Curated OER
Food Safety Unit Exam 1
Students complete seventeen question test about food safety which includes matching vocabulary terms, short answer questions and fill in the blank questions. Test is part of the Food Safety Unit produced by the College of Agricultural...
PHET
Where to See an Aurora
Where can you see an aurora in North America? After completing an astronomy activity, scholars can locate the exact coordinates. Pupils plot points of the inner and outer ring of the auroral oval and answer questions based on...
US Environmental Protection Agency
Mapping Greenhouse Gas Emissions Where You Live
After investigating the US Environmental Protection Agency's climate change website, your environmental studies students discuss greenhouse gas emissions. They use an online interactive tool to look at data from power production...
Space Awareness
Meet Our Neighbors: Sun
The sun isn't just a ball of yellow! Young scientists learn about the features of the sun using a hands-on modeling activity. They build models of the sun using common household items to represent sunspots, solar prominence, and the...
Space Awareness
Coma Cluster of Galaxies
Scientists classify everything from the smallest cells to the largest galaxies, but how do they decide on a classification system? Scholars use 40 pictures of galaxies taken by the Hubble Space Telescope to sort and try creating their...
Space Awareness
The Big Meltdown
Explore the world (our world) of melting ice caps. Why are these caps melting? What is the effect of melting ice caps? Dive into the ever-present issue of global warming with a resource that has learners looking at data and participating...
Space Awareness
Oceans on the Rise
Temperature rises and land disappears! Through a lab exploration, learners understand the effect of temperature increase on water similar to the effect of global warming on our oceans. As they heat the water in a flask, they measure the...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Review and Assessment: Causes and Effects of Climate Changes
The last activity in the series of five is a short one where individuals show what they've learned about the causes and effects of climate change. Working independently, they fill in a graphic organizer, then compare their notes with a...
LABScI
Potential and Kinetic Energy: The Roller Coaster Lab
Ron Toomer, a famous roller coaster designer, suffered from motion sickness. Pupils design their own roller coasters, learning about potential and kinetic energy in the process. Labs focus on the importance of drop height, energy...
Space Awareness
The Climate in Numbers and Graphs
Weather versus climate: weather relates to short time periods while climate averages the weather of a period of many years. Scholars learn about average temperature and precipitation in various climate zones and then apply statistics...
ARKive
An Introduction to Endangered Species
Explore the world's endangered species with a presentation and bingo game activity. After viewing a presentation about the meaning of endangered species as it relates to specific animals, kids play a game of bingo with cards that...
Curated OER
Crashed On the Moon
Students compare/contrast the environments of our moon and earth, and examine examples of how these differences would affect their daily activities on our moon. They develop lists of emergency supplies to bring if their spaceship crashed...
Curated OER
Great Glaciers!
Seventh graders study the earths surface and how changes happen to it. In this glacier lesson students complete a lab activity to see how glaciers form.
Curated OER
Sedimentary Size and Structures
Students interpret the Earth's history from models. In this investigative lesson plan students create sedimentary deposit models.
Curated OER
Building and a sundial
Learners create a sundial. In this sundial lesson, students examine the history and use of sundials. Learners create a sundial and test their sundial.
Curated OER
Digging Into the Past
Fifth graders study fossils and how they are charted. In this fossil lesson plan, 5th graders research the excavation process of discovering fossils, and view fossils. They then do a hands on activity that involves plastic fossils that...
Curated OER
Science: Avalanche!
Eighth graders examine avalanches after reading excerpts from John Muir's book, "The Yosemite." In small groups, they conduct experiments with flour, sugar, and potato flakes representing different snow consistencies. Then, 8th graders...
Curated OER
I Feel Renewed!
Young scholars participate in a simulation of the equal and unequal distribution of the earth's renewable resources. They discuss renewable resources and how food resources can increase and decrease, participate in the simulation, and...
Curated OER
Designing "Green" to Save Our Green Planet
Students design an environmentally friendly home. In this middle school math/science lesson, students watch videos on creating green design. Students work in collaborative groups to determine what makes a house green and to...
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
Students bring rocks and minerals from home to investigate in the classroom. In this rocks and minerals lesson plan, students observe all the rocks and minerals brought into the class and answer 7 questions about the features of the...
Curated OER
Stream Table
Students explore channelization, riparian habitats and soil erosion to find out about the aquatic habitats in Iowa. In this aquatic habitats lesson, students define important terms and read an article about pollution. ...
Curated OER
Discovering the Wetlands!
Students name wetland plant and animal life. In this ecosystem instructional activity students go birdwatching and interpret native plants through art.
Curated OER
Fueling Around with Energy: A Comparative Study of Conventional and Renewable Energy Use Among Nations
Students compare and contrast renewable and conventional energy sources. In this energy lesson, students research about conventional fuel and present a persuasive argument about their stand on the issue.
Curated OER
Determining the Altitude of Iridium Flares
Students examine what iridium flares are and when they occur. In this iridium flare lesson students complete an activity to see how far overhead Iridium satellites are.