Curated OER
How Big Is That Star?
Aspiring astronomers study stars. They compare stars and explain the relationship between radius, mass, and diameter. By creating a star simulation, they discover how a binary star system's orbit can cause changes in the observed...
Curated OER
Is Portland, Oregon Experiencing Global Warming?
Students use data to determine if the climate in Portland has changed over the years. In this weather lesson students complete line graphs and study long wave radiation.
Curated OER
The Appliance Explosion
Students explain why the number of appliances used today differs greatly from the number used previously. They construct a bar graph to show changes in appliance use over a period of time. They also list appliances that could be eliminated.
Balanced Assessment
Para-Ball-A
Analyze the flight of a thrown ball. Learners determine the maximum height of a thrown ball and the time it takes to hit the ground given its initial speed. They continue to review different scenarios with different maximums or different...
PBS
Population Simulation with M&M's
Math and M&Ms® go great together when introducing a modeling activity. Allow your learners to simulate population growth and decay of fish in a pond and share their reasoning for the change in fish. With such an impact we have on our...
Balanced Assessment
Pen Pals
It's always nice to hear from friends. Your budding mathematicians read letters from pen pals and convert customary measurements into metric units and vice versa. They also write letters to an imaginary pen pal using metric units.
Curated OER
Worksheet 27 - Spring 1996
In this math instructional activity, students examine the position of an object and then use the formulas to determine its path over time. Then they apply the information in order to determine the traveling path of an asteroid in space.
Curated OER
Distance over Time
Students analyze velocity and how it is determined. They experiment with velocity in order to measure and calculate the magnitude of speed. They use examples in their novel "Skateboard Renegade" to relate velocity to real life situations.
Curated OER
Magnetic Storms
In this magnetic storms worksheet, students use a graph of data collected over time showing the magnitude of a magnetic storm. Students use the data to solve 6 problems about the graph and they determine the strength of the storm at...
Curated OER
Saving and Spending
Students identify the reasons why they believe people save money. After this list, they discuss what they spend their money on and determine if the reasons for saving money change over time. In groups, they use the story of "Uncle Jed's...
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Adding and Subtracting Three-Digit Numbers by Jumping
Second graders use data to graph information and draw conclusions. In this lesson on data analysis, 2nd graders practice gathering, sorting, comparing, and graphing data. Students differentiate data that can and cannot change over time.
Rainforest Alliance
Forests of Guatemala
With 90 percent of its land area covered in forests, Suriname, a country in South America, contains the largest percentage of forests throughout the world. Here is an activity that brings classmates together to learn about the...
Curated OER
Carbon 14 Dating, Variation 2
Your archaeologists begin this task with a table of values to estimate the time passed based on the half-life of Carbon 14 remaining in a plant. They then move on to find when a specific amount of Carbon 14 is present in the same plant,...
Balanced Assessment
Chameleon Color
Don't let the resource hide from you. In the assessment task, young mathematicians solve problems involving chameleons that change color. Three different problems require individuals to apply parity in various situations.
Illustrative Mathematics
Accuracy of Carbon 14 Dating II
The scientific issue of carbon-14 dating and exponential decay gets a statistics-based treatment in this problem. The class starts with a basic investigation of carbon content, but then branches out to questions of accuracy and ranges of...
Curated OER
Constitution/Impeachment/Reconstruction
Eleventh graders analyze a chart comparing U.S. census data from 1850, 1880, 1900, and 1920. They read a handout summarizing immigration legislation from 1882-1996 and create a graph charting how open / closed U.S. immigration is over time.
Teach Engineering
Grow Your Own Algae!
Develop a model of a wastewater treatment center. The last activity of the unit has pupils mix a lake water sample into a tank of water containing fertilizers. Over time, the algae from the lake water grows and removes the nutrient-rich...
Curated OER
Time Changes Everything
Students analyze census data from 1915, 1967 and 2006. They read an article about how the world's population is growing at an alarming rate. They use primary source documents to create a timeline on the information they gathered. They...
Curated OER
Halloween Math Lesson Plans
Halloween math activities provide a perfect way to make this subject relevant and fun.
Curated OER
Earth's Magnetic Pole
In this Earth's magnetic pole worksheet, students use a diagram showing the changes in the magnetic pole of the Earth over time. Students use the given scale of the changes to answer 6 questions about the average speed of the magnetic...
Curated OER
The International Space Station-Follow that Graph!
In this altitude change of the International Space Station worksheet, students observe a graph of the change in altitude of the space station over time due to the Earth's drag. Students solve 3 problems using the data in the graph.
Curated OER
Earth's Warming Climate: Are We Responsible
Learners examine the atmospheric data for CO2. In this web-based atmospheric lesson, student follow instructions to examine and plot on-line scientific data about the CO2 levels in our atmosphere and analyze the changes found in the data.
Curated OER
Weather Dot Com
Students examine the need for a standard unit of temperature and measure temperature with a thermometer. They discuss the details of a thermometer and the calibrations used, record temperature data for inside and outside, explore...
Curated OER
1930 Census and the Consitution
Learners read the Constitution and discuss the importance of enumeration. In this Census instructional activity, students complete a Census schedule and discuss the job skills of applicants. Learners research Census data to compare and...