Curated OER
Comparing Deciduous and Evergreen Trees
Students investigate nature by identifying different plants and trees. In this environmental field trip, students participate in a British Columbia expedition in which they identify cedar, pine, hemlock and Douglas fir trees. Students...
Curated OER
Short Story Lesson Plan
Students read and discuss the short story, "The McWilliamses and the Burglar Alarm," by Mark Twain. They assume the role of the main characters in the story and write a humorous letter of complaint using a business letter format. They...
Curated OER
Go To The Head of the Cloud
Young scholars pretend they are water droplets traveling through the water cycle. Using their text, they discover the steps in the cycle and the different paths water can take. They write a report about their journey through the water...
Curated OER
Amazon Food Chain
Explore food chains in the Amazon Rainforest using this resource. Learners discuss the predator vs. prey relationships in the food chain. Then, they create a food web to describe this relationship. This is a simple and effective way to...
Curated OER
Keep Spreading the News
Students examine the significance of communication in an engineer's life. They develop a list of ways engineers communicate with others, and write a book, newspaper, or story about engineers' role in the environment.
Curated OER
LESSON PLANS (print version) pdf What is a Fossil?
Students can better explain how mould and cast fossils occur when they make their own cast fossils using plaster of Paris and objects such as shells, bone or even their own hand or footprint.
Curated OER
Creating an Original Opera
Students research the lyrical and dramatic structure of opera through Internet sources and audio examples, cooperatively discuss elements of opera stories vs. their own lives and create one-act opera based on their own life experiences.
Curated OER
What Plants Need in Order to Survive and Grow: Light
Students conduct an experiment to evaluate whether plants need light to survive and grow. They observe and gather data about plant responses to different growth regimes, analyze the data, and make conclusions about basic plant needs.
Curated OER
What Plants Need in Order to Survive and Grow: Soil
Students conduct an experiment to evaluate whether plants need soil to survive and grow. They plant two seeds, one with soil and one without, make predictions, and record and analyze the seed germination results on a worksheet.
Curated OER
Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree…You Might Become Famous
Students explore Newton's laws using CEENBoTs. For this physics lesson, students collect data and create tables and graphs. They calculate speed, acceleration and forces using mathematical formulas.
Curated OER
Habitat Choice in Woodbugs
Students investigate woodbugs. In this scientific investigation lesson plan, students explore the steps scientists take when conducting an investigation using live specimens. Students explore habitat preferences for woodbugs in various...
Curated OER
Exploring Fish Anatomy and Commercial Fishing Gear
Students investigate commercial fishing by exploring the technical methods. For this environmental lesson, students identify the fish that are most commonly consumed by humans and trace their path from ocean to plate. ...
Curated OER
Something's Fishy
Fourth graders identify parts of a fish. In this fish anatomy activity, 4th graders identify parts of fish in a group setting and then complete a worksheet about the parts of a fish.
Curated OER
Bats Migrate South
Pupils examine the life of bats in Illinois. Using the internet, they research the history of the bat in Illinois and describe the way they find prey by using echolocation. They report their findings to the class and answer any...
Curated OER
Whales
Students study the history of whales. For this whale lesson plan, students research two types of whales, color a tile, and write a one page paper. The tiles may be combined to make a group picture.
Curated OER
Amazing Bird Adaptions--Why Am I A Bird?
Fourth graders identify and classify birds found in Illinois. Using the internet, they discover how birds have adapted over time and how the adaptations have increased their life span. They compare and contrast the various adaptations...
Curated OER
Smart Decision!
Fourth graders use a Decision Making Model to analyze and solve an environmental problem of public concern. Groups review a real life environmental problem, and use a worksheet imbedded in this plan to guide their decision.
Curated OER
National Parks
Students create national park brochures on selected endangered animals using research information, hand-drawn pictures, and the Pages and KeyNote software programs. This lesson was written for a TAG classroom.
Curated OER
Shapes (Orienteering)
Students explore the tools of navigation. In this shapes lesson, students navigate using direction cues to create a shape. Students follow specific steps to create their shapes. Students use compasses to see the directions...
Curated OER
The Checks Lab
Students, in teams, have an envelope containing a series of bank checks. A few are removed at a time, and the team attempts to construct a plausible scenario which involves those checks.
Curated OER
Introduction to Classification
Fourth graders design a classification system to categorize animate and inanimate objects. They discuss the advantages of grouping things as they classify buttons, leaves, shells.
Curated OER
Ecosystems Connect
Students investigate ecosystems near their school and across the world. They examine both living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) elements of each. They recognize ecosystems from various continents around the globe. The use of computers...
Curated OER
Animal Brochures
Fourth graders work in pairs to research an animal. They fill in an animal data form in order to become experts about the animal they choose. They use the listed criteria to design a six sided brochure that includes graphics of the...
Curated OER
Who Works in This Forest?
Learners examine the variety of jobs that are related to working in the forest. Information on the different jobs is provided in this lesson plan for the teacher to share with the students. The learners create a collage using magazines...