Rainforest Alliance
How Do Jaguars and Howler Monkeys in Belize Depend on Us?
How does weather play a role in the lives of land and sea creatures? Find out with a instructional activity focused on habitats and the ways animals from different homes are connected. Here, learners explore how the life of a...
National Park Service
Aspect, Treeline, and Climate
Head to the treeline and beyond to examine how this feature of the landscape affects weather and climate, which gives scientists clues about its health. Class members' observations of photographs provide the data...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Lesson 6: Biomes and Landscapes
Aside from the amazing animals in Gorongosa National Park, what else is there to discover? The sixth installment in an eight-part themed series contains an interactive map where scholars can learn more about the geographic features of...
Curated OER
Oh Deer!"
Young scholars explore the essential components of a habitat, which is food, water, and shelter. They end the instructional activity by paying the Oh Deer! game.
Curated OER
Is There Room for Everybody?
Third graders examine the capacity of animals able to live in one habitat. For this habitat lesson, 3rd graders play a game that shows the food chain and the interactions between animals in an area. Students discover that food is a major...
Curated OER
Sustainable Livestock
Learners investigate healthy eating habits by researching livestock. In this food sustainability lesson, students research the negative impact factory farming has on our environment due to pollution. Learners define agricultural...
Prince William Network
Migration Headache
During this game, kids become migratory shorebirds and fly among wintering, nesting, and stopover habitats. If they do not arrive at a suitable habitat on time, they do not survive. Catastrophic events are periodically introduced that...
Foundation for Water & Energy Education
How Can Work Be Done with Water Power? Activity C
Third in a set of lessons regarding reservoirs, dams, and hydropower, this involves a two-day hydropower plant simulation. Collaborative groups build, maintain, and finance the plant. The transparency of the reservoir setup can be...
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Jump, Glide, or Fly? Exploring Bird Evolution
How have birds evolved from prehistoric animals? With the three-part lesson, small groups first research different prehistoric animals and determine whether they are birds. Then, scholars explore different bird adaptations using the Flap...
Curated OER
What's the Difference?
Students analyze the similarities in different species. This lesson plan is part of a multi-segmented unit on the diversity of life. In this segment, students classify shoes to mimic the scientific categories of the classification system.
Curated OER
Sustainability
Here is an in-depth, and incredibly thorough lesson plan on sustainable agricultural practices; specifically, regarding the growth of coffee. After completing and discussing a worksheet called "Thinking About Tomorrow," groups of...
NOAA
Build Your Own Ocean Ecosystem
Hold the sea in the palm of your hand! Amateur oceanographers work together to create models of an ocean ecosystem in the sixth and final installment in a series. Raise awareness of global ocean health issues through guided research,...
Curated OER
Guess Who?
Getting ready for a lesson on animal adaptations can be a lot of fun. Kindergartners will go on an egg hunt. Once they have collected all the eggs, they will open them up to reveal an image of an animal. Each pupil will act out...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Niche Partitioning and DNA Metabarcoding
What is DNA metabarcoding? Show your biology class the latest method for studying biodiversity in an ecosystem with a fun, informative interactive. Individuals examine the animal species that compete for vegetation, then learn how their...
Curated OER
I See a Coyote
Students role-play coyotes looking for natural resources. In this natural resources lesson, students examine the relationship between animal life and the environment. Students play a game that demonstrates how natural...
Curated OER
Animal Colors and Shapes
Students investigate the natural characteristics of animals by completing a coloring activity. In this animal properties activity, students investigate the reasons different animals have specific colors, and how it is essential for...
Michigan Sea Grant
Survival Game
Musical chairs may be a classic game, but Ruffe Musical Chairs is a unique lesson on invasive species! Using the time-honored game, pupils role play the behaviors of the invasive fish called Eurasian ruffe. Learning about this aggressive...
Curated OER
Wildlife
First, biology pupils research land and marine habitats along the route of skipper Rich Wilson's Great American II. Then, using colored paper clips scattered across a colored paper background, they play the predator-prey game to...
NOAA
Biological Oceanographic Investigations – Through Robot Eyes
How can a robot measure the length of something when we don't know how far the camera is from the object? The lesson explains the concept of perspective and many others. Scholars apply this knowledge to judge the length of fish and the...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Color Variation over Time in Rock Pocket Mouse Populations
A species-specific look at natural selection, the resource herein examines how adaptations have helped the population of rock pocket mice survive in a changing landscape. To begin, middle or high schoolers watch a 10.5 minute video,...
Curated OER
Cut-off Genes
Investigate the relationships between different deep-sea organisms by DNA sequencing. A worksheet provides instructions for DNA sequencing and space to work. They simulate gel electrophoresis by cutting out paper "DNA strands."...
Curated OER
Water Around Us
Students create a collage of human land use activities around a body of water. Students evaluate the effects of different kinds of land use on wetland habitats, and create a list of pros and cons for each land use.
Curated OER
Fred the Fish -- A River Ran Wild
Students apply cause and effect relationships to water pollution in a stream. In this pollution lesson students recognize the importance of clean water in their daily lives. Students accompany "Fred the Fish" as he travels down stream....
Curated OER
Habitat Breakdown
Students investigate the fragility of insects and organisms and their survival needs. For this habitat lesson, students discuss what elements they need to survive day to day, then hypothesize what they would need to live as an...