American Museum of Natural History
Start a Rock Collection
Rocks hold evidence of Earth's past. A three-step guide describes the process of creating a rock collection. It provides a data collection sheet to make notes about each sample.
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Reading Primary Source Documents: Historical Content
Why do we read primary source documents? What can they give us that other writings cannot? Provide your learners with any of the primary sources attached here (there are seven), and have them complete the graphic organizer (which opens...
NASA
Mystery Planet
What can one learn about a planet based on a small surface sample? Learners will explore artifacts from a mystery planet and see what they can determine about the planet based on the evidence in front of them.
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Digital Nature Journaling
Students create a digital journal every week using adapted technology that depicts the chosen focus for the week. For this digital journaling lesson, students search for items that depict the focus of the week and take photos. Students...
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Do Medicines Grow on Trees and Plants?
Students study the importance of preserving rainforest. They investigate the uses of rainforest plants for medicinal uses by participating in rainforest immersion activities.
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Rocks Lesson Plan
Young scholars become familiar with the characteristics of rocks and use them to sort. In this rocks lesson plan, students view a video, then try to identify various rock samples.
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School Yard Park/Ecosystem
Fifth graders observe and categorize different sections of a park and it's ecosystem. In this categorizing lesson plan, 5th graders collect different facets of nature from a nearby park (without disturbing the ecosystem). They map,...
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School Yard Park/ Ecosystem
Fifth graders examine ecosystems in their schoolyard. In this nature and ecosystem lesson, 5th graders map their schoolyard into workable plots. They classify plants and animals found in the plot. They revisit their site every two weeks...
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In the Field with Salamanders
Students observe salamanders, take pictures of them, and classify them into an online format. In this animal classification lesson plan, students use collection materials and digital camera to photograph and observe salamanders. Students...
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The Battle of Stones River: The Soldiers' Story
Learners organize items in a "doohickey kit" distributed by the teachers, creating categories using classification schemes. In this classification lesson, students compare systems within groups and write questions that could be answered...
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All in the (Insect) Family
Students participate in a series of activities in order to explore the diversity of insects. They explore how insects are grouped and categorized.
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Classification
Fifth graders analyze the necessity of classification. They distinguish between living and nonliving things in our world and recognize the six life functions of living things by identifying 15 classroom objects.
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A Planet Full of Animals
Students study animals and practice classifying them through observation activities. In this animal classification lesson, students complete a KWL chart about animals. Students then sort pictures of animals into chart categories based on...
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Snowfall
Students examine the differences between snow and rain. In this precipitation lesson, students measure one inch of rain and snow to calculate the amount of liquid water. Students use a snowfall "conversion" chart to measure how much...
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What Can We Do To Change These Materials
First graders perform experiments to investigate property changes that occur in materials or matter. In the science lab, they use heat to explore changes in rice, sand, gelatin, baking soda and more. Learners observe and record the...
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Hero Or Zero?
Students investigate science and technology by reading a children's book. In this reading comprehension lesson, students read the story Archibald Frisby and discuss the ways we use science and technology in everyday life....
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The Characteristics of Living Things
Eighth graders explore the characteristics of living things. In this living things lesson plan, 8th graders review as a class the cell theory and the characteristics of living things. They answer questions about how to determine if...
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Investigating Different Rock Types
Students analyze a rock using their eyes and then a hand lens. In this science lesson, students determine and discuss how hard or how easy it was to find and classify the assigned rock. Students record their observations on an index...
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Exploring Limu Diversity
Students explore limu diversity. In this ocean ecosystem lesson, students classify limu according to its physical properties. Students work in small groups to generate scientific observations and sort limu by characteristics.
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Plant Classfications
Seventh graders observe and discuss as a class the different types of vascular plants. They examine the different parts of the plant and some of the processes occurring in plants with activities accompanying.
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Tortilla Factory
Students identify productive resources and intermediate goods used to produce corn tortillas. In this productive resources lesson, students listen to the book Tortilla Factory and classify resources used to make paper tacos.
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Animal Diversity
Young scholars explore biology by completing science worksheets in class. In this animal anatomy instructional activity, students read the book The Adventures of Marco and Polo and identify the animals mentioned in it. Young scholars...
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The Button Box
Learners classify buttons. In this classification lesson, students listen to the book The Button Box by Margarette S. Reid before observing, describing and classifying real buttons.
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Dichotomous Chips
Students create a dichotomous key to different varieties of potato chips. In small groups, they observe and record characteristics of the potato chips to use in the key. They switch keys with another group to see if they can identify an...