Polar Trec
Arctic Smorgasbord!
Two blooms of phytoplankton, instead of just one, now occur in the Arctic due to declining sea ice, which will have widespread effects on the marine life and climate. In small groups, participants build an Arctic food web with given...
Facing History and Ourselves
Decision-Making: Introduction to the Unit
Make your classroom a supportive and communicative place to be before beginning a unit on the Holocaust. Working together as a class, learners reflect on their previous experiences of classroom discussions before establishing a...
Curated OER
Where is Away?
Focusing on where are garbage goes once we dispose of it, learners explore environmental concerns. Using a clear format, this lesson leads learners through a discussion of waste reduction, recycling, and composting. Then, they discuss...
Curated OER
Renewable Resources: Ancient Civilizations
Students examine how ancient people used natural resources. In this renewable resource lesson, students will be put into 5 groups each focusing on a different past civilization. Each group will identify they types of resources their...
California Academy of Science
Greening Your Middle School
Middle schoolers redesign their school to make it more energy efficient, and create a model of their design. Learners get together in groups of 5, and they take on the task of making their school more energy efficient. To do this, they...
Carnegie Mellon University
International Perspectives to Climate Change 1
After a lecture about how the first industrial revolution triggered the path to climate change, your environmental studies class discusses what the impacts are. In a culminating activity, they get into groups and identify countries on a...
Curated OER
Sugar Bush Sap Production - Human Environmental Impact on Sap Sand
Eleventh graders compare the amount of sugar sand present in tree sap. In this environmental science lesson, 11th graders measure different tree circumference. They prepare a report and share findings in class.
Curated OER
pH Potential
Students experiment to determine the positive and negative impacts of human activities on environmental change. They examine how physical and biological processes such as decomposition affect soil characteristics while looking at the pH...
Curated OER
Biodiversity Study -- A Unit Study
Students sample a site with low human impact, one with moderate human impact, and a third with high human impact. Students chart the data for each site and then compare the sites and discuss.
Curated OER
Extra! Extra!
Students describe how plants and animals depend on each other. They see how living and nonliving environments change over time. They identify ways in which humans have changed their environment and the effects of those changes.
Curated OER
It's Just a Barn
Investigate Pennsylvania Barns. Have your class consider the elements common to Pennsylvanian barns and why they are significant to the food production process. They write summaries of Frederick Watts and his impact on agriculture.
Michigan Sea Grant
Fish Habitat and Humans
Strict habitat requirements are needed for the survival of fish populations and fish variety in the Great Lakes. Young scientists become experts in the basic needs of fish and understand how survival necessities can vary with different...
Curated OER
“THE LORAX” by Dr. Seuss
Few children's books convey the message of conservation as well as Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. Read the story aloud, emphasizing the interconnectedness of plants and animals in an ecosystem and discussing different ways people can help...
Carnegie Mellon University
Transportation
Teach your environmental studies, life science, or engineering class how an internal combustion engine works using the first few slides of the accompanying presentation. Then, focus in on the resulting carbon emissions. Finally, take a...
Curated OER
Choices Affect the Environment-I Make a Difference
Students examine and research how personal and societal choices can affect the environment. Student find resources that provide scientific research about the possible impact of each of the choices. Students then create a four-panel...
Curated OER
Natural Resources: Getting a Fair Share?
Students explore the impact of human behavior on key components of the environment, examine how theirn own personal decisions have added to the problem, and explore possible solutions to the current ecological crisis.
Curated OER
Lights On ! Lights Off! Exploring Human Settlement Patterns
Third graders write informational paragraphs based on the settlement patterns of the United States. In this settlement lesson plan, 3rd graders read about population and how it affects where people settle next.
Curated OER
Raindrops Keep Burning On My head
Students investigate the effects and causes of acid rain. They test pH of household items to familiarize themselves with pH scale and compare that information with acid rain solutions. They investigate impact of acid rain via internet...
Curated OER
Urban Ecosystems 5: In Defense Of Cities
Young scholars explain that while cities have unattractive features, the density of human life enables energy efficiency, mass transit, recycling, and other benefits which are difficult or impossible in rural areas. This is the fifth in...
Rural Science Education Program
Cells, Genetics, and Biotechnology
For scholars tired of reading the textbook, this unit includes nine hands-on lessons. Through group work, lab activities, experiments, and even one inquiry-based lesson, scholars apply knowledge about cells, genetics, and...
Curated OER
Photosynthesis and Respiration
High schoolers comprehend the relationship between plants and animals in an aquatic ecosystem. They predict the effects of low dissolved oxygen on the organisms. Students create microcosms with plants, animals, or both. They determine...
Curated OER
Environment: How'd That Pollution Get There?
Young scholars examine how global wind and water patterns aid in the spread of worldwide pollution. In groups, they read articles about the domino effect of pollution and create posters displaying its journey. On blank world maps,...
Curated OER
The Great Kapok Tree - Economic Impact of Deforestation
Students read "The Great Kapok Tree" by Lynne Cherry. They, in groups, research the economic impacts of deforestation in areas with rain forest and identify resources that humans use from the rain forest.
Curated OER
The Human Organism
Students discuss human emotions and mental health. In this mental and emotional health lesson, students write a short story regarding the "think and share" choice. Students include emotion, the connection between feelings and conflict...