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Feeling the Heat

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students investigate the urban heat island effect. In this urban heat island effect lesson, students learn how trees, grass, asphalt, and other things on the school grounds effect temperature. They use the information to generalize it to...
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Design an Island

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Students explore islands. They create a two- or three-dimensional map of an island. They explain how the topography of an area influences the location of water sources, ecosystems, and human settlements. Lesson includes adaptations for...
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Wetland in a Pan

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders build a watershed from various materials. In this life science lesson plan, the students will be able to change the design of their watershed to see the changes in the way the water will drain. Each group will be able to...
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Seeing Sound & Sonar

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students make inferences based on different sounds that they hear. In this inferences lesson plan, students will hear sounds of different objects and describe the sounds based on what they hear. They will answer various questions about...
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A Day in the Life of a San Francisco Native Animal

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students write from an animal's perspective. In this writing lesson students explore the landscape of San Francisco prior to the arrival of the explorers. Students research animals indigenous to the area.
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The Coldest Place at the Bottom of the World

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Learners research and trace Shackleton's actual and intended route on an area map. They analyze the altitude changes involved in a trek across Antarctica and complete a worksheet comparing Antarctica to their own state.
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Bat Ecology

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Students, through hands on games and activities, discover how bats live and how bats benefit ecosystems. They play a game designed to show them how echolocation works and another to show how mother bats locate their young through their...
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Sunspots

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Young scholars examine what a sunspot is and how it is produced.  In this sun lesson students locate and measure sunspots then view them through a camera.
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Secrets of Painting

For Teachers K - 4th
Learners explore colors and shapes. In this art concepts instructional activity, students discuss shapes, lines, and color while creating a variety of abstract designs. The instructions for several art activities are provided. Basic art...
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Intertidal Zones

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students explore intertidal zones. In this intertidal zones lesson, students work in small groups and use ready-made materials to create a model of intertidal zones. Resources are provided.
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Bermuda: Search for Deep Water Caves: Living Fossils

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore relict species. In this anchialine cave lesson, students identify relict species associated with anchialine caves, and explain the importance of preserving anchialine caves and species.
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Oil Spill Cleanup

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students participate in an oil spill simulation and how to clean it up. For this oil spill lesson plan, students also calculate the cost of the clean up of an oil spill.
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Cacao Tree Geography

For Teachers K - 3rd
Students use a map to learn about where chocolate comes from. In this lesson on the cacao tree, students locate various regions where the cacao tree grows. They will discuss why the cacao tree grows more favorably in particular climates...
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The Chemistry of Ceramics

For Teachers K - 12th
Students make ceramic sculptures to understand how clay works. In this sculpture lesson, students learn about porcelain sculptures to understand how heat can turn clay into a hard ceramic surface. They then experiment with clay to make...
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Mr. Lincoln's Hat

For Teachers K - 5th
Bring out the inner artist with this Abraham Lincoln lesson. Elementary students work on a home project creating a hat similar to Abraham Lincoln's hat. They will use geometry and measurement to create the scale of the hat, then...
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Imagine a Kelp Forest

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students write a story based on their research of the kelp forest. In this ecosystem lesson, students view a video and research the kelp forest ecosystem. They write a short story imagining the discovery of a new species in the kelp forest.
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School Redesign and Multiple Intelligences

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students examine their own intelligence to find areas of strength after studying the multiple intelligences.  In this diverse learning styles activity, students analyze how the school environment fosters or fails students of diverse...
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Animals Up!

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
Learners design and build a pedestal or platform that holds a toy animal. In this building lesson, students use knowledge from a prior lesson as they build a platform or pedestal for a toy animal using on index cards. They learn the...
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Me And My Shadow

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students investigate the concept of a shadow. They design a tool to create shadows for an experiment. They make observations and record the size and shape of shadows. The lesson contains background information for the teacher to deliver...
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The Water Nearby

For Teachers K - 4th
Students explore water located near where they live. In this map skills maritime lesson, students use Google Maps to find their school and the body of water closest to them. Students research the body of water and answer questions about it.
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Non-Compressibility of Water

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars will observe a property of water. In this inquiry-based properties of air activity, students observe how a change in water pressure impacts the positioning of an eye-dropper in the water container and they make hypotheses...
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Global Change- Earth as Home

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students create their own environment. In this environmental protection lesson, students pretend they are the owners of a tropical island. They create jobs for the citizens and develop the island as a model environment.
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Rubber Duckies and Ocean Currents

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Young scholars explore marine life by conducting a rubber duck experiment. In this water currents activity, students practice identifying latitude and longitude coordinates on a map and define the currents of major oceans. Young scholars...
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Boomerangs Keep Coming Back

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students investigate the flight of paper boomerangs. In this flight lesson plan, students examine the flight variables of paper boomerangs, which they make, by investigating the concepts of lift and drag. They examine what happens when...