University of Wisconsin
Measuring Slope for Rain Gardens
The slope of the land is an important feature when considering the erosion that will occur. In this resource, which is part of a rain garden unit, learners calculate the slope of the proposed garden site. Even if you are not planning a...
California Academy of Science
Which Way is North?
Who needs a compass to find cardinal directions? Just place a stick in the ground and record the movement of its shadow over the course of a day. Then, measure the shadow lengths in order to determine a north-south line. A simple...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Shake it up with Seismographs!
Shake things up in your STEM or earth science classroom when you have small groups construct their own seismographs. A reading assignment on the history of seismographs, the Richter scale, and current technology sets the stage for the...
Signing Time Foundation
What is the Water Cycle?
Dive into an exploration of the water cycle cycle with this simple earth science activity. After first discussing where rain comes from, young scientists define the terms condensation, evaporation, transpiration, and precipitation as a...
Science Matters
Magnetic Fields: The Earth Acts as a Giant Magnet
Attract learners to an interesting lesson! The third in a 14-part series of lessons on electricity and magnetism uses a hands-on approach to exploring magnetic fields. Scholars experiment with a compass to test Earth's magnetic field and...
Sea World
Seaworld Science Activity
A fun collection of activities about marine life would be a great addition to your elementary science unit. From cute penguins to scary sharks, the unit features crafts, experiments, and basic research projects that will teach your...
Curated OER
Earth Energy Budget Lab
Students conduct experiments showing the greenhouse effect. For this scientific experiment lesson, students test for CO2 concentration, water vapor, ground albedo, and clouds. They describe what factors affect temperature and how...
Curated OER
Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System
Wow! What a lesson plan! Six terrific activities are described in great detail, in this 31-page document! Learners will model and explain cloud formation, sketch and identify certain cloud types, calculate and compare incoming and...
Curated OER
Earth from Space Maps
Students use photo images from space to create a large map of the United States or the world, find where they live and label other places they know. They are exposed to a Web resource that allows them to view photo images of Earth taken...
American Chemical Society
Evaporation
This is one in several lessons that explore the relationship between temperature and phase changes of water. After some discussion, elementary physical scientists place wet paper toweling on a hot and a room-temperature water bag and...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Filtration Investigation
Scholars build a simple filtration system to remove impurities from muddy water and rate the filtered water to a grade of clarity scale. The focus is on teamwork and problem solving. This instructional activity would be effective in your...
Curated OER
Earth Day Lesson
Students analyze Earth science by answering environmental study questions. In this Earth Day lesson, students read the book The Lorax and identify the themes within it. Students define several recycling vocabulary terms and create an...
Curated OER
The Sun-Earth Connection
Third graders research about the location of different planets from the sun. In this earth science lesson, 3rd graders discuss the weather in their place and identify common weather terminologies. They explain how tornadoes form and...
Curated OER
The Changing Earth
Students observe and analyze weathering. In this earth science activity, students demonstrate physical and chemical weathering in two experiments, then write questions for a class Jeopardy game.
California Academy of Science
Kinesthetic Astronomy: Longer Days, Shorter Nights
A lamp, four globes, and some signs taped around the room are all you need to set up a solar system simulation for teaching how Earth's tilted axis creates the seasons. (Sticky dots are also needed, but not mentioned in the materials...
California Academy of Science
Kinesthetic Astronomy: The Meaning of a Year
How many times have you traveled around the sun? Aspiring astronomers grasp what a year is and they differentiate between orbit and rotation by walking around the sun right within your classroom. Place a lamp in the center of the room to...
US Department of Energy
Geothermal Energy
With Earth Day quickly approaching, as well as many science fairs, why not challenge your class to investigate geothermal energy or other renewable energy resources? There are five driving questions explored in depth here, as well as...
PBS
Breaking it Down
After challenging themselves to correctly choose the form of erosion and length of time required for a given landform to develop, earth science class members model mechanical and chemical weathering with various lab demonstrations over...
Curated OER
Modeling the Seasons
Junior geologists become the force that makes the world go around! With a lamp on the floor in the middle of the room to represent the sun, volunteers hold a globe, revolve, and rotate. Observers notice how the light hitting the globe...
Curated OER
Earth's Water
If the majority of our planet is covered with water, why do we need to bother conserving it? With a thorough and varied investigation into the location and types of water on the earth, learners will gain an understanding of why this...
Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi
Find the Most Spectacular Volcanoes in the World!
Heat things up in your earth science class with this collaborative lesson plan on volcanoes. After first being introduced to the different types of volcanoes and how they are formed, young geologists work in small groups to research the...
Curated OER
Earth Changes
Students explore the make-up of the earth and the changes it undergoes in an earthquake. In this earth science lesson, students have two activities as part of a unit. First, to use a Styrofoam ball to model the earth's structure, and...
Curated OER
The Volcano Factory
Collaborative groups work together to report on the volcanic activity leading to island formation and construct models to demonstrate the process. Consider having each group present their project to the rest of the class. There are many...
California Academy of Science
Kinesthetic Astronomy: Birthday Stars
Space explorers take a virtual trip around the sun right within your classroom! They stand in a circle facing away from the "sun" (a lamp) in the center of the room. As they move according to your instructions, they view different...
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