Exploratorium
Your Sense of Taste
A simple and sweet activity shows students how important smell is in interpreting flavor. Pairs of pupils hold their noses and eat Life Savers®, only to find that they can't identify the flavors until they let go. You will appreciate...
Sea World
Endangered Species
Study different endangered species with several activities that incorporate math, science, language arts, and research strategies. A great addition to your lesson on conservation or Earth Day.
Polar Trec
Animal Monitoring Introduction
Not only do mealworms taste great, they are also great for classroom science lessons. In pairs, young scientists observe and record what they see as they check out what their mealworms are doing from minute to minute. Each minute...
Montana Natural History Center
Studying Grassland Ecosystems
At first glance, grassland ecosystems might seem dull and uninteresting, but once you start to explore it's amazing the things you'll find! Through this series of engaging lessons, activities, and experiments, elementary students examine...
Curated OER
Penguins Around the World
Students investigate penguins. In this Science instructional activity, students compare and contrast penguins to flying birds. Students use a Venn diagram to illustrate the differences and similarities of penguins and flying birds.
Curated OER
Koi Pond
Create this beautiful koi pond scene using watercolor paper, crayons, and paints. This would be a fantastic project to link to a scientific study of pond life or a historical study of Japanese culture.
Curated OER
Bering Sea Buffet - A Foodweb Activity
Life in the Bering Sea, food webs, and the ocean ecosystem are introduced with a map activity. The lesson starts as kids explore maps and images of the Bering Sea, then it kicks into high gear as they start to discuss the types of...
Busch Gardens
Create an Invertebrate
What better way for young biologists to learn about invertebrates than by creating their very own? Here, students are assigned a set of invertebrate characteristics and are asked to invent an imaginary ocean animal and a separate...
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Adaptations – Designs for Survival
What's the difference between behavioral adaptations and physical adaptations? Learn about the various ways that organisms adapt to their environment with a worksheet about the creatures of the Hudson River.
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Amazing Birds
What's so amazing about birds? Find out just how amazing birds are with a physics of animal behavior unit created by Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Have learners explore and tap into their observational skills and notice how birds fly, what...
National Gardening Association
Migration Mishaps
Elementary ecologists pretend to be migratory hummingbirds. They fly between wintering and nesting grounds, trying to reach a habitat haven. In a musical-chair fashion, some birds will miss out, and are removed from the game. To further...
National Park Service
Living & Non-Living Interactions
What better way to learn about ecosystems than by getting outside and observing them first hand? Accompanying a field trip to a local park or outdoor space, this series of collaborative activities engages children in learning about the...
Cornell University
Garden Math
Young scientists must put their math caps on and figure out what fraction of each flower is in a raised flower bed. They must problem solve to simplify the fractions, and then graph the amount of flowers that are in different flower beds.
Curated OER
Visual Vocabulary
Students interpret and name the vocabulary termed acted out by the mime. In this science/language arts/physical education lesson, students are given a set of vocabulary terms to discuss within their group. Next, students place all...
US Mint
Desert Dwellers
What can a quarter possibly teach young learners about desert ecosystems? More than you might think. After displaying and discussing the included picture of the Arizona state quarter, the class participates in a series of shared reading...
Alabama Wildlife Federation
How Many Butterflies
Learners become butterflies to complete an activity that has them collect tokens that represent food, water, and shelter. They must collect their necessities while in competition with other butterflies in the same area. Once the...
Curated OER
Air
This presentation is about air. What makes it unique is that, in addition to simply providing information about the components of air and the action of air pressure, it includes a series of four experiments that bring these concepts to...
Curated OER
Urban Life: What Lives in Our Schoolyard?
Learners research living organisms by exploring their school grounds. In this microscopic observation lesson, students gather materials, insects, and objects from their playground and schoolyard and bring them into class. Learners...
Curated OER
PLANT LIFE CYCLES
Student learns about the life cycle of plants by watching a time-lapse video. This activity provides students with further evidence that all living things grow and change as they progress through their life cycle. Student conducts a...
Curated OER
Stream Study
Students study the characteristics of a stream habitat. In this life science lesson, students use sieves, nets, and jars to collect aquatic organisms. Students also measure the temperature of the stream and calculate the speed of the...
Curated OER
Pregnancy: Day 2
Learners discover life science by identifying the reproductive process. In this pregnancy lesson, students read text which discusses the responsibility required to create a child as well as the economical and social means to raise one....
Curated OER
Experimentation With Plants
Fourth graders experiment with different varieties of plants and draw conclusions after performing a series of lab activities. A very helpful student worksheet is given. This is a nicely done introductory lesson plan for life science.
Curated OER
Living or Non-Living
Students examine living and non-living things. In this life science instructional activity, students are given a group of objects and discuss if they are living or non-living. Students identify and list characteristics of living things.
Curated OER
Tamar Burris
Students explore genetics. In this life cycle lesson, students consider the meaning of "genes" and "heredity" as they watch a video about the topics. Students then research their own genetic make-up as they interview family members....