Curated OER
Blue Crabs - The Blue Crab's Chesapeake Journey
A plethora of information about the blue crabs of Chesapeake Bay will amaze and delight your marine biologists. They learn, through direct instruction, about the characteristics and life cycle of this fascinating arthropod. A highlight...
Curated OER
Field Guide to Schoolyard Insects and Their Relatives
Sometimes all you need to complete your perfect lesson plan is an awesome hands-on learning experience. Here is an extension activity that is sure to excite your learners. They'll head outside to observe the local insect community. When...
Education Outside
Animal Homes in the Garden
First graders journey to the school garden to examine the habitats of garden animals. Using the provided graphic organizer, kids locate and sketch a critter and its habitat before returning it to its home.
Annenberg Foundation
Geometry 3D Shapes: Test Your Skills
Time to find out what they've learned! The final lesson of a five-part series has learners complete a 39-question multiple choice review. They use what they've learned in the previous lessons to complete questions that include concepts...
Curated OER
Please Help!
Sixth graders examine the prairie food chain while designing a rescue strategy for an endangered species. They compare their strategy to that of a professional conservation expert.
Curated OER
Beetle Collection and Release
Young scholars investigate plants and compare them to the purple loose strife. As they observe the plants they predict possible impacts on plant populations based on their observations. They work in groups and present their findings to...
Curated OER
TAKING APART OWL PELLETS
Young scholars dissect and owl pellet and then reconstruct small rodents on a presentation board using a textbook picture as a guide.
Curated OER
Prairie Predator and Prey
Fifth graders brainstorm a list of animals that live on the prairie, and classify them as predators and prey. They conduct interviews where they ask the animals what they need to look out for to sustain life on the prairie.
Curated OER
Nature and Fitness Trail
Students plan stations for a nature and fitness trail and construct an accompanying e-Book for extended descriptions at each station. Data on the human impact on the environment is gathered in this activity.
Curated OER
Bioethics
Students are introduced to the issues surrounding bioethics and begin to discover how some of these values can influence decision making. The exciting part of this lesson is the constructivist method used to engage students of all...
Curated OER
Native Species Restoration: Is Saving One Species Hurting Another?
Students investigate the effect of human activities upon the environment. The studying experience encourages students to think about the issues involved in native species restoration.
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
A Deadly Passion
Depending on the level of maturity of your class, the case study presented here could be fascinating. It focuses on the mating behavior and post-mating rituals of the Australian redback spider, which involves the female eating the male...
Curated OER
Forest Food Webs
Students consider the interdependency of life in a temperate forest by studying selected organisms from an Asian temperate forest and creating a food web.
Curated OER
Coral Reefs
Students research an inhabitant of a Caribbean coral reef using a list of common organisms that live on or near it. Students then write a description of their organism and draw a picture or a 3-D model of it. Eventually they all work...
Curated OER
Exploring the Temperate Forest: Biodiversity and Interdependence
Students examine the consequences of cutting down large amounts of forests throughout the world. In groups, they use the internet to complete a module taking them on a tour through different temperate forests. To end the lesson, they...
Curated OER
The Effects of Pesticides on the Food Chain
Fourth graders generalize that all animals, including people, depend on plants as a food source. In this science lesson plan, 4th graders describe and construct a food chain, tell how pesticides enter the food chain, and discuss possible...
Curated OER
Global Warming Statistics
Students research real-time and historic temperature data of U.S. and world locations, and analyze the data using mean, median, and mode averages. They graph the data and draw conclusions by analyzing the data. A spreadsheet is used to...
Curated OER
The Queen's Empire
Students conduct Internet research on a variety of ant species and their habitats. They have an opportunity to observe ants in their environment. Areas of interest might include ant identification, colony life, the ant life cycle, and...
Curated OER
Non Native Species: English Ivy-Landscape Plant or Deadly Killer?
High schoolers study the impact that invasive species have on biodiversity and more natural areas.
Curated OER
1st Grade - Act. 14: Who's in Your Family
First graders create classroom graph of their family members after reading book, Family.
Curated OER
Investigating Animals in Soil
Students investigate and observe small animal activity on a plot of land on their school grounds. In small groups they identify the five kingdoms of animals, stake out a small plot of ground, collect samples, record and analyze any data...
Curated OER
The Energy Debate - Global Warming
Learners describe what global warming is, what causes global warming and the impact to our world. They study the threat of global warming and its relationship to the use of fossil fuels.
Curated OER
Introduction to Algae
Students explore different types of algae found in both local regions of Salt Lake and different parts of the world. They discover different types of algae found in an ecosystem and the significance and function it serves.
Curated OER
Who Eats Whom in the Salt Marsh?
Seventh graders complete a virtual online salt marsh tour. In groups, they observe and identify the various types of animals found in the marsh. After categorizing the animals, they create a food web based on the animals role in the...