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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classroom Aquaponics: Exploring Nitrogen Cycling in a Closed System

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate nutrient cycling in a simplified desktop ecosystem involving aquarium and hydro-ponically grown plants. They set up an aquarium with 10 gallons of water at least a week before the lab is planned and place...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Light and Starch Production in Photosynthesis

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students are given the unique opportunity to see the contrast between parts of a leaf that have photosynthesized and parts of the leaf that have not. This visual image helps students see the results of this biological process. At the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Identification of Positive Streptococci

For Teachers 11th - Higher Ed
After being introduced to the genus Straptococcus, biology buffs set up agar plates, esculin slants, and salt broth tubes with different species to test. The level of laboratory skills required to perform this activity makes it most...
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Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Building a Compound Light Microscope

For Students 9th - 12th
What better way to learn how to use a microscope than building your own? A lab investigation has scholars use lenses from magnifying glasses and sheets of cork to design their own compound microscopes. They calculate focal length and the...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

The Effects of Colloidal Silver on Microbial Growth: Investigating Snake Oil Science

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Can your classes solve the problem of the smelly sweat sock? Young scientists complete a lab investigation that begins by using electrochemistry to generate colloidal silver. They use their solutions to test the rate of microbial growth...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Variations in Living Things

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Biology beginners observe traits in a collection of plant parts to realize the tremendous amount of genetic variation within a species. They consider rules of nature and discuss what would happen if they changed. They also examine data...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Adaptations to Niches and Habitats

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Life science learners measure and record traits of seeds, leaves, and their own hands and then graph the data to find a continous distribution curve. They compare and color diagrams of seven different animals' forelimbs (not included),...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cells: A First-Hand View

For Teachers 6th - 12th
In the first of two activities, your charges prepare wet mount slides of cork and bean sprout cells in imitation of Robert Hooke's historical investigation. An excerpt from his notes is included. Then, investigators compare animal cells...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Catalysts and Enzymes

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Biochemists experiment with the oxothermic decomposition of hydrogen dioxide by adding manganese dioxide. They observe how pepsin enhances the action of acid on the digestion of egg white proteins. They use yeast to make bread rise. All...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Examine cyanobacteria cells as an example of prokaryotes and several other alga as examples of eukaryotes. Future biologists compare the two and notice the absence of nuclei in prokaryotes. These are classic activities for this purpose,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Semipermeable Membranes and Bioaccumulation

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Beginning biologists place a drop of food coloring into water of differing temperatures to observe the effect on the diffusion rate. They remove the shells from raw eggs and then experiment with osmosis over the remaining membranes....
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Fungi - Review and Reinforce

For Students 9th - 12th
Diagrams of possible fungi life cycles are printed on the worksheet for biology pupils to evaluate. Short-answer questions ask them to explain what a fungus is, how it obtains food, and what would happen if they ceased to exist. The...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Changing Planet: Withering Plants - Stressing Over Lost Water

For Teachers 7th - 10th
Expectant earth scientists examine the bottom side of a leaf and learn the role of the stomata. They consider the gas exchange that occurs through these structures and relate how the climate is changing to its impact on food crops. This...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Investigating What Makes Fruit Go Brown

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Is there anything that can be done to slow the browning of fruit once it has been cut? High schoolers determine the answer through five different investigations involving apples, potatoes, and chemical reactions. After each experiment,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Elastic Recoil in Arteries and Veins

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A lab in which high schoolers examine the difference between arteries and veins. Budding biologists will find out which blood vessel can stretch furthest, recording their data in a table then answering several questions evaluating their...
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Lesson Plan
Nuffield Foundation

Identifying the Conditions Needed for Photosynthesis

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Budding biologists often ask how scientists know what they do about different topics. In the lab described here, they have a chance to find out first-hand about the requirements for photosynthesis. Three sequential investigations are...
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Lesson Plan
National Geographic

Genetic Markers: Connecting the Dots

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Biology buffs simulate how genetic markers are passed among populations in order to understand how these markers can help anthropologists map human migration. A couple of volunteers leave the room while you walk the remaining learners...
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Lesson Plan
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Baylor College

Heart Rate and Exercise

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Teach your exercise enthusiasts to read their pulse rate at the radial artery and multiply by four to calculate beats per minute. Learners perform a variety of activities, recording their heart rates after one minute of each. Though this...
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Unit Plan
Core Knowledge Foundation

Genetics and the Master Race

For Teachers 7th Standards
How did the beginnings of genetic research influence the Nazi party? A thorough, engaging unit incorporates the work of Gregor Mendel, the study of inherited traits, and the use of racism and discrimination during the Holocaust.
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Activity
Teach Engineering

Grow Your Own Algae!

For Teachers 7th - 10th Standards
Develop a model of a wastewater treatment center. The last activity of the unit has pupils mix a lake water sample into a tank of water containing fertilizers. Over time, the algae from the lake water grows and removes the nutrient-rich...
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Lesson Plan
Nuffield Foundation

Observing Water Moving Through Plants

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
We know plants assist in the water cycle, but how do plants get water from the ground into the air? Through a series of demonstrations or labs, scholars observe the movement of water through plants. They microscopically view the cells...
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Activity
Nuffield Foundation

Extracting DNA from Living Things

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Help! Someone's trying to take my DNA! An interesting lab experiment has scholars use basic materials to extract DNA. By applying ethanol, cold water, and a protease enzyme, like pineapple juice, they pull strands of DNA from peas,...
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Lesson Plan
Nuffield Foundation

Working with Immobilized Enzymes or Microscopic Organisms

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Let the lab be a catalyst to learn about enzymes. Scholars create alginate beads filled with yeast. As part of an investigation into enzymes, they see how these beads provide a catalyst to the reaction of glucose into ethanol.
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

How Dry am I? Exploring Biomimicry and Nanotechnology

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Help your classes feel like they can walk on water! An engaging inquiry-based activity has young scholars experiment with different surface coatings. They make observations about their properties and how they relate to the surface...

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