National Energy Education Development Project
Great Energy Debate
If someone yelled for eight years and eight months, they could produce enough energy to heat one cup of coffee. A lesson on energy encourages scholars to research 10 different energy sources in groups before playing a game. Twenty...
Judicial Learning Center
Judicial Independence: What’s Wrong with This Court?
Why is it important for judges to operate independently of politics or other branches of government? Scholars ponder the question as they examine video clips, case studies, excerpts of the US Constitution, and an interactive computer...
Curated OER
A Tour Down the Hudson River
Students discuss how the Hudson River is an ecosystem made up of both biotic and abiotic factors. They view the PowerPoint the Journal Down the Hudson River. Students become aware of where the Hudson River begins and ends, the plant and...
Curated OER
They're Tilling that Field Behind the Mall
Unfortunately, the article for which this resource was written is not available. You can, however, find another current document on agriculture and urban development for your class to read together, and then still follow the suggested...
American Chemical Society
Neutralizing Acids and Bases
Most things naturally strive for balance, and acids and bases are no exception. Neutralization of acids and bases allows scholars to explore the color changes associated with the pH scale. After this exploration, pupils neutralize two...
Curated OER
Plants and Animals
Seventh graders discover the interconnectedness of plants and animals in ecosystems. In groups, they create a food web and discuss the problems when one link of the chain is broken. To end the lesson, they set up a balanced environment...
Curated OER
The Amazing Ant
Students explain that ants are an important element of nature's balance. Ants eat many insects and are food to other animals. They watch a video and conduct hands-on activities that give them an excellent overview of the ants role in...
Education Development Center
Language of Algebra
Don't rush into algebra, let learners visualize, guess, and predict their way to a successful math career. The introductory unit incorporates beginner algebraic concepts with shapes instead of variables. Young mathematicians use a...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Understanding the Greenhouse Effect
Dive into the power of the sun with a two-part lesson. Budding scientists model the greenhouse effect in a hands-on activity, and then participate in a skit that explores the earth's energy balances and what really occurs in the...
Curated OER
The High Cost of Chemical Dependency
Sixth graders explore, analyze and study the effect and impact that humans have on the environment based on their choices as individuals, businesses and governments. They assess the balance between human activities and aquatic pollution.
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Mask Symmetry
When you engage learners in creating symmetrical objects you are also building their vocabulary and math sense. Kids discuss key words such as, asymmetrical, symmetrical, balance, tint, and shade. They use these elements of design to...
John Lentine
Butterflies and Bugs
Symmetry, line, shape, art, and math are all connected through a fun hands-on craft. Included are instructions to a classic activity, where learners create butterflies to show symmetry in nature and then discuss symmetry in math. It is...
Curated OER
"Leap, Plashless": Emily Dickinson & Poetic Imagination
Students read and explore one of Emily Dickinson's nature poems, "A Bird Came Down the Walk-" through interaction with a variety of art forms. Clips of a hymn to hear meter and the viewing of bird images exposes them to the language and...
May Media Group
Treatment Plants
Young scientists explore nature's water treatment plants in this simple science demonstration. By placing a stalk of celery in a cup of water mixed with food coloring, children are able to observe how plants absorb nutrients and...
It's About Time
What Drives the Plates?
It's getting hot in here! Lead your emerging geoscientists on a thrilling journey as they calculate liquid densities to determine forces that stimulate thermal plates from within the earth's crust. They explore effects of temperature on...
PBS
Technology: Conveniences and Consequences
It's a delicate balance—using technology to improve our lives while still protecting the environment, and ourselves, from the hazards of technology use. Class members examine statistics about the increase in media use, complete a survey...
Curated OER
Don't Let the Earth Down
Although recycling is definitely beneficial, reducing our waste and conserving our natural resources should really be the focus of environmentalists. Encourage the future generation to create a public service announcement about a...
Curated OER
Oxidation of Ethanol to Ethanal
Here is a laboratory exercise where chemistry masters carry out an oxidation reaction to change ethanol into ethanal. They compare the original alcohol to the resulting aldehyde by forming a precipitate. Definitely aimed at learners...
Horticultural Society of New York
Dress Up Your Salad
Salad dressings use a variety of different ingredients, but it's important to have a healthy balance of greens to create a delicious mix. Young chefs examine five types of herbs including chives, basil, dill, parsley, and thyme to make a...
Japan Society
Akutagawa Ryunosuke and the Taisho Modernists
Japan's Taisho Period was a time when authors like Akutagawa and other Japanese modernists began to experiment with point of view and literary form, making the literature produced during this time period a natural choice for teaching...
Illustrative Mathematics
Morning Walk
Sometimes young algebra learners don't understand why they need to create an equation when they can just figure out the answer with it. This activity tries to encourage creating simple equations by balancing the use of more complicated...
Penguin Books
White Fang Teacher's Notes
If you're looking for a way to structure your unit on Jack London's White Fang, use a well-organized guide to bring the intrigue of the novel to your middle school classroom. Covering a biography of the author, main background and...
Curated OER
Weathering Lab
Assist your middle school class with one of the most inclusive weathering and erosion labs available. Individuals use sugar cubes and alka-seltzer to demonstrate the process of physical and chemical weathering. They sketch results...
Wylie Independent School District
The Carbon Cycle
Carbon is the fourth most abundant element in the universe (in terms of mass), behind hydrogen, helium, and oxygen. Scholars learn about the carbon cycle, from ways carbon is removed from the atmosphere to how it is added in an 18-slide...