Curated OER
Down, Dung and Dirty
Students observe the changes seen in succession and the biodiversity of a community through its species richness and evenness. They create a dung culture in a clear plastic cup from horse, goat or cow dung then observe the numbers of...
Curated OER
Cheetah Challenges
Young scholars research the problems that cheetahs are facing in the wild. In this biology lesson, students discuss how animal rehabilitation works. They write blogs about it and comment on everyone's post.
Curated OER
What Shapes a MPA?
Learners identify the three types of MPA in California. In this marine science lesson, students analyze information provided to design a new MPA. They justify their reasoning in class.
Curated OER
The Greenhouse Effect and Me: How Do We Affect Each Other?
Ninth graders create a model of greenhouse effect in the lab. In this integrated science lesson plan, 9th graders investigate the different variables affecting this condition. They research about global warming and prepare a PowerPoint...
Curated OER
Fossil Fuel Sources, Usage and Alternatives: What are the Options?
Students identify the different sources of fossil fuels. In this environmental science lesson plan, students research about how these impact our environment. They explore renewable energy sources that could replace fossil fuels.
Curated OER
Water Resource Engineering
Students examine solubility and the significance of water. In this aqueous solution lesson students complete a lab activity on soil profiles.
Serendip
Changing Biological Communities – Disturbance and Succession
After cutting down a forest to make a farm, how long would it take the environment to turn an abandoned farm back into a forest? Scholars study this exact scenario while they interpret many charts and graphs of the changing ecosystems as...
Curated OER
Who Am I?
Students classify organisms into one of five categories: producer, consumer, decomposer, predator, or prey. Students play a "Who Am I" game. Signs are hung on the backs of fellow students They must ask questions to determine what...
Michigan State University
Bug Lyphe!
Introduce ecology classes to biodiversity and interdependence in ecosystems with a PowerPoint presentation. Then, they get up-close and personal with the invertebrate world by collecting insects, classifying them, and graphing their...
Curated OER
Fish and Zooplankton Through Remote Sensing
Ecology aces examine sea surface temperature maps and relate temperatures to concentration in fish and zooplankton populations. Take your class to a computer lab and provide experience with actual remote sensing data. Some of the links...
Curated OER
Mission Possible: Energy Trade-offs
Teams of electrical engineers work together to develop plans for increasing electricity to a fictitious, but growing community. They consider different sources of electricity, both renewable and nonrenewable, the cost of building and...
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Eyes on Dissolved Oxygen
Learn about the factors that affect the way oxygen dissolves in salt water with a chemistry lab. After studying the molecular structure of water, young scientists figure out how aeration, temperature, and organic waste affect dissolved...
Curated OER
Trophic Ecology of Humans
Students analyze the trophic level of humans by first calculating the kilocalories in own their lunch. They then calulate the kilocalories in a wide variety of foods found in grocery stores and compare the kilocalories needed to acquire...
Curated OER
Great Lakes Ecology
Young scholars are able to use a secchi disk to measure the turbidity of water by determining the depth at which the sechi disk is no longer visible and using the data in a formula to quantify the results. They are able to use Vernier...
Curated OER
Bat Ecology
Young scholars, through hands on games and activities, discover how bats live and how bats benefit ecosystems. They play a game designed to show them how echolocation works and another to show how mother bats locate their young through...
Curated OER
Dare to Care for a Grizzly Bear
Learners examine the relationship between humans and grizzly bears. In this biology activity, students research about the bear's habits and living environment. They write a letter to the US Fish and Wildlife Service petitioning them to...
Curated OER
Mini-Ponds
In this mini pond worksheet, students create a mini-pond ecosystem with soil, water, and plant life. Students let their ecosystem sit for a day and they observe a sample the next day. Students identify all the pond water microorganisms...
Curated OER
Fish Eyes - More than Meets the Eye
Inform your class about the adaptations in fish eyes: cones, lens size, endothermy, and speed of vision. The adaptations are related to diving behavior. Junior marine scientists compare the adaptations of four different fish species to...
Curated OER
Where's Dinner?
Upcoming marine biologists consider a list of organisms residing near the Lost City hydrothermal vents and construct a food web. They compare the food web to that of a cold seep community, of which they should have previous knowledge....
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Lesson 7: Observations Across Habitats
How are animals in separate but nearby habitats related? Ecology scholars compare the animal inhabitants of the Gorongosa National Park in part seven of an eight-part series. Learners study photos from two different habitats, then...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Calculating Your Carbon Footprint
Unplugging from technology for one day per week will decrease your carbon footprint—are you up to the challenge? Part two in a series of three allows individuals to explore their personal carbon footprints. By first taking a quiz at home...
Channel Islands Film
Human Impact on the Food Web of Santa Cruz Island
What happens when a non-native species is introduced onto an island? Santa Cruz Island, part of the Channel Island chain located off the coast of southern California, provides the perfect laboratory for young environmental scientists to...
Virginia Department of Education
Ecosystem Dynamics
Searching for an eccentric way to enhance lessons on ecosystems while ensuring pupils remain creative and motivated? Upon viewing The Lorax by Dr. Seuss, designated groups design and construct a pop-up book that depicts the specific ways...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Impacts of Climate on Forest Succession
Part two in a series of four explores the effects of climate on succession or the changing of plant species in a forest. Groups review how to identify trees and then spend a day in the field collecting extensive data on trees to...