Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Stars

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students discuss the life of a star and the different types of stars after watching the Discovery video "Exploring Stars". They create a flipbook that demonstrates the life of a star after collecting information on the life cycles of...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Star in a Box

For Teachers 5th - Higher Ed Standards
What happens to stars as they get older? A simulation takes pupils through the life cycle of stars based on their masses. The resource introduces the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram and the common relationships and life cycle patterns observed.
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

How Light Pollution Affects the Stars: Magnitude Readers

For Students 5th - 12th Standards
Did you know light can decrease visibility? Light pollution absolutely makes it more difficult to see stars. Scholars build a simple magnitude reader to determine the magnitude of stars. They use these data to estimate the impact of...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Make a Star Lantern

For Students 1st - 4th
Go star-gazing with young learners! They study the history, origins, and patterns of constellations in an activity that explores the starry night sky.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Explore the Characteristics of Stars with Microsoft WorldWide Telescope

For Teachers 2nd - 9th
Students explore the characteristics of stars. In this space science activity, students use the Microsoft WorldWide Telescope program to identify the properties of stars and identify the stars in the galaxy.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Types Of Nebulae

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders explore the different types of nebulae that can be found in the solar system. They view a PowerPoint presentation about the material and identify each nebulae as it is presented. Students also discuss the life cycle of a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Universe

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars recognize that the stages of evolution a star goes through are determined by the size of the star. They conduct research to draw a set of diagrams illustrating the stages in the evolution of three sizes of stars.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Battle for Ultimate Power

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students gain an understanding of how the powers of 10 and scientific notation can be used to represent the scale of things in the universe. They relate the number of stars in the universe to the number of grains of sand on Earth's beaches.
Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Antimatter Matters

For Teachers 6th - 9th Standards
Use science fiction movies to teach pupils about antimatter and alternate universes. Individuals learn about the portrayal of antimatter and alternate universes in movies such as Star Trek and Angels & Demons. They consider three...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Regents High School Examination: Physical Setting Earth Science 2006

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Test your class on earth science with this extensive resource. This test, created by The University of the State of New York Regents, is made up of 50 multiple choice questions and 32 short answer questions that cover the branches of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Spectrum of a Star

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders identify stars based on their line spectra. In this astronomy lesson, 10th graders analyze spectrograph and determine the elements present in the star. They explain the relationship between temperature and star classes.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Stars

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders explore the life cycle of stars. They analyze small, medium, and large stars and view a video that compares the life cycles of the various sized stars. They create a flipbook movie detailing the life cycles of a star and...
Lesson Plan
NASA

Discovering Some of Your “Yardsticks” Are Actually “Meter-sticks”

For Teachers 9th - 12th
The Milky Way gets great reviews on Trip Advisor — 100 million stars. The activity allows scholars to rethink their assumptions and prior knowledge. Pupils observe a set of two lights at equal distance and brightness, but they believe...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Navigation in the Ancient Mediterranean and Beyond

For Teachers 9th - 11th Standards
Ancient texts, like Homer's Odyssey, mentions navigating ships by observing constellations. Pupils learn about the link between history and astronomy as they relate to navigation in the Bronze Age. Scholars complete two hands-on...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The North (Wall) Star

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students engage in a instructional activity which shows them that celestial navigation is the art and science of finding one's geographic position by means of astronomical observations, particularly by measuring altitudes of celestial...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Energy: The Universal Currency

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Science stars examine the concept of energy by thinking about everyday situations. The lesson plan is incohesive. It lists goals for the student, but doesn't address all of them in the content. The best use of this resource would simply...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Do We Know...?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students identify and explain how various inventions and astronomers have improved our appreciation of the universe. Students identify at least two constellations in the sky and discuss how they were used in ancient times to tell time...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Look At Sunspots

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research how the development of new technology has increased our knowledge of how the sun works. This lesson is part of a three-part series aimed at showing students how our knowledge of the universe must be inferred through the...
Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Things That Matter to Flocculants

For Teachers 10th - 12th
How does the dirt get out of your drinking water? A hands-on activity introduces the use of flocculants to help clear solid particles out of water. The plan walks learners through the process of setting up an experiment that...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Navigating with the Kamal

For Teachers 8th - 11th Standards
Historians have proven that as early as 1497 skilled navigators were using a kamal to sail across oceans. Scholars learn about navigation tools and astronomy before building their own kamals. They then learn how to use it to determine...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Officer Buckle and Gloria

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students write a class letter to a local policeman asking him to come and talk to the class and create a list of safety tips as a class. Students research information on police dogs: type of dogs used, where they come form, how they are...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Do We Know?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate the history of astronomy and how the study of constellations has evolved since the dawn of ancient civilization. They conduct research using a variety of resources. The teacher uses demonstrations to model how the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hunting for galaxies in the Hubble Deep Field

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students examine Hubble Deep Field images. In this galaxy classification lesson, students research galaxy classification. Students view and classify Hubble Deep field images of galaxies.
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Living in the Milky Way

For Teachers 1st - 5th Standards
Get to know our galaxy with an astronomy-themed, hands-on activity. Scholars watch an informative video, answer questions, and construct a model of the Milky Way in order to examine its contents and the distance inside it.