Curated OER
What the Community Can Do
Students examine how the EPA encourages communities near Superfund sites to become involved in the Superfund process. They read informational text, and participate in a role-play activity.
Curated OER
What Kind Of Research Should Our Government Support?
Learners are assigned to research review groups, which have to decide which of the proposals to fund. The teacher then leads a discussion focusing on the ethical issues raised in the reasons given for each group's decisions.
Curated OER
What Are the Ethical and Legal Aspects of Radon?
Students research a legal or ethical aspect of radon. They create their own legislation regarding radon and real estate. They present their information to the class.
Curated OER
What's Gotten Into You?
Students use models to investigate the process and consequences of water contamination on the land, groundwater, and plants.
Curated OER
Is Cancer on the Rise or Decline in America Today?
Students read an article about cancer in the United States. They research a cancer of their choice along with possible treatments. They identify types of cancer that are on the rise and decline for both men and women. They examine the...
Curated OER
What Structural Challenges Do Bridge Builders Face Today?
Students investigate the process of constructing a bridge. They study the meaning of structural force and draw pictures of examples. Students identify the types of building materials have been used in history to construct bridges and how...
Curated OER
What Effects Do Trees Have On The Environment?
Students examine the interrelationship between trees, soil and people focusing on urban areas. They collect and analyze data about trees in their research area.
Curated OER
What's Happening Below The Surface?
Students determine the soil composition of soil layers in their area. They collect soil samples, calculate the percentage soil water content, analyze data, and evaluate each site for future tree growth.
Curated OER
What's It All About?- Kansas Prairies
Young scholars examine the interdependence of animal life and the environment. In this Kansas prairies instructional activity, students read background information on prairies and complete a worksheet to identify the main idea.
Curated OER
The Water Cycle
Students create terrariums in containers in order to study the Water Cycle. They examine how the terrarium maintains life in the closed environment.
Curated OER
Plants Alive! How Plants Grow and Move
Students explore how plants move in response to the environment. For this plant lesson, students engage in three different experiments to investigate how plants grow and move. Resources available in English and French.
Curated OER
Seed Germination
Young scholars germinate a Mung Bean seed. In this seed lesson students conduct an experiment germinating a Mung Bean. They apply three different treatments to the seeds: dry, moist, and underwater incubation.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Diseases
During a cholera outbreak, scientists presented two theories; one theory was based on miasma and the other on germs and contaminated water. The lesson looks at the scientific process for finding the real culprit.
California Academy of Science
Sustainable Water Solutions: Weighing the Pros and Cons
Switching indoor water fixtures to low flow reduces water usage by more than 45 percent. This and other solutions to reduce water usage have both pros and cons. Scholars view videos of different solutions, discuss them in small groups,...
California Academy of Science
Exploring the Impacts of Feeding the World
Approximately 50 percent of people in the world who are chronically hungry work in agriculture. While it seems counter-intuitive, the farther you live from a farm, the more food options are available. Scholars explore concepts related to...
Curated OER
Dining Out With Fishes and Birds of the Hudson
While this lesson plan focuses on the birds and fish found on the Hudson River, it could be adapted for use in any classroom. Using a vocabulary list, learners explore the meaning of words like adaptation, habitat, barbel, and more....
Chicago Botanic Garden
Faces of Climate Change
How does climate change affect you? First in a three-part series, the activity focuses on how individuals living around the world are affected by climate change. Individuals take on the role of a given character and share their...
Curated OER
Will There Be a White Christmas This Year?
Young scholars examine historical weather data, and create map and color key that illustrates the likelihood of a white Christmas in different locations across the United States.
Rochester Institute of Technology
Biomechanical Hand
In 1993, five biomedical engineers in Edinburgh, Scotland, created the first functional bionic arm. In the activity, learners explore the world of bioengineering through discussion and hands-on exploration. In groups, participants...
Curated OER
Assessing Risks for Inhalation and Ingestion of Pollutants
Young scholars use a hypothetical scenario to investigate inhalation of an airborne pollutant and ingestion of a waterborne pollutant. They work in pairs, investigating differences in overall exposure to contaminants by calculating...
NOAA
Exploring Potential Human Impacts
Arctic sea ice reflects 80 percent of sunlight, striking it back into space; with sea ice melting, the world's oceans become warmer, which furthers global warming. These activities explore how humans are impacting ecosystems around the...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Historical Climate Cycles
Scientists use ice core samples to obtain temperatures of the earth from 400,000 years ago! The third of five lessons instructs pupils to interpret historical climate data to see changes over time. In part I, participants interpret...
California Academy of Science
Our Hungry Planet: Design Thinking Challenge
Scholars investigate an issue associated with food systems and design their own solutions. Working collaboratively, they follow each step in the design process to complete the 10th lesson of the 13-part Our Hungry Planet series.
Curated OER
Peregrine Falcon
Young environmentalists study the effects that pesticides have on birds, such as the peregrine falcon. They also look at predator/prey interactions. Some wonderful in-class activities accompany an inventive lesson. After an activity that...