Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Measure the Solar Diameter

For Teachers 7th - Higher Ed Standards
Scientists could measure the diameter of the sun before they knew its distance. Scholars construct a simple mirror box to measure the diameter for themselves. They compare this measurement with the official size, listed in a...
Activity
Education Development Center

Making Sense of Unusual Results

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Collaboration is the key for this equation-solving lesson. Learners solve a multi-step linear equation that requires using the distributive property. Within collaborative groups, scholars discuss multiple methods and troubleshoot mistakes.
Activity
Education Development Center

Writing Numerical Expressions—Hexagon Tables

For Students 5th - 7th Standards
Explore a basic pattern to practice writing expressions. In collaborative groups, learners examine a contextual pattern and write an expression to model it. The task encourages groups to describe the pattern in multiple ways.
Activity
Education Development Center

Creating Data Sets from Statistical Measures

For Students 6th - 7th Standards
Explore the measures of central tendency through a challenging task. Given values for the mean, median, mode, and range, collaborative groups create a set of data that would produce those values. They then critique other answers and...
Activity
Education Development Center

Integer Combinations—Postage Stamps Problem (MS Version)

For Students 4th - 7th Standards
Number patterns can seem mysterious. Help your learners unravel these mysteries as they complete an intriguing task. Through examination, collaborative groups determine that they are able to produce all integers above a certain...
Activity
Education Development Center

Consecutive Sums

For Students 6th - 7th Standards
Evaluate patterns of numbers through an engaging task. Scholars work collaboratively to determine a general rule reflecting the sum of consecutive positive integers. Multiple patterns emerge as learners explore different arrangements.
Activity
Education Development Center

Choosing Samples

For Students 6th - 7th Standards
What makes a good sample? Your classes collaborate to answer this question through a task involving areas of rectangles. Given a set of 100 rectangles, they sample a set of five rectangles to estimate the average area of the figures. The...
Activity
Education Development Center

Absolute Value Reasoning

For Students 6th - 7th Standards
Teach solving absolute value inequalities through inquiry. Groups use their knowledge of absolute value and solving inequalities to find a solution set to an absolute value inequality. Working collaboratively encourages discussion,...
Activity
Education Development Center

Finding Triangle Vertices

For Teachers 6th - 7th Standards
Where in the world (or at least in the coordinate plane) is the third vertex? Given two coordinate points for the vertices of a triangle, individuals find the location of the third vertex. They read an account of fictional...
Activity
Education Development Center

Finding Parallelogram Vertices

For Teachers 5th - 7th Standards
Four is the perfect number—if you're talking about parallelograms. Scholars determine a possible fourth vertex of a parallelogram in the coordinate plane given the coordinates of three vertices. They read a conversation...
Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Modeling Food Webs in Darién, Panama

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
It's a jungle out there! Young biologists journey to Darien, Panama to examine the intricate relationships between the organisms that inhabit the jungle. Groups begin by demonstrating an understanding of energy flow in ecosystems, then...
Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

What van Leeuwenhoek Saw

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
When van Leeuwenhoek saw cells and single-celled organisms for the first time, he knew these small things were a big deal! Share his discoveries with young learners through a narrated video, model-building activity, and scale study....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Nutria And The Disappearing Marsh

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Young analysts examine changes in the nutria population, vegetation density, and marsh area over time in the wetlands of Louisiana. They import data and use the TI-73 Explorer to graph and analyze the effects of nutria on marsh loss.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Winter Olympics History Year by Year

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Investigate the history of the Winter Olympic Games. After researching this event and compiling necessary statistics, pupils use a graphic organizer to chart their findings. A template for a chart is included in this resource. Have your...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Put Your Truss in Building Bridges

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students apply abstract concepts, such as stress, fulcrums, the law of gravity, and the strength of different geometric shapes. Groups of student contractors operate simulated architectural firms to create strong, economical bridges.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Interest Rates

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Use a KWL chart and discussion to explore the concept behind loans with interest based on percentage rates. Learners examine different types of interest, the history of interest loans and calculate the costs of a loan over a ten-year...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building Big and Strong

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Middle and high schoolers explore the concepts of architectural rigidity. They analyze a variety of polygons, and explain why some shapes add more strength to structures than others. The PBS video, "Building Big," is utilized in this plan.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Proving (a Theorem) and Disproving (a Theory)

For Teachers 7th - 12th
As a cross-curricular lesson, your class examines the issues of gender discrimination, careers, and gender roles. They read and discuss an article, prepare a proof of the Pythagorean theorem as a class, and develop a creative...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Swinging Pendulum

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students engage in an activity which demonstrates how potential energy (PE) can be converted to kinetic energy (KE) and back again. Given a pendulum height, students calculate and predict how fast the pendulum will swing by understanding...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pythagorean Theorem by Graphic Manipulation

For Teachers 7th - 9th
There are many different ways to show a proof of the Pythagorean Theorem.  Here is a nice hands-on paper cutting activity that shows a graphic representation. You can even challenge your young Pythagoreans to come up with their own...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Data Analysis

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Young statisticians use and interpret measures of center and spread such as mean, median, and mode as well as range. They use box plots to represent their data and answer questions regarding the correspondence between data sets and the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

My Angle on Cooling

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students explore how the angle and distance of an object can change it's temperature. After reviewing how the position of the Earth affects the temperature of the planet, student groups design and perform an experiment to test how...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Super Ticket Sales

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Use this graphing data using box and whisker plots lesson to have learners make box and whisker plots about ticket sales of popular movies. They find the mean, median, and mode of the data. Pupils compare ticket sales of the opening...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Curve Ball

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Create a Height-Time plot of a bouncing ball using a graphing calculator. Graph height as a function of time and identify the vertex form of a quadratic equation that is generated to describe the ball's motion. Finally, answer questions...

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