Earthquakes can be frightening and dangerous, but being prepared can make a world of difference. Perform an earthquake simulation during which the class practices how to drop, cover, and hold on as you read a script...

Beginning with a pre-lab, kindergarteners trace the letters in the word earthquake and discuss what happens in an earthquake. The lab portion allows young scientists realize that earthquakes trigger shaking of different intensities...

Students investigate different types of building structures and how they are able to stand up to earthquakes. Through comparison they determine which buildings are better able to handle earthquakes than others. They create a building,...

Students examine the causes of earthquakes, volcanoes, and floods, and explore how these events shape the surface of the earth. In this erupting volcanoes lesson, students create a volcano model of their own, make observations about...

Students experiment with string to visualize how earthquakes are created. Using various lengths of string, students determine which earthquakes lasted the longest and hypothesize why. Students look at a fault map and determine which may...

Shake your earthquake-resistant building prototype! Groups create structures using coffee stirrers and clay that can withstand seismic waves. They then test their structures against their own earthquakes.

Join the American Red Cross as well as Mickey and friends as they help to prepare young scholars for natural disasters. After reading brief informational passages about earthquakes, floods, fires, storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes,...

Young scholars show how earthquakes affect sea waves. In this tidal waves instructional activity students use a rubber mallet on a table to create waves in a box on top of the table. They experiment with striking the mallet in different...

The last unit in the series allows kindergarteners to see the dangers and hazards associated with each of the natural disasters learned so far in the series—earthquakes and volcanoes. They listen to sounds associated with the...

Students observe the melting of ice. In this phase change lesson, students observe ice as it melts. They discuss the process and create a Venn diagram comparing water and ice.

Students observe what happens as crayon shavings are melted and/or pressed together. They compare this to the process some rocks go through as they are heated and compressed naturally on earth.

Young scholars simulate the effects of erosion on rocks. Students smash cookies into smaller pieces to simulate how sandstone is created from larger rocks. Young scholars hypothesize the types of things that could break up rocks and...

Students examine and demonstrate the extent of geologic time compared to recent time. They develop a demonstration of geologic time using an unrolled roll of toilet paper, with each sheet of toilet paper representing 20 million years.

In the pre-lab, kindergarteners mimic the movements of the eruption of a volcano and discover various volcanoes around the United States. Then, pupils sort different types of volcanic rocks in the lab before learning how volcanoes grow...

This unit focuses primarily on plate tectonics and plate boundaries surrounding continents. It contains pre- and post-lab sections that walk young geologists through plate movements in order to visualize what's going on inside Earth.

Students explore the states of water. In this science instructional activity, students use observation, measurement, and communication skills to describe water as it changes from a solid to a liquid.

Youngsters pretend they are rocks sitting on a hill. They listen to the provided guided imagery script to conceptualize the process of how rocks change over time. They draw a diagram of what happened to them as rocks during the story. An...

Some books are perfect for drawing connections between multiple subjects. The book Hill of Fire becomes the hub for three very different, yet related activity ideas. First the class hones their oral language skills by creating an...

Music is a wonderful tool you can add to enhance the learning process for every subject. Here is a list of music selections that are categorized by subject, along with some neat teaching suggestions. You'll find songs suited to...

Young scholars learn along with Ms. Frizzle's class. In this Magic School Bus lesson plan, students discover small updrafts by making wind spirals.

Students examine a crushed rock and sort the minerals they find in that rock by color and other properties.

Learners compare the weathering of different-sized materials. Comparisons are made and data analyzed to reach conclusions about the process of weathering. Applications can be made for the higher grades.

Students explore the concept of plate tectonics. They experiment to prove and explain plate tectonics.

Students complete a series of lessons in which they study daily weather patterns and examine extreme weather conditions. They complete activities that range from visual observation of daily weather to building a weather station and...