Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wig-wag Physics

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners make observations on the effects of a small, medium and large weight on the movement of a wig-wag apparatus. They use their observations to develop a generalized inference of the effect weight on movement patterns.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Swinging Observations

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers build a pendulum type swinging apparatus and make specific and selective observations using what they know about scientific observations. They look for regularities of movement, patterns, and systemic changes over time.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Beyond the Tap

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explain the basic properties of a watershed including how water flows from higher to lower elevations and how watersheds are interconnected. They comprehend how the placement of buildings, roads, and parking lots can be...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cranes, Crosswalks, and Big Gulps

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students watch a video and answer questions based on wildlife jobs. In this wildlife lesson plan, students learn that biologists don't just play with animals but that there is a lot of study involved.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Human Organism

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students discuss human emotions and mental health. In this mental and emotional health lesson, students write a short story regarding the "think and share" choice. Students include emotion, the connection between feelings and conflict...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Using the Very, Very Simple Climate Model in the Classroom

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students study the relationship between the average global temperature and carbon dioxide emissions.  In this weather lesson students develop a test scenario using a model then read and interpret graphs of data. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sorting

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Learners explore how books are sorted in a library. For this sorting lesson, students play a game where they have to fill the shelves with books that share a common theme. Learners compare this game to a real library. Students discuss...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water 1: Water and Ice

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students investigate water in its solid and liquid form. In this states of matter instructional activity, students experiment to see what happens as water goes from a solid, ice, to a liquid, water, and back again. They write about and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Canadian Inventory: The Way We Are!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers, in groups, explore major thematic sections of the Atlas of Canada. They use their findings to produce a wall display, consider and incorporate the issue of sustainability into their material and deliver a presentation...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Working for Water

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students examine the ways that government works to help improve aquatic habitats. In this water habitats lesson students view a video and plan a school restoration project. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sampling Rocks

For Teachers K - 2nd
Young scholars study rocks they find on the playground.  In this investigative lesson students collect and analyze rocks they find and answer questions about them. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dinosaurs 1: Where Are the Dinosaurs?

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students explore dinosaurs. In this dinosaur identification lesson, students watch video clips for different dinosaurs from the Discovery Kids website. Students discuss the clips with their teacher. Students may then role play the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Protecting the Guatemalan Rainforest through Certification

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders examine criteria that may be involved in forest certification.  In this rainforest lesson students create a brochure to educate people on the benefits of buying certified forest products.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Our Universe: Designed or Evolved?

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Pupils brainstorm and write arguments for Evolution and Intelligent Design. They research the history of each of these ideas. They also examine the controversy of teaching one or both ideas in schools.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How a Seed Grows and Who Grows It

For Teachers 1st
First graders explore biology by viewing PowerPoint presentations in class. In this plant life lesson, 1st graders identify the life cycle of a plant and how to properly plant a seed outside. Students view a movie about plant life and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Thinking about Energy

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine their understandings about energy concepts by completing an online survey. Students participate in a class discussion about their uses of resources and the differences between perpetual, renewable, and nonrenewable...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Oil Slick Emergency

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine how to recover and remove oil from an oil spill.  In this oil spill clean-up lesson students use role play and act like a committee to determine how to clean up an oil spill.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Spineless - YES... Helpless - NO!

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students distinguish between invertebrate and vertebrate organisms while examining the zoological classes of a number of invertebrates. They illustrate a food web of these organisms and investigate the impact of humans on the oceanic...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Catapults

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Students are introduced to the concept of a catapult and how it is used with the help of a media presentation. They use catapults in a large, open area and record the distances objects travel. Students use the scientific method while...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Capacitors

For Teachers 5th - 10th
Students explain the concepts of charge storage and how a capacitor works. They construct a capacitor and measure the stored charge using the appropriate equipment and measurements. They also demonstrate capacitance and how it can be...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

An Introduction to the Ocean World

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Learners comprehend how the organisms that exist within the ocean biome, and categorizing each into producer, consumer, or decomposer. They place various human actions under the headings of "hazard" or "help," illustrating how humans can...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Does Preserving Wilderness Enhance Forestry

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students identify events of the environmental movement in the United States.  For this environment  lesson students study Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir, who had a great impact on the environmental movement. 
Lesson Plan
Nazareth College

Create Your Own Tornado

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders identify key concepts and definitions about tornados. They work in small groups of three to four to create mini-tornados. After reading Tornado Alert as a class, 3rd graders discuss tornados and fill out a KWL chart.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Do New Species Form?

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students read an article by Niles Eldridge about species and the environment and break into small groups to discuss it. They write essays noting strengths and weaknesses of punctuated equilibrium and gradualism, or other topics listed.