In the sixth lesson in a series of 21, scholars use NASA data to graph and interpret albedo seasonally and over the course of multiple years. This allows learners to compare albedo trends to changes in sea ice with connections to the...

Using "mystery bathymetry" shoeboxes, young explorers simulate sonar action to map out the topography of an un-viewable landscape. This classic activity helps physical oceanography learners understand how sonar works. It would be...

Junior geologists work through three mini-lessons that familiarize them with the formation and location of fossil fuels. Part one involves reading about petroleum and where it comes from via a thorough set of handouts. A lab activity...

Are you a koalafied biologist? The lesson begins with research about human survival and our ecosystem. Then, an online training module simulates the effects of changes to the plants and animals in an ecosystem. Finally, scholars research...

An interesting lesson plan takes pupils on a trip through the carbon cycle. A reading passage allows scholars to take notes and make choices about what happens to the carbon on its journey. This third lesson plan in a series of 21...

Rivers top the list of causes of erosion over time. Scholars experiment with wind, water, and ice reshaping sand. They connect the simulations facts about erosion and deposition to understand unique landforms such as the Grand Canyon and...

Traveling through space is an amazing experience, but it definitely takes a toll on the body. After reading an article and watching a brief video, learners perform an experiment that simulates the effects of zero gravity on the...

When we think of ocean exploration, many of us have visions of sunken pirate ships full of treasure or mysterious creatures of the deep. What really motivates deep-sea investigation? The first in a series of diverse six-part lessons...

Give your pupils a front row seat at the biggest light show in the sky this year! In addition to admiring the total solar eclipse, young astronomers can explain the phenomenon with a little help from an inquiry-based lesson. The focus of...

Climate change and weather extremes impact every species, but this lesson focuses on how these changes effect polar bears. After learning about the animal, scholars create maps of snow-ice coverage and examine the yearly variability and...

Looking for a hot date? Pick any day in August, statistically the hottest month in the United States. The 15th instructional activity in the series of 21 instructs pupils to investigate the August 2007 heat wave through NASA data, daily...

"Humans have become a geologic agent comparable to erosion and [volcanic] eruptions ..." Paul J. Crutzen, a Nobel Prize-winning atmospheric chemist. Using Landsat imagery, scholars create a grid showing land use type, such as urban,...

Plasma is the most common phase of matter in our universe. Scholars explore the change of energy as molecules change phases of matter. They rotate through stations, graphing the changes in energy level.

After a lecture about how the first industrial revolution triggered the path to climate change, your environmental studies class discusses what the impacts are. In a culminating activity, they get into groups and identify countries on a...

How can everyone in the world have access to clean drinking water? Throughout the lesson plan, learners read about and listen to how water is filtered, what the filtration process removes, and  the best ways to filter. They explore...

Few things are as fascinating as the challenge of climbing Mount Everest. This lesson investigates how monsoon weather impacts climbers. To begin, you are instructed to show various video clips. The only one directly provided, however,...

Swirling and churning, the waters of the North Atlantic play a vital role in Earth's climate! Discover the many factors that produce circulation using a multimedia lesson plan from PBS's Weather and Climate series for high schoolers....

An educational lesson focuses on the idea of conservation of matter through a demonstration of the water cycle, a discussion of digesting food, and the path of carbon and oxygen atoms as they change form. 

After viewing a teacher-led demonstration on a variety of landforms of the Earth, 1st graders create an Earth book. This nicely-done hands-on lesson plan has students produce books that describe, in pictures and words, different aspects...

Students engage in a lesson in which volcanoes be explored and examined. After watching a video, students create volcanoes out of clay.

Students examine the rotation of the Earth as it occurs in the 24 hour cycle. They use models of planets and the globe to make observations of movements made. Students brainstorm prior knowledge and then participate in a demonstration of...

Students explore the earth's rotation and phases of the moon. In this planets lesson, students rotate and revolve around a light representing the sun. Students use movement and props to simulate what causes the phases of the moon as well...

Students analyze an environmental policy decision. Students describe the difference between consequence-based and duty-based ethics. Students argue the case for giving standing or consideration to values other than those of human...

Fourth graders discuss how to accurately measure weather, gather materials in order to make instruments, and build weather instruments in which they measure and record different aspects of weather for a five-day period.