The San Andreas Fault moves about two inches a year, approximately the same rate fingernails grow—crazy! The third lesson plan in the series allows for hands-on exploration of various fault formations. Through the use of a Popsicle...

Each group talks about how to test unknown liquids based on their findings in the previous experiment. In this second of four activities, they test unknowns on wax paper, newspaper, and construction paper. As a stand-alone, this lesson...

What is the relationship among the heart, circulation, and exercise? Your class members will explore first-hand how different physical exercises affect an individual's heart rate. They will begin by learning how to measure their own...

Though an alternative method is suggested, the best way to carry out this investigation is with the use of a computer-interfaced motion detector. Physics fanatics hang a mass on the end of a spring and analyze its motion verbally,...

Get your hands dirty with an interactive lesson that showcases the process of decomposing and returning nutrients back into the soil. After building a compost pile, pupils regularly observe the...

Survival of the fittest isn't just for the movies! A five-part lesson explores several different species with known adaptations and analyzes them for their survival strategies. Using both video and research data, scholars draw...

There is 30 percent more carbon in the atmosphere today than there was 150 years ago. The first lesson in the four-part series teaches classes about the carbon cycle. Over two to three days, classes make a model of the cycle,...

From 3-D cities to building bridges, young engineers engage in innovative STEM challenges that promote brainstorming and collaboration. Learners take on the roles of different types of engineers as well as become familiar...

Are some packaging materials superior to others? Using sustainability as a guide, scholars analyze different packing materials to describe their life cycles. They create puzzles to communicate their findings.

How are maps like fish? They both have scales. The chapter includes six different activities at three different levels. Scholars complete activities using natural resources, learn how to read a map, see how to make a compass rosette,...

After working in groups to analyze primary sources related to a historical hoax, learners will discuss how people managed to be fooled and work to identify one of the biggest April Fools jokes in history.

In the summer of 1815, snow fell every month in New England. Was this related to the volcanic eruption of Tambora in Indonesia earlier in the year? Young scientists design their own experiments to research the long-term effect a volcanic...

Enhance your states of matter lessons with a hands-on science investigation that compares six different balls' color, texture, size, weight, ability to bounce, and buoyancy. 

Here is part one of a two-part lesson in which scholars investigate the changing states of water—liquid, solid, and gas. With grand conversation and up to three demonstrations, learners make predictions about what they think will happen...

I love this geology lesson plan. Third and fourth graders look at the connections, and the differences, between rocks and minerals. Learners are charged with identifying specific rocks and minerals, learning how to properly use...

Learners discuss Sol LeWitt and conceptual art, then analyze the differences in expressing a concept through model-based inquiry and aesthetic art criticism. They develop a geometric, scientific, or mathematical concept, then create an...

Assertive communication is an acquired skill. Teaching young people to ask for what they need and to believe that they have a right to ask is at the core of a unit on assertive communication. Over the course of the unit, middle and high...

Learners will compare and contrast two songs from the Civil War era, one from the North and one from the South. They'll write a comparative essay on their songs, and then compare their essays and songs with others in their small groups....

Your middle schoolers will show what they know with their bodies when they become the coordinate plane in this conceptual development unit. Starting with the characteristics of the coordinate plane, learners develop their skills by...