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Where Are the Dinosaurs?
Learners explore the concept of extinction by studying dinosaurs. In this extinction lesson, students watch dinosaur video clips or complete a puppet finger play about dinosaurs. Learners may then complete a dinosaur diorama or a...
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How Do Cells Reproduce?
Beginning biologists prepare a sugar solution for yeast cells to live in, and divide it into two different jars. Samples from each jar are viewed with a microscope, and then one jar is placed in a warm environment and the other a cold...
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Raw Seafood ~ On the Half Shell
The topic is fascinating, but there is not much for learners to do here. Food borne illness has always been a problem for humans to face, and here, data from the Center for Disease Control is analyzed. Learners look at the number of...
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Birds and Coffee
Fifth graders identify the changing seasons with how they affect animal and human behavior. They explain what migration is and why many birds migrate south for the winter. They then trace the coffee sold in their neighborhood and in...
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Biodiversity
Fifth graders visit the playground to look for signs of life. They search for insects, birds, animal tracks, feathers, nests, trees, soil, etc. They then compose a class list that shows all findings in the schoolyard and post it in the...
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Life Comes in Cycles
Kids are fascinated by chickens and their eggs. Here is a learning exercise has young learners take a look at the four stages in a chicken's life cycle. They have four cycles to organize: egg, chick, young bird, and adult. They have to...
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Feed Me!
When youngsters are learning about the basic needs of humans and animals, this instructional activity could come in handy. In it, pupils circle the pictures of a living thing that is eating food. There are eight pictures all in all, and...
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Reptile Adaptations
Pupils research animal adaptations. In this adaptations instructional activity, students research the physical and behavioral adaptations of animals. Pupils create a diagram of their animal labeling it's adaptations.
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Is Anyone Out There? Examining Astrobiology and the Value of SETI
Blow their minds with a lesson on the search for life outside of our planet! A brief video proposes the question of how to define life. A couple of articles investigate the possibility of alien existence. Finally, the class is divided...
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Whale Migration - The Long Journey
Marine biology learners examine right whale sighting data from the WhaleNet website. They plot the data on a map and write down the number of adults and calves spotted. Questions accompany the data analysis activity, making this a...
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Reading the River
In collaborative groups, young ecologists measure the temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen for three different freshwater samples. They examine each sample with a microscope and record observations on the microorganisms in the pond...
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Sharks ~ Taking a Bite Out of the Myth
The first thing to know about this lesson is that the commercial fisheries data for the activity no longer seems to be available. That being said, there are fascinating links to other websites, some about the comparative odds of being...
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Cover Your Mouth Please!
Second graders investigate how to slow the spread of germs from coughing and sneezing. In this illness prevention lesson, 2nd graders talk about why people cough and sneeze before telling about ways to prevent the spread of germs. They...
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The Bear Facts
In this library research worksheet, students will use resources from the library to match the types of bears in the word bank to the list of bear facts.
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Germs Experiment 2
Students express artistic ideas thru art glitter and science. Students experiment with the theory of how germs spread. Students summarize findings in an art format. Students work in groups to analyze data.
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Scientists Find Fossils of T. rex Relative
Students read a news article that describes scientists finding a fossil of a T. Rex relative in China. They view a picture of the G. wuccai. They respond to the reading using details and by revisiting the anticipation set of questions.
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Experiment to Mimic the Digestive System
Biology lab technicians take a cheese sandwich apart as a demonstration of digestion. They record appearance and mass both before and after the process, which mimics chewing, acid action, and churning. Learners write their own lab...
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Introduction to Bacteria
Beginning biologists survey several websites to learn about the types, structure, motility, feeding habits, and reproductive methods of bacteria. All websites are linked to the lesson plan, so you can have individuals access it and click...
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Strawberry Smoothies
Biologists extract the DNA from a strawberry. After completing the procedure, learners write answers to a few questions on the lab sheet provided. This is ideal lab practice during a DNA unit in your general biology course.
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Viruses/Infectious Diseases: What's Really Bugging You?
Middle school life science or health classes listen to an audio, visit websites, read different articles, and participate in a class-wide simulation about the spread of viruses. The lesson doesn't get into the mechanics of how viruses...
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The Illusion of Race
This is mostly an exploration of race through an interactive website, class readings, and discussion. Individuals take an online quiz about race, they answer questions on a worksheet by visiting another website, and discover that race is...
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Human Embryo Development and Birth Defects
Open this lesson with a discussion on birth defects. Break the class into groups to visit a website and learn about what happens at each stage of human embryo and fetal development. Assign each group a particular birth defect to...
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Word Search: Urban Mammals
Learners find 17 common urban animals. The animals range from bats, to foxes, to opossums. A colorful and accurate drawing of each animal is present on the worksheet, and an answer key is provided. Answers can be horizontal, vertical, or...
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Buoyant Behavior
Combine science and literature with this lesson on buoyancy. Read There's an Ant in Anthony by Bernard Most to examine words containing the letters a, n, and t. Then introduce your class to the word "buoyant." Demonstrate how an egg...