Middle schoolers design, build, and test the specifications (water displacement and load line) for a model boat. The lesson focuses especially on integrating design principles with inquiry-based experimental skills.

Sixth graders develop an understanding of floating, sinking, density, and buoyancy and apply it to the design of testing of ships.

Junior archaeologists will be able to describe shipwreck artifacts and the information they reveal. They work in small groups to reasearch wreckage features of different period ships, making this not only a science lesson, but a social...

The Clotilde was the last known ship to bring slaves from Africa to the United States - good riddance! Dive into the details of the ship, its cargo, origin, and route, and learn about the future of the Africans on board...

Fifth graders create multi-media newscasts based on their knowledge of Civil War battles of the ironclad ships.

Young scholars discuss the travel of ancient sailors and the use of ships. They complete a Venn diagram, and compare and contrasts the two points of view on ancient ship travel.

Students identify the functions of four different ship designs, both historical and contemporary. They study their photographs and answering questions about their uses. Students discuss the different designs of the four ships and explain...

Seventh graders view Edward Burtynsky's artwork that represents ship breaking. They view images of recycling, the water cycle, rusted metal, and ships to determine factors that threaten the existence of a particular habitat of an...

Students, after listening to a selection of Gulliver's Travels, complete a worksheet about basic terms associated with boats, ships, and sailing. They create flag after researching semaphore flagging systems.

Students discover boats by researching 18th century ships.  In this Naval history lesson, students identify and describe the different components of an 18th century naval ship after researching information on the Internet....

Students read the short story "The Most Dangerous Game," and create maps of Ship Trap Island and justify why items are placed on their map in certain locations.

What caused the collapse of the environment on Rapa Nui (Easter Island)? Who constructed the Moai? What was their purpose? Class members assume the role of investigators and use evidence drawn from field studies, ships' logs, and...

Students research cruise ships and their different destinations. They conduct research on how cruise ships are built and operated, then using a variety of craft materials design and create a ship and destination for their ship. Students...

Students research the importance of naval development in history. The unit includes hands-on activities such as the creation of timelines, powerpoints, and use webquests. Students examine famous ships and naval leaders.

Seventh graders investigate the slave trade. In this Middle Passage activity, 7th graders read excerpts of ship logs from Connecticut Slave Trade ships. Students respond to the provided analysis questions based on the logs. 

Students evaluate the ship of state metaphor in relation to the historical events in America from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War. They synthesize ideas presented in ten different primary source documents and compose an essay...

Students explore American values. In this American history lesson, students read passages from Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea. Students collaborate to conduct research in order to build a timeline of the events surrounding the sinking...

Students explore the history of clipper ships and about the historical time frame surrounding the origin of clipper ships. They read historical accounts of voyages and write letters describing the conditions of Mary Patten's voyage.

In two groups, students research the history and current building of clipper ships. In this inquiry lesson, students present information and compare and contrast the technological revolution with the development of clipper ships....

Students investigate the trip Christopher Columbus took to the new world.  In this U.S. History lesson, students create a fictional ship from cardboard and construction paper simulating the ship Columbus used to get to the New...

Fifth graders explore slavery conditions by viewing a video clip on the Internet. For this slave ship lesson, 5th graders discuss the transportation of black men and women from Africa to the United States in the 1700's and how poor the...

Students listen to a lecture on the geography of sub-Sahara Africa. They then make a poster that illustrates the various landforms and climates that can be found in Africa. Students listen to a lecture on the diversity of African...

Students locate Wisconsin and Belgium on a world map, then read a news article about a cat that stowed away on ship from the U.S. to Europe. In this current events activity, the teacher introduces the article with map and vocabulary...

When we think of ocean exploration, many of us have visions of sunken pirate ships full of treasure or mysterious creatures of the deep. What really motivates deep-sea investigation? The first in a series of diverse six-part lessons...