Learners investigate body systems by participating in a role-play activity. Third, fourth, and fifth graders pretend that they are an organ or system of the human body, and they must write a letter to the body "corporation" discussing...

After looking at the back of a quarter featuring Oregon terrain, learners distinguish between fiction and non-fiction and identify the beginning, middle and end of a story. First, they listen to legends that describe the creation of...

A diagram showing a cross-section of Earth points out the location of different plate boundaries and displays the numbers one through five. Beneath the diagram are five photos of different types of volcanoes. The object of the activity...

This resource provides two ways to engage learners in using latitude, longitude, and research skills. In pairs, or on their own, learners will locate several Antarctic regions on a map. They will write the name of the place and a few key...

Fifth graders continue their investigation of the plate tectonics cycle with an exploration of the movement of Earth's crust. During the lab, young geologists conduct an experiment to discover the result of different types of...

What does the ground around your home have to do with water pollution? Young ecologists learn about their local watershed and create their own cause-and-effect models of the hydrosphere.

Write-on! Demonstrate a writing model and support learners as they write an informational essay on a water resource issue of your (or their) choosing. The lesson plan provides a well-scaffolded summative writing...

Let's talk about earthquakes .... Using the Internet, pupils research what causes earthquakes, how scientists measure them, their locations, and their effects. The resource is not only informative, but it also builds crucial...

There are patterns in nearly everything — even earthquakes. Pairs research current earthquakes to see if there are any patterns. They determine the mean, median, and mode of the earthquake data, along with the maximum and...

There are places in the US where a road cannot be found for miles! The lesson asks learners to use random longitude and latitude coordinates within the US to collect data. They then determine the sample proportion and confidence interval...

The San Andreas fault is one of the longest fault zones in the world. In a series of 20 lessons, the fourth lesson has pupils use a paper model to recreate various types of plate faults. Each is held in position then drawn...

Fluffy is one of the most common names for a pet frog. Fluffy, the digitized frog in this dissection kit, opens up quite literally to allow scholars to see what's inside. The basic kit encourages pupils to click on various organs to see...

Over a period of 35 years, earthquakes and volcanoes combined only accounted for 1.5 percent of the deaths from natural disasters in the United States. The 15th instructional activity in a 20-part series connects the locations of...

Students observe subsidence and the effect it has on wetlands with a classroom demonstration. They think about the impact of global warming and the sea level and how it affects the marsh.

Seventh graders practice reading maps.  In this geography lesson, 7th graders compare a topographical map to a picture of the actual place. 

Young scholars view topographic or relief maps of Southern California and discuss what they see. They make predictions based on the topography of the region.

Students gain appreciation about the geology around them. They navigate the schoolyard using a map. They create a list of what people use rocks for. They mark location of rocks on their maps.

Students discover that geology is something that is all around them. In groups, they participate in an activity in which they collect evidence and make observations. They solve a "murder mystery" in examining the history of a landscape.

Students use a zipcode map to locate earthquake experiences based on the Modified Mercalli Scale. They discuss the difference of the magnitude of an earthquake compared to the intensity of the shaking it causes.

Pupils experiment with string to visualize how earthquakes are created. Using various lengths of string, students determine which earthquakes lasted the longest and hypothesize why. Pupils look at a fault map and determine which may be...

Students learn that a rock's properties tell stories about where it came from and where it has been. The lesson illustrates how to make geologic observations and gives background about the important properties of rocks to observe....

Students study map grids and explore how they can be used to locate positions of objects or features on a map. They read a story and then participate in a grid activity using a large map of the setting of the story.

Learners explore the concept of mapping. Using given illustrations, students observe views of a park from above the ground. They compare and contrast the different views. Learners discuss uses for maps. Using a resource from the...

In this science activity, students will find 28 space related words on a word search, connect the dots to reveal a space shuttle, help the Mars rover get through a maze to reach Mars, and make words using the letters in the word...