Young historians play the role of history detectives as they investigate some primary source texts and images related to the early colonization of America, The Jamestown Settlement, and the Mayflower Compact. 

Mystery is an exciting genre for young readers to investigate. The plots are so intriguing! Here is a series of lessons featuring Sherlock Holmes stories that invite learners to enter the world of the mystery genre.  Based on what...

The truth will always come out. A short performance task has learners considering a witness statement given to a detective. They apply special line segments in triangles and Ceva's Theorem to prove that the witness is actually lying.

Students read examples of mysteries and detective fiction. With a focus on Sherlock Holmes, they are introduced to the techniques for reading properly. In groups, they define new vocabulary, make predictions and summarize the stories. ...

Students are introduced to the genre of detective fiction. Based on their reading level, they are given a different series of books to read. For each story, they are to make predictions and practice decoding messages. To end the...

Sixth graders identify plants in the wetlands. In this plant detectives lesson, 6th graders complete a scavenger hunt on a local reserve, record observations, and respond in their journals. 

Students explore biology by completing animal activity pages in class. In this bird characteristics lesson, students discuss the different types of birds that exist in North America and identify their migration habits. Students read...

Middle schoolers explore how food is made and what are healthy and unhealthy eating habits. They participate in activities to further show them foods nutritional value.

What are packaged food products really made of? This lesson will prompt your learners to consider and investigate the source of ingredients in their food. They begin by breaking into groups and analyzing food labels by identifying...

The distinctive attire of royalty, working class, and peasants of the Victorian era conveys much about the conditions of the time. Learn more about why people dressed as they did, and how their fashion changed during the 64-year reign of...

In order to understand DNA fingerprinting, advanced biology aces divise a crime scenario and analyze three different samples of lambda DNA. This creative lesson plan provides practice with micropipettes, electrophoresis boxes, and other...

Students examine the legitimacy of advertisers' claims about products using science and critical thinking. They view and discuss ads, read a case study, and conduct an experiment to demonstrate whether a product lives up to its claims.

Can you beat the odds of cancer? In the first installment of a seven-part series, future biomedical engineers consider how to detect and diagnose cancer. An article on biosensors provides useful information toward this goal.

Explore the mathematics of infection outbreaks with activities that ask learners to use coordinate grids to locate infected patients. They calculate amounts of ingredients for antidotes and determine which groups of people should be...

Students describe what each detection method uses and rank the wavelengths of each if appropriate. They answer questions about absorption, importance of materials and explain differences. Students make sure they describe diagnostic uses...

High schoolers explore one method for the detection of lead in soil. The detection of the presence of lead in soil can be determined sensitively using inexpensive swabs. Pupils collect several spoonfuls of soil from various parts of...

High schoolers produce the greatest mass of plant material possible for 100 seeds of barley, and detect amino acids in barley plant material. They develop rules for the investigation, conduct the experiment, and prepare a computer...

Eighth graders in a remedial reading class are introduced to detective fiction by Edgar Allan Poe and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. After reading about their lives and work, they define new vocabulary and practice using a guided reading...

Students examine and categorize plants in their own schoolyard desert garden and then observe other plant areas of their schoolyard.

It's sure getting hot out there! Scholars analyze satellite data on land use and surface temperatures, and then learn how to ground truth satellite data through an activity. They apply technology to identify urban heat islands and...

Learners develop a painless means for identifying cancerous tumors.  In this imaging lesson students list the information that may be needed to answer the problem.

Upper graders become "shipwreck detectives" by studying the debris field from a shipwreck in the Aegean Sea which took place in the 700s.  A website is accessed that gives specific information about the debris field, and pairs of...

Two scenarios are presented for chemistry detectives to decipher. Both require the use of an infrared spectrometer and focus on the examination of polymer materials. In the first, lumps in polyethylene bottles are analyzed. In the...

Although the methods are all scientific, forensic science was started by police officers rather than scientists, who relied on observation and common sense. Young detectives use many tools to solve crimes around the school in a...