American Museum of Natural History
Making a Field Journal
Trowels and brushes are certainly important tools for an archaeologist working on a dig. Perhaps more important, however, is the archaeologist's field journal. Christina Elson, an archaeologist working with the American Museum of Natural...
Curated OER
Compliments and Feelings
How do you feel when you get a compliment? Give a compliment? After modeling how to make explicit compliments (“I like the way . . .”) ask class members to practice saying nice things about themselves and others, and to consider how...
G. Turrell
Science Activity 2: Light & Sound
Little learners experiment with sunlight and map out how light travels. Using a mirror and slotted card, they find out about items that can reflect or absorb the light. They experiment with a variety of materials to find out how light...
Mathematics Vision Project
Geometric Figures
Logical thinking is at the forefront of this jam-packed lesson, with young mathematicians not only investigating geometric concepts but also how they "know what they know". Through each activity and worksheet, learners wrestle with...
Curated OER
Water in the Biosphere
Environmental explorers examine the campus and take note of living organisms. Introduce them to the biosphere and the questions of the day: How much water can be found in the biosphere? A slide show helps you along, and even contains a...
Curated OER
Nonfiction Genre Mini-Unit: Persuasive Writing
Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.
Science Matters
Energy Flow
Budding scientists work collaboratively to reenact energy flow in a food chain. Scholars take on roles such as producer and consumer and perform tasks that symbolize energy flow in order to provide evidence of how much energy passes...
Virginia Middle School Engineering Education Initiative
Save the Penguins: An Introduction to Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer
Heat things up in your physical science class with this interactive lesson series on thermodynamics. Through a series of class demonstrations and experiments, young scientists learn how heat is transferred through conduction, convention,...
Florida International University
Simulating Microgravity with Buoyancy
How do astronauts know how to live and work in a weightless environment? It doesn't come naturally! Junior physicists conduct experiments to examine the link between buoyancy and microgravity. Each activity illustrates a different aspect...
Curated OER
Fun Food Faces
Students create tasty faces. In this food lesson, students use rice cakes to make a funny face. Students follow directions and use creativity for this activity. Students make a list of things they need from the grocery store to make more...
Curated OER
Unplanned Pregnancy: Parenting
High schoolers consider and discuss characteristics of an ideal parent. In small groups, they work together to examine the stereotypical roles of the father and the mother. The issues dealt with in this resource are thought-provoking and...
Curated OER
It Can Be a Shocker!
It's important for young learners to understand how dangerous electricity can be, and how to avoid getting shocked. This learning exercise enlightens them on how to avoid getting shocked, then has them answer Yes or No to eight questions...
Biology Junction
Scientific Method - Controls and Variables
Most teens like to sleep in as late as possible, so testing the fastest way to get to school sounds like a great idea. A presentation walks through how to identify the controls, independent variables, and dependent variables in setting...
Federal Trade Commission
Ad Awareness
Movie theaters, shopping malls, television, the Internet ... no matter where people go, they are inundated with advertisements. Scholars discuss the topic of ad awareness using the first of four Admongo lessons about advertising. Pupils...
Curated OER
Transportation and Environment
Young scholars make an eco-friendly vehicle to help make transportation better for the environment. In this transportation lesson, students learn how transportation inventions are bad for the environment. They then see how engineers have...
Curated OER
DNA, the Awesome Thread of Life
Students examine how traits are passed to offspring. In this genetic reproduction lesson students develop a model of dna and learn about its structure, replication and function.
Utah Education Network (UEN)
7th Grade Poetry: Sonnet Poem
Two sonnets provide seventh graders with examples of Shakespearean sonnets. After discussing the story of the poems and analyzing their rhyme scheme and rhythm, young poets craft a Shakespearian sonnet and share their work with two...
Curated OER
The Carbon Cycle
Here is an interesting science lesson. Pupils discover that carbon, just like water, is absolutely necessary for all living things to survive. They study how it cycles through nature, become familiar with the periodic table, and look at...
Curated OER
The Three Little Pigs
Kindergarteners are presented with three types of materials: real straw, sticks, and a real brick and make prior knowledge connections as it relates to the story of The Three Little Pigs. They listen to the story and work together to...
Curated OER
Gelatin Volcanoes
Students investigate magma flow using gelatin volcano models. In this earth science lesson, students sketch the magma bodies as observed from the top of their model. They explain why magma moves that way.
Overcoming Obstacles
Getting Organized
If you've ever peeked inside a middle schooler's backpack, you know how valuable a lesson on organization can be. Help class members organize their binders, study habits, and schedules with a set of collaborative activities.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Molecules to the Max!—Teacher's Discovery Guide
Molecules to the Max! refers to a movie released in 2009 about the world of atoms and molecules. A helpful discovery guide provides five posters on science topics typically covered at the middle school level. It also explains the...
Education Bureau of Hong Kong
Evaluating Casual Claims
Responsible decision making relies on the ability to a recognize, analyze, and evaluate claims. The worksheets and activities in this 32-page packet teach learners how to distinguish among opinions, reasoned arguments, facts, and logical...
Biology Junction
Strawberry DNA
Humans eat around 93,205 miles of DNA in an average meal. Scholars learn how to extract DNA from a strawberry using a presentation. It walks through each step and explains why the process works. Comprehension questions encourage...