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Build an Anemometer
Students investigate wind speed. In this wind instrument activity, students build an anemometer to measure wind speed and discuss the importance of wind speed knowledge in various professions.
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Seesaws
Students make direct comparisons between objects using balance and spring scales. They also are encouraged to estimate which object is heavier by holding the objects before using the balance scales. Comparing the masses of objects is the...
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Clay Sculpture: Relationships
Students explore art history by conducting an in-class activity. In this sculpting lesson, students examine previously created art sculptures in a textbook. Students utilize clay, sculpting tools and grey paper to create their own...
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Fun Polymer Activity
Students add borax to a latex polymer and play with it to see the characteristics it now contains. In this polymer lesson plan, students see if it stretches, if it's durable, if the molecules break easily, and more.
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Living in a Watershed
Fourth graders examine watersheds. In this ecosystem lesson, 4th graders discover what a watershed is and identify the local watershed they live in. Students investigate the attributes of a watershed as well.
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Going My Way?
Learners, in groups, study how a magnet works and how people use the Earth's magnetic field to orient themselves.
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Reflect and Refract
Young scholars explore light. For this properties of light lesson, students define the terms refract, reflect, and diffract after listening to the teacher's description. Young scholars listen to the book Light Magic and observe a spoon...
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Electrical Circuits
Young scholars explore parallel and series circuits. In this electrical circuit instructional activity, students investigate the differences between series and parallel circuits. Young scholars observe the benefits and...
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Oxygen Factory
Fourth graders examine the interdependence of the oxygen and carbon dioxide cycle in an ecosystem through a laboratory investigation. After a lecture/demo, 4th graders complete the lab in groups.
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Glucose Factory
Fourth graders determine, through laboratory activity, the presence or absence of glucose in a variety of plant leaves and stems. They work in groups and perform a three part laboratory which shows them how plants convert sunlighht to food.
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Electricity/Magnetism
Fourth graders explore magnets as fundamental parts of generators and how they are used to produce current electricity. They distinguish between the north and south pole of magnets and the difference between repel and attract. Students...
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Exploring Simple Machines
Students investigate simple machines. In this simple machines instructional activity, students study how simple machines work. Students determine the function of various simple machines.
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Hands On Biome-Building
Students create a model biome to understand the abiotic and biotic factors that go into creating a biome. In this biomes lesson plan, students should display plants, animals, temperature, precipitation, and more.
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Hands on Biome--Building
Learners create a model biome. For this ecology lesson, students use materials to create a model biome. There is an extension activity that allows learners to write about plants and animals and their specific biome.
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Build the Arctic Tundra
Young scholars build a model of biome in order to comprehend the abiotic and biotic factors that are prevalent in a biome. In this hands on building lesson, students use a box to build a biome. . Young scholars decorate the...
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Lights Out!
Students examine static and current electricity, and discuss what their lives would be like without electricity. They listen to a teacher-led lecture about electrons and atoms, and explore static electricity using a comb or a balloon...
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Food and Fiber: Helping the Environment and You
Fourth graders explore the many uses of corn-based products and the importance of water resources. They consider how biodegradable products help to keep water clean. They perform experiments to observe how corn pellets dissolve while...
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Can You Catch the Water?
Students work together to construct a model of a water catchment basin. They survey water patterns and complete experiments to see where rain travels and collects. They discover how engineers design structures that help with drainage.
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Geographic Information Systems
Students examine the concept of geographic information systems (GIS) and its basic components. They explore an application program using GIS technology and list the various uses for GIS.
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People & Trees
Pupils see that people have developed new technologies and new products that increase efficiencies and maximize the productive use of each tree harvested. This instructional activity provides many good ideas across the curriculum to...
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Time Train
Students are read a short book "Time Train" by Paul Fleischman. Using the text, they identify the clues to let them know the train is traveling back in time. They make a time line of the trip and make a cutout of meat-eating and...
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Atlatl Lessons Grades 4-12
Students examine motion and how to describe it qualitatively. In this investigative lesson plan students see how aboriginal people were environmentally responsible.
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Insect Unit
Fourth graders study the lives, and features of insects in the series of lessons that make up this unit.
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Energy Defined
Fourth graders complete activities to study the sources of energy and forms. In this energy lesson, 4th graders discuss the origin of energy and define it. Students participate in several experiments to further study energy including a...