Lights, shadows, action, and inquiry await your artistic scientists. They explore the way light travels, absorbs, reflects, and transmits through shadow play. They create folktale-inspired shadow puppets, explore the science of light,...

Discuss the lives of artists in the Lyme Art Colony in the 1900s with this resource. Young historians write and perform a short scene depicting individuals who lived in the Griswold boardinghouse, used by the colony artists. They use the...

Different colors of the spectrum travel at different speeds through media, causing them to refract at different angles—which allows humans to see their colors. Through a simulation, pupils see how air, water, and other media bend light....

The moon takes just over 27 days to orbit around Earth. Young scientists position themselves as the earth as they rotate around the sun and hold the moon. This allows them to observe the patterns and phases of the moon.

Ever made solar s'mores? Or recreated the solar system using peanuts? Astronomers young and old investigate all things solar using a variety of activities. Explore how the sun works, types of light it emits, and methods of charting the...

The Milky Way gets great reviews on Trip Advisor — 100 million stars. The activity allows scholars to rethink their assumptions and prior knowledge. Pupils observe a set of two lights at equal distance and brightness, but they believe...

Why did the waves get into a fight? They were tired of each other's interference. Scholars observe the wave patterns from dripping water, sound waves, and light waves. They vary the spacing, build barriers, and increase the number...

In an engaging activity on universal and unalienable rights, learners work in groups to establish a democratic nation and determine what principles they want to protect to ensure a democratic society. They conduct a "rights auction" in...

Groups work together to design a lighthouse, from designing and drawing the wiring diagram, to creating prototypes of the switch and circuit, to envisioning and building a scale model along with a blueprint. By including different...

Electricity travels at the speed of light, 186,000 miles per second. Through a simulation, classes see how the structure of energy bands in crystals of atoms determines how materials conduct electricity. Participants can change the...

Shocking! Who knew so many great ideas existed for teaching middle schoolers about electricity? Find them all within this energetic framework. You'll light up at the variety of printable and web-based resources within! After building...

Students study the concept of food chains and create a physical forest food chain pyramid. In this balance of nature pyramid lesson, students identify the ingredients needed on each level of the pyramid then make connections...

Students explore environmental safety by reading assigned text in class. In this fires lesson, students discuss the benefits and negative aspects of lighting a fire near a campground. Students list other ways to avoid leaving an impact...

Young scholars are "Energy Detectives" working for an engineering firm that does energy evaluations at schools. In teams, they locate energy sources around the school, and record their findings on an Energy Detective Worksheet.

Teams of six to eight players imagine that they are driving in a vehicle and collect balls that represent carbon dioxide emissions based on their different activities. "Greenhouse Gas Guzzler" cards tell teams how many balls to collect...

Fifth graders design an "ecologically sound" city. They write laws for the city to help make all citizens aware of their ecological responsibilities and propose alternative power sources for light and heat.

Third graders observe light as a form of energy, that it can be reflected/bounced, refracted/bent and absorbed. They explore how different types of light affect our lives as a whole. Songs are researched that involve light (ex. "You...

Students consider how free speech applies to journalistic practices in light of a legal case involving two reporters. They participate in a fishbowl discussion about journalism codes of ethics and write response papers.

Middle schoolers redesign their school to make it more energy efficient, and create a model of their design. Learners get together in groups of 5, and they take on the task of making their school more energy efficient. To do this, they...

Students explore U.S. politics by completing a class project. In this National policy lesson, students review and compare the National Service Act of 1990 and the Kennedy Service Act and the importance of service in the U.S.A. Students...

Students explore physical science by completing a lab assignment. In this sunlight lesson, students define a list of scientific vocabulary terms and complete fill in the blank questions. Students conduct a photographic experiment in...

The concept of a how pesticides and other chemicals pass through a watershed can be difficult for younger learners to grasp without a concrete example. In the activity here, some blank paper, markers, and a spray bottle are all you need...

High schoolers research their assigned position pro- or con- for the statement "The use of tanning beds by teens should be regulated" and write a short position paper. They participate in a debate concerning the statement. Students write...

Students explore the controversial issues surrounding the energy debate in Canada. They research recent initiatives being taken in this area and analyze their implication. Students then assume the roles of pivotal stakeholders in this...