Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Gorongosa: Making Observations Activity
Do you have young scientists wanting to make new discoveries rather than just completing the same experiments? Young scientists use their observational skills to identify animals and patterns in animal behavior. Through tracking...
Curated OER
Exploring Explorations-Ocean Exploration
Students learn about Earth's deep ocean discoveries and their benefits. In this ocean exploration lesson, students review previous explorations of the Earth's deep oceans and learn about the discoveries of the past.
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Life Underground
First graders build a terrarium in order to observe animal and plant life dynamics. In this biology lesson, 1st graders compare how organisms survive in different environments. They write their observations and analysis in their journal.
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Pharmaceuticals and Treatments
Young scholars perform an experiment involving reverse transcriptase-polymerized chain reaction HIV replication to better examine the biotechnology used by scientists in pharmaceutical research of infections diseases like HIV. Students...
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Elements of Biology: Organization In Living Systems
Students explore the recent research on dinosaurs. In this dinosaur lesson plan students write a report on the new findings and how it has changed ideas on dinosaurs.
Curated OER
Habitat Assessment
Third graders demonstrate the effects of varying environmental components on plants and animals: chemical, physical and biological characteristics of a habitat. They find chemical, physical and biological characteristics of the lake at...
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Magnificent Microscopes
Students use a microscope in a series of activities that are designed to help them explore the "invisible world" and make meaningful microscopic discoveries and learn the importance of the microscope as a tool in science and research.
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Seed Dispersion of Strawberries and Dandelions
Students investigate how seeds are dispersed on land. In this plant biology lesson, students use a dissecting microscope to study strawberry seeds and dandelion seeds, they draw what they see, then create a hypothesis on the seeds...
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Plant Pollination
Middle schoolers investigate methods of pollination for various flowers. In this plant biology lesson, students learn the parts of a flower and form a hypothesis about the method of pollination for the flower. They determine the...
Montana Natural History Center
Studying Grassland Ecosystems
At first glance, grassland ecosystems might seem dull and uninteresting, but once you start to explore it's amazing the things you'll find! Through this series of engaging lessons, activities, and experiments, elementary students examine...
Curated OER
The Fractal Geometry of Nature
Students identify patterns found in nature. In this algebra lesson plan, students model situation in nature using fractals. They investigate biological geometric structures and draw conclusion based on geometric concepts.
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Lesson Plan: The Cell- A Historical Perspective
Young scholars discover the impact the invention of the microscope had on scientific discovery as well as the concept of spontaneous generation and the cell theory. Students examine these scientific concepts through a WebQuest and by...
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The Living Weapon
Students explore American history, military strategy and scientific discovery near the end of the World War II era. They examine the principles of the Cold War, pacifism, and the desire to keep government programs secret from the...
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Bacterial Transformation: Laboratory Experiment
Students participate in a group lab in which they complete the process of bacterial transformation. If lab procedures are followed correctly, Students see their results in a few days...bacteria glowing green.
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Biotechnology Laboratory Research
Students participate in an extended laboratory research to experience how scientific information is obtained, upon which we build scientific knowledge and understanding.
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Who's Who and How Do You Know for Sure?
Young scholars investigate the applications of DNA fingerprinting, They read crime scenarios and using the details of the crime and laboratory experimentation decide the suspects guilt or innocence.
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Developing and Assessing the Intelligence of a Kindergartner: A Practical Approach
Students name objects that are the same size, shape, and weight as the human brain. They touch the model brain, feeling the folds, etc. They make connections to the chart displaying the brain-like objects. They touch the 'potato flake'...
Curated OER
Life in a Drop of Water
Young scholars examine the structure, function, and characteristics of microscopic organisms that inhabit freshwater through collection of water samples and observation through microscopes.
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Diffusion & Osmosis with Data Analysis
Young scholars explore principles governing diffusion and osmosis. Students perform a dialysis tubing experiment. They obtain core samples of potato in varying concentrations of sugar-water to measure water potential of the potato...
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Weathering Landforms
Fifth graders brainstorm a list of ways the Earth's surface can change. As a class, they are introduced to the concepts of erosion and weathering and discover how wind and water cause changes to the surface of the Earth. To end the...
Curated OER
Become an Expert
Students practice their researching techniques by preparing a presentation with little notice. In this information research lesson plan, students utilize the Internet to research one of several subtopics concerning panthers....
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Goobers. Goobers? Goobers!
Students begin the lesson by noting the many ways in which to use peanuts. In groups, they use the internet to research the work of George Washington Carver. They discover the allergies and nutritional information of the peanut and...
Curated OER
Where Should We Place Archaeopteryx?
Pupils classify Archaeopteryx using pictures of actual fossils and scientist representations of how the animal might have looked. They compare Archaeopteryx's characteristics to those of the five extant vertebrate groups to...
Curated OER
Fossils-Where Should We Place Archaeopteryx?
Students explore an interactive computer activity that provides the opportunity to look at features of various groups of animals and determine where an extinct organism might be classified.