An interesting lesson takes pupils on a trip through the carbon cycle. A reading passage allows scholars to take notes and make choices about what happens to the carbon on its journey. This third lesson in a series of 21 discusses...

How is tug of war related to pushing a refrigerator? Here's a simulation connects these two activities with Newton's First Law of Motion. Four different simulations allow scholars to explore net force with tug of war, motion with pushing...

What is the largest electric field in the world? The world itself! This explains why you use a magnetic compass to determine direction. During the simulation, scholars add charges to their electric field to see how the field reacts....

The final lesson in the 21-part series on climate change focuses on energy solutions to the consumption problem. Using data specific to their school, pupils make recommendations, follow up on actions, and carefully track progress....

The 20th lesson plan in a 21-part series connects the wind data and expectations of a turbine to whether such devices should be built in your area. Scholars begin with estimating the wind potential at school by using long-term...

Should every school have solar panels? The 19th lesson in a series of 21 has scholars research the feasibility of using solar panels at their school. They begin by gathering data on the solar energy in the area before estimating the...

Many researchers focus on one impact of climate change in isolation, but researchers gain a global perspective when they come together. A timely lesson teaches scholars about the projected impacts of global temperature increases. Then...

Which is worse — drought or flooding? Neither is helpful to the environment, and both are increasing due to climate change. The 16th lesson in a series of 21 covers the average precipitation trends for two different climates within the...

Looking for a hot date? Pick any day in August, statistically the hottest month in the United States. The 15th lesson in the series of 21 instructs pupils to investigate the August 2007 heat wave through NASA data, daily temperature...

When measuring the circumference of a tree, does it matter how high you place the measuring tape? Most scholars have never considered this question, but scientists know that measurement techniques must be standardized. The 13th...

You don't have to be a scientist or even out of high school to contribute to scientific research. In the 12th activity in the series of 21, scholars use this opportunity to add to the growing body of scientific knowledge and consider the...

Climate change and weather extremes impact every species, but this lesson focuses on how these changes effect polar bears. After learning about the animal, scholars create maps of snow-ice coverage and examine the yearly variability and...

"Creativity is just connecting things." - Steve Jobs. After weeks of researching climate change, the ninth lesson in a series of 21 combines the data and analysis to address essential questions. It covers natural phenomenon, human...

In the sixth lesson in a series of 21, scholars use NASA data to graph and interpret albedo seasonally and over the course of multiple years. This allows learners to compare albedo trends to changes in sea ice with connections to the...

Where do anti-immigrants myths come from, and how can they be refuted? Learners critically analyze media reports and how to identify reliable sources. After studying a timeline that details the history of US nativism, groups research the...

As part of a unit study of immigration, class members participate in a mock Immigration Court activity in which they argue four cases before an immigration judge.

Encourage readers to determine if Hamlet's madness is actually divinest sense. Class members analyze the words of the play before studying related texts, including T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," scenes from...

School budgets don't have a lot of extra money, so when young scholars propose saving the district money, everyone jumps on board. The first instructional activity in the series of 21 introduces the concept of an energy audit. Scholars...

A realistic simulation uses charts to show forces, position, velocity, and acceleration versus time based on how the simulation is set up. Once those concepts are mastered, scholars use free body diagrams to explain how each graph...

This simulation begins with an exploration of water pressure and atmospheric pressure. In the flow portion, scholars reshape a pipe and see fluid dynamics at work. The water tower portion encourages pupils to determine how water...

Could a flux capacitor really work? An engaging simulation encourages scholars to investigate Faraday's law. They experiment with various speeds, magnitude, voltage, and different-sized coils. Hopefully experimenters will be able to...

Keep calm and half pipe. An exciting simulation teaches pupils about energy transfer from potential to kinetic and thermal as a skater moves through a half pipe or other track. After a brief introduction, scholars can build their own...

Apply the concepts of conservation of energy to a skater to introduce a fun way the concepts apply to real life. Scholars build tracks, ramps, and jumps then analyze the various types of energy and friction. For an added challenge,...

Everyone living in the United States today is a descendant from an immigrant—even Native Americans. Learn about the tumultuous history of American immigration with a reading passage that discusses the ancient migration over the Bering...