Curated OER
Controlling the Flow of the Colorado River: A Study of Dams
Young scholars research and map the Colorado River and its dams and predict the effects of a dam on an area. They suggest reasons a dam would be built and compare the Colorado River system with other major river systems within the US and...
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Playing in mud puddles
Pupils examine the effects of rainfall on different surfaces and discuss water pollution. They review the water cycle and the uses of water in daily lifestyles. Students discuss the effects of soil run off in streams and rivers.
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Continents and Oceans on the Move
Students create an awareness of the vast percentage of water covering the earth. They relate similarities/differences between topographical maps and other maps of various time periods. Students examine how to use a topographical map.
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Treasures in Jeopardy
Students compare and contrast deep sea coral reefs to shallow water reefs. In this coral reef lesson students develop a poster that could be used to educate the public about the importance of coral reefs.
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Classification of Clouds
Students view a cloud slide show presentation and identify types of clouds. They estimate height based on cloud's appearance. They discuss the vague nature of cloud nomenclature and compare it to the English standard measurement system.
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Shake, Rattle and Roll
Students compare the weathering of materials. in this weathering lesson, students experiment with the chemical and physical weathering of different materials. Students use salt and water as an example of how weathering occurs.
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Why is There a Tidal Bulge Opposite the Moon?
Students simulate how the Moon causes ocean tides. In this earth science lesson, students calculate gravitational acceleration using a mathematical formula. They compare the force of attraction between the Earth, Moon and Sun system.
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Environment: Just Around the Bend
Students decipher landforms on a map and corresponding satellite imagery. They consider the impact of pollution on agriculture and water. They draw diagrams demonstrating how pollution works its way into the food source.
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Roots of the World
Learners recognize consist stems, trunks, leaves, and roots. They compare different types of roots by observing and comparing photographs. Aterwards, they observe the growth of a lima bean plant and document changes in root and shoot...
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Locating Vent Fields Using CTD Data
Students describe the way hydrothermal vents work. Students work on locating vent regions through remote collection of data about water temperature and density. Comparing density and temperatures graphs, students search for indicators...
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Shake, Rattle and Roll
Learners compare the weathering of different-sized materials. Comparisons are made and data analyzed to reach conclusions about the process of weathering. Applications can be made for the higher grades.
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How Does Your Magma Grow?
Students identify the three types of plate boundaries and the Earth's tectonic plates system. They examine how the Galapagos Islands were formed and hydrothermal vents.
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Life in Extreme Environments - Lakes Under Ice
High schoolers collect chemical, physical, and biological data from a local lake throughout the year. In addition, students discuss the design of an experimental structure for water collection at several specific depths as well as assess...
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Beach Zonation
Students identify and separate the different zones of the beach by observation. They investigate beach zonation by gathering and comparing sand samples gathered from different areas of the beach.
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Arsenic Contamination: Natural Disaster or Human Induced?
High schoolers list as a class the sources of arsenic contamination of water. They describe the major health effects of arsenic contamination in a letter. Students identify the regions that are affected by it.
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Star Power! Discovering the Power of Sunlight
Students estimate the energy output of the sun. They estimate how much power sunlight the sunlight provides to the earth. They build a simple device to measure the amount of solar radiation the earth receives from the sun.
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Limited Resources - Understanding Our Cultural Resources
Learners examine and compare preserving natural resources and preserving cultural resources. They conduct Internet research on two topics, and write a position paper on whether cultural resources or natural resources are more important...
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Affects of Geography on Colonial Cultures
Sixth graders examine the effects of geography on the development of culture. They discuss how geography can affect the lifestyles and development of a society's culture. Students examine the geography and climate of New England and the...
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How Big is a Crowd?
Sixth graders compare the relative sizes of the five Great Lakes and their human populations. They describe some of the problems that arise when many people depend on a limited resoure. Students discuss how the Great Lakes and the...
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Air in Soil Administration Procedures
Students study soil and its composition. For this soil composition lesson, students study examples of soil during several days of aeration. Students summarize their data, organize it, and must be able to explain their findings.
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What is the Rock Cycle and Its Processes?
Geology beginners examine three different rock samples and determine their origin by their characteristics. By making and recording observations, they become familiar with features of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rock types....
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Watersheds:Stream Channels And Post-fire Stream Flows
Students draw cross sections of a stream channel from field data. In the field, using a GPS, they determine the depth of a stream channel and use a spreadsheet to graph the stream channel.
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Rock Cycles, Crayon Cycles
Students examine the rock cycle and the path that rocks go through to rearranged in different ways. They define key vocabulary terms, then in small groups conduct a variety of experiments using crayon shavings as simulated rocks and...
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Gettysburg Rocks Recycle to Win
Eighth graders use a geologic cross section to study the rock cycle of the Gettysburg battlefield. In this rock cycle activity, 8th graders connect the rock cycle and continental rifting.