Curated OER
'Hunger Games' Science: Investigating Genetically Engineered Organisms
In The Hunger Games novel and movie, a futuristic, dystopian society is the setting. In it, a genetically engineered bird escapes control of the government. Using this as a starting point, teenagers examine the realistic possibility of...
Curated OER
Peer Review Meets D.I.Y.: Publishing a Student Science Journal
Peer review of science laboratory reports? You bet! First, learners work in pairs to review a scientific article. Then they trade lab reports for peer review. The end result is the publication of a classroom scientific journal!
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
Applying Newton’s Third Law of Motion in the Gravitron Ride
Here is a collection of readings to be discussed in the science classroom. This one is in the form of a dialog between two boys in an amusement park, talking about the forces involved in a Graviton ride. Questions are listed at the...
Pulitzer Center
Extractive Industries
Here is a chance for environmental studies classes to take a critical look at crises occurring around the globe by reading articles and viewing video clips. The human activities under scrutiny are the extraction of oil, logging, and...
Pulitzer Center
The Global Water Crisis
High schoolers examine the "quiet crisis," the lack of clean water, by reading articles and viewing video clips. They discuss the situations in Ethiopia, Yemen, Kenya, and Nepal. There are two options for the lesson, but one of them...
Curated OER
How Does Your Garden Grow? Discovering How Weather Patterns Affect Natural Cycles
For the warm-up in this cool climate lesson, you will need to click on "Mapping" and then "US Mapping" once you arrive at NOAA's "US Climate at a Glance" page. Earth science explorers realize that 2012 was a warm winter for us. They read...
Curated OER
On 'Punched Out': Looking at Brain Trauma and Other Risks of Violent Sports
The tragic story of Derek Boogard, a hockey star whose sports-related brain injuries eventually lead to his death, is told through a series of videos. There are also articles that can be read. This poignant lesson gets participants to...
Curated OER
Beauty or the Beast
Does the FDA really intend to protect public health? Spark a debate in your chemistry or health class by using this article, titled "Beauty or the Beast." It questions the safety of cosmetics and toiletry products, govenment regulations,...
Curated OER
Harvesting Energy from Food: How do Plants Help Humans?
Beginning botanists view slides of plant vascular tissue. They watch Magic School Bus Gets Planted, which you can find online, and then write a summary of what they have learned about plants. This lesson could be used with upper...
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
A Rose By Any Other Name
In part one, your astronomers read an interview dialogue between a reporter and Dr. Maria Ocasio, the chair of the group that assigns names to celestial objects. The topic in question is Pluto's status. Learners research Plutinos and...
Curated OER
Death by Particles
Emerging epidemiologists define relative risk and read an article about the effect of particulate pollution on the cardiovascular health of women. They record the relative risk values, graph them, and answer analysis questions. This is a...
Curated OER
Obesity
Class members participate in a discussion, read a newspaper article, and participate in activities meant to open their eyes to the problem of obesity in the US. There are resource links, electronic worksheets, and teacher's notes to help...
Curated OER
Mothers' Milk-Unleaded, Please
Lead toxicity is a hot topic these days, especially when it was a common component in household paint for many years. In Taiwan, there was concern that babies were being exposed to toxic levels of lead through breast milk. A study was...
Curated OER
The Case of the Contaminated Maize
Environmental health pupils read about an outbreak of aflatoxin poisoning with the intent to examine the stages of an epidemiologic investigation. As they read the case study, they identify where the outbreak occurred, form a hypothesis,...
Curated OER
A Yen for Maximum Residue Limits in Food
Future public health officials or agriculturists read an article and answer questions concerning the Japanese regulations for pesticide exposure. They compare the maximum residue limit for two, 4-D of Japan with other countries. This is...
Curated OER
Lead and Mercury: Comparing Two Environmental Evils
High schoolers in chemistry or health courses look at the material safety data sheet (MSDS) and periodic table of elements to gather information about mercury and lead, two toxic materials that have been found in food products. They read...
Curated OER
Tracing The Origins of Autism: A Spectrum of New Studies
Has the occurrence of autism increased over the years, or do the changes in diagnostic criteria account for the difference? High schoolers read an article about autism spectrum disorders and the related epidemiological studies that have...
Curated OER
Practicing Scientific Literacy
In this science worksheet, students read an article that is scientifically based and decide how to respond to it. They respond to each of the statements listed using their article. Students also write a paragraph about one impact that...