Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Mammals and Their Parents, Perfect Together
Third graders identify and interpret traits that are found in mammals by noticing differences among animals of the same species. Make a claim that traits are inherited from parents that is supported by evidence.
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Better Lesson: Plotting Climate Data
Third graders use climate data to create a key, plot data points, and interpolate data.
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Better Lesson: Seasonal Weather an Introduction
Introduce seasonal weather with local examples and key vocabulary.
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Better Lesson: Fun With Fossils
Fourth graders examine several fossil samples as they analyze different ways these fossils formed using both real samples and an interactive web page.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Awesome, Weird, Cool Not!
From observing a cat to touching and describing mysterious things in brown paper bags, 4th graders learn to understand that specialized senses and precise words go hand in hand in developing good inquiry skills.
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Better Lesson: Discovering Functions of External Plant Parts
Using data and prior knowledge, 4th graders explain their observations, measurements and understanding of various plant's external parts and how they help the plant survive in its environment.
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Better Lesson: Mira Mira the Amazing Mira
Using a mira, 4th graders draw symmetrical pictures and then explain how the mira works using what they know about reflection and the eye.
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Better Lesson: Building an Earthquake Resistant Structure
How can you use the engineering design process to build a structure that can stand up to an earthquake?
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Better Lesson: Protect My Home!
Students create a model using materials to build a barrier or protective wall to prevent your home from flooding during a storm surge.
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Better Lesson: Time as Measurement
This introduction to time allows learners to explore the terms we use with time and connects telling time to measurement. Included in this instructional activity is a video of the instructional activity in action, a sample anchor chart,...
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Better Lesson: Constellation Patterns
Fifth graders evaluate and communicate information on the apparent movement of constellations using a variety of resources: interactive star map, planisphere, videos, modeled demonstration, and online resources.
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Better Lesson: Reaction Rates Flipped (Day 1)
Eighth graders will briefly review key information about reaction rates before designing their own experiments to complete a chemical reaction within a student specified amount of time.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Pictures Can Tell the Story
The students will develop independent reading skills by using the illustrations. The teacher will read a selection of books and ask students to tell what they see in the book. Comments will lead to the conclusion that pictures tell us...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Read and Write From Top to Bottom and Left to Right
Teach students to remind themselves (and train their eyes and brains) to go from top to bottom, left to right and page by page! This activity includes a catchy song to the tune of Mary had a Little Lamb to help students remember this...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Publishing Time
In this lesson, learners will experience different types of publishing in order to strengthen their motivation and cultivate pride in their work. After utilizing the writing process, students will type out their writing on a computer....
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Better Lesson: Batty Questions
In this lesson, students will be able to recognize and ask questions using standard question words while learning about bats. Included in this lesson are samples of student work, and pictures of the lesson in action.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: But, Are They Really That Different?
Students cannot compare and contrast adventures and experiences in stories or explain differences between books without first understanding how to compare. In this lesson, students will learn how to use a Venn Diagram to compare two...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Listen!
This small group lesson addresses a very specific skill that some students need to improve their reading skills - self-monitoring. Using play phones, the students will listen to themselves very carefully to see whether what they are...
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Better Lesson: Water on Earth Liquid or Solid
Climates vary and understanding that water on earth reacts to the climate is a way to understand why water can be found as both liquid and solid on earth. Included in this lesson is a video of the activity in action, and an image of a...
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Better Lesson: Refraction Extravaganza!
Fourth graders learn how light waves bend differently in different mediums.
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Better Lesson: The Lightbulb Just Went On!
Fourth graders discover how electricity can be converted to light energy.
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Better Lesson: Drop and Pop Energy and Speed Exploration
Fourth graders use a toy to make observations that speed is related to the amount of energy in an object as well as work with gravitational and elastic potential energy.
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Better Lesson: Design Solutions Engage, Explore
Third graders illustrate and write out notes for a plan (or several plans) to mitigate the effects of a local weather hazard.
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Better Lesson: Building Things in Different Ways
This lesson poses the question "can you always take something apart and put it together in different ways?". Students will take part in designing an investigation using snap cubes to help figure out an answer. Videos of the lesson in...