Students create a collage. In this animal classification lesson, students discuss why and how scientists classify animals. Students view pictures of different animals and decide which class each animal belongs to. Students compare...

How is energy transferred within an ecosystem? What would happen to a food web if one of the organisms was removed? Elementary or middle school ecologists examine these questions and more in a comprehensive 5E learning cycle lesson....

Lead young scientists to discover insects outdoors. After investigating, students will record observations, learn about these fascinating creatures, craft, and role play.

Students explore the ecosystem and food chain by researching Pacific Salmon. In this fish habitat lesson, students discover the life cycle for salmon, where they spawn and what they eat to survive the harsh elements. Students participate...

Students identify why humans are dependent on natural resources and the problems associated with their use and demonstrate how humans affect their environment. They also describe the different components and natural resources that go...

A branching key is a great way to classify different types of animals and plants! Fifth graders answer several yes/no answers about three different plants. They then create their own key to differentiate between an iris, a rose, and a...

What one person thinks is a pest may not be a pest to someone else. Here, scholars examine the characteristics of living things and pests through grand conversation and a variety of activities. Class members play a game of pest or not a...

The story of one bird provides valuable insight into general animal behaviors and interactions. Young researchers investigate the peregrine falcon using a web search. They analyze the behaviors of the raptor including its migration...

Students understand what physical adaptations are and how they help an animal to survive. For this adaptations lesson, students research four animals and then make an original animal that has adaptations to make them survive.

What is a dichotomous key? When your kids ask, hand them a learning exercise like this one, to explain it. They use the key to identify four different trees, based on the budding twigs they've produced. Tip: Have learners extend this...

Off the coast of California lives a wild animal called the Island Fox. Experts discuss the importance of the Island Fox to the Channel Islands and the balance the fox creates within its ecosystem. The lesson concludes with a reading of...

Young scholars explore the predator-prey relationship using an interactive game. For this biology lesson, students compare their physical attributes. They explain how  predators develop to make it stronger and efficient as hunters....

Young scholars create graphic organizer webs that illustrate their thinking about seasonal physical and biological changes caused by changes in sunlight. They identify the central role of sunlight in living systems.

Students use various web sites to access information about the rain forest. They use the Tropical Rainforest Interactive CD to make their own rain forest pictures and stories and learn facts about the rain forest. They use various books...

Students explore biology by creating a report for the class. In this oceanography lesson, students research and identify the survival characteristics of a list of freshwater animals by utilizing the Internet and library. Students...

Learners role play a living wetland food web. They trace the food web associated with the items in their lunch.

An ecosystem is really just the flow of energy through many different living organisms. A study of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book leads to an environmental science activity in which learners study how various factors can affect...

Students identify and discuss the adaptive characteristics and behaviors of fish. They view slides of fish, and design and create a model of a fish of the future, listing the ways their fish adapt to survive.

Students explore seed dispersal by designing their own wind dispersed seed structure. Using one piece of paper and a box fan, they construct a seed dispersal structure, record the distance their seed travels, and answer discussion...

Learners maintain a field journal as they follow penguin parents raising their chicks during the breeding season. They formulate testable questions. Students reflect on animal behavior in the field related to survival and chick rearing.

Students develop an action plan to prevent trash from becoming a problem in the future.

Students explore DNA structure using materials such as Twizzlers, small colored gumdrops and/or toothpicks.

Students will create a food chain model and use it to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment. Resources include a detailed lesson plan, student handouts, pictures of a completed chain,...