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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Create a Full-Scale Layout of the International Space Station

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Students work together to convert scale dimensions to determine the true size of the International Space Station. They create a full-scale outline of the station. They share their layout with the class.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Home on the Range

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students use maps and mathematics to determine the appropriate panther population in a given area. In this Florida ecology lesson, students research the area requirements of male and female panther and use a map to help calculate how...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Tale of Scale

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders, using a range of data, produce three bar graphs for various scales along the y-axis.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Off to College

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students jog to where their classroom teacher went to college using a scale that best fits their situation. They log miles on a chart until students reach their destination. Students use the colleges mascot as the graph indicator as to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

See the State

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders are given a map of Indiana and have to plan a road trip including at least two major points of interest with 100% accuracy. The students estimate the distance between their two chosen locations with 100% accuracy.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Old World and New World - Why Contact Took So Long

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Learners use a globe to determine why contact between the old world and the new world took a long time. In this map skills lesson, students analyze routes between regions to determine why it took so long for the old world and the new...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

U.S. Geography: The Northeast

For Teachers K - 5th
Young scholars investigate U.S. Geography by creating a map in class. In this natural resource lesson, students create a map of the United States and research the Northeast based on their resources and recyclable materials.  Young...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Dynamic Earth

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Young scholars use the Internet to investigate earthquakes and plate tectonics. In this plate tectonics lesson, students complete a web quest with multiple links and activity types relating to earthquakes and volcanoes. They connect the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Size Small School

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students explore the concept of scale and ratio.  In this scale and ratio lesson, students work in groups to measure a given space such as a hallway, office, or gym.  Students measure their area using a meter stick.  Students draw a...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Artifact Problem

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Learners work in small groups and make a map of a familiar room. In this artifact lesson, students decide on a suitable scale for their maps, the tools they will use and how they will make it and decide on strategies they would use to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Community Map of The Giver

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers read "The Giver" after finishing the unit on inventions and inventors. Using the information in the novel, they develop a geographic map illustrating the community in the story. They identify human and physical features...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Alberta And Saskatchwan: the View in 1905

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Young scholars analyze the differences between maps 1905 and current maps of Alberta and Saskatchewan. They use maps from the Canadian Council for Geographic Education to complete a guided inquiry. This lesson also has many extension...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cartography

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Learners follow directions to draw a map of an island. They complete the island map adding their own details using symbols and a legend.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pangaea Puzzle

For Teachers 5th - 11th
Learners explore plate tectonics and the formations of the Earth's surface and why maps are distorted.  In this Earth's surface activity students complete a lab and answer questions. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ridgerunner

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students jog at the beginning of the class while learning about the Appalachian Trail. They integrate math into the lesson by adding up how many miles they have run, and comparing it to distances on a real trail map.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building a Topographic Model

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners explore the features of a topographic map. They make paper models that portray, in three-dimensions, features represented by contour lines on a topographic map. Students demonstrate different elevations shown on a...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Expanding Children's Geographic and Economic Worlds

For Teachers K - 1st
Students learn their addresses and gain a sense of connection between their neighborhood and the rest of the world and the universe.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shake, Rattle And Roll: Studying the Effects of an Earthquake

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students gauge earthquake intensity by reviewing firsthand accounts. They use the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale and newspaper articles to estimate the strength and effects of a past earthquake.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Air Pressure and Wind

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders study air pressure and learn how it can change the weather. In this air pressure lesson, 5th graders study the given diagrams and complete the experiments to learn how air pressure can change the weather. Students read...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Night by Elie Wiesel

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders explore WWII by reading a book with their class. In this Holocaust research lesson, 10th graders read the book Night, and discuss the horrors of the concentration camps and Nazi brutality during WWII. Students complete...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cookie Topography

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students construct a cross section diagram showing elevation changes on a "cookie island." Using a chocolate chip cookie for an island, they locate the highest point in centimeters on the cookie and create a scale in feet. After tracing...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

THE TRAVELS OF BABAR: An Adventure in Scales

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students locate and identify the seven continents. They use longitude and latitude in establishing a location. Students enhance the knowledge of geographical location with cultures. Individuals or small groups research multiple aspects...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

School Sleuths Treasure Map

For Teachers K - 5th
Students are explained how a grid and compass work. They are also explained that archaeologists use grids as a record of the exact location of artifacts. Students define the term datum as a point of reference on grids from which all...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Effigy Mound Activity

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Young scholars research effigy mounds of Native people in Wisconsin. They create large models of effigy mounds in a given area based on factual information from their studies and research.