Beyond Benign
Plastic Bags
Paper or plastic? Explore the environmental effects of using plastic bags through mathematics. Learners manipulate worldwide data on plastic bag consumption to draw conclusions.
US Department of Energy
Thermodynamics—Teacher Guide
I'm so cool! No, you're exothermic. This thermodynamics lab unit includes an introduction, teacher demonstrations, six labs that students rotate through each class day, homework assignments, application of knowledge, and assessments....
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Drumming from the Heart
Students complete a craft activity using recyclable containers and read a story to a younger child. For this service lesson, students read the story 'The Drum' and do a service project retelling the story and making a drum from...
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Snowy Night Snaps
Students use misprinted photographs donated from a photo processing company to create paintings of a snowy landscape at night.
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Adaptive Reuse
Students identify historic buildings in their community that have been adaptively reused. Through "adopting" a building, they will study how recycling of buildings is an environmentally and economically sound practice for communities.
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Environment: Waste Walk
Pupils assess the positive and negative affects of humans on the environment. The lesson explores ways in which individuals and societies can reduce the negative impact on the environment. By taking a "waste walk" around their campus,...
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Making Paper
Students explore how natural earth materials are processed into a human-made product. They simulate a manufacturing process by making paper. Students review the importance of recycling in preserving our natural earth resources.
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Sticky Hearts
Students create "sticky hearts" in this early elementary lesson plan that explores the use of different media in works of art. The lesson plan suggests using white posterboard, constructions paper, corn syrup, food coloring and lots of...
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Ed Paschke
Students examine and discuss the artistic style and techniques of the artist Ed Paschke. They analyze various works of art by Ed Paschke, then choose an icon from art history and alter a photocopy of it using scissors and collage materials.
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Romare Bearden
Students examine and discuss a collage by the artist Romare Bearden. They analyze the impact of jazz on art, listen to jazz, and create an original collage.
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A Moment When My Life Changed
Students recognize symbols in a work of art, analyze composition of picture by Hollis Sigler, and plan and execute compositions that successfully tell stories, primarily with symbols.
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Electronics: Wants or Needs?
Third graders determine how electronics negatively impact the environment. In this environmental lesson, 3rd graders read the article "Earth Friendly Waste Management", and identify how recycling impacts our environment. Students...
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The Letter Bb
Students participate in a variety of activities to practice words with the Bb sound. For this Bb sound lesson, students use craft rolls to create butterflies. Students create a letter book with B words
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Ecosystems Beneath the Surface
Sixth graders create a KWL chart about microorganisms. In this biology instructional activity, 6th graders create and label a diagram on a microbial mat. They investigate the processes involved in the carbon, oxygen and sulfur cycles.
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Land Use and Lawmaking in California
Students investigate the laws of using land. For this California Government lesson, students examine the many uses of land in California and find an environmental issue they care about. Students write a letter to a politician based on...
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Doing the Right Thing
Students consider the payoffs of doing the right thing. In this philanthropy lesson, students examine the virtue of courage in Jackie Robinson's life and in their own.
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Flight Dreams - Flight Factors
Students investigate the physics of flight by experimenting in class. In this history of flight lesson, students define terms such as gravity, lift, and drag in order to better understand how a plane is able to stay in the air....
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Shape Shifters- Trees and the Environment
Students make a tree sculpture. In this trees and the environment lesson, students learn about the parts of a tree, discuss what a tree needs in order to grow, find images of trees in art and nature, use various materials to create a...
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Flight Dreams - The Pressure on Parachutes
Learners investigate air pressure by researching parachutes. In this physics lesson plan, students participate in three separate experiments utilizing air pressure and paper products to test theories on parachutes. Learners record the...
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Where does our trash come from?
Students interview the school custodian to get information about the trash found in the school community. In this trash lesson, students work in groups to analyze the content of a waste basket, see where the trash goes and determine...
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The Water Cycle
Students simulate the water cycle. In this water cycle instructional activity, students create a model of the water cycle. Students draw the water cycle and write a paragraph explaining their drawing.
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Chocolate Chipping Away at the Rock Cycle
Eighth graders identify the different types of rocks. In this earth science lesson, 8th graders compare and contrast rocks and chocolate cookies. They explain how materials are recycled beneath the Earth.
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Water, Water Everywhere and Not a Drop to Drink
Students identify the different stages in the water cycle. In this environmental science lesson plan, students research about different water pollutants in watershed. They describe ways to purify water.
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The Environment and the Community
Students observe their environment and come up with ways to protect it. In this environment lesson plan, students discuss pollution and ways to prevent it. Then they create a poster with drawings that show a goal to reduce pollution and...