American Chemical Society
Designing a Shade Structure
Bring the learning outdoors with an enjoyable activity about Earth's heating, sunlight, and shade. Scholars use problem-solving skills as they design, build, and test a sunshade structure. Participants view a video summarizing the...
Curated OER
Tracks along the Trail
Students identify animal tracks outdoors. In this animal life lesson plan, students go outdoors and find several different animal tracks to identify. Students also discuss how animals must adapt in the winter months.
Curated OER
What a Character!
Students look at the role of characters in a story. In this character lesson, students discuss how different types of characters change the plot of the story. They see how storytellers use their body, face, and voice to tell stories.
Curated OER
Make a Sundial
Students explore space science by conducting a sun experiment in class. In this time telling lesson, students discuss how the sun sits in our sky at exact times each day and how astronomy is based on our perspective of the solar system....
Curated OER
Survivor!
Students play a game in physical education class to examine how a deer survives. Using nature as a guide, they discover how it is constantly changing due to weather, food, water, pollution and predators. They discuss the characteristics...
Curated OER
Photosynthesis
Young scholars are introduced to the process of photosynthesis. In groups, they test the effects of the lack of sunlight on plant leaves and compare the results with their hypothesis. They note the characteristics that plants and animals...
Curated OER
Up the Down Tree House
Students investigate the decomposition process. In this ecology lesson, students participate in a play, "Up the Treehouse" where the main idea focuses on a decomposing tree and how food chains are effected by decomposition. After the...
Curated OER
Pen Pals
Learners make their own predictions about the amount of different types of birds at each site before they go there. In groups, they collect the bird data and compose letters to their pen pals sharing their information. To end the lesson,...
Curated OER
Balloon Math: A Game for All Levels
Here is a game that combines exercise with math skills. In this mathematics and P.E. instructional activity, students hold balloons that have a number written on them, and for a set time do not let the balloons hit the ground. They must...
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Investigating Evidence
Explore the scientific process through nature. Scholars become scientists as they develop a question, design an experiment, collect data, and analyze their results. A two-week lesson guides your classes through the process and provides...
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Life In A Nest: Exploring Life Cycles With Bird Cams
Why read about it when you can watch it happen? Bird cams make it possible for learners to experience the life cycle of a bird in real time! An engaging set of lessons provides activities to connect their learning to bird cam...
Curated OER
Calculating Stride Length
How many steps does one take to walk a mile? The number of steps one walks in a mile would definitely depend on the length of his stride. Shorter people may take shorter strides, and taller people may take longer strides. This activity...
Arizona Cooperative Extension
Geocaching
Using GPS units, small groups participate in a scavenger hunt to find an object that you have hidden. They use coordinates for stopping points along a pre-planned path to get to the final cache. This is a terrific activity to include in...
Curated OER
Fossil Formation
A fossil is worth a thousand words! Individuals craft their own amber fossil of an insect in addition to molds and casts of seashells. A third activity takes the instructional activity a notch higher: Learners measure stride lengths...
National Gardening Association
Migration Mishaps
Elementary ecologists pretend to be migratory hummingbirds. They fly between wintering and nesting grounds, trying to reach a habitat haven. In a musical-chair fashion, some birds will miss out, and are removed from the game. To further...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Preparing for Project BudBurst
Plants take cues from the environment—change in daylight hours and temperature—to complete their seasonal life cycles. Lesson four in the series of six has classes collect phenology data on plants. After taking initial observations,...
Curated OER
Invading the enemy
Students participate in a physical outdoor activity in order to develop individual and group trust. In this interpersonal relationship lesson, students play attempt to find hidden objects in the dark. Students must trust their...
Curated OER
Technology that Makes Phonics Fun
Students discover the Internet by participating in on-line educational activities. In this educational technology lesson, students utilize interactive story books, podcasts, and games to help expand an understanding of phonics....
Curated OER
Teaching Handball
Students participate in a number of different lessons with the intention of improving skills to play handball. Each lesson plan focuses on a certain skill like strokes and serves. The skills have a progression of difficulty until the...
Curated OER
Crosby Rush
Students develop their striking skills by trying to score a hockey goal. In this striking skills lesson, students use hockey sticks and small balls to practice scoring a goal.
Curated OER
Summer Camp in the Classroom
Students explore wildlife plants and summer activities. For this natural science lesson, students identify plants and animals and create a scrapbook of their findings.
Curated OER
Framing the Landscape
Learners draw their own drawings after learning about composition of drawings and lines. In this drawing lesson plan, students learn about different lines they can use while drawing. Then they go outside and draw their own.
Curated OER
Outdoor Survivors
Fifth graders complete a survey to decide what are most popular plants among the class. They test the water quality in a nearby pond. Studnts test the quality of soil samples taken from their homes. Different plants are moistened with...
Curated OER
Surviving Extremes
Students examine the potential health dangers of mountain climbing in high altitudes and deep-sea diving. They write a health and safety column for a fictional magazine about extreme outdoor sports that explains the risks involved in...