National Wildlife Federation
Quantifying Land Changes Over Time Using Landsat
"Humans have become a geologic agent comparable to erosion and [volcanic] eruptions ..." Paul J. Crutzen, a Nobel Prize-winning atmospheric chemist. Using Landsat imagery, scholars create a grid showing land use type, such as urban,...
Teach Engineering
Egg-cellent Landing
The classic egg-drop experiment gets a new bounce with an activity that asks pairs to design a lander similar to one used to land a rover on Mars within a fixed budget. The activity provides a great introduction to the idea of terminal...
Curated OER
Advanced Matching--Land Formations Part 1
Using this activity, learners could review information they have covered about land forms, such as hills, mountains and plateaus. This 17 question activity could be used with upper elementary or ESL students to test or review information...
Polar Trec
Global Snow Cover Changes
Snow is actually translucent, reflecting light off its surface which creates its white appearance. Pairs or individuals access the given website and answer questions about snow cover. They analyze graphs and charts, examine data, and...
National Wildlife Federation
Quantifying Land Changes Over Time in Areas of Deforestation and Urbanization
Is qualitative or quantitative research more convincing when it comes to climate change? In the eighth lesson during this 21-part series, scholars begin by performing a quantitative analysis of deforestation and urbanization. Then, they...
Curated OER
Snow Cover by Latitude
Students create graphs showing the amount of snow coverage at various points of latitude and compare graphs.
Curated OER
Land Use Change Over Time
Young scholars use historical aerial photographs and current aerial photographs to compare the change over time to the land. In this land changing lesson plan, students analyze, compare, contrast, and list the land change in their own...
Curated OER
This Land Is Our Land
Students research federal land holdings. They explore how those lands are used. They map these lands and design their own legends. They discuss whether or not the land is being used accordingly.
Curated OER
Islam Expands: In spite of internal conflicts, the Muslims create a huge empire that includes land on three continents.
Beginning with a vocabulary review and ending with the Muslim Trade Network, this well-put-together presentation covers the events that lead to the spread of Islam. Also covered are internal conflicts which would provide a good...
Curated OER
The Land and People Before Columbus
The major pre-Columbian settlements are studied in this excellente social studies lesson. Fifth graders explain how geography and climate influenced the way various nations lived and adjusted to the environment, and focus on eight...
Curated OER
Natural Resources and Land Use
Seventh graders explore natural resources and land use. In this geography skills lesson, 7th graders view a PowerPoint presentation on the topics and discuss the distribution of natural resources and land use issues in East Asia. The...
Curated OER
Water in the Biosphere
Environmental explorers examine the campus and take note of living organisms. Introduce them to the biosphere and the questions of the day: How much water can be found in the biosphere? A slide show helps you along, and even contains a...
Curated OER
Exploring Microclimates
Students compare the land cover and temperatures in different microclimates to begin to explain why organisms live where they do. While exploring microclimates, students record temperature readings and detailed observations.
Curated OER
Farmers - Caretakers of the Land
Students explore resource management, specifically farming. After reviewing vocabulary words, groups of students explore what is conserved by each practice. They compare and contrast responses. Students describe farming procedures which...
Curated OER
How Should Our Gardens Grow?
Young scholars examine different types of land use by humans and evaluate the ways land is used in their local community. They also consider the environmental effects of the different types of land use. Students assume the role of...
Curated OER
Curriculum Activities: Ecological Concepts
Students explore a variety of microclimates to develop an awareness of why organisms live where they do. Moisture, time of day, land cover, and temperature form the basic concepts of this investigation.
Curated OER
Exploring Wyoming Species Habitats
Middle schoolers are introduced to the concept of species habitats and ranges. They introduced to ArcView GIS as a tool for mapping. Pupils use query data for species withina county, elevation, range, rivers and streams, land cover, and...
Curated OER
Earth's Land and Water
Pupils describe physical characteristics of bodies of water and landforms. In this land and water lesson plan, students model land and water with modeling clay and also discuss why people live near bodies of water.
Curated OER
Animal Coverings
Students categorize animals by their coverings. They list descriptive words, explore a science center with actual animal coverings, match pictures of animals with coverings, and categorize pictures of animals by their coverings on a...
Curated OER
Land of No Trees
In this Land of No Trees worksheet, students read a passage titled "Land of No Trees" about the Arctic Tundra and complete an experiment and short answer questions about it. Students complete an experiment with a plastic container, soil,...
Curated OER
Comparison of Snow Cover on Different Continents
Students use the Live Access Server (LAS) to form maps and a numerical text file of snow cover for each continent on a particular date. They analyze the data for each map and corresponding text file to determine an estimate of snow cover...
Curated OER
What Covers Earth?
In this natural resources activity, students will compare and contrast how people use the earth's water, land, and air by filling in the blanks of 10 statements.
Curated OER
Science Excursion: Cover Mapping Land
Young scholars study remotely sensed images and topographic maps to classify land cover types in their watershed area. They take samples in the watershed area to interpret the images.
Curated OER
Lesson 2 Its a Small World (Day 2)
Students are able to explain how the water cycle recycles the earth's water supply. They are able to make use of the knowledge of land forms learned in social studies. Students are able to form a hypothesis on how/why the water cycle...