Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Harnessing Wind

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore the ways that engineers study and harness the wind. They study the different kinds of winds and how to measure wind direction. In addition, students learn how air pressure creates winds and how engineers build and test...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Seasonal Cloud Cover Variations

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners, in groups, access data from the NASA website Live Access Server regarding seasonal cloud coverage and the type of clouds that make up the coverage. They graph the data and make correlations between types, seasons and percentages.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Using Vegetation, Precipitation, and Surface Temperature to Study Climate Zones

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students begin their examination of the climate zones found around the world. Using a software program, they identify the relationship between the vegetation, climate and temperatures of the different zones. They also plot coordinates...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Regolith Formation

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students study what regolith is and how it contrasts with weathering on Earth.  In this weathering lesson students divide into groups, hypothesize and confirm their guesses. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Seasoning the School Year

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students observe the changes a class tree goes through as the seasons change and record observations in journals. They investigate changes in the weather, changes in the length of the day, and how that affects people. They create...
Lesson Plan
Creative Educator

Design a Rainforest Postcard

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Send your class on an expedition through the rainforest! Along the way, they will write informational postcards to demonstrate what they've learned. Each team will be responsible for one of five rainforest regions. When they return from...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What is Soil?

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students examine soil. In this earth science activity, students define and describe weathering and erosion as it relates to soil. Students compare and contrast potting soil with forest soil and complete a science observation worksheet.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Combining Clouds and Art in the Classroom

For Teachers 2nd - 7th
Students observe landscape paintings consisting of cloud formations. In this identifying cloud types lesson, students discover different cloud types and characteristics by looking at paintings. Students paint their own pictures at the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clouds

For Teachers 1st
First graders create a PowerPoint presentation and identify three types of clouds; cirrus, stratus and cumulus. In addition, 1st graders construct their own type of cloud during a hands-on activity.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shifting Coastlines

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Learners study North Carolina's changing coastline during the Paleoindian and Archaic periods and determine the positions of the coastline at different times and decide what types of archaeological information has been lost due to rising...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Oil Spill

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students explore an important role of environmental engineers by studying the Exxon Valdez oil spill. They experiment with different strategies in order to clean up their own manufactured oil spill.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Guetemala's Changing Forest

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders compare their local ecological zone to the tropical rainforest. In this natural ecology instructional activity, 8th graders complete an activity about the differences in ecological zones. They compare their biome to the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Matter in Motion

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders examine matter, what it is and what the different states are. In this matter lesson students view The Magic School Bus Meets Molly Cule and answer questions.
Worksheet
Curated OER

What is a Chemical Reaction?-Evidence of Change

For Students 10th - 12th
In this chemical reactions worksheet, students experiment with hydrochloric acid and copper (I) chloride to identify the types of reactions they undergo with various other substances. They also observe the law of conservation of mass and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Why Do Some Birds Have Two Homes When We Have One?

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders study migratory birds in the temperate forest and the tropical rainforest. In this migratory birds lesson, 6th graders participate in different activities that explain patterns  of migration, research patterns of...
Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Folklife Around the Year and Around the State

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Research how seasonal changes in Louisiana affect learners' lives and the folklife of their communities and the state. They investigate differences in the seasonal round in the regions of Louisiana, including celebrations, festivals,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Role of Fire in Healthy Prairie, Brush and Forest Lands

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders read and discuss background information and brainstorm reasons for wildfires. They use a Venn Diagram to list the similarities and differences between wildfires and prescribed fires and then track the weather forecast for...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Hurricane Shapes: Spatial Patterns on Satellite Images

For Students 7th - 9th
In this earth science learning exercise, students match 21 hurricane satellite images to their appropriate shape. They also answer 4 short answer questions about hurricane shape classification.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Kalahari Explorations

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore world geography by completing graphic organizers and researching the Internet. In this Kalahari desert lesson, students identify the geographic location, weather and creation of the Kalahari desert. Students define a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Calling All Owls

For Teachers K - Higher Ed
Students research various types of owls.  In this owls lesson, students observe owls and discuss their characteristics.  Students go to an owl habitat and listen for the call of an owl. Students read The Owl in the Shower and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

High and Low: Pressures and Fronts

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Pupils investigate basic information about high- and low-pressure fronts and how they affect the weather. They observe weather patterns and cloud formations. Students study the basic pattern of movement of high- and low-pressure weather...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Maps with a "Spin"

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Students, in groups, research and map the effects of a proposed airport three miles outside of town. They prepare a presentation based on a set of maps they make and explains its different points of view from the viewpoints of the town...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clouds

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore the characteristics of clouds, their formation, symbols used in their identification, and the relationship of clouds to weather. The lesson focuses on how they are formed and their classification.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science: The Shape of Clouds

For Teachers 2nd - 5th
Students observe cloud formations during a trip outdoors prior to reading Tomie dePaola's , "The Cloud Book." Using cotton, they make models of the four main cloud shapes and mount them on blue construction paper. As an ongoing project,...