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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's Out There? Space Shuttle Exploration and Simulation

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Students simulate life in space aboard the space shuttle. In this space exploration lesson, students work in small groups to model life aboard the space shuttle. Each student is given a job, conducts Internet research on space, and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Get a Leg Up

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Traveling through space is an amazing experience, but it definitely takes a toll on the body. After reading an article and watching a brief video, learners perform an experiment that simulates the effects of zero gravity on the human body.
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Investigating the Atmosphere - Air Takes Up Space

For Students 1st - 5th Standards
How do you know there is air? Can you see it, smell it, feel it? To begin the investigation, learners watch a video and discuss what they know about air and the atmosphere. Then, they participate in five different hands-on, inquiry-based...
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Lesson Plan3:27
TED-Ed

The Fundamentals of Space-Time: Part 3

For Teachers 9th - 12th
If you weren't already blown away by first two installments, check out this clip on how gravity and space-time interact! Our physicist friends, Pontzen and Whyntie, continue their discussion of these motion concepts for your high...
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Lesson Plan
Messenger Education

My Angle on Cooling—Effect of Distance and Inclination

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
When exploring Mars, spacecrafts are exposed to 5-11 times more sunlight than when near Earth. Groups of pupils complete a hands-on activity to explore how distance and angle of the sun affect temperature. Through discussions, they then...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar Arrays for the Space Station

For Teachers K - 4th
Students explore the challenges that are faced when transporting materials into space. They review the various forms of energy, including solar arrays, that are used on the International Space Station and how generating this energy calls...
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Lesson Plan
Chymist

Ink Analysis: An Experiment in Paper Chromatography

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Test differences in writing instruments with this hands-on activity to demonstrate paper chromatography in action. The class performs an experiment on multiple writing instruments and determines the area of separation to discover an...
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Lesson Plan
Oceanic Research Group

Heat Transfer and Cooling

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Astronauts train underwater to simulate the change in gravity. An out-of-this-world unit includes three hands-on activities, one teacher demonstration, and a discussion related to some of the challenges astronauts face. Scholars apply...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Creating/Improving the International Space Station

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers research space and gravity and understand the difficulties humans have while on the International Space Station. In this space lesson plan, students listen to personal accounts of astronauts on videos and present designs...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Earth and Space—Climate and Seasons

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Why does Earth have so many seasons? Learn about the importance and changes of our planet's climate with a series of learning activities, which focus on connecting seasons to past experiences, making scientific observations, and...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Melting Ice: Designing an Experiment

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
Sometimes, despite the best laid plans, the unexpected will occur. Learners witness this firsthand as they carefully design an experiment to determine the time needed for ice to melt in salt water or pure water. They uncover facts not...
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Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Scientific Method Experiment: Factors Affecting How Ice Melts

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students demonstrate the scientific method by conducting an ice cube melting experiment. They make predictions and observations, and conclude what factors make ice melt more slowly or quickly than normal.
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Lesson Plan
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National Science Teacher Association

Middle School Sampler: Science

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Focus on inquiry-based learning in your science class with a series of activities designed for middle schoolers. A helpful packet samples four different texts, which include activities about predator-prey relationships, Earth's axis and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making Regolith

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
You may not be able to take a field trip to the moon, but that doesn't mean your class can't study moon rocks. Using graham crackers as the moon's bedrock and powdered donuts as micrometeorites, young scientists simulate the creation of...
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Lesson Plan
Scholastic

Lesson Three: The Earth, Movement in Space

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
If you feel like you're standing still, you're wrong! The Earth is constantly rotating and orbiting under our feet. Demonstrate the Earth's movement within the solar system with a collaborative activity. With a candle or lamp in the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building Your Space Station

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students discuss the benefits of the International Space Station. They evaluate the challenges the designers faced when trying to design the space station. Students discuss the use of scale models when designing large structures and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Astronauts Build Space Station Addition

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students read a story called Astronauts Finish Building Space Station Addition and answer vocabulary and comprehension questions about it. In this space station lesson plan, students respond to literature by answering questions,...
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Lesson Plan
PHET

Earth’s Magnetic Field from Space

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Feel the pull of science! The final installment of this 18-part series is an application of everything learned in the previous high school lessons. Scholars are given a magnetic field map and must propose an arrangement of magnets that...
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

The Intertropical Convergence Zone

For Teachers 3rd - 11th Standards
Young scientists know it is hotter along the equator, but why is it also rainier? Through the process of completing two experiments and a worksheet, scholars discover the answer is the intertropical convergence zone. First, they...
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Lesson Plan
US Environmental Protection Agency

Sea Level: On the Rise

For Teachers 6th - 10th Standards
With the global temperature on the rise, the effects of climate change are starting to be seen. However, many people have a difficult time conceptualizing the long-term effects, such as sea levels rising. Given an easy and effective...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Space Shuttle Glider

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Your charges will enjoy putting together this model of the space shuttle and completing the three challenge activities described in the lesson plan. The worksheets embedded in the plan that pupils use to cut out their gliders are...
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Continental Climate and Oceanic Climate

For Students 1st - 5th Standards
There's nothing better than a cool breeze blowing in from the ocean. Scholars explore how water affects change in temperature using a hands-on experiment on climate. They use measurement tools to compare the continental and oceanic...
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Oceans on the Rise

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Temperature rises and land disappears! Through a lab exploration, learners understand the effect of temperature increase on water similar to the effect of global warming on our oceans. As they heat the water in a flask, they measure the...
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Lesson Plan
Journey Through the Universe

Impact Craters: A Look at the Past

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
The Galle crater on Mars is also known as the Happy Face crater because of its appearance. First, scholars use pebbles and flour to simulate craters and study their properties. They then apply this knowledge to help decipher the history...