Curated OER
Fossils: The Eras of the Earth's History
Students research the four geologic eras of Earth's history. In this extension on a fossils instructional activity, students research the different eras of Earth's history. Students use AppleWorks to create a bar graph containing...
Curated OER
Intellectual History
In this online interactive world history worksheet, students answer 22 matching questions regarding the Enlightenment. Students may submit their answers to be scored.
Curated OER
Oil: Impact of a Resource
Students discover the history and method of oil production. In this natural resource lesson, students investigate early oil production. Students discuss the challenges of turning natural resources into safe products.
Curated OER
A Differentiated Way through Think Dots
Young scholars examine reasons that led people to explore, identify "West" as defined following Revolutionary War, explain importance of finding natural resources, develop time line of dates and events leading up to Lewis and Clark...
Curated OER
"ART ZOO 'Blacks in the Westward Movement', 'What Can You Do with a Portrait', and 'Of Beetles, Worms, and Leaves of Grass'"
Students study black history, examine portraits and portrait making and create their own portraits, and investigate their natural environment. This humanities lesson provides a text that can be used to teach lessons in black...
Curated OER
Science: Evolution and Natural Selection
Students watch a clip from the film, Jurassic Park, as an introduction to analysis and discussion of the evolutionary history of dinosaurs. As an exercise in evolution, students in groups, draw dinosaur pictures based on the previous...
Curated OER
"The Science Times"
Students create their own newspaper after gathering information at the Museum of Natural History's Hall of Biodiversity.
Channel Islands Film
Once Upon a Time (Saxipak’a): Lesson Plan 4
How did the environment and natural resources found on the Channel islands influence the culture of the Chumash? Archaeology meets technology in an activity designed for middle schoolers. After viewing West of The West's documentary Once...
Curated OER
Phineas Gage: Questioning Strategy
Focus on chapter two of Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science with a questioning activity. After teaching and modeling several types of questions, learners work with partners and then independently to answer and...
California Academy of Science
Poetic Reflections
Poetry is a wonderful way to explore language, express topical understanding, and incite creative thinking. After a trip to the local natural history museum (or zoo), learners write an acrostic or a cinquain poem describing one of their...
American Museum of Natural History
All About Cloning
Start seeing double. The American Museum of Natural History website provides pupils with information about Dolly, the cloned sheep. Learners find out the procedure used to create Dolly along with why scientists clone animals.
American Museum of Natural History
A Whale of a Tale
What's the most interesting fact about a blue whale? Learners read an interview about the similarities between the Titanosaur and the blue whale displays at the American Museum of Natural History. Pupils learn not only about blue whales...
American Museum of Natural History
Field Trip Mars
Fly around the Martian surface. Pupils view a presentation on the planet Mars featuring a flyover that shows different views of the surface where rovers have landed and explored on different missions. As individuals watch the images, the...
American Museum of Natural History
Ask a Scientist About Our Environment
Let's ask an expert! Scientists at the American Museum of Natural History field questions about the environment in an interactive resource. Question topics range from global warming and conservation to endangered species and habitats.
Curated OER
Natural Inquirer
Students explore the research process. In this scientific method lesson, students analyze data from an article, write their own informational article and express what they have learned. Students create their own article using the given...
Curated OER
Floodplain Modeling
Students simulate the impact of fluctuating river volumes on structures and landforms. They experiment with table top-sized riverbed models and water. Students consider how human design can help mitigate the effects of a flood.
Curated OER
Natural Born Robots: Body Builders
Students perform activities to explore how their arm works and what muscles are involved. They view animated comparisons of human and robotic arms. Students create a model of the human arm.
Curated OER
An Exploration of Leonardo da Vinci's Life and Work
The original Renaissance man, da Vinci is a wonderful subject through which to discuss history, art and science.
Curated OER
Ancient Farmers of the Amazon
Students read a sample research proposal and create their own. They discover the type of information needed for others to reject or accept the proposal. They practice applying the scientific process to different situations.
Curated OER
Salmon Vs. Dams: the Dam Removal Debate on the Elwha River
Students role-play a meeting of the Elwha River council in which they present opposing views to council members on hydroelectric power and salmon fisheries resources. They brainstorm possible conflicts between various people in land-use...
Curated OER
It's not as pretty as it looks!
Tenth graders investigate that measurement is often an inact science. They explore ways utilize available information to form hypotheses. Students investigate how to test hypotheses using the HACH test kits.
Curated OER
Nature Notes
Students spend some time outdoors and record their observations of abiotic conditions, geologic surroundings and living organisms. They reflect and write about the experience of being observant in nature.
NASA
Erosion and Landslides
A professional-quality PowerPoint, which includes links to footage of actual landslides in action, opens this moving lesson. Viewers learn what conditions lead to erosion and land giving way. They simulate landslides with a variety of...
Curated OER
Fossil Hunt
Learners ask questions about the nature of science as they experience a 'Fossil Hunt'. They reconstruct a book that has been literally destroyed, just as the fossil record has been changed by billions of years of geological processes.