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A Day in the Life
Students use their research skills to investigate the behavior and characteristics of a rainforest animal. After creating a diary entry, they illustrate the habits and life cycle of the animal. They write the diary entry from the point...
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A Brand New Day
Learners locate Maine on a classroom map and discuss if Maine is where the nation's first light is found, where would the nation's last light be seen. They explore the idea of the sun rising in the east and setting in the west.
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Hottest, Coldest, Highest, Deepest: Science, 4th Grade
Fourth graders investigate weather patterns in their home state of Utah. After creating KWL charts, they research weather and geographical data to locate the state's extremes. As an extension, 4th graders write and illustrate books about...
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Ocean Life Lesson Plans
Students learn about life in the ocean with lessons that connect science, art, and environmental topics.
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Tides - The Ins and Outs of Tides
Get your junior oceanographers to generate tidal prediction graphs on an interactive website. They will feel like experts in the field, or shall we say, experts in the ocean! This is a brief, but worthwhile activity that could be used to...
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Earthquakes and Volcanoes
Even though volcanoes look alike, they can be very different based on the types of lava that erupts from their surface. Learn about strata volcanoes, shield volcanoes, and the varying viscosity of lava with an engaging hands-on...
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Anthropogenic Biomes
If you teach a man to fish, he will never go hungry—or he will overfish and permanently damage the ecosystem? Address the traditional biomes as well as the human-included ecosystems and contrasts the biotic and abiotic factors in each....
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Freshwater Fish Anatomy & Taxonomy
Tenth graders use a classification key to identify organisms. In this classification lesson students identify freshwater species of fish and document their observations.
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Paper Plate Sunflowers
A great way to recall the parts of a flower is to make one. Little learners create sunflowers out of paint and paper plates. They also discuss and label the various parts of their flowers.
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Sun
Students study how the sun is at the center of the solar system. In this solar lesson students measure the altitude of the sun and its size.
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How Does Temperature Vary Over Time?
Middle schoolers examine the temperature flucuations on the Earth. After defining new vocabulary, they identify the flucuations of the Earth on a map. As a class, they develop a hypotheis on the temperature variation by examining the...
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Phase to Phase with the Moon
Fourth graders study the Moon phases. The lesson includes hands-on activities as well as web-based activities. They use models of the Moon and a lamp to study each of the phases of the Moon, and test their knowlege of the Moon on a web...
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Weather in Your City
Young scholars observe weather conditions of a particular city. Multiple intelligences are explored within this lesson. They locate their particular city on a United States map. Each student writes about their discoveries in his/her...
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Mining Simulation
Eighth graders put their knowledge of rocks and minerals into perspective by seeing how minerals can be mined and the difficulties and costs of mining. They explore the environmental impacts of mining.
Michigan Sea Grant
Environmental Decision Making
Pupils participate in a board game activity in which landing on a space called "Decision Card" presents them with a land-use situation to consider and decide how to act. In order to advance in Hydropoly, players must think critically and...
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Temperature and Tracking Weather
Fourth graders discuss, describe and track weather by utilizing a variety of measurable quantities as temperature, wind speed, wind direction, cloud conditions and precipitation. They assess, through experiments and practicing, how to...
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Going Through A Phase
Students are introduced to remote sensing equipment used to gather information about the moon. They learn basic facts about the moon such as size, landforms, temperature and gravitational influence on the earth's tides.
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Dark Matter In The Universe
Students investigate the concept of dark matter and how it occurs in the universe. They conduct research using a variety of resources. Students use the information by reading at least two articles about dark matter. They also generate...
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Rock River Watershed
Students discover what a watershed is and which one they live in. Using the internet, they research why watersheds are important to an ecosystem and how to keep them from getting polluted. They use a map to locate various items within a...
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Weather Forecasting Basics
Eighth graders analyze weather diagrams and weather maps. For this earth science lesson, 8th graders explain why it is important to know the weather. They complete a handout at the end of the lesson.
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Tracking Sunrise and Sunset
Students collect, record, and graph the sunrise and sunset times. They explain how the relationship between the tilt of Earth's axis and its yearly orbit around the sun produces the seasons.
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Am I Hot or Am I Cold?
Learners practice using a thermometer to determine how the air around the earth gets heated and cooled by the sun. Students chart the daily inside and outside temperature for two weeks.
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Energy Audit
Students examine the level of energy usage on a local and national level. Using the internet, they discover ways to conserve energy every day and how over-consumption of energy negatively affects the environment. In groups, they...
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Water: The Liquid of Life
Sixth graders complete a lesson on the properties, types and amounts of water on Earth. In groups, they travel between stations to identify water resources in Illinois and pollution sources. They complete the lesson with a field trip...