Curated OER
Strict Parents
Are your parents or guardians strict? That's an interesting question many of your pupils are probably interested in discussing. How do you design a study directed at your high schooler to gain insight into that question? How do you...
Curated OER
Exercise in creating drawings for field notebooks
Students (with a partner) draw and describe a leaf in its natural setting, and then re-find leaves drawn and described by classmates. The point is to have them start to think about observations in science, what to put in a field...
Curated OER
Memories to Last: Observing Monuments
Students use scientific observation and inference to examine the Hazen Brigade Monument. In this observation lesson, students review the reasons for building monuments in society. Students then recall monuments they have seen and draw...
American Museum of Natural History
Keeping a Field Journal
Young scientists begin a field journal by following four steps. A real-world example of an entry showcases the different parts, including location, date, drawings, and more.
Rainforest Alliance
Knowing the Essential Elements of a Habitat
To gain insight into the many different types of habitats, individuals must first get to know their own. Here, scholars explore their school environment, draw a map, compare and contrast their surroundings to larger ones. They then write...
Center for Learning in Action
Investigating Physical and Chemical Changes
Super scientists visit ten stations to predict, observe, and draw conclusions about the physical and chemical changes that occur when different states of matter—liquid, solid, and gas—are placed under a variety of conditions. To...
Center for Learning in Action
Water – Changing States (Part 2)
Here is part two of a two-part lesson in which scholars investigate the changing states of water—liquid, solid, and gas—and how energy from heat changes its molecules. With grand conversation, two demonstrations, and one hands-on...
Classroom Kit
Homes
Where do birds? What about frogs? Learn about animal habitats with a series of worksheets. Each page is divided into quarters and shows an animal, a sentence about where the animal lives, and a blank space to draw their homes.
John Wiley & Sons
It's the Little Things That Count
Encourage your young leaders to acknowledge small victories and the unique abilities and strengths of others. Class members are assigned to observe a classmate and note their talents and interests, concluding in an "awards ceremony"...
EngageNY
Conducting Research: Analyzing a Variety of Sources to Capture Information about My Insect
From picture to words. Scholars analyze a picture of an ant and then list two facts they observed and any questions that may arise. Expert groups from the previous instructional activity then look at a diagram about either an ant or...
Curated OER
Observations and Inferences
Students examine coral skeletons. For this science lesson, view real coral skeletons. Students explain the differences between an observation and an inference. Students draw a coral skeleton.
Curated OER
The Importance of Observation
First graders practice observing items in small areas. In this scientific observation lesson, 1st graders complete a worksheet that shows a child looking at a small patch of grass. They make a list of items that the child sees. They...
Curated OER
Observation Skills
First graders observe a spider and write sentences about what they see the spider doing. For this writing lesson plan, 1st graders draw what they see, then make an edible spider out of marshmallows and twizzlers. A fun, delicious lesson...
Curated OER
Cornmeal with Powder Paint
Pre schoolers use art to build observational skills and eye-hand coordination. They squeeze art into a ribbon like shape on their paper, then sprinkle cornmeal and powder paint over it. They watch as water is sprayed on top of the...
Curated OER
What's Shaking? Three-Lesson Unit
Your young architects use the Internet to research tall structures or sky scrapers to help in the design of their scale drawings. This is instructional activity one of three in which learners design, build, and test model skyscrapers for...
Curated OER
Environmental Studies: The Environment Rocks!
Rock exploration, so exciting! After reading the book Everybody Needs a Rock, the class makes sandwiches to better understand that the Earth is made in layers. They then use a description of the 3 types of rock to conduct an observation...
Curated OER
Leaf Prints
Creating art from nature teaches learners how to appreciate the world around them while allowing them to practice artistic techniques. After observing and choosing fall leaves from outside, they create leaf prints. They press the painted...
Curated OER
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage: Grades 6-8
To gain a better understanding of Hispanic heritage and culture, as well as to build informational comprehension skill, learners explore facets of Hispanic American History. They engage in a class discussion, research three facts, and...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: “Crisscross” by Arthur Sze
Arthur Sze's poem "Crisscross" launches a lesson that asks scholars to use their observation skills. They first draw an image that reflects what crisscross means to them. They then examine a photograph of a lightning strike and list what...
Curriculum Corner
I See a School
Give observational and writing skills a boost with a activity that takes scholars on a sight-seeing journey around the school. Learners read sentences and color a corresponding picture, then write their own observational sentence and...
Science 4 Inquiry
The Impact of the Sun and Moon on Tides
In 150 BC, Seleucus of Seleucia theorized that the moon causes the tides. Scholars learn about what causes tides by studying the interactions of gravity between the sun, moon, and Earth. They use technology to formalize otherwise...
NOAA
Toxic! Or Is It?
Super scientists tests the toxicity of water using radish seed bioassays. Over the course of five days, scholars observe the germination process of several radish seeds, looking closely at their roots to determine the level of toxins...
University of Minnesota
Close-up of the Nervous System
Make sure your class gets on your nerves! Learners of all ages practice peering into the nervous system to see what's inside. Groups examine prepared slides of mammalian nervous system tissues, all while gaining microscope skills. The...
Curated OER
Observing Apples - Skill Lesson
First graders listen to a story about Johnny Appleseed read by their teacher. They discuss his life as a class and describe what they see when a cut apple is before them. They draw a picture of what they see and write three adjectives...