Cornell University
Fibers, Dyes, and the Environment
Nanofibers can be made through electrospinning or force spinning in order to reduce the negative impact on the environment. Pupils study the role of fibers and dye on the environment through a series of five hands-on activities. Then,...
Curated OER
A Little More Advanced Biotechnology Tools: Better Plasmids
A nice set of information that will help your students understand the process of using recombinant plasmids. DNA hybridization and blotting mechanisms help illustrate expressed genes and the concepts behind the Human Genome Library....
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Shoe Fish
Fishy, fishy, fishy, fish! Kids take off their shoes and trace them to create fish for a large aquarium art project. Each traced shoe shape is decorated with gills, fins, scales, and eyes, then hug on an aquarium background. Three book...
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Greek Geography
A riddle and a class lecture kick off this lesson on Greek Geography and city features. Learners use a worksheet to answer questions related to what they learned in lecture and complete a homework assignment. Note: This is a lesson...
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Growing a Seed
Seeing how seeds grow into plants is such an enjoyable for students! They plant lima bean seeds and take pictures to record the growth of their plants. Students write in a journal to describe their daily observations of their plants, and...
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Patterns, Patterns, Patterns
Create geometric art in your classroom. Learners use a ruler to mark lines on their paper, they then trace a lid to create a series of circles. They color in each circle using two tones or colors to create an interesting visual pattern.
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The 5 W's
Examine how to answer who, what, when, where, and why when reading text. Young writers listen to the story Skeleton Hiccups, and as a class answer and discuss the five W's. Independently they read the story silently, and write the...
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Energy Misconceptions
The plan is that future physicists take an "Energy Misconceptions" quiz before completing a series of activities that are focused on energy concepts. The activities, however, are not outlined in this resource; only the quiz and detailed...
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Analyzing Soil Samples
Students grow grass or radish seeds in this experiment, which takes three to four weeks to complete. They become familiar with basic soil analysis techniques, as well as, explore the importance of analyzing soil samples.
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Diaper-Wipe Diffusion
Explore osmosis through art. Learners use paper towels and markers to create beautiful designs. Although a simple activity, the results are quite remarkable. Your class will love this lesson!
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European Integration: Who and Why?
This French IV-V lesson addresses European integration into the European Union. French language learners research, discuss, and present in the target language. Online research, discussion, and presentations will take approximately 5-7...
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Multiplication and Division Word Problems
Expose your scholars to practical uses of multiplication and division through these 10 word problems. Each has a designated space for learners to show their work, and they are encouraged to draw pictures to show their processing. Numbers...
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Giant Museum
Scholars make a giant scale model of an object. They will take a regular item and enlarge it to five times its length and width. They attempt this same concepts with a 3D model.
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What Do Your Feelings Weigh?
Love this lesson! Learners fill cans with slips of paper to identify positive and negative feelings. They connect negative feelings to weight, and discuss how negativity can get you down. What a wonderfully visual way for learners to...
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Quoting, Citing, and Paraphrasing
Beware! (not only the Ides of March). Warn your researchers of the dangers of plagiarism! After defining the term, viewers are introduced to the consequences of and forms of plagiarism, as well as tips on how to avoid plagiarism....
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How Caves Are Formed
Young scholars explore caves. In this cave formation lesson, students take a virtual tour of a cave and then participate in a scientific investigation that requires them to grow crystals and chart data regarding their growth.
Institute for Systems Biology
Introduction to Saline Environments & Microbial Halophiles
If you do not mind wading through unrelated headings (This is not for a physics or STEM course, as it states.) and content (The lesson opens with an article about neurology, not halophiles.), then you will find a valuable resource on...
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Disperse or Decrease
Students explore the dispersal of animals.. Students take on the role of a specific animal. They simulate finding a new home due to overpopulation. Through hands-on activities performed during the simulation, students discover the area...
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Understanding Fantasy
Explore fantasy as a genre. After working in small groups to identify literary elements in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, class members share their work and then use the presentations to help them prepare to write...
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Dominos As Fractions
Students investigate the concept of using fractions in a variety of different contexts. They participate in a hands on activity in the stead of book work. The goal is to get them acquainted with the use of fractions using mental math...
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Identify and Discuss the Author's Purpose
Examine author's purpose in a persuasive text using this scaffolded plan. You essentially have a verbatim script here, but it can definitely be used as an outline instead. Review questions that readers should ask themselves when...
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This is My Neighborhood
Students predict the things that they may see, smell, or hear in their neighborhood. They take part in a neighborhood walk, creating a rough map of their neighborhood as they go. Upon return to the classroom, students create a final map...
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Getting Into Shapes: Identifying and Describing Two-Dimensional Shapes
Young scholars examine their classroom to find examples of various types of shapes. After identifying and describing the various shapes, they draw as many as they can on a piece of paper. They organize them into an image based on their...
Out of Africa Wildlife Park
A Thematic Learning Guide to Lions
Written as an accompaniment to a field trip to the Out of Africa Wildlife Park in Arizona, this is an interdisciplinary, themed instructional activity on lions. Even if you cannot take your upper-elementary kids to this attraction, there...