Lesson Plan
Yale University

Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: The Great Continental Drift Mystery

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A unit on plate tectonics designed for middle school students, this page must be read carefully to find the activities to be done in the class, but it provides a wealth of background for the teacher as well.
Interactive
National Health Museum

Access Excellence: The Blackout Syndrome

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Become a medical investigator trying to solve the cause of a mysterious disease. Through a four-part mystery series, students try to figure out the source of the disease and how to treat it. By reading clues students make predictions and...
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: A Bat Mystery

For Teachers 2nd
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about a fungus that is making bats sick. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: The Silk Mystery

For Teachers 2nd
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about scientists' attempts to make spider silk. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: Mystery of the Mayas

For Teachers 4th
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about a Mayan pyramid found in Mexico. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Activity
Scholastic

Scholastic: Dirtmeister's Science Lab: Matter

For Students 3rd - 8th
Students will use water and cornstarch to make a mystery matter, and then discuss what happens when different energy is applied.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Mysteries of the Universe

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Consider the issues surrounding the world of space exploration including the new fields of archaeoastronomy and astrobiology. Investigate zero gravity, the Big Bang theory, life in space and how sound travels in a vacuum.
Unit Plan
SRI International

Performance Assessment Links in Science: Mystery Boxes

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Students test their observation skills as they make predictions about the objects that are in three different boxes.
Primary
Other

American Scientist: Author Interview: Neil De Grasse Tyson

For Students 9th - 10th
Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson has made "Popularizing science a personal passion." Tyson's latest book, Origins, is the starting point here for a discussion of dark matter, intelligent life in our solar system, the possibility of...
Interactive
Other

Montana State University: Strange Dead Bird

For Students 5th - 8th
An online interactive mystery where students use their science knowledge to solve the death of some strange birds. Use the clues given to use the scientific method to figure out why the animals are getting sick.
Website
PBS

Pbs Nova: A Conversation With Neil De Grasse Tyson

For Students 9th - 10th
Nova offers an enlightening conversation with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson. Topics include origins of the universe, multidisciplinary approaches to science, exciting recent discoveries, his position as director of the Hayden...
Interactive
Concord Consortium

Concord Consortium: Stem Resources: Changes in the Environment

For Students 3rd - 5th
An activity to help students understand that as the environment changes, plants and animals must evolve to stay alive. Students watch as a mystery plants grow in a changing environment to see if they will evolve or go extinct.
Website
Edutopia

Edutopia: Room to Learn: Mystery Science Theatre

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Read and see examples of how one physics teacher turns his classroom into a student-centered, project-based and fun place to be.
Article
Society for Science and the Public

Science News for Students: Scientists Explain Mystery of Triangular Snowflakes

For Students 6th - 8th
Describes research that discovered how three-sided snowflakes form.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Wild Kratts

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Wild Kratts joins the adventures of Chris and Martin Kratt as they encounter incredible wild animals, combining science education with fun and adventure as the duo travels to animal habitats around the globe. Each adventure explores an...
Website
Symmetry Magazine

Symmetry Magazine: Explain It in 60 Seconds: Dark Energy

For Students 9th - 10th
Dark energy, described here, is the ultimate mystery for scientists. It is the force that is causing the expansion of the universe they believe. "Explain It In 60 Seconds" is an article series that aims to summarize in a few paragraphs...
Activity
Bryn Mawr College

Serendip: Using Blood Tests to Identify Babies and Criminals

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Brief text summary of what students learn in the Using Blood Tests to Identify Babies and Criminals lab along with links to download Student Handouts and Teacher Preparation Notes in PDF and Word formats. The lesson includes two...
Lesson Plan
Science and Mathematics Initiative for Learning Enhancement (SMILE)

Smile: Mystery of the Mirrors (1 3)

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
This lesson plan from the Illinois Institute of Technology incorporates observation with hands on activity through various stations.
Unit Plan
Georgetown University

Georgetown University: Edgar Allan Poe (1809 1849)

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
This site is a professor's guide for students. This guide features information on how to distinguish between Poe and his narrators in his stories.
Unit Plan
E Reading Worksheets

E Reading Worksheets: Genre Activities

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
This learning module features "genre" as the topic for PowerPoint presentations, lessons, and quizzes. Numerous projects with the "genre" theme are available for further exploration as opportunities for more in-depth investigations.
Handout
BBC

Bbc: Death of the Iceman

For Students 9th - 10th
Scientists are finding out more and more about the frozen body of Otzi. Re-examine the evidence to discover the mystery of his death. Archived.
Website
NASA

Nasa: Imagine the Universe: Imagine the Universe!

For Students 9th - 10th
This helpful site provides everything you want to know about studying the universe. Take a look at the tools and methods scientists use to study the universe, discover some of the objects that make up our universe, learn how scientists...
Article
New York Times

New York Times: The Roanoke Island Colony: Lost, and Found?

For Students 4th - 8th
[Free Registration/Login Required] The mystery of what happened to the Lost Colony of Roanoke has gripped imaginations for centuries. Now archaeology may be able to provide answers before long. This article describes the history of the...
Lesson Plan
Michigan Reach Out

Guess What! A Lesson About Atoms

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
A lesson plan outlining a very simple way to introduce students to how the structure of the atom was determined. Uses a mystery box with surprise items inside.

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