Curated OER
Water Spiral Puzzle
In this water puzzle worksheet, students use a set of 8 clues to complete a spiral word puzzle. Worksheet contains a link to additional activities.
Science Matters
Earthquakes and Volcanoes Post Assessment
The final lesson in the 20-part series is a post assessment covering earthquakes and volcanoes. Twenty-three questions incorporate each of the previous lessons through multiple choice, justified multiple choice, expanded multiple choice,...
National Park Service
Rock Ranking
Junior geologists sort rocks and soil. They separate a sample of river gravel by size, shape, color, and other characteristics. To include Common Core standards, you could have little ones graph the number of particles in each sample.
Science Matters
Finding the Epicenter
The epicenter is the point on the ground above the initial point of rupture. The 10th lesson in a series of 20 encourages scholars to learn to triangulate the epicenter of an earthquake based on the arrival times of p waves and s...
Teach Engineering
Flame Test: Red, Green, Blue, Violet?
Let the true colors shine through. Pupils conduct a flame test to identify an unknown element. Class members calculate and prepare specific molarity solutions of three chemicals. Using their observations of the colors emitted, they...
Curated OER
Extinction of Dinosaurs
In this dinosaurs activity, students review the different theories that scientist believe may have led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. This activity has 18 fill in the blank questions.
Curated OER
A Model of the Sea-floor
Students create a paper model to illustrate sea-floor spreading.
Curated OER
Science: Trouble in the Troposphere
Students research a NASA Website and record information about an assigned city's tropospheric ozone residual monthly climate. In groups, they graph the information for the past year. They form new groups and compare their city's...
Curated OER
Mud Fossils
Students observe real fossils. In this science lesson, students make their own mud fossils by pressing material into the mud and letting it dry in the sun for 3-4 days. Students then get the fossils out displaying their mud...
Curated OER
Rock Cycles, Crayon Cycles
Students examine the rock cycle and the path that rocks go through to rearranged in different ways. They define key vocabulary terms, then in small groups conduct a variety of experiments using crayon shavings as simulated rocks and...
Curated OER
Getting to the Core of Climate Change
Students investigate climate changes by graphing and analyzing ice core data from Greenland and Antarctica. They create, explain and report the pattern of data on a graph of ice core data. In addition they find relationships between the...
Curated OER
Atmospheric Processes - Radiation
Students investigate how different surfaces absorb heat, and how the physical characteristics of a surface have a powerful effect on the way a surface absorbs and releases heat from the sun.
Curated OER
A Bit of Engineering
Students discuss the drilling process. In this engineering lesson, students get into small groups and drill their own core samples in a sandwich using a plastic tubing, a jumbo straw, a slim straw and a offee stirrer predicting...
Curated OER
Exploring for Petroleum - Modeling an Oil Reserve
Learners experiment with locating oil reserves. In this conservation activity, students use a cardboard box to create sand, rocks, and an oil reserve (water balloon). They use a probe to dig around in the box to find the oil reserve and...
Curated OER
Modeling an Oil Reserve
Students conduct an experiment. In this oil and natural gas lesson, students learn how geoscientists identify and explore reserves of petroleum. Students make a model of an oil reserve, record how much it would cost to drill...
Curated OER
Analyzing Hurricanes Using Web and Desktop GIS
Learners analyze hurricanes. In hurricanes lesson, students use the Internet and GIS to analyze hurricanes. Learners view the National Atlas of Maps to discuss the direction hurricanes move. Students study the wind and pressure fields to...
Curated OER
Making a Cave
Young scholars discuss caves. In this science lesson, students experiment with how dissolution, a chemical weathering process, leads to the formation of caves. Once the cave is finsihed young scholars draw a picture or describe in...
Curated OER
Modeling Estuaries
Students create a model estuary. In this modeling estuaries lesson, students identify characteristics and mix water of varying densities. Students form a hypothesis, conduct an experiment, and analyze the results.
Curated OER
Geology Rocks
Students discuss information relating to Illinois geology. They examine top mineral resources in Illinois to find detailed information about geodes and where they can be found. Students complete geode lab to explore external structure of...
Curated OER
Kids Astronomy
In this astronomy word scramble worksheet, students examine the 16 letter groupings and use the decoder to help them reveal the 16 astronomy terms listed at the bottom of the worksheet,
Curated OER
Earthquake Crossword Puzzle
In this earthquake crossword puzzle, students complete a crossword using 13 clues about earthquake facts and plate tectonics.
Curated OER
Dating Popcorn
Students simulate the dating process with popcorn. In this geology lesson plan, students discuss how geologist find the age of rocks by gauging the amount of decay of radioactive elements. They have 6 bags of popcorn and each group...
Curated OER
Investigating Different Rock Types
Learners analyze a rock using their eyes and then a hand lens. In this science lesson, students determine and discuss how hard or how easy it was to find and classify the assigned rock. Learners record their observations on an index...
Curated OER
Wonders of Weather
Students understand the destructive force of a tornado. They learn the role of a thunderstorm in the creation of a tornado.