Students demonstrate the interrelationships of animals and plants. In this ecology lesson, students discuss the things plants and animals need for survival and study the glacier food chain. Students simulate the web of life by using a...

Paul Chan's work has been known to show the cycle of change. Learners explore the concept of change by analyzing his work and reading the poem "For Which it Stands." They consider symbolism, communication, art, and society as they use...

Students study genetics and evolution. They evaluate a group of organisms and estimate their genetic relatedness. Then they use an online program to check the accuracy of their estimations and make a branching phylogenetic tree which...

Grow an understanding of short story with a well-sequenced plan built around an Academy Award-winning short film. Class members explore the elements of an effective short story, and practice writing their own. They also watch the short...

Dead trees provide nutrients for the soil, food for animals, protection and a home for organisms, a seed-bed for new trees, and a place for nitrogen-fixing bacteria to live. In the activity, pupils collect decaying logs, expose them to a...

Students create a Tree of Life. In this visual art lesson, students explore mandalas. Students investigate the concepts of balance and symmetry while designing their own unique Tree of Life.

Many scholars study phylogenetic trees without understanding how they are made. Through an online game, young scientists use the given data to create phylogenetic trees of increasing complexity. They rely on the trees they create to...

Addressing the idea of intelligent design, as well as a number of creation myths, this presentation gives a measured and scientific perspective to the beginning of the world.  It includes a graphic on the Big Bang Theory, evolution,...

Individuals analyze tree rings to determine the health of an ecosystem. They then look at otoliths of fish, hard calcium carbonate structures located behind the brain, in the same manner. 

Help young scientists connect with nature and learn about trees with a fun life science lesson plan. Heading out into the school yard, children choose a tree to adopt, taking measurements, writing descriptions, and drawing sketches of it...

Represent family history visually by requiring your young artists to create family trees that express balance and symmetry. Pupils examine works of art, research their family histories, and put together large family tree posters.

Get caught in a web of learning. Classmates play a game to build a web to model the interaction of species that live in a specific ecosystem. They each assume the role of one species and work together, passing a ball of twine to indicate...

Bring Charlie Brown's one-of-a-kind Christmas tree to life with a holiday coloring page. 

Are chickens and crocodiles really related? Young scientists compare the bone structure of current domestic chickens to other animals throughout evolution. This helps them understand the branches that separate crocodiles and birds as...

Students solve a mystery of the identification of a unknown organism by comparing its morphological characteristics to those in a tree of life classification poster. They compare the observable characteristics of the specimen and...

Upper elementary schoolers investigate philanthropy and selflessness by reading a children's book. In this ethics activity, they read The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein, and research Mahatma Gandhi's troublesome, yet inspiring, life....

Producers, herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, decomposers. To begin a study of the forest ecosystem, learners examine the connections among the members of ecological communities.

Open with a discussion on weather and climate and then explain how tree rings can provide scientists with information about the earth's past climate. Pupils analyze graphics of simulated tree rings from various US locations for the...

All trees are not created equal. A set of three wildlife conservation lessons has learners examine the characteristics of individual trees. They look at the life cycle of the tree using a story and reference a field guide to identify...

Fourth graders study the tree identification cards, identifying conifers sheet, and western forest cards. From the information gathered from these resources, each team help create a tree riddle book of 12 trees of Washington State.

Learners explore the importance of the tropical rain forest in different cultures. Through a cooperative game, they locate countries that are known for their forest resources. Students discuss the similarities and differences of various...

The life of a tree is the focus of a packet consisting of several activities all covering a different subject. Second graders measure shadows, make pinecone critters, write poems, count rings, complete a word search, play tree tag, and...

A second attack at figuring out the number of leaves on a tree, this activity makes both an excellent follow-up to version 1 and a stand-alone activity. Learners practice setting parameters and deciding acceptable estimate precision, and...

Ardipithecus ramidus shares features with both humans and chimpanzees. Learn about where Ardi, humans, and chimps fit in the tree of life by comparing anatomical features including the foot, pelvis, and teeth. After exploring those...