Imagine having to give up cell phones, computers, and TV? What would be lost? What gained? An examination of the Drokpa, a nomadic people who live in the grasslands of Tibet, provides class members an opportunity to consider how access...

High schoolers learn the fundamental concepts of economics as it relates to government.

Do the ends justify the means? Getting a drug approved in the US is a long and involved process. But at some point out, it involves testing on humans. The ethics of such testing is the focus of a resource that uses Dr. Albert...

A controversial construction project in South America, the Belo Monte dam, is endangering local cultures, ecosystems, and communities. High schoolers create a concept map based on an online article they read before engaging in...

Sixth graders explore the Tropical Rainforest and come to understand what it is and how it affects the ecosystem. In this rainforests activity, 6th graders write about the Tropical Rainforest, imagine they are in the Tropical...

Students recognize the affects of technology on the environment. They examine data to determine methods to improve waater quality. A research paper is written to desribe recommendations for improving water in the future.

Your teenagers may have heard of fracking, but do they really know what it is? And could they debate the benefits and risks? Educate your environmental science class with a lesson about hydraulic fracturing, non-renewable energy...

Scholars become experts on the eight major impacts of climate change through a jigsaw and grand conversation. They then research and present what they learned about effects specific to their region.    

Here is a chance for environmental studies classes to take a critical look at crises occurring around the globe by reading articles and viewing video clips. The human activities under scrutiny are the extraction of oil, logging, and...

Six different lessons comprise this unit on marine debris. Science, language arts, social studies, and art projects make this an ideal interdisciplinary unit. The result will be well-informed future citizens who can help make a...

Sixth graders explore, analyze and study the effect and impact that humans have on the environment based on their choices as individuals, businesses and governments. They assess the balance between human activities and aquatic pollution.

Students view and discuss the movie from 1951 "The Man in the White Suit" and how scientific discoveries can sometimes have negative social and economic consequences. They define key vocabulary terms from the movie, watch the movie, and...

Third graders examine the issue of food quality to assess the dangers of pesticides, additives, and improper food preparation. After keeping food diaries and categorizing foods, they fill in food pyramids based on their journal entries....

Students examine the effects of pests on other organisms, crops, and the environment. they construct an insect observation chamber and discover how some insects can be pests in some situations and beneficial in others. They write "pest...

Students study black history, examine portraits and portrait making and create their own portraits, and  investigate their natural environment. This humanities lesson provides a text that can be used to teach lessons in black...

A set of lessons help aspiring scientists practice the critical thinking skills required for facing controversial issues such as evolution. As a group, they discuss what controversy consists of. They compare and constrast the concepts of...

Students explore different aspects of stem cells.  In this human biology lesson, students complete numerous activities including reading an article and discussing it, watching a video on stem cells reproducing over time, and...

Students identify how the human activities in the state of Maryland have changed/ evolved over the last 50 years. They evaluate a land planning document and prepare a fictitious planning document for a given area of land.

High schoolers develop an understanding of environmental laws and regulations.  In this research lesson plan, students utilize information that involves controversial issues of wildlife and society. 

Students research real-time and historic temperature data of U.S. and world locations, and analyze the data using mean, median, and mode averages. They graph the data and draw conclusions by analyzing the data. A spreadsheet is used to...

Third graders complete a KWL chart on what they already know about water and what they want to know. As a class, they participate in an activity in which they discover the amount of drinkable water on Earth and are introduced to the...

Students investigate how size affects large and small animals differently. In this animal lesson plan, students determine how size affects different animals by constructing their own animal out of marshmallows. Once students create...

Students investigate water use and what happens at a water treatment plant. They define and discuss key vocabulary terms, view a diagram of a water treatment plant, and conduct an experiment that simulates the water filtration process.

Students study the causes of electricity shortage in California in 2000-2001. In this social studies lesson, students evaluate the effect of the deregulation process. They discuss the actions taken by the government to solve the crisis.