Foundation for Water & Energy Education
What is the Water Cycle? Activity A
Hydrologists create a concept map about how water is used and a sentence strip defining water and describing its unique properties. Small groups work together to fill a small milk carton and compute the mass of water inside. The next...
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Grid it, Map it
Students participate in designing a city layout using grids and coordinates. They work on a city space and create a grid on a life size layout on the gym floor.
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Scales, Scutes, and Skins
Learners identify the various adaptations of reptiles and amphibians. After distinguishing between reptiles and amphibians, students discuss the ways in which their adaptations aid in their survival. They participate in a hands on...
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Mapping with a Compass: A Simulated Survey
Students use compasses and grids to map the locations of artifacts found in a simulated dig site. In groups, they role-play as future archeologists excavating a school site. Groups begin at their assigned datum and site the artifacts...
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Mapping Your Community
Students define the boundaries of their community by comparing the community's official boundaries with other historical, political, physical, and perceived boundaries of the area and create a community map.
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Coordinate Grid: Mapping Archeological Sites
Fourth graders discover how to apply the Cartesian coordinate system by figuring out the length and width of their school playground. They determine that pacing is an important tool for the initial mapping of a site. Students conduct a...
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Geography - Mapping the Holocaust
Eighth graders map the important locations of the Holocaust. In this Holocaust lesson, 8th graders research the location of countries involved in the Holocaust as well as the location of concentration camps. Students mark the locations...
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Motion of the Sun and Earth: Using a Playground Model to Explore Rotation and Revolution
Pupils experience the rotation of the Earth and the Sun and the Earth's revolution around the Sun, using a playground mode.
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Using Radiosonde Data From a Weather Balloon Launch
Student use radiosonde data from a weather balloon launch to distinguish the characteristics of the lower atmosphere. They learn the layers of the atmosphere. They graph real atmospheric data.
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Give Me Back My School: A Back to Basics Approach to Ecological Restoration
Ninth graders research local geography to create successful, ecological school landscaping. They determine soil type, average weather patterns and temperature graphs and use the information to select ideal plants and plant maintenance...
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May We Present Planet Earth?
Learners draw a map to scale. They illustrate knowledge of how to use DOGS TAILS on a map. Students identify the main parts of a map. They identify and illustrate the major features necessary for sustaining a quality of life for a society.
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Tactile Maps
Students make a map of an assigned area (state, country, etc.) using a 3-D pictorial-tactile representation of the features to be included. They also learn to create a pictorial- tactile representation of their knowledge of a region, and...
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FINDING A RESOLUTION
Young scholars examine detailed Moon and Earth views provided by the NASA-sponsored "World Wind" computer program. They work in groups to create maps of different scales using landmarks of their choice, and challenge their classmates to...
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Schoolyard Geology
Discover that maps show information about an area and that they have common features like scales and legends. View an aerial map of your school and find features on the map such as the playground, roads, and trees. Trace the outline of...
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Your Galactic Address
Learners discover their place in the universe. In this astronomy activity, students identify their location on various maps that have increasingly larger scales. In the end, the learners write their address in terms of their location...
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Klondike Fever
Students consider the geographical aspects of the gold rush. In this gold activity, students research just what gold is and where it has been found. Students create maps that highlight the regions of the world where gold has been found...
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Geography Journey
Fourth graders examine the geographic features that define places and regions and answer questions about the state of California. They discuss the components of a map legend and answer worksheet questions using a map of California as a...
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Candy Bar Subsurface Geology
Students are introduced to drawing and interpreting topographical maps. They each cut through there Jell-o mountain at regular height intervals, and trace around the shape of the Jell-o cut off at the height, overlaying the different...
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School Neighborhood Walking Tour
Students list specific boundaries in their school neighborhood and explain their possible purpose. They examine a neighborhood and see what connects us and what divides us. They, in groups, make maps of various neighborhoods and present...
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Lesson 3 Activity 1: On the Trail of Knowledge
Students plot the earthquake epicenter data on the base map of the North Atlantic ocean floor using different symbols or colors to characterize different values.
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Salad Tray 3D Topographic Model
Learners explore the characteristics of topographical maps. They examine the relationship of contour lines and vertical elevation. Students create a three-dimensional model of a landscape represented by a topographic contour map.
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Big Apple, Here We Come
Students role play the role of immigrants coming to America for the first time. They complete an imaginary trip with their family and must rent a car and make seven stops along the way. They calculate distances and use maps to...
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Exploring History Through Photographs
Fifth graders compare and contrast photographs from the 1800s to those of 2003. In groups, they create drawings of how society has changed over time and use maps to locate local streets. Individually, they practice measuring the...
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Tracking Satellites Using Latitude and Longitude
Students investigate how to track satellites using latitude and longitude. They investigate what man learns from all the satellites currently being studied today. Students analyze the four basic types of satellite orbits.