Lesson Plan
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What Makes you Hot?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers manipulate different variables in a model and make inferences about the temperature on Earth.  In this heat lesson students calculate the blackbody radiation of an object at a certain temperature. 
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Energy Transformation with Balance Toys

For Teachers K
Students explore and identify the concepts of potential and kinetic energy. They define kinetic and potential energy and discuss examples of each. Students then play a game involving balance toys, demonstrating both kinetic and potential...
Lesson Plan
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Earthquake!

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students gain an understanding of earthquakes. They examine vocabulary associated with earthquakes, how earthquakes happen, and preventive measures taken to diminish damage or harm in the event that an earthquake should happen.
Lesson Plan
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Extraterrestrial Communication: Can We Talk to Anybody Out There?

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students examine the possibilities of communication with other living organisms within our solar system through research and hands on activities, as well as observing and analyzing teacher demonstrations.
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Gravity Gets You Down

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate the force of gravity and how it effects different objects that are put into acceleration when applied the experiment of free falling. They drop different objects that have a variety of masses and some that cause air...
Lesson Plan
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Planets in Proportion

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Learners apply estimation strategies and proportional reasoning to determine a scale comparing the planetary bodies to Earth. They convert measurements of time and distance using scientific notation. Both the metric and customary units...
Lesson Plan
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Stardust Delivers Comet's Clues

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore the NASA test center and comet facts through an interactive program. They examine the idea if comets are predictable. They finally analyze the materials that combine to make a comet.
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I, Robot: Chapter Four- Catch That Rabbit

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders explore the development of technology in the 20th century.  For this chapter lesson, 6th graders read and discuss the literary content of chapter four, I, Robot by Isaac Asimov. They research the technology that was...
Lesson Plan
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Motion Experiment

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students experiment with the laws of motion. For this motion lesson, students explore Newton's Laws of Motion. Students work in groups experimenting with different objects and observing different types of motion.
Worksheet
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NASA Anniversary

For Students 5th - 10th
For this NASA Anniversary worksheet, students complete activities such as reading a passage, phrase matching, fill in the blanks, correct words, multiple choice, spelling, sequencing, scrambled sentences, writing questions, survey, and...
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Building Green

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students read an article and learn about building green.  In this environment lesson plan, students visit a website to learn about Mark Baker and Nonnie Chrystal.  Students write down the three events that led them to explore...
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Do You See What I See?

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders view a teacher-created terrarium, and complete a KWL chart. They discuss what they can see, Students go on a nature walk and compare the schoolyard to the terrarium, discussing the roles of rocks, plants, soil, and water...
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Soaring Through Space With a Kid Pix Slide Show

For Teachers 1st
First graders create a slide show on Kid Pix about space. In this space lesson plan, 1st graders will explore the earth, sun, moon, and planets. After exploring their motions and locations around the sun, they create a 4 page slide show...
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Four Seasons

For Teachers 1st
First graders examine and describe the characteristics of the four seasons. Using a computer, they write one sentence about each of the four seasons and draws an illustration to accompany it. They present each drawing and sentence to the...
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Astronomy

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students complete a series of activities to better understand space studies. In this space science instructional activity, the teacher is provided with a number of activities for students to complete such as finding words that begin with...
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Reading to Learn

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students complete story maps in this lesson. Students read "The Magic School Bus", and get into groups to choose their story element. Each group shares their information with the class. They then complete a story map for a book read...
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Remote Sensing - What Can We See When We Can't Touch?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners discover how remote sensing is used to identify the signatures of life even when the particular life form is not directly observable. They investigate how a satellite "sees" objects on the surface of Earth.
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Planet Impact

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Young scholars use their knowledge to crash a comet into Jupiter or make a comet fly past the planet without colliding with it.
Lesson Plan
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Charge-Coupled Devices (CCDs)

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students explore CCDs or Charge-Coupled Devices. In this digital devices activity, students examine how CCDs are constructed, collect light, and create a digital signal.
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Whose Water Is It?

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students role-play as San Francisco residents in 1908 who support or oppose the building of a dam in Yosemite National Park. They create posters and write letters to representatives defending their positions.
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Teachers' Notes: Switch Gets Ready!

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students practice multiplication facts, answer simple math questions from two, five, and ten times-tables, explore concept of halves and quarters, complete worksheet containing range of shapes to make shape picture, and sort data and...
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Understanding Distance in Space

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students discover the vocabulary used for distances in space and review measurement units and instruments before creating a scale model of the planets. They determine how to calculate the relative distances between the planets using a...
Lesson Planet Article
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Space Facts

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students read space facts and click on the links to research more about space objects. In this space lesson plan, students read about comets, planets, the moon, and more.
Lesson Plan
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Travelogue of a Planet

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students randomly select a planet, including Earth. They research key features of the planet including mass, volume, density, gravity, temperature, weather, geology, atmosphere, surface features, location from sun, Earth and other...