Pennsylvania Department of Education
Alike and Different
Learners compare and contrast objects and are introduced to a Venn Diagram. In this alike and different lesson, students make observations regarding properties of objects. Learners classify object and build ideas about variables....
Curated OER
Growing a Garden
Students research aspects of gardening including nutrition, costs, and soil preparation. They then write a report detailing the planning of the garden and compare costs to buying the items.
Curated OER
Bon Voyage: Travel and Exploration
Students use the internet and other media to locate and collect information about travel. They interpret the information they collect and convert American currency to foreign currency. Students create scale drawings of travel cards.
Curated OER
Every Tree For Itself
Fourth graders play a game where they are trees gathering sun, water, and nutrients and CO2 represented by pieces of paper or poker chips. They record their collected requirements and graph how they grew as a forest.
Curated OER
Rearrange the Room
Second graders measure and grid their ideas for the new classroom floor plan. They create their own ideas for the classroom arrangement on grid paper. When they finish, they share their draft plan with their peers and with the teacher...
Curated OER
The Dot and Dashy Language
Students examine and discuss the Morse Code. In small groups they develop messages using Morse code and take turns decipering the messages.
Curated OER
Triangle Explorer
Students calculate the area of triangles using a variety of materials including computer applets.
Curated OER
The Classroom Desk Graph
Second graders discuss appropriate units of measure to use when weighing the contents of their desks. They use a scale to weigh different items from their desks. They write down weight in pounds and graph the results using an online...
Curated OER
Playground Modeling
Students build a model of their school playground. They view models from the classroom (such as a globe, doll house, or cars). Students share observations about the models. They use a paper mat to represent the playground and use...
Curated OER
Astronomical Scales
High schoolers describe the different units of measurement. In this space science lesson, students calculate astronomical distances using a scale. They explain the significance of using scientific notation in expressing very small...
Curated OER
Investment Plans
Young scholars explore investment plans. They write the explicit and recursive forms of the sequence of an investment and compare the amount to the continuously compounded interest formula for the same time period, interest and...
PwC Financial Literacy
Income and Careers: Career Exploration
Elementary schoolers take part in a virtual career day and are exposed to various career opportunities in the finance, education, and medical fields. By accessing a video you can download from the PwC Financial website, learners...
Teach Engineering
Considering Trade-Offs and Maximizing Efficiency in a Fast Food Restaurant
Make fast food restaurants even faster. Groups consider trade-offs when maximizing efficiency in fast food restaurants. Restructuring schedules and floor plans, as well reassigning job duties, all fall under this directive.
Teach Engineering
Airplane Tails and Wings: Are You in Control?
Keep everything under control. The lesson, the 16th segment in a 22-part unit, provides a more detailed look at the parts of a plane, specifically the control surfaces. Pupils learn about the construction of the wings and the tails and...
Teach Engineering
May the Force Be With You: Thrust
Force the plane through the air. The instructional activity introduces the force on an airplane that makes it go forward. Pupils learn how Newton's laws of motion apply to flight in the eighth segment of a 22-part unit on flight.
Teach Engineering
Working Together to Live Together
Whose home is it anyway? Design teams plan a housing development in which they must also protect a native species. The teams consist of a project manager, civil engineer, environmental engineer, and graphic designer. Teams present their...
Curated OER
Blood Cell Basics
Students design a proportional model of blood out of red gelatin, a plastic bag, and rice. They study the components that make up blood and investigate what happens when the arteries in different scenerios. They work in pairs in order to...
Curated OER
Playground Mapping
Students convert their physical models of a playground from a previous lesson into a map of the playground that includes a scale and key. They examine and discuss examples of maps, view an image to map photo essay, and create a map using...
Curated OER
Who is on that Bill? Alexander Hamilton and the Federalist Papers
Students, who are adult learners, participate in an Internet scavenger hunt in order to assimilate information about the biography of Alexander Hamilton and the Federalist Papers. They look at the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers...
Curated OER
Cyber Currency, Currently
Students explore the value of currency and how to save and earn interest. In a key lesson, kids even get to purchase items in their classroom's general store. It's a fun way to learn the importance of being financially literate!
Curated OER
Bedroom Redecoration Project
In this bedroom redecoration project, your young mathematicians become interior designers. They plan, draw, and determine finances for the project. They apply their knowledge of working with decimals, geometric shapes, and problem...
Curated OER
The Power of Persuasion
Students explore the power of persuasion. In a classroom setting, students discuss incentives, testimonials and deceptive pricing schemes that are used to influence others. After observing professionally made infomercials, students...
Curated OER
Time for Design
Students are introduced to the design process used in engineering. They compare and contrast this process with the steps followed in the scientific method. Students then participate in a brainstorming session that asks them to design a...