Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hazardous Chemicals? Not in my Water!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students reflect on the effects of their actions on the environment. In this community service instructional activity, students investigate the hazardous quality of products within their homes. Student educate their families and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Texas is Planning To Manage Its Water

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research water management strategies in Texas. They analyze projected demand for water in the year 2050, interpret graphs and tables and then discuss the data as part of a written report. They research and map the locations of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Let's Make a Compost Cake

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students create a compost cake. For this gardening and decomposition science lesson, students review and describe the "nutrient cycle." Students create a compost pile, measure and record the dimensions and temperature of the pile, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reading the River

For Teachers 5th - 8th
In collaborative groups, young ecologists measure the temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen for three different freshwater samples. They examine each sample with a microscope and record observations on the microorganisms in the pond...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Where in the world is the Hydra Electron?

For Teachers 1st - 8th
Walk your class through the journey water takes once it leaves your kitchen sink, all the way through the water cycle. Demonstrations support your lecture. This plan is thoroughly written, but ideally you would follow it up with water...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Let the River Run

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars explore the environment by reading a story in class. For this water formation lesson, students define environmental terms such as rivers, streams, gulf, oceans and lakes. Young scholars read the story A River Ran Wild and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Watershed Protection

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore environmental care by participating in an Earth science activity. In this clean water lesson, students discuss what a watershed is, how they become polluted, and how it affects the overall quality of drinking water....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Save That Water

For Teachers K - 2nd
Learners investigate water conservation. For this environmental lesson, students brainstorm ways they use water and discuss ways to conserve water. Learners illustrate and write about their method of water conservation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water and Sanitation

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Pupils examine water contamination problems. In this global studies lesson plan, students compare and contrast water sanitation issues on Malawi, Tanzania, and Ontario. Pupils propose solutions to the water sanitation problems.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Are You a Water Waster?

For Teachers 1st - 4th
Students determine what it means to be water wasters. In this water conservation lesson plan, students follow the provided procedures to identify how much water is used in their household when people brush their teeth.
Worksheet
Curated OER

What Happened to the Chesapeake Bay Filtering System?

For Students 6th - 9th
In this environmental science lesson, students write a short story about what it's like to help at an oyster garden. They formulate 2 hypotheses on the disappearance of oysters in Chesapeake Bay.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water Quality Survey

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students identify the differences in the water quality of a stream and complete water testing.  In this water quality lesson students collect aquatic insects and identify them. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water Quality Assessment

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Learners evaluate water quality of different sources.  In this water assessment lesson students chemical testing, identify biological factors in the stream, and write a paper on their position of the stream's quality. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Our Water Footprint

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Young scholars discuss the water usage of the world and their own water usage. In this water lesson plan, students read a story about water and discuss different statistics of water usage around the world.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cleaning up an oil spill

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Small groups complete a science project involving cleaning up an oil spill. In this experiment, pupils use 4 different sorbents to discover which one absorbs the most oil.  Afterward, they make a data table.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lake Strata and Internal Waves

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Use the classic density demonstration of placing a cola, a clear soda, and a diet soda into a tank of water. Then let learners attempt to pour some of the soda into layers in a clear container. The procedure explains a thermocline, and...
PPT
Curated OER

The Coastal Ocean: Estuaries and Continental Shelves

For Teachers 11th - Higher Ed
Amazing high-quality satellite imagery, photos, informational graphs, and detailed diagrams comprise this presentation on the movement of estuaries and the continental shelf. Data used as an example is from The Chesapeake Bay and because...
PPT
Curated OER

The Influence of Human Activity on the Environment

For Teachers 4th - 8th
The surge in human population in the last 2,000 years, due in large part to better health care, has brought a surge in the demand for resources and in pollution. The graphics, photographs, and real-life examples in a thought-provoking...
Unit Plan
Institute for Applied Ecology

From Salmonberry to Sagebrush - Exploring Oregon’s Native Plants

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Take a deep dive into Oregon's ecosystems, plants, and changes from the past to the future. Many hands-on activities in an environmental science unit delight scholars, including creating a field guide for a local park. The in-depth study...
Activity
DiscoverE

Pipe Maze

For Teachers 3rd - 12th Standards
Here's a lesson that is simply a-MAZE-ing! Introduce science scholars to pipeline systems through a hands-on project. Partnered pupils participate in the design, construct, and test a PVC pipeline maze. Reusable materials and clear...
PPT
Curated OER

"Dead-Zones" and Coastal Eutrophication: Case-Study of Chesapeake Bay

For Teachers 11th - Higher Ed
Take an in-depth look at nutrient loading, eutrophication, and hypoxia using data on The Chesapeake Bay as an example. This comprehensive presentation includes detailed graphs, photos, and details about the changes in marine organism...
Activity
Colorado State University

What Makes a Gas, a Greenhouse Gas?—The Carbon Dioxide Dance

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Investigate a heated topic in environmental science. Scholars team up to play the parts of gas molecules in the atmosphere. As the teacher moves about, acting as the electromagnetic wave, learners react as their molecules would to the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

TE Lesson: How Clean is that Water?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine the factors the affect water quality, and allow for animals and plants to live. They look at how engineers apply water quality information when making stream modifications in order to ensure drinking water quality. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water Cycle Terrariums

For Teachers 3rd - 7th
Students explore the water cycle. They build a model of the water cycle in the form of a terrarium and explain how it demonstrates the water cycle. In addition, they draw a representation of the water cycle demonstrated in the terrarium.