Class members are introduced to probability using terms such as impossible, unlikely, likely, and certain. Numbers between zero and one are associated with the descriptions of probability. Pupils find the likelihood of chance experiments...

How might different authors approach the same topic? Scholars read a paragraph from an informational text about Canadian refugees using the resource. Next, they participate in a jigsaw activity to connect real-life refugees' experiences...

Are you looking for a shockingly good lesson? Check out one that has middle schoolers recreate four of Benjamin Franklin's experiments. Groups investigate, observe, and draw conclusions about static electricity and electrical current....

Students investigate solar energy and color. For this solar energy lesson, students assess the benefits of solar energy. Students discover that solar energy is attracted to darker colors and conduct an experiment using colored...

Didn't catch the last solar eclipse? Now every day can be eclipse day, thanks to an interactive lesson from PBS' Space series for middle schoolers! The well-rounded multi-media experience includes video clips, an interactive, and...

Do not let the class just sit and rot. Pupils learn how decomposition and nutrient recycling is important to an ecosystem. Groups design an experiment to determine how environmental conditions affect decomposition. They develop a poster...

The Buttonhook by Mary Jo Salter is the focus of a unit that explores the immigration experience to Ellis Island. First, scholars bring in an artifact that represents their heritage. A group-exercise allows them to share and discuss...

Disrespect can be as subtle as a frown or a turn of a head. To prepare for a study of Toi Derricote's poem "The Weakness" class members create wordless skits that demonstrate subtle or not so subtle signs of disrespect. After a...

Young scientists know it is hotter along the equator, but why is it also rainier? Through the process of completing two experiments and a worksheet, scholars discover the answer is the intertropical convergence zone. First, they...

More asthma attacks happen at higher altitudes, but why? Scholars complete worksheets, learning about homeostasis and feedback related to breathing. Then, they work in small groups to experiment with breathing in limited amounts of...

The electromagnetic spectrum includes everything from very powerful gamma rays (which are used to treat cancer) to much weaker radio waves (which include microwaves). Through a hands-on activity, scholars explore the temperature...

Excerpts from John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and from John Fante's Ask the Dust, as well as a variety of primary source documents provide the background for an examination of the migrant experience from 1920-1945.

Role-play and simulation exercises are fantastic ways to help learners understand the reality behind many social and historical events. Pretending they are colonists, upper graders choose a location, create a history, establish laws, and...

Why does some ink bleed through paper, and other ink doesn't? Practice some paper chromatography to separate the colors from a pen with an interactive experiment for middle and high schoolers. Learners use a variety of solutions to track...

Encourage your students' inner scientist by conducting experiments and recording their findings. This printable incorporates every part of the scientific method into an easy-to-read outline of experimental questions, research,...

Venus fly traps photosynthesize and consume insects because the soil they live in does not provide enough nutrients. Scholars analyze historical scientific experiments to learn how scientists discovered photosynthesis. From their...

Turn your classroom into a greenhouse with a lesson on plant growth. First, investigate the different parts of seeds, identifying the seed coat, cotyledon, and embryo. Then plant the seeds and watch them grow! Measure the new plants...

Plant growth experiments offer rich, cross-curricular learning opportunities that can really excite and engage young learners. In this series, children work in pairs planting, measuring, and comparing the height of bean plants in order...

How does poetry help people better understand societal issues? Pupils participate in a jigsaw activity to analyze poems from the novel Inside Out & Back Again. Next, they connect the poems to real-life refugee experiences from the...

Young scientists conduct a series of experiments to determine what type of soils produce the best results in roof-top gardens.

Consider the preponderance of evidence when making a verdict. The third of five lessons in Unit 1: The Big Climate Change Experiment focuses on the evidence for climate change. Learners study graphs, diagrams, and pictures regarding...

And now moving on to the next story. The last of five lessons in Unit 1: The Big Climate Change Experiment requires groups to create a script for a news segment on climate change. They either make a video of their story or conduct a live...

Young musicians experience song, dance, and play of the Jamaican culture. Scholars listen for and recreate beats, they play tunes, make up original dances, and play a game that challenges pupils to pass stones to a specific beat.

Turn a learning experience into a fun lesson. Future engineers create blades for a wind turbine using card stock. Using a fan, they test how well the blades help the wind turbine turn. The goal is to build blades that are effective...