Curated OER
Volcanism (part 1 of 3)
Learners explore the factors that control magma viscosity and study about the characteristics of volcanic eruptions. Lesson describes collaborative group exercises and guided inquiry methods.
Curated OER
Sedimentary Rocks
Sedimentary rocks are the building blocks of this geology lesson. In it, learners discover what sedimentary rocks are and how they form. They understand the differences between the major sedimentary rock varieties and learn what types of...
Curated OER
Pulling It All Together
Students review data about a health problem and prepare an investigative report. Teams trade reports and utilize skills developed from previous lessons to evaluate the critical thinking evident in the reports.
Curated OER
Bird Buffet
Fifth graders investigate how birds use their beaks. In this agriculture lesson, 5th graders use tools to simulate how birds gather food with their beaks. They then draw conclusions about certain types of beaks and what types of food a...
Curated OER
John Brown Lesson Plan
Students investigate John Brown. In this U.S. history slavery lesson, students view a PowerPoint presentation about John Brown. Students discuss the North's and South's reaction to John Brown's raid, and determine whether they think...
Curated OER
Launching an Inquiry into Endangered Animals
Students create questions they want answered while they show what they comprehend about endangered and extinct species. They categorize photos of living things onto a contunum with the main points for use as a formative assessment.
Curated OER
Gravity: What is it?
What is gravity and how do you explain it? Use this presentation to guide an inquiry-based lesson centered on understanding gravity through hands-on experience. Each slide provides a definition, example, or activity for students to...
Curated OER
Lesson Idea: A Box Full of Science
Students analyze and study a shoe box of simple objects. They experience a homemade alternative to a company box of commercial kits for science. Each student creates their own shoe box of simple objects to share with their classmates.
ReadWriteThink
Scaffolding Methods for Research Paper Writing
Rome wasn't built in a day, but researchers can be with proper scaffolding. This writing unit has scholars write a research paper through scaffolding of various parts of the process. Learners begin with identifying a topic and crafting a...
NASA
Climate Change Inquiry Lab
With global temperatures on the rise faster than ever recorded, the effects of a heating planet could be devastating. Allow learners to discover just what the world is in store for if the warming continues through a series of videos, a...
Curated OER
Is the Coast Really Toast?: A Lesson About Volcanoes, Phase Changes, and the Art of Estimation
Clever! Use a clip from the 1997 film, Volcano, to get your chemistry class knee-deep in heat concepts related to lava. In the movie scene, lava flow is stopped in the nick of time. Your class must use calculations to determine if this...
Center for Learning in Action
Density
Explore the concept of density within states of matter—gases, liquids, and solids—through a group experiment in which young scientists test objects' texture, color, weight, size, and ability to sink or float.
EngageNY
Segments That Meet at Right Angles
Can segments be considered perpendicular if they don't intersect? Learners look at nonintersecting segments on the coordinate plane and make conclusions about the lines that contain those segments. They determine if they are...
Discovery Education
Jets in Flight
This Discovery Education activity provides the information needed to understand the basics of flight. Before taking off, young pilots learn the eight stages of the engineering design process. Small groups then design and build an...
CK-12 Foundation
Simplify Products or Quotients of Single Variable Expressions: Quotients of Single Variable Expressions
Investigate division within an algebraic term using an inquiry-based lesson. Individuals adjust sliders and watch as the simplification of the term changes. Questions help guide them to important conclusions.
National Museum of the American Indian
The A:Shiwi (Zuni) People: A Study in Environment, Adaptation, and Agricultural Practices
Discover the connection of native peoples to their natural world, including cultural and agricultural practices, by studying the Zuni people of the American Southwest. This instructional activity includes examining a poster's...
American Chemical Society
Developing Tests to Distinguish Between Similar-Looking Liquids
Each group talks about how to test unknown liquids based on their findings in the previous experiment. In this second of four activities, they test unknowns on wax paper, newspaper, and construction paper. As a stand-alone, this lesson...
Mathematics Vision Project
Module 1: Functions and Their Inverses
Undo a function to create a new one. The inverse of a function does just that. An inquiry-based lesson examines the result of reversing the variables of a function, beginning with linear patterns and advancing to quadratic and...
State of Victoria Department of Education and Early Childhood Development
The Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China is a wonder of the world. Learners explore the history and construction of the incredible feat using both non-fiction and fictional works. The resource includes multi-day lesson plans that contains ideas for...
American Chemical Society
Diapers: The Inside Story
There shouldn't be any accidents with this activity! An inquiry-based lesson has learners explore the absorption properties of the gel compound in diapers. After testing its properties, they learn the science of the molecules that make...
PBS
No Slip Grip
The force will be with you during an inquiry-based lesson focused on friction. Young scientists explore the effect of different surfaces on friction. They use rubber bands to measure the amount of force needed to move an object on the...
NASA
Make a Planetary Exploration Balloon
Balloons aren't just for parties! An inquiry-based lesson explores the idea of using balloons for space exploration. Learners become engineers as they attempt to control the ascent and descent of a helium balloon using different masses.
Curated OER
Measuring Precipitation
A little engineering design is mixed into this lesson on precipitation measurement. Groups plan and construct a rain gauge, and use it to collect precipitation. As part of the PowerPoint presentation, learners view a satellite map of...
Albert Shanker Institute
Economic Causes of the March on Washington
Money can't buy happiness, but it can put food on the table and pay the bills. The first of a five-lesson unit teaches pupils about the unemployment rate in 1963 and its relationship with the March on Washington. They learn how to create...