crater and marea lesson, students conduct an experiment to create craters. Learners participate in a dance activity.

Students calculate the strength of gravitational force exerted on the moon by the sun and earth. In this orbital lesson students view a demonstration to see the gravitational forces between bodies.

Students compare Saturn's moons to the Earth's moon.  In this moon lesson students work in groups and complete a lab activity then answer questions. 

Learners compare and contrast the characteristics of Earth and Saturn. They practice writing analogies using those characteristics. They complete a worksheet to end the lesson.

Students create a model of the phases of the Moon by giving students pictures of the phases of the Moon, a picture of the Earth, and a picture of the Sun. They then take a picture, and stand in correct place to make the phases of the...

Third graders develop questions they have about the solar system. After being read a book, they view and discuss different constellations in the sky. In groups, they are given a piece of butcher paper and glow in the dark crayons in...

Students study what regolith is and how it contrasts with weathering on Earth.  In this weathering lesson plan students divide into groups, hypothesize and confirm their guesses. 

Students design and build an ideal lunar settlement. In this astronomy lesson plan, students identify the key features of the moon. They compare its environmental condition with the Earth's.

Space scientists use water displacement to determine the mass of a cubic centimeter mini meteorite, and then use it as a small-scale representative of an asteroid. They figure out the orbital velocity of an asteroid. Then they use a...

Students identify the different biogeochemical cycles on Earth. In this biology lesson, students observe microbes under a microscope. They compare and contrast respiration and photosynthesis.

Students discover soil characteristics and how it is formed on Earth and the Moon by examining local samples to a lunar simulant. They replicate the effects of wind erosion by scraping dry bread with sandpaper. Students use rocks and...

Students learn along with Ms. Frizzle's class. In this Magic School Bus lesson plan, students explore craters that objects of different sizes and weights (marbles, Ping-Pong balls, and aluminum foil balls) create.

Fifth graders practice interpreting line graphs of the Hudson River water levels to assess the tides and tidal cycles in the estuary. They explore how weather can affect water levels and tides and observe that high tides and low tides...

Students compare the properties of rocks and relate these properties to their use. They perform a virtual experiment to describe and group rocks on the basis of their characteristics.

Sixth graders conduct an experiment to understand the Big Bang Theory.  For this Big Bang Theory lesson, 6th graders will observe a balloon with confetti popping to emulate and analyze information related tot he Big Bang theory....

Students explore parts of an impact crater and compare and contrast craters found in Earth, the Moon, and Mars. Crater formation is modelled and the relationship of mass, velocity, and size of the projectile to the crater formation is...