Students explore how the angle and distance of an object can change it's temperature. After reviewing how the position of the Earth affects the temperature of the planet, student groups design and perform an experiment to test how...

How does NASA transport people and cargo to planets? The five-lesson unit breaks down the transportation system that scientists use to transport cargo to space. Pairs team up in order to devise a transportation system that will...

Sometimes it seems as if earthquakes hit the same places over and over again. Class members study Japan in order to determine why earthquakes keep happening there. Pairs work together to research and try to determine whether there...

Pairs use an online simulation to determine the epicenter and magnitude of an earthquake. Using real data about the earthquake's maximum S wave amplitudes, they then determine the magnitude. The resource provides a great career...

Students identify the different types of meteorite using an interactive website. In this earth science lesson, students simulate how meteors crash on a surface. They relate meteor size to crater size.

Students explore the formation of volcanoes. In this earth science lesson, students build their own volcanoes in the lab using different materials. They identify the different types of volcanoes.

Students examine the use of space as the frontier of the future. Using the colonist's experience coming to the New World, they identify challenges they would face if they were to settle in space. As a class, they share what they already...

Learners work in groups of 4-6 for the experiment/activity part of this exercise. Students know that earth is the third planet from the sun in a system that includes the moon, the sun, eight other planets and their moons, and smaller...

Students examine how the sun's intensity affects the temperature on various planets. They determine whether or not these planets could be habitable. Finally, they factor in the average albedo of the planets to determine whether or not...

Sixth graders research the average temperatures of different places on Earth. For this earth science lesson, 6th graders explain how the sun's heat cause ocean movement. They discuss how temperature change affects the weather we experience.

Students examine the basic biosphere and its components.  In this ecology lesson students complete several experiments including designing a system that is balanced to sustain life.

Students investigate past winter Olympic games utilizing any skiing or snowboarding event to take Newton's Challenge. Helpful Web resources are provided and students enjoy learning science laws along with researching Olympic events.

Third graders are introduced to the concept of gravity by observing different objects being dropped from a high point. In groups, they complete the same activities Galileo did and record their observations. To end the lesson, they...

Students identify the most common causes of global warming. In this earth science instructional activity, students use an interactive website to explore changes over time in sea ice, sea level, carbon emissions, and average global...

Learners conduct an experiment comparing human cells to chicken cells. For this cells lesson plan, students conduct an experiment to see how nutrition moves through cells and how to better take care of their bodies.

Learners investigate how robots are used in space. In this space science lesson, students participate in an experiment using a blindfold and complete assigned tasks. The learners demonstrate how robots are "thinking" machines.

Students investigate Daisyworld, a very simple planet that has only two species of life on its surface - white and black daisies, and bare ground. They construct a Stella model of Daisyworld and perform guided experiments to explore the...

High schoolers plan the first manned mission to Mars. They discuss, in small groups, some of the information that the group might have heard regarding the red planet and decide which types of occupations should be included in a crew for...

Students model the preparation needed for a soft-landing on a planet or object in space. They do this by packaging a raw egg with certain material, and dropping the egg from a given height to test the packaging effectiveness.

Students compare and contrast the various heavenly bodies found in the sky at night. They identify the moon and stars in the sky as well as how the stars form pictures called constellations. Students also experiment with reflection and...

Young scholars examine the water cycle. In this hydrologic cycle lesson, students follow the provided procedures to demonstrate the how water moves around the planet through the dynamics of the water cycle.

Students compare and contrast the process of dehydration with the processes of freezing and canning. They predict energy sources that may be accessible in the future in different environments such as the moon and planets, most notably Mars.

Eighth graders examine the ways that NASA could create space farms,  In this space farms lesson students complete an experiment where they grow several plants. 

Learners conduct investigations to demonstrate and learn that air takes up space, and puts pressure, or pushes, on everything around it. They conduct experiments to learn about feeling air pressure and measuring air pressure. Prior to...