The San Andreas Fault moves about two inches a year, approximately the same rate fingernails grow—crazy! The third lesson in the series allows for hands-on exploration of various fault formations. Through the use of a Popsicle stick,...

Support science instruction with a combination of engaging activities and skills-based worksheets that focus on clouds. Learners take part in grand discussions, write an acrostic poem, complete graphic organizers, solve word...

What is the relationship among the heart, circulation, and exercise? Your class members will explore first-hand how different physical exercises affect an individual's heart rate. They will begin by learning how to measure their own...

Your young learners will discover how muscular strength and endurance can increase with this truly hands-on activity! Beginning by writing an acrostic for the word strength, class members then engage in tracking their ability to squeeze...

Get your hands dirty with an interactive lesson that showcases the process of decomposing and returning nutrients back into the soil. After building a compost pile, pupils regularly observe the...

From 3-D cities to building bridges, young engineers engage in innovative STEM challenges that promote brainstorming and collaboration. Learners take on the roles of different types of engineers as well as become familiar...

You'll find everything but the kitchen sink here ... or just a carbon sink. In the activity, pairs or groups of middle school learners go outside and measure a tree's circumference and height to estimate its carbon storage potential and...

One hundred metric tons of CO2 can accumulate in one acre of forest over time—that's a lot of carbon! In the activity, groups of middle school learners determine what makes forests important. They then solidify the concept by using a...

In the second of five lessons about HIV, discover the mechanisms that allow the HIV virus to replicate. Using the models that they created the day before, learners examine the parts of the virus particle. The lesson plan does not say...

After working in groups to analyze primary sources related to a historical hoax, learners will discuss how people managed to be fooled and work to identify one of the biggest April Fools jokes in history.

Enhance your states of matter lessons with a hands-on science investigation that compares six different balls' color, texture, size, weight, ability to bounce, and buoyancy. 

What did the windmill say about renewable energy? I'm a BIG fan! Lesson three in the series of 12 has classes discuss potential and kinetic energy and then, in pairs, they complete a web quest over the different types of energy...

Learners discuss Sol LeWitt and conceptual art, then analyze the differences in expressing a concept through model-based inquiry and aesthetic art criticism. They develop a geometric, scientific, or mathematical concept, then create an...

Students are introduced to the lesson plan by showing them leaves from common deciduous trees, such as oak, tulip, hickory, and maple. They describe the different parts of a leaf. Students are asked the following questions: How are the...

Learners determine how animals and people adapt to the desert environment. In this desert instructional activity, students review vocabulary about the desert and how humans have to make changes to accommodate their environments. They...

Having money is great, learning to manage it wisely is imperative. First, the class has a discussion on the value and convenience of having a checking account. Then, they practice filling out deposit slips, keeping an account register,...

Students comprehend how Landsat satellites orbit teh Earth to produce images. They comprehend the elliptical path of satellites. Students recognize that a different orbital path is needed for different satellites to perform their tasks....

Assertive communication is an acquired skill. Teaching young people to ask for what they need and to believe that they have a right to ask is at the core of a unit on assertive communication. Over the course of the unit, middle and high...

Students are introduced to the various organisms that live in a salt marsh. They recognize adaptations of organisms that live in the salt marsh. Pupils review concepts of the ecosystem and niche. Students explain the different roles...

Students explore the five senses. In this senses lesson, students use their senses to top their ice cream. Students compare and contrast the different toppings and write their observations, using descriptive words, in a notebook.

Students examine groundwater and its relationship to springs, artesian wells, ordinary wells, and sinkholes. They describe the process by which sinkholes are formed. They investigate saltwater contamination and its causes.

How do young people know the potential they possess? Middle schoolers explore their personal potential through two different activities and a class discussion. They examine where their aptitudes lie, and how they can use their gifts to...

Students keep travel record over time, analyze data collected and use the information to identify ways in which they can change their behavior to benefit their health and the environment.

Fourth graders explore endangered species and extinction. They discuss and write three reasons why it is important to save animals from becoming endangered or extinct. They discuss The Great Kapok Tree and write a letter discussing...