Lesson Plan
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Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
Students become familiar with coal as an energy source and how it is mined.  In this coal lesson, students research the effects of coal mining on the environment. Students discuss the various problems associated with coal mining....
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Milestones in Human Spaceflight

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students investigate the history and goals of NASA and human spaceflight. In this space science lesson, students answer questions about one of seven manned space programs and print pictures from the mission. As a...
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Wild Kingdom

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research and discuss the natural habitats and various evolutionary theories of giraffes and other animals imported into ancient Rome.
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My Life as a Star!

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students research the life cycle of a star and present their finding to the class.
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Hominoid Skull Comparison

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students are provided with evidence used to support evolutionary theory. They are introduced to classification by using primates as an example. Students read article related to Hominoid Skull Comparison and write a summary about the...
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Animal Invasion

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners research and illustrate the natural habitats and evolution of giraffes and other animals imported into ancient Rome. They draw a map of Europe, North Africa, and West Asia and draw the animals from each region in their proper...
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The Ultimate Predator

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students listen to a lecture by the teacher about the "Ultimate Predator." They design a new "Ultimate Predator." Students present their creations to the class and attempt to convince their classmates that their predator is indeed the...
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13 Ways to Tell Time Backwards

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students explore different ways geological time can be measured: comparing the time dimensions for each method, the mechanisms of each method, and the materials used.
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Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students examine the relationship between temperature and brightness.  In this astronomy lesson students will correlate the evolution of stars to the HR diagram plotted. 
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Trouble in the Troposphere

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students create graphs using NASA data, compare ozone levels of several U.S. cities, analyze and evaluate the data and predict trends based on the data, and discuss and describe how human activities have modified Earth's air quality.
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Cyclic Universe: Worlds Without End

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students compare and contrast the Big Bang Theory and the Cyclic Universe Model. They explain basic properties of the univers which make life possible. They evaluate ideas about the origin of the universe as to their scientific value.
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Seasonal Cloud Cover Variations

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students recognize different cloud types. They determine the seaonality of various types of clouds. They graph the data and determine if a correlation exists between season, cloud cover and type of clouds most prevalent during each season.
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Whale Adaptations

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Learners explore whales and how they have adapted to survive in the ocean.  In this whale adaptations lesson students complete several activities that allow them to investigate animal adaptations.
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The Energy of the Sun

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students study energy generation by the Sun, which involves atoms and nuclei.
Lesson Plan
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Dogs & Darwin

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders construct and conduct a laboratory experiment illustrating the transfer of mutations. They compare and contrast natural selection in organisms with long and short reproductive cycles.
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Lighting Our Way

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students read a variety of web-based articles to explore the history of human understanding of light. They investigate light waves and read about the work of Albert Einstein.
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Biome Trip

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders comprehed how individual organism adapt and relate to an environment. They investigate where biomes are located and what specific biomes are like. Pupils give examples of biomes (land and water), and how temperature and...
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Countdown Calendar

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Young scholars create a calendar of endangered species. In this preservation lesson, students research endangered species of plants and animals around the Lake Pontchartrain Basin. Young scholars gather facts about the endangered species...
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Lotto or Life: What Are the Chances?

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Though the website does not seem to have the mentioned video, a reding and lottery style games simulate the chances of finding intelligent life somewhere other than Earth. Without the video, this lesson is short, but it can be a useful...
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The "Nuts and Bolts" of Taxonomy and Classification

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students develop classification scheme that meets the established rules of the Linnaean system. They write one page essay on classification choices.
Lesson Plan
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Who was Charles Darwin?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers trace major developments in the history of evolutionary science. They discuss the connections between major events in world history and major events in the development of evolutionary thought by creating timelines.
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Drifting Continents, Dynamic Results

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Pupils plot earthquake and volcano data using a Compass Rose Plotting. They explain the relationship between plate movement and connection. They draw conclusions that earthquakes and volcanoes occur in predictable locations.
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Excavating the Past

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students discover how palaeontologists conduct a dig for fossils and how they interpret the age of the fossils. In small groups, they prepare a "dig site" consisting of bones, rocks and soil layered in a cardboard box. They switch boxes...
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Mountains in the Sea Exploration No Escape

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers study data to hypothesis about the influence of a water circulation cell on the retention of benthic invertebrate larvae in the area of a seamount. They investigate the positives and negatives of larvae retention in this...