Desert Discoveries
Who Depends on the Saguaro?
Young scientists design a picture of a saguaro cactus that shows the cactus and some of the animals and plants that interact with it. There are many of these special relationships between plants and animals of the Sonoran Desert. Your...
Curated OER
Ready-Set-Tech: When a Volcano Erupts
Wouldn't it be a blast to uncover the science behind volcanic eruptions? Explore, research, and examine the nature of volcanoes with three fun hands-on projects kids will love. First the class takes to the Internet to research volcanoes....
Curated OER
Family Foodways
Discover, document and share the knowledge of family food and ways special occasions are treated. Your class will explore the context in which food traditions are created and adapted in their families and communities. Each student also...
Curated OER
Stargirl Lesson
Students read a short novel while filling in a graphic organizer for problem and solution. In this sociology lesson, students use a prior knowledge and relate the text to theirselves and to think about their own need to fit in versus...
Curated OER
Follow the Road to Riches
Students study the story of gold and silver mining in the San Juan region. Through the use of interactive video and the Internet, they will examine the various events occurring at this time. They create a timeline highlighting the major...
Curated OER
Dream Houses
Students imagine and create their dream house. In this comprehension and interpretation lesson, students read The Big Orange Splot, answer comprehension questions about the story and complete a character traits web. Students describe...
Curated OER
The Farmer Cares for the Land
Students explore farming by creating visual demonstrations. For this agriculture lesson, students read assigned text about a farmer's duty and identify the events that have taken place in the history of agriculture. Students collaborate...
Curated OER
Water-The Liquid Gold
Students investigate the necessity of water for the survival of plants, animals, and people. They explore the affect that water has on human and natural environments through literature, field trips, and discussions.
Curated OER
Technologies of the Civil War
Fifth graders discover new and interesting technologies of the Civil War. In this Civil War portfolio of lessons, 5th graders analyze primary resources, develop new vocabulary, investigate websites, and create a time line of new...
Curated OER
Religion and Ethics: Living with Special Needs
Students explore human behavior by exploring mental and physical disabilities. In this learning disability lesson plan, students identify the different disabilities students have which prevent them from working at the same pace as the...
Curated OER
Inventors & Trailblazers
Students are introduced to a groups of African American inventors. In groups, they research the role of each person in improving different industries. They also examine the barriers African Americans faced from the Civil War to the...
Curated OER
Understanding James Madison The Father of the Constitution
Students research James Madison and create a table of his strengths and weaknesses. In this James Madison lesson, students read Jean Fritz's, The Great Little Madison, while developing their research skills, vocabulary strategies, and...
North Carolina Consortium for Middle East Studies
Missing Pieces of the Puzzle: African Americans in Revolutionary Times
What's missing from most studies of the American Revolutionary War is information about the role African Americans played in the conflict. To correct this oversight, middle schoolers research groups like the Black Loyalists and Black...
Curated OER
Lesson 3 - Marijuana
It's never too early to talk to your young grade schoolers about the dangers of marijuana. Here's a short instructional activity to discuss some basic information about what happens to the body and the brain when someone smokes...
Curated OER
Glaciers and Ice Wedging
Fourth graders observe and identify a variety of weathering and geological activities in the area in which they live. This focuses primarily on what happened during the Ice Age, and how, even today, glaciers are shaping and re-shaping...
Curated OER
Civil War Prison Camps
Fourth graders work with a partner to create a puppet show that demonstrates the condition of the prisoners in Andersonville, Georgia during the Civil War.
Curated OER
The Nine Planets
A solid lesson on teaching the nine planets in our solar system is here for you. In it, young scientists learn the correct order of the planets, and they choose one of the planets to do a research report on. They must come up with five...
Curated OER
A Fine Feathered Flock
Learners role play different situations. In this respect lesson, students read Mr. Lincoln's Way, identify the story elements and answer comprehension questions. Learners discuss how they can always treat others with respect and role...
Curated OER
Beneficial Bug Scavenger Hunt
Going on a scavenger hunt sounds like a great way to spice up any lesson plan. To better understand how beneficial insects are, the class goes outdoors to search for and observe a bug that has big benefits. Included in the lesson are...
Smithsonian Institution
Weather Widget
What's so difficult about predicting the weather? Scholars work collaboratively to build a device that models how meteorologists use computers to forecast weather. Team members collect and interpret data while working together to...
Curated OER
My Brother Sam is Dead: A study of the Revolutionary War
Fifth graders complete an analysis of the Revolutionary War through literature. After "My Brother Sam Is Dead," students create a time capsule containing items that would be relevant during the Revolutionary War. They identify key...
Curated OER
Speedy Trials
Fifth graders investigate how forces affect the motion of an object. In this physics lesson, 5th graders calculate an object's speed using a mathematical formula. They discuss how force and mass affects the speed.
Curated OER
Environmental Issues
Young scholars expand environmental awareness by brainstorming list of environmental issues in the world today, researching issues in small groups, and displaying their work for classmates to see.
Curated OER
Sound: What is Sound and how does it travel?
Students learn that vibration makes different types of sounds. For this sound lesson, students perform experiments to understand vibrations and high and low pitch sounds. Students learn that sound travels differently through different...