National Institute of Open Schooling
Biomolecules
An informative lesson has learners read about, discuss, and study the classification, structure and importance of the following biomolecules: carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and enzymes.
Beyond Benign
Daphnia Bioassay LD50
De-icing materials may have a harmful effect on our environment; have your class perform an experiment to test the nature of these effects. Scholars monitor the survival rate of a sample of daphnia as the concentration of a de-icing...
Serendip
Vitamins and Health – Why Experts Disagree
Should people take vitamins or get the needed minerals through diet? Experts disagree based on many different factors. Scholars compare study findings and discuss the differences. They learn the importance of comparing results across...
Biology Junction
Plant Structure and Function: Roots, Stems, and Leaves
Scientists found fossils of plants more than 420 million years old—but plants existed for up to 100 million years prior to these fossils. Learn about the importance of plants to the entire planet. Viewing a presentation helps scholars...
Curated OER
Evolution worksheet
Looking at evolution in detail, this thorough worksheet has complex questions requiring details and explanations of natural selection and diversity. Various examples of biological characteristics are available, and students choose the...
Curated OER
Guess Who Came to Dinner!
An exceptionally creative approach is taken to assessing your biologists' grasp of natural selection concepts. They are to imagine hosting Charles Darwin for dinner and having, to their surpise, a few other noted scientists crash the...
Curated OER
Galapagos - Discover the Diversity
Pretend you are exploring a newly discovered species of fish in the Galapagos. Your budding marine biologists access FishBase Database's list of marine/brackish fishes and choose one to research. The link through this website does not...
Curated OER
Benefits, drawbacks of alternative healing
Learners discuss alternative healing techniques, then chart the potential benefits and drawbacks of alternative health therapies. They design symbols representing alternative healing techniques.
Curated OER
Natural Selection
High schoolers research examples of Natural Selection on a website provided by the teacher. They experiment in groups, different processes of Natural Selection and list them on a chart provided in this lesson plan
Curated OER
The Tragedy of the Commons
Ninth graders participate in a demonstration of the concept of "The Tragedy of the Commons." They conduct a "fishing" simulation demonstrating overfishing, complete two data tables, and answer discussion questions.
Curated OER
Beans and Birds: A Natural Selection Simulation
High schoolers solve the following problem concerning the evolution of seed color in pinto bean plants: "How does natural selection change the frequency of genes or traits over many generations?" They use the constructivist approach to...
Curated OER
Survival of the Fittest – Battling Beetles
Students explore natural selection. For this genetic adaptation lesson, students discover why certain traits continue and some traits disappear. Students discover how species evolve and change. Resources are provided.
Curated OER
Effects of Water Pollution on Aquatic Organisms
Students investigate water pollution. They develop an understanding of the behavior of organisms, of the structure and properties of matter, and of natural and human induced hazards by conducting lab tests. They present their data...
Curated OER
Population Vs Consumption: Which is a Bigger Problem for the Environment & Who is Getting the Lion's Share of the World's Resources?
Students develop critical thinking and awareness about the complexity of natural resource use, wealth distribution, population densities, poverty, and the environment. They think about people living in different parts of the world and...
Curated OER
Connecticut Wildlife: Biodiversity and Conservation Status of Our Vertebrate Populations
Students explore the different types of vertebrates found in their area. In this environmental science lesson plan, students perform a case study on the Common Raven. They analyze data collected from research and create charts and graphs.
Curated OER
The Classification of the Kingdoms of Life
Students can learn about the evolution of science by discussing the classification of living things.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
How Novel Icefish Genes Can Improve Human Health
Designed to accompany the 13-minute video The Making of the Fittest: The Birth and Death of Genes, this handout serves as both a viewing guide during the video and an analysis of how the adaptations of the icefish might help treat...
Curated OER
Characterization of the Bioluminescence (Lux+) Gene E. coli
Students grow E. coli strain HB101, which contains the plasmid pUCD607 with the bioluminescence (Lux+) gene. The plasmid containing the Lux+ gene is isolated from the E. coli, then characterized by restriction analysis.
Virginia Department of Education
Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration
Provide high schoolers with their own indoor gardens! Emerging scientists discuss the process of photosynthesis and germinate seeds before growing plants in multiple lighting conditions. The hands-on application allows...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Gorongosa: Making Observations Activity
Do you have young scientists wanting to make new discoveries rather than just completing the same experiments? Young scientists use their observational skills to identify animals and patterns in animal behavior. Through tracking...
Virginia Department of Education
A Designed Organism
How can you encourage pupils to demonstrate creativity while still meeting the objective of applying technical knowledge? This activity is your answer! Scientists will create an imaginary creature and prepare a graphic organizer with...
Curated OER
Urban Ecosystems 5: In Defense Of Cities
Students explain that while cities have unattractive features, the density of human life enables energy efficiency, mass transit, recycling, and other benefits which are difficult or impossible in rural areas. This is the fifth in an...
Curated OER
Natural Selection
Students use discussion questions, handout information and research topics to explore several issues related to natural selection and evolution. They examine Darwin's research on the finch and antibiotic resistance.
Curated OER
Natural Selection
Students construct a working definition of the word "evolution," and list the key points of Darwin's theory of natural selection. They create paper moths to help them explain the importance of camouflage and how it relates to natural...