Curated OER
Let's Get Specific
Students explore how different species thrive. In this speciation lesson students research and complete a lab activity.
Curated OER
How Does Preserving Wilderness Enhance Forestry
Students identify events of the environmental movement in the United States. For this environment lesson students study Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir, who had a great impact on the environmental movement.
Curated OER
Bats
Students hypothesize and model how the bones in a bat wing are made up. In this exploratory lesson students test their hypothesis, develop questions about bat parts and watch a video on bats.
Curated OER
The Gulf of Maine
Students examine their own environments and make connections to larger ecosystems. They watch a video about the gulf of Maine and record the changes that have occurred. They research the gulf and create a food web.
American Museum of Natural History
Dive Into Worlds Within the Sea
The ocean is a series of ecosystems within an ecosystem. Learners dive into an exploration of ecosystems in an interactive lesson. They identify connections between organisms by following leading prompts within the lesson. The resource...
American Museum of Natural History
DNA Detective
DNA is like the fingerprint of genetics. A quick lesson introduces the topic of DNA sequences with a mystery about an endangered species. The lesson shows how DNA extraction, replication, and sequencing often provide undeniable evidence...
Curated OER
Habitat Basics
First graders get out and explore two different habitats to examine how each one meets the needs of the plants and animals that dwell there. They discuss what they've learned about animal habitats as they explore the outdoor environment....
NOAA
Individual Species in the Deep Sea
A tube worm's outer covering is made of chitin, the same material that makes up the shells of lobsters and crabs. Scholars create tube worms and analyze and discuss the longevity of organisms living near cold seeps. They then discuss and...
Curated OER
Down in the Dumps
After an introduction to municipal sludge, middle school ecologists consider the pros and cons of dumping in the Hudson River Canyon. The class is split into two groups: one to debate in favor or dumping and one to debate against the...
Curated OER
It's the Law
Learners explain various scientific laws used in SCUBA diving. In this theory based instructional activity, students examine and explain how temperature, density, and salinity relate to SCUBA diving using various scientific laws to...
Curated OER
A Frog's Life Story
Students investigate the lives of frogs by completing several worksheets. In this biology lesson, students discover the life cycle of a frog from tadpole to death. Students complete frog life cycle puzzle as well as create a life cycle...
Michigan Sea Grant
Sea Lamprey
Learners discuss the types of technology that are used to control the population of sea lamprey in the Great Lakes. They explain the parasite/host relationship and understand the devastating impact invasive species have on ecosystems....
Curated OER
Staying Up
Learners will explain the Archimedes's Principle. In this lesson on plankton, students will describe three factors that can affect the buoyancy of plankton. This lesson contains extensive background information, extensions, and multiple...
Michigan Sea Grant
Wetlands
Wetlands may not sound particularly ornate, but they are as important as any habitat! With a hands-on activity, young scientists build a wetland model and observe its many functions in action. They discover the importance of wetlands to...
Curated OER
Great Blobs of Jelly!
Students explain how zoo-plankton have an impact on the global process. In this ocean zoo-plankton lesson students calculate carbon flux and plankton densities.
Curated OER
Do You Have the Key?
Students practice using a dichotomous key. For this classification lesson, students read an article about scientific exploration and identification of new species. They use a dichotomous key to identify objects and create their own key.
Curated OER
Outta Gas
Students explore practical problems that are related to scuba diving. In this oxygen lesson students complete a lab activity.
Curated OER
Ocean Drifters
Students define terms, and identify three ways in which plankton are adapted for life in the open ocean. For this ocean drift lesson students design a planktonic organism.
Curated OER
Hypoxia and the Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico
Students investigate the causes of hypoxia, the characteristics of a watershed, and how the actions and management practices of people can both negatively and positively affect aquatic ecosystems.
Curated OER
Design a Wildlife Habitat-Habitat Detective
Students discuss ways people have changed landscapes and how this effects wildlife. They map the area around their school and keep a journal of wildlife they see. They predict how to preserve the wildlife they see for future generations.
Curated OER
Good Inventions
Young scholars explore global challenges and technological solutions to them. They curate a related museum exhibit titled 'Technology Benefiting Humanity.'
Curated OER
Bats
Learners model how the bones in a bat wing are organized. They develop questions about bat body parts based on photographs. They hypothesize how bats locate their food.
Curated OER
Water Pollution, Stream Ecosystems
Pupils participate in a series of simulated activities designed to demonstrate the interconnectedness between the environment and the organisms that live there. They explore how polluting one element of an environment affects the entire...
Curated OER
The Theory of Evolution
In this theory of evolution activity, students will review the role Charles Darwin played in the theory of evolution, natural selection, and adaptations. Students will explore some of the different types of evidence for the theory of...