Curated OER
Radioactive Simulations
High schoolers simulate radioactive decay and nuclear power using an on line interactive web site. In this on line lesson plan, students monitor radioactive isotopes and record the activity of a particular element as the decay...
Curated OER
How Many Organisms Live Here?
Learners observe pond organisms through a sample from a pond. In this pond organisms instructional activity, students use a pail and scoop from the bottom of the pond to take a sampling. Learners analyze the organisms removed from...
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Logs to Soil
Students observe the decomposition of a log and analyze what is happening. In this log to soil lesson, students saw through logs to make a log profile. Students use cards and answer questions related to their log.
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Super Soil
Students compare the organic matter found in soil. In this soil lesson, students compare a commercial garden mix soil to their local soil and determine which has more organic material.
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Water Holes to Mini-Ponds
Students compare two mini-ponds. In this environmental awareness lesson, students build two mini-ponds from water holes. Students add fertilizers to one and not to the other. The results are observed and compared. This could easily be...
Curated OER
Mineral Matters
Students work in a team to use the ProScope Digital USB Microscope and a computer to collect microscopic images from a variety of mineral specimens. They compare specimens and determine how they are alike and different by comparing their...
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Pre-Columbian Cultures in the Americas
Native American studies is fun, educational, and highly motivating. Fifth graders will gain a deeper understanding of the six major pre-Columbian culture areas on the North American continent. They will choose one group and conduct...
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How Much Will You Have When You Retire?
Learners examine how a 401(k) plan operates. They discover the implications of retiring early or late. They use the internet to research different retirement plans. Handouts are included.
Curated OER
Science: Lead Shot and Waterfowl
Students examine data to investigate the impact of lead shot pellets on waterfowl populations. They graph their findings and discover how lead in ingested by birds and poisons them. As an extension, students research legislation and...
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Water Works
Students create a "water web" to illustrate the interdependence among water users and producers. They distinguish between direct and indirect uses of water; illustrate the interconnectedness of water users in a community; and demonstrate...
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Continent of Africa
Fifth graders explore Africa and take a trip to the Smithsonian to see and musical instruments of African tribes.
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Civil Rights in America
Seventh graders visit the Smithsonian and are shown different exhibits. They are to make their own drawing about one of the exhibits and write about the experience.
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Seeing the Image in Imagery: A Lesson Plan Using Film
In our increasingly visual society, it is often difficult for some readers to create a mental picture of a picture created only with words. An image-rich text like F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby can therefore, present a real...
Library of Congress
Child Labor in America
Students investigate child labor during the Great Depression. For this US policy lesson, students evaluate multiple layers of the social, economic, and political affects of policy during the Great Depression. Students will engage in 5...
eGFI
Design a Green Rooftop Garden
Design and construct buildings with rooftop gardens. Junior engineers work in groups to build two buildings and then perform experiments to determine whether or not a garden affects the building's temperatures. They graph and interpret...
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Ornithology and Real World Science
Double click that mouse because you just found an amazing lesson! This cross-curricular Ornithology lesson incorporates literature, writing, reading informational text, data collection, scientific inquiry, Internet research, art, and...
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Class Birthday Graph
Learners analyze the basics of an Excel spreadsheet. They highlight cells in a spreadsheet. They make a column graph. Students are introduced to X-axis and Y-axis. They play various address games on the spreadsheet.
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Articles of Confederation Game
Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? Your historians will find out firsthand through this simulation activity, during which they will use money (consider using extra credit) to demonstrate the inherent flaws. It's simple: each...
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Open-Ended Questions
Students identify a topic for an open-ended question and evaluate the question. After developing ideas that lead to inquire, they investigate and research this topic on the Internet, and then create an iMovie.
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Exploration of 'pill bugs'
Fifth graders define words. They create a dichotomous key. After carefully examining pill bugs, 5th graders record observations. They compare and contrast habitats of pillbugs.
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Dilations with Matrices
Math whizzes explore dilations. They use matrices to perform dilations centered at the origins of triangles and investigate the effect of scale factor on the size relationship between the pre-image and the image of a polygon. A link to...
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Comparison of Protein Sequences From Two Samples of Crabmeat Using Gel Electrophoresis As an Introduction To the Biotechnology Lab
Students discover that proteins that are the product of DNA translation are different for different species. They determine that by analyzing their mass and charge they can differentiate between two different species. They use some of...
eGFI
Lesson: Guilt-Free Chocolate
Experiment with chocolate coating on cookies! What a delightful way to learn about food processing and chemical engineering. Throughout this activity, groups collect measurements and make calculations. They conclude by writing...
Curated OER
Dilations in the Plane
Tenth graders investigate dilations and explore the dilation transformation before investigating the properties of a dilation using Cabri Jr. High schoolers extend the concept of dilatation to the coordinate plane.