Curated OER
The Great School Clean-Up
Students clean up their school grounds. In this environmental stewardship lesson, students take part in cleaning their school area and reflect on the experience.
Curated OER
Cooking Up the Scientific Method
First graders identify the different steps of the scientific method. In this life science activity, 1st graders apply this method when conducting a series of hands-on activities. They collect data and write observations in their journals.
Curated OER
Physical Science: Festival of Bubbles
Investigate bubbles through the use of scientific inquiry. Pupils blow bubbles using several methods and measure the resulting bubble print. Measurements are recorded on a data table and transferred to a bar graph. Results are discussed...
Curated OER
Baby Elephant Orphans Get New Home, Families
Students react to a series of statements about elephants, then read a news article about how workers at an elephant orphanage are working to return the animals to the wild. In the animal studies and current events lesson, the teacher...
Curated OER
Data Collection
Students write a journal exercise that relates to pets. They collect information from each other in order to practice making and interpreting bar graphs. They Continue building different kinds of graphs with the group.
Curated OER
Displacement Reactions of Metals
Chemistry stars experiment with metals to observe reactivity with salt solutions. They test magnesium, zinc, iron, and copper by immersing them into different solutions and observing for changes. A separate set of data tables is...
Penguin Books
An Educator's Guide to Matched by Ally Condie
Even supposed Utopian societies have their flaws. Using an educator's guide, individuals explore the society Ally Condie creates in Matched. Reflective writing prompts double as discussion questions and cover key themes in the novel, as...
American Chemical Society
All Wet
Sometimes liquids just don't get along together. A fun experiment has scholars determine whether various liquids dissolve in water. They pour isopropyl alcohol, vegetable oil, and corn syrup into cups of water to see which ones mix well...
Curated OER
Room Temperature Investigation
While the topic of this investigation is not specific to any particular discipline of science, it does serve as a practice of the scientific method. Learners set up a bowl containing boiling water, one with room temperature water, and...
NASA
States of Matter
Water, one of the basic needs of humans, is found in all three states of matter on Earth; no other planet—that we know of—possesses this quality. Here is a unit that allows learners to explore through experimentation what it takes to...
NASA
Astronomy Mission Module
Yes, scientists say, there is other life in our solar system! And the best place to look is on Europa, a moon of Jupiter. Here, learners mimic the techniques scientists use to gather information about objects in our solar system, write...
Teach Engineering
Kidney Stone Crystallization
No one likes kidney stones, but they are very interesting to learn about. The last installment of a three-part unit has learners experiment with different chemicals to see which one inhibits the growth of calcium oxalate crystals (which...
Curated OER
Ocean Life
Mini-marine biologists use Scholastic Explorers website to learn about declining numbers of leatherback sea turtles and dusky dolphins. They fill out a K-W-L chart and observation journal worksheet, which are both provided in the lesson...
Intel
Using Electricity on the Job
Learners explore electricity, discussing its importance and researching different ways in which electricity can be generated. Groups present their findings to the class and then create publicity materials which promote and educate about...
Scholastic
Lesson Three: The Earth, Movement in Space
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...
Curated OER
Slingshot Characterization Experiment
Students set up and conduct a scientific experiment to demonstrate data collection. For this scientific process lesson, students complete an activity with the specific objective of using a slingshot to fire a t-shirt into the crowd at a...
Curated OER
Fruitful Questions
Students examine a fruit-related Q & A Science Times article. They write their own food science questions and answer them in the same format as the article. For homework, they analyze their fruit consumption according to U.S....
Cornell University
Beam Focusing Using Lenses
Explore optics using an inquiry-based experimental approach! Young scholars use a set of materials to design and build a unit capable of focusing a beam of light. They experiment with different lenses to determine the best approach to...
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Where Are We Going?
Come take a ride on the space bus! Scholars go on an imaginary trip to pick up their peers from the inner and outer planets while reinforcing math skills. First, learners round decimals to identify each planets' distance from Earth....
Curated OER
Riding on a Pendulum
A comprehensive resource gets fourth grade physical scientists making observations about the period of a pendulum and then applying knowledge to a playground swing. Through seven different stations, they will record observations and...
Orange Public Schools
Stagecraft
The house lights dim, the curtain parts, lights slowly come up, revealing the stage. Before the actors appear, before a word is spoken, the audience is drawn in by the lighting, by the colors, by lines of the set, by the props, and...
Curated OER
Water: Liquid or Solid?
First graders investigate how water can be both a liquid and a solid. They weigh popsicles and observe them as they write in their science journals. They measure the liquid as the popsicle melts and refreeze them to change them back...
Curated OER
Pick Up a Litter Bit-Earth Day
Students investigate the effects of litter on the environment. In this environmental lesson plan, students read the statistics on pollution and identify the effects it has on the Earth. Students develop a plan to clean up their local...
Curated OER
How Do You Measure Up
Students investigate the concept of heart rate and how it is effected by environmental stresses like exercise. They conduct research readings and evaluate the data to form a hypothesis to initiate class discussion about the information.