Curated OER
Barrels and Buckets: Access to Water - What Would It Be Like to Live in Africa?
Students compare water access in the United States with that of Africa. In this water access lesson, students located Ghana and Kenya on a globe before reading Peace Corps Volunteer accounts of the difficulty of accessing clean water....
Curated OER
Bringing Water to a Village in Lesotho
Students research water in Lesotho. In this water lesson, students watch videos showing how water comes to Lesotho Africa, they will compare this to how water is acquired in the US. Students will then create a mobile showing the...
Curated OER
Pollution and Lung Health
Students investigate how pollution affects lung health. In this pollution and lung health lesson plan, students build lung models from a soda bottle and balloons, and then discuss how the emissions from fossil fuels can adversely affect...
Curated OER
Investigating Our Past: Where Did Humans Come From?
Investigate the theories of human evolution. In this research based lesson, learners research and discuss how geographic isolation, interbreeding, generalization, and specialization are factors in the history of humans. Groups work...
Curated OER
Creating Climographs
Learners use satellite data to compare precipitation and surface temperatures on different islands. In this satellite lesson plan students create graphs and explain the differences between weather and climate.
Curated OER
Tomato Exploration
Create tomatoes in 15-20 minutes using this fun and interactive lesson plan! Learners listen to a book about tomatoes (recommendations listed), and focus on the vocabulary word tomato. They count the syllables...
Polar Trec
Why Can’t I Eat This Fish?
Can turning on the television lead to toxins in the food supply? The lesson offers an opportunity for young scientists to complete guided research. A worksheet lists each question as well as the web page necessary to answer the question....
Annenberg Foundation
Geometry 3D Shapes: Surface Area and Volume
Whether you wrap it or fill it, you're using geometric concepts. Classmates use an interactive approach to learn how to find volume and surface area of cylinders and prisms in the second lesson in a five-part series. The online lesson...
Curated OER
Am I Taller than an Antelope
Students investigate biology by examining body sizes of different animals. In this antelope measurement lesson, students research the physicality of Antelopes and other large animals that inhabit Earth. Students create a model Antelope...
Curated OER
Plotting Earthquakes
Students plot earthquakes on a map. In this lesson on earthquakes, students will explore recent earthquake activity in California and Nevada. Students will plot fault lines and earthquake occurrences on a map.
Curated OER
Ruminating on the Digestive System
Students compare the digestive systems of the buffalo and of the zebra, diagram their systems, and compare their lengths. In this digestive system lesson plan, students learn about their diets as well.
Curated OER
Computer Language
A thorough and engaging slideshow presentation discusses all things computer, from artificial intelligence programs to text messaging lingo. Computer science students will get a kick out of the examples for ELIZA, Otto Jesperson's...
California Academy of Science
Banishing Bycatch
Bycatch is a sad reality for many sea turtles, dolphins, and sharks; it occurs when they get unintentionally caught in commercial fishing nets. The class plays a game using popcorn and crackers, each child will attempt to catch the...
Virginia Department of Education
Levels of Cellular Organization
What an eccentric way to learn about each level of cellular organization! Allow emerging biologists to utilize white paper and create their own foldable charts to describe each level of organization in the body. You may also adapt the...
California Academy of Science
Discovering Rainforest Locations
How many rainforests are there, where are they, and do global factors effect their locations? These are great questions that have great answers. Children in grades four through eight use several different maps to determine why...
California Academy of Science
Earthquakes and Tectonic Plates
Here is a comprehensive package in which middle schoolers learn about types of seismic waves, triangulation, and tectonic plate boundaries. Complete vocabulary, colorful maps, and a worksheet are included via links on the webpage. You...
PBS
Robo Arm
Future engineers create robotic arms like those on rovers built by NASA in the second lesson of the series. They test their devices by attempting to pick up and move cups to a specified location.
Curated OER
What is a Raptor?
Students explore, analyze and discover the characteristics of raptors and generate a word bank for owls and raptors. They identify attributes shared by raptors and practice various key vocabulary words to master and utilize in sentence...
Cornell University
Metamorphosis
Looking for an insect unit that addresses multiple skill strategies? Young entomologists explore multiple life cycles of insects that go through metamorphosis. The brainteasers and mobile activity spark learner interest before guiding...
Cornell University
Insect Anatomy
Young entomologists discover insect anatomy in a very detailed unit plan. Offering background information for teachers about various insects, class members explore the differences between bugs and insects—and yes, there are many...
LABScI
Taxonomy: Who is in My family?
Find similarities in seemingly unlike organisms. The second instructional activity in a series of 12 builds the concept of a taxonomy and explores the use of a dichotomous key. Learners begin in part one by attempting to group a set of...
NASA
The Case of the Wacky Water Cycle
Join the tree house detectives in learning about the processes of the water cycle, water conservation, water treatment, and water as a limited resource.
Cornell University
Study Soil
What's in soil? Young scientists study the pH levels of soil from their school yard. They observe the land and area the soil came from to decide if location has anything to do with acidity level.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Lego Atoms and Molecules: Chemical Reactions
Show young chemists what a chemical reaction looks like with two parts of a hands-on experiment. First, learners conduct a wet lab where they observe the reactants (baking soda and calcium chloride, with phenolsulfonphthalein)...