Cornell Cooperative Extension
Rope Making
Jump ropes, dock lines, cables. The science and technology behind rope making is the focus of a seven-page packet that ends with a rope making challenge.
Kenan Fellows
Microorganisms in Pond Water
That is living in the water? Groups of two to three view pond water with microscopes in order to find microorganisms. They draw pictures of the ones they find in their slides. The groups compare their drawings to pictures of common...
Code.org
Cleaning Data
"Clean the data!" "I did not know it was dirty." Introduce your class to the process of cleaning data so that it can analyze it. Groups work through a guide that demonstrates the common ways to filter and sort data. Pairs then...
Code.org
Functions and Top-Down Design
Let me break it down for you! Introduce your class to a way of breaking up a complicated task into its component pieces. Individuals draw a complex figure using JavaScript and then break it down to help determine the...
Code.org
Understanding Program Flow and Logic
Explore decision-making logic in programming computer games. The 10th installment of a 21-part unit teaches scholars how to apply conditional statements and Boolean expressions. They use these concepts to create a "Guess My Number" game...
Code.org
Functions with Return Values
Young computer scientists explore how to use the return command in computer programing by playing Go Fish. They learn about functions that return values and then write a turtle driver app using the return function.
Code.org
Events Unplugged
Introduce event-driven programming. Young computer scientists learn the meaning of event-driven programming and how it is different from previous styles of programming. They play a card game to simulate the challenges that occur in this...
Code.org
Introduction to Arrays
How can you store lists in a computer program? The 16th installment of a 21-part unit introduces arrays as a way to store lists within a variable. Individuals program a list of their favorite things—adding interest to the activity.
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #11 - Power Maximum: An Electrical Determination
Collaborative groups connect resistors and solar panels in series and measure electrical resistance, voltage, and current. The objective is to order 16 solar panels from strongest to weakest. They graph current-voltage and power curves...
Code.org
Encoding and Sending Formatted Text
Introduce your class to encoding text. Pairs work together to create a protocol to send text prior to learning ASCII encoding. Groups then collaborate to send and translate ASCII codes creating a formatted text message.
Teach Engineering
How Can We Prevent the Corrosion Crisis?
Contemplate the causes of corrosion. An interesting lesson plan has learners first conduct an experiment where they place nails in different types of water. Based on the results, they consider how corrosion occurs and how engineers need...
Microsoft
Artificial Intelligence
There's nothing artificial about an informative activity. The eighth of nine parts in the Intro to CS with MakeCode series focuses on artificial intelligence. Scholars learn how artificial intelligence is making its way into society...
TryEngineering
Search Engines
Learn how to find things quickly and efficiently on the Internet. The lesson teaches how search engines work and how to efficiently use them. It includes an activity where groups develop search queries to find sites using given criteria.
Kenan Fellows
Determining Stream Health by the Diversity and Types of Benthic Organisms
How diverse are the benthic organisms found in local streams? Using the information learned in previous lessons on identification of macroinvertebrates and on calculating stream index values, groups determine the health of local...
Curated OER
Go for the Gold!
The options are vast with this Ancient Greece and Olympics research project! Using Scholastic online resources, historians have interactive and educational supports to guide them through researching and writing about the 2004 Olympics in...
National Research Center for Career and Technical Education
STEM: Lou-Vee Air Car
A comprehensive activity on acceleration awaits your physicists and engineers! Two YouTube videos pique their interest, then sample F=ma problems are worked and graphed. The highlight of the activity is the building of a Lou-Vee air car!...
EngageNY
Developing Reading Fluency: Beginning the End of Unit 2 Assessment
Third graders continue to develop their reading fluency in preparation for their assessment in the tenth lesson plan of this unit. Young readers are provided with a short passage on Helen Keller, which they use while working in pairs...
California Department of Education
I Have “M.I.” Strengths!
There are so many ways to be smart! Can your class identify their intelligences? The third of five career and college lesson plans designed for sixth graders challenges them to assess their unique skills. Once they determine their...
Curated OER
Effective Back-to-School Nights
Here is an engaging and creative project to do with your ESL learners in preparation for back to school night. A digital camera is used to photograph each pupil, and everyone completes a short writing assignment that goes along with...
National Math + Science Initative
Introduction to Decimals
Three activities make up an introductory instructional activity designed to create a strong foundation in comparing fractions to decimals and exploring and building decimal models. Pupils brainstorm and complete a Venn diagram to show...
Curated OER
A Great Beginning
Check out this detailed resource for some beginning of the year activities. After examining examples, class members uses the computer lab to create a personal brochure enhanced with clip art or photos to introduce themselves to the...
Curated OER
Think It, Write It, Create It
Help your scholars create a class story. They will write a page of the story and illustrate that page. Then they use a variety of digital technologies to make the story come alive. A variety of digital resources are recommended for the...
Curated OER
How to Web 2.0 Accessorize Your Classroom
Become a digital citizen. Follow the scripted directions of this resource to create a technologically integrated webpage for your classroom. Class members learn how to create a class blog, an Internet start page, a classroom wiki, and...
American Battlefield Trust
Antietam 360
It was the single bloodiest day in Civil War history. Now, class members have the opportunity to walk in the footsteps of soldiers who fought in the Battle of Antietam using an interactive website. Supplemental resources include...