Curated OER
Investigating Local Ecosystems
Students observe a local area for living organisms and their habitats. In this local ecosystems activity, students complete an online field journal. Students share their findings and sort them into categories. Students visit...
Curated OER
Predicting the Growth of Microorganisms
Students determine where microorganisms might be found around their school. In this scientific investigation lesson, students collect cultures from various locations and place these in petri dishes. They incubate the cultures to see if...
Curated OER
Food Chains
Fourth graders study food chains, producers, consumers, and decomposers. They play a food chain game and create food chain mobiles or posters. They take a nature hike around the school and observe various parts of a food chain.
Curated OER
Oil Spill
Young scholars 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.
Curated OER
It's Really Heating Up in Here!
Students create and observe a greenhouse effect model and discuss the implications of global warming theory for engineers, themselves and the Earth. They discover that Global warming is becoming an increasing concern as we learn more...
Curated OER
Bird Buffet
Fifth graders investigate how birds use their beaks. In this agriculture lesson, 5th graders use tools to simulate how birds gather food with their beaks. They then draw conclusions about certain types of beaks and what types of food a...
Curated OER
Recycling
Students relate recycling to waste reduction. In this science lesson, students talk about the environment and how recycling certain natural resources actually saves on energy. They also discuss what type of recycling causes...
Curated OER
TE Lesson: Renewable Energy
Students examine renewable energy sources such as solar, water, and wind. They experiment to determine how renewable energy is transformed into electricity. They investigate the role of engineers who work in the field of renewable energy.
Curated OER
TE Lesson: Energy Transfer in Musical Instruments
Students study concepts of energy and energy transfer. They look at how these concepts apply to musical instruments. They study the law of conservation of energy. They use the concepts studied in the lesson to design a musical instrument.
Curated OER
Let's Heat Things Up!
Students build and evaluate simple models to understand the greenhouse effect. They explore the role of increased greenhouse gas concentration in global warming, and the implications of global warming theory for engineers, themselves...
Curated OER
What Does it Take to be a Survivor? Part One
Young scholars explore marine animal adaptation. In this introductory ocean life biology lesson, students access prior knowledge by participating in a whole class "thought swap." Young scholars form two lines, respond to a prompt from...
Curated OER
A Constructivist Version of the Snail & Elodea Lab
Students explain the importance of having a control when setting up an experiment.
Curated OER
Wasting Energy at Home
Students act as energy conservation engineers and identify the ways energy is conserved or wasted. They also discover many ways to personally conserve energy everyday. Students discover how engineers perform home energy audits to...
Curated OER
The Sahara: Home of the Tuareg
Young scholars study inhabitants of the Sahara. In this Tuareg culture instructional activity, students explore the how the Tuareg people adapt to their environment as they research specific Internet sites.
Curated OER
The Physics of Sound: How We Produce Sounds
Learners are introduced to how they produce sounds. In groups, they participate in experiments in which they measure sound and identify their five senses. Individually, they make their own musical instruments using different objects and...
Curated OER
Should Populations in an Ecosystem be Restricted?
Fourth graders experiment to determine how overpopulation effects ecosystems specifically plants. In this ecosystem lesson plan, 4th graders conduct an ecosystems experiment after listening to Claire Daniel's, Ecosystems. They watch a...
Curated OER
Intertidal Zones
Students explore intertidal zones. In this intertidal zones lesson, students work in small groups and use ready-made materials to create a model of intertidal zones. Resources are provided.
Curated OER
Dripping Wet or Dry as a Bone?
Students use a sponge and water model to explore the concept of relative humidity and create a percent scale. They define humidity and saturation, build a simple humidity/saturation model, collect, predict and interpret data, and create...
Curated OER
Leaf ID and Leaf Bingo
Third graders explore the parts of a leaf and use a dichotomy key to identify leaves. For this biology lesson, learners study characteristics of various leaves and play a game of bingo to identify leaves by their traits. Students find...
Curated OER
Konnecting Simple Machines and K'Nex
Students study and identify different types of simple machines and how they work. They design a simple machine.
Curated OER
Plants and Animals
Students find common needs between plants and animals. In this plants and animals lesson students compare that both plants and animals need food and water. They also find the differences between plant and animal needs.
Curated OER
What's Air Got to Do with It?
Students use M&M's to create a pie graph that expresses their understanding of the composition of air. They watch and conduct several simple experiments to develop an understanding of the properties of air (it has mass, it takes up...
Curated OER
Greenewables
Students form expert engineering teams working for the (fictional) alternative energy consulting firm, Greenewables, Inc. Each team specializes in a form of renewable energy used to generate electrical power: passive solar, solar...
Curated OER
Leaning Tower of Pasta
Students experiment with different structures to determine which ones are able to handle the greatest amount of load using spaghetti and marshmallows. They discuss how engineers design buildings, construct their buildings and complete a...