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Lesson Plan
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Human Feet Are Strange

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Feet are neat! So, if you've already walked the path of examining animal footprints with your class, put them in the shoes of early humans! A well-designed lesson incorporates video, discussion, and hands-on learning to demonstrate how...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Groundwater Basics

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Groundwater is an essential natural resource, not to mention a fascinating topic to study. Here is a series of twelve amazing lessons on the water source and how we use it in our daily lives. Concepts require higher math and physics...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Big Squeeze

For Teachers K - 5th
Students observe what happens as crayon shavings are melted and/or pressed together. They compare this to the process some rocks go through as they are heated and compressed naturally on earth.
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Activity
Exploratorium

Resonant Rings

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Physical or earth scientists construct this clever contraption to demonstrate how size effects frequency. Several paper rings of various sizes are taped onto a board and shaken to create vibrations. The resonant frequencies are easily...
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Lesson Plan
National Wildlife Federation

I’ve Got the POWER Wind Energy Potential at Your School

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The 20th instructional activity in a 21-part series connects the wind data and expectations of a turbine to whether such devices should be built in your area. Scholars begin with estimating the wind potential at school by using long-term...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

We Are the Guardians of the Earth

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students understand their responsibility to the world. In this religion, philanthropy lesson, students research the life of Aaron Feuerstein and his views of the responsibility of a person to his world. Students complete several worksheets.
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Lesson Plan
Energy for Keeps

Getting Current: Generating Electricity Using a Magnet

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Give your class a magnetic charge with this creative experiment designed to teach emerging scientists about electromagnetism. Pupils construct a model that demonstrates the function of an electrical generator and test this creation in a...
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Activity
Consortium for Ocean Leadership

Measure for Measure

For Teachers 5th - 8th
How does your class measure up? Young scientists create a scale drawing of the JOIDES Resolution in a collaborative activity. The lesson incorporates mathematical principles with deep-sea exploration to focus on enhancing measurement...
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Lesson Plan
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NASA

Christa's Lost Lesson: Newton’s Laws

For Teachers 6th - 8th
How do the laws of motion work in space? Learners explore Newton's laws of motion in different experiments as part of the Christa's Lost Lessons series. They rotate around the room in three stations to experience each law in action using...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Weather Websites

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students research and locate their own weather data using a weather website. They examine how to locate valid information on the www.weather.com website, and explore the website. Next, they select a city they want to visit, and compare...
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Graphic
PBS

The Planets of the Solar System

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Launch a lesson that's sure to capture middle schoolers' interest! Exploration enthusiasts examine the planets of our solar system using an activity from PBS's Space series. The resource includes images and information for each planet,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Soil Composition

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students examine soil. In this soil composition lesson students participate in soil sedimentation and filtration activities. The students discuss what non-living and living things are in soil and why it is so important.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fossil Fuels (III), The Geology of Coal: Interpreting Geologic History

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students hypothesize about why various samples of coal have different characteristics. Pupils use information that they found during Internet searches to ascertain the validity of their hypotheses and verify the "story" of coal. ...
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Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Make an "I'm Thankful For..." Placemat

For Teachers 1st - 6th
Learners compare and contrast what they are thankful for and what the pilgrims were thankful for, and create a Thanksgiving placemat. They read and recite the poem "I'm Thankful For," and create a laminated landscape placemat that...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shake, Rattle and Roll

For Teachers K - 4th
Students compare the weathering of different-sized materials. Comparisons are made and data analyzed to reach conclusions about the process of weathering. Applications can be made for the higher grades.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Outdoor Observation

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders explore Earth science by participating in a nature observation activity. In this four seasons lesson, 2nd graders identify the four seasons on Earth and the weather patterns they are known for. Students read several books...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's Your Favorite Season?

For Teachers K
Students explore earth science by creating illustrations in class. In this four seasons lesson, students identify the four different types of weather that take place during the year and read the books Harvest Year and Snow Comes to the...
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Unit Plan
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Curated OER

Volcanoes: Fourth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities

For Teachers 4th Standards
Young geologists begin exploring volcanoes of different structures and states: active, extinct, or dormant. During the lab, they make three models and compare different types of volcanoes, including composite, cinder cone, and shield....
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Unit Plan
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Curated OER

Earthquakes: Third Grade Lesson Plans and Activities

For Teachers 3rd Standards
Introduce third graders to energy waves with a hands-on geology activity, in which they answer questions and compare seismograms in the San Francisco Bay area. After a demonstration that shows how bigger waves indicate a high-intensity...
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Unit Plan
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Curated OER

Volcanoes: Sixth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities

For Teachers 6th
Bring a set of pre-lab, lab, and post-lab lesson plans on volcanoes to your earth science unit. Sixth graders explore the three types of volcanoes found on Earth, plot the specific locations of these volcanoes on a map, and investigate...
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Lesson Plan
University of Colorado

Looking Inside Planets

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Researchers use scientific data to understand what is inside each of the planets. The first in a series of six, this lesson builds off of that concept by having pupils use a data table to create their own scale models of the interiors of...
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Lesson Plan
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University of Colorado

Looking Inside Planets

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
All of the gas giant's atmospheres consist of hydrogen and helium, the same gases that make up all stars. The third in a series of 22, the activity challenges pupils to make scale models of the interiors of planets in order to...
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Lesson Plan
US Environmental Protection Agency

Tree Rings: Living Records of Climate

For Teachers 5th - 10th
Open with a discussion on weather and climate and then explain how tree rings can provide scientists with information about the earth's past climate. Pupils analyze graphics of simulated tree rings from various US locations for the...
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Unit Plan
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Curated OER

Hazards: Fourth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities

For Teachers 4th Standards
Learn about damage associated with earthquakes and materials that best withstand a quake. A lab engages class members in the experimental design and construction of sturdy structures that can endure various earthquake intensities. Groups...