Curated OER
Fast Food Tomatoes
Here is a fantastic reading passage and discussion question to challenge your advanced learners. They read a passage describing arguments against the mass production of tomatoes for fast food resulting in poor treatment of workers. Then...
Curated OER
Healthy Foods
Students view a video which explores the following statement. "You are what you eat." They discuss the food industry, organic foods, and healthy food choices. They chart what they eat on a daily basis and make plans for healthier options.
Curated OER
Ecology - Food Chains
Students discuss the concept of a food chain in the California ecosystem. in this food chain lesson, students look at different cards and sort them into herbivores, carnivores, decomposers, and omnivores. Then they use these cards to...
Curated OER
Construction of Food Chains and Tracing Energy Changes
If you need a few basic activities for teaching food chains to your emerging ecologists, here they are. Three sheets of organism cards are included for learners to cut out and arrange according to trophic relationships. To make the most...
Agriculture in the Classroom
Farmland: GMOs and Organic Agriculture
Learn more about genetic modification, organic farming, and the role of biotechnology in agriculture by watching a documentary that shows how newly gained knowledge can be applied to specific situations involving farmers and the choices...
Channel Islands Film
Human Impact on the Food Web of Santa Cruz Island
What happens when a non-native species is introduced onto an island? Santa Cruz Island, part of the Channel Island chain located off the coast of southern California, provides the perfect laboratory for young environmental scientists to...
Curated OER
Sustainable Livestock
Young scholars investigate healthy eating habits by researching livestock. In this food sustainability instructional activity, students research the negative impact factory farming has on our environment due to pollution. Young scholars...
University of California
You Are What You Eat: Testing for Organic Compounds in Foods
We have all heard that we are what you eat, but what are we eating? An informative lesson opens with a discussion of the foods pupils have recently eaten. Then, young scientists perform four experiments on seven different foods to...
Curated OER
Wetland Food Webs
Students study life science. In this food webs and food chains comparison lesson, students examine the wetlands to discover the relationships that exist between the animals that live there. They participate in group activities and...
Curated OER
Ocean Life Food Web
Students construct a food web representative of the Gulf of California. They use pictures to depict all of the organisms in the appropriate level of the web (producer, primary consumer, etc.)
Curated OER
California: Land and People
Fourth graders research information about some of California indigenous tribes to find out as much as possible about the first people found in the four regions of California. They research the history of a selected tribe and their...
Curated OER
Major Organic Acids in Fruits
Young scholars investigate the organic acids present in a variety of juices. In this organic acids lesson plan, students read about the effects of organic acids in juices. They use paper chromatography to separate out the acids present...
Curated OER
Aquatic Food Webs
Middle schoolers discuss producers, herbivores, omnivores, carnivores, and decomposers and analyze the difference between food chains and food webs. They participate in a food web yarn game, examining what can effect the breakdown of the...
Curated OER
Field Trip to the Watsonville Wetlands
Students explore the differences between food webs and food chains. In this wetland lesson students play a food web game and go on a scavenger hunt.
Curated OER
Oyster Morphs: Adaptations to the Environment
Learners demonstrate how organisms adapt to their environment. They examine prey and predators, natural selection, and adaptations by representing oyster morph.
Curated OER
Regional Landforms and Native People
Third graders study the Native American tribes of Maidu and Miwok by studying Internet artifacts, culture, language, music, storytelling, architecture, food, clothing, crafts and geology.
University of California
Energy and Biomass Pyramids
Young scientists play tag as they act out the food pyramid in the ocean ecosystem. Energy circles pass from the smaller prey to the predators and at the end of the activity, a data chart and analysis questions allow pupils to apply their...
Curated OER
In Search of California Indians
Fourth graders research information about some of California indigenous tribes to find out as much as possible about the first people found in the west. They research about the history of a selected tribe and their contributions to...
California Department of Education
Gaining by Giving
Community service is a win-win! Scholars discover how to gain valuable career skills through helping others using a lesson about volunteer work. Second in a six-part career and college readiness series, the activities focus on...
Louisiana Department of Education
Out of the Dust
The Grapes of Wrath may be the most famous novel set during the Dust Bowl, but what other stories cover the same time? The unit focuses on the Karen Hesse novel Out of the Dust. Learners keep a timeline of the Dust Bowl, maintain a...
Curated OER
You Are What You Eat!
Fourth graders discover the nutritional needs of their bodies. Using a database, they research how nutrition affects their learning capabilities. They take the food they eat on a daily basis and discover its nutritional value. They...
LABScI
The Digestive System: Where Does Food Go?
Would you believe that your digestive system stretches to five times your height?! Help your pupils to understand this relationship as they work through the laboratory exercise. The first instructional activity of a 12-part series is a...
California Academy of Science
Composting: A Scientific Investigation: California Academy of Sciences
Garbage, recycle, compost: Does it really matter where we put our trash once we are done? By making detailed observations over seven weeks, kids will see which materials break down naturally to become a healthy part of the soil, and...
Channel Islands Film
Sa Hi Pa Ca (Once Upon a Time): Lesson Plan 2
What tools do archaeologists and anthropologist use to learned about what life was like in the past. After watching West of The West's documentary Once Upon a Time that details how scientists use artifacts to establish a history of the...