What a neat interactive that interacts with the amount of water on Earth's surface. It begins with a brief audio introduction of the Blue Planet and how it got its name. Then, users click on the activity to play a game...

The blue king crab and the red king crab live in the same range but never in the same region. The third lesson in the series of five focuses on the blue king crab and the impact the changes in water temperature is having on its...

Bring the sounds of the deep South vocal blues to the classroom with a Smithsonian Folkways lesson plan. In preparation, scholars listen to and count the 12 bar blues patterns in several works and identify the I, II, IV, and V chords as...

Dive your class into a reading of Island of the Blue Dolphins with this in-depth study guide. Breaking the novel into three parts, the resource begins each section with a focus activity that identifies a specific theme or question...

Have you ever tried to light ice on fire? With methane hydrate, you can do exactly that. The ice forms with methane inside so it looks like ice, but is able to burn. The instructional activity uses group research and a hands-on activity...

Who knew that a possible answer to Earth's energy resource problems was lurking deep beneath the ocean's surface? Part four of a six-part series introduces Earth Science pupils to methane hydrate, a waste product of methanogens. After...

Class members use an applet on the Internet to simulate the spread of a disease. The simulation allows individuals to determine two nodes to vaccinate to limit the number of nodes infected. By running several simulations, scholars...

While it may not be possible to take an entire class to Egypt and explore the ancient wonders, it is possible to engage your young historians in activities that ask them to research these and other antiquities and place them on their...

Young astronomers learn about the Big Bang Theory and redshift through a hands-on activity in the last installment of a three-part series. Participants draw dots on balloons and then inflate them to model how galaxies moved farther apart...

Bass drum, snare drum, tom-toms, cymbals. Perched behind their drum sets, wielding their drum sticks and wire brushes, drummers lay the grove and are the heartbeat of a band's performance. A dynamic lesson introduces young musicians to...

After months of hard work it's time to relax and have some fun with this end-of-the-year activity. Provided with a series of eight color-coded clue cards, students must search the classroom for different colored objects as...

Use a container full of water as a prism and show that as light is bent, the individual colors from different wavelengths become visible. This explains why the sky appears to be blue midday, and why as the sun nears the horizon, it looks...

When the sun's rays can't reach the producers in a food web, where does all the energy come from? Extreme environments call for extreme food sources. Young scientists investigate creatures that appear to get their energy from methane...

Combine art, math, language arts, drama, and delicious Jell-o with a instructional activity based on the African folktale Anansi and the Tug o' War. Kids make predictions and discuss plot points of the story before joining in...

I bet I can cross the room without having the lights come on. Class members set up an experiment in which they try to determine what materials will mask motion detected by a sensor. Groups predict how materials will interact with...

Class members are challenged to design a device that will move a circus elephant into a train car. Groups brainstorm ideas that use simple machines to load the elephant. They then choose one of their ideas, sketch a plan, and present it...

Let your class bounce to examine the concept elastic potential energy. Individuals bounce on a pogo stick in order to calculate its elastic potential energy. Groups then compare the elastic potential energy to the gravitational...

Have your class follow the step-by-step directions in this resource to dissect a sheep heart and gain a better understanding of this amazing organ. Working in small groups, pupils look for specific parts of the heart during their...

Concentrate to determine the best reflector design. Pairs use the engineering design process to build a reflector to increase the current output of a photovotaic panel. Teams arrive at a final design and present it to the class along...

The last activity in a nine-part series has teams create a Google Earth map using the data they collected during a field trip. Using the map, groups analyze the results and make adjustments to the map to reflect their analysis. A short...

Take note. Soul music. Gospel music. Country music. Summer comes alive with the sounds of music as program participants learn about various genres of music, create instruments, and write and perform songs about the facts and traditions...

With a piece of plastic here and a piece of plastic there, here a piece, there a piece, everywhere a piece. Teams go on a field trip in order to document the locations and kinds of plastic trash in an area near them. The eighth...

American music is the result of the influence of many cultures, including the traditions brought by the African slaves. Young scholars study the polyrhythms, the call-and-response format, and the vocal improvisations of the Gullah...

Groups simulate an orbit using a piece of string and a water balloon. Individuals spin in a circular path and calculate the balloon's velocity when the clothes pin can no longer hold onto the balloon.