Curated OER
Where is the Science?: Design as an Introduction to the Scientific Method
Students work to create a design that will protect an egg from being dropped from a one story floor. They test their prototype after it is completed. They write clear instructions and link aspects of the design process to the scientific...
Curated OER
Designing a Real Life Ecosystem!
Students research abiotic and biotic factors concerning the concept of an ecosystem. Record and analyze data collected. Write a lab report in proper and scientific format with thinking and analytical skills. Work as a cooperative team.
Messenger Education
Design Challenge: How to Keep Items Cool in Boiling Water
Keeping items cool in boiling water... what? This engaging activity challenges high school learners to build a container that keeps butter in a solid state when placing the container in boiling water. Groups use previous knowledge and...
Curated OER
Protective Design
Over 3 or 4 class periods your young designers will create a wearable garment that provides some sort of protection from a danger in everyday life. In this fashion design lesson plan, high schoolers investigate fear in our society and...
Messenger Education
Design Challenge: How to Keep Gelatin from Melting
The inside of the spacecraft Messenger, which explores Mercury, will experience temperatures from 32 to 91 degrees Fahrenheit. In the final installment of a series of four space-related activities, groups spend time discussing and...
Curated OER
What Does George W. Bush Have in Common With Past U.S. Presidents?
Sixth graders discover what it takes to become President of the United States. Using a database, they complete a scavenger hunt to determine what George W. Bush has in common with past Presidents. They also create a spreadsheet which...
Curated OER
Light Sport Aircraft Design Challenge
Students investigate aircraft design to learn many concepts of physics. For this aircraft design lesson, students use balsa wood and styrofoam to build an aircraft based on their study of wing designs, aviation, and through the use of an...
Curated OER
Cell Game
Make a prototype of a game based on cell biology. Researching game design and working in groups to create a game will activate knowledge of cell biology. The review task will help students learning as they test out the games and their...
Curated OER
Equations in Motion: Design and construct a mobile
Students participate in a lesson that covers the concepts of solving equations and inequalities. To master the concept they must demonstrate visually and verbally how both sides of an equation must be balanced. They construct a balanced...
Curated OER
The Hobbit
Here’s a series of exercises designed to be used after readers have finished reading The Hobbit. Pairs identify the speaker of a series of quotes, match characters with qualities, and provide evidence from the story to support their...
Curated OER
Out and About-Creating Design
Students demonstrate the elements of design by creating a digital photography portfolio of photos taken in and arond the scool. The edit photos using Photoshope to emphasize the element of desing in each phot.
US Department of Energy
Geothermal Energy
With Earth Day quickly approaching, as well as many science fairs, why not challenge your class to investigate geothermal energy or other renewable energy resources? There are five driving questions explored in depth here, as well as...
Curated OER
Teaching the Holocaust Through Poetry
W.H. Auden’s poem “Refugee Blues” launches a study of the problems of refugees. Background information about the poem and general information about Jewish refugees from Germany and Austria are provided, as are discussion questions and...
Curated OER
Room Design Planning/From Paper to Virtual Reality and Back Again
Students participate in activities in which they explore how the space and objects around them can be altered. Using various types of software, they design and create a three-dimensional building and share it with the class. They also...
Curated OER
Writing Effective Thesis Statements and Introductory Paragraphs for Research Papers
After reading on the topic of their paper, high schoolers work in pairs to assess how to write powerful, precise thesis statements. The introduction contains three statements: a universal statement, a bridge statement, and a thesis...
Channel Islands Film
Cache: Lesson Plan 3 - Grades 4-5
Should the excavation of what is believed to be the cave of the Lone Woman of San Nicholas Island be allowed to continue? As a practice exercise designed to prepare pupils for a timed writing exam, individuals read two Los Angeles Times...
Cornell University
Making a Battery
Don't be shocked when your class has a blast making their own batteries! Science scholars examine a dry cell battery, then design and construct a wet cell battery. The activity guides them through the parts of a battery, the variables...
Curated OER
Nathaniel Hawthorne's—The Scarlet Letter
Designed for teachers, this guide to The Scarlet Letter is divided into background information about Hawthorne and Puritan New England, suggestions for teaching various ability levels, and ideas for extensions that include current events.
Curated OER
Persuasive Writers
Use the power of the pen to persuade others to get involved in community issues! Individuals reflect on personal service learning activities and the writing process. They compose essays regarding service to others. While designed for...
Curated OER
Stained Glass for Your Class
Students use a 8 1/2 x 11 piece of white drawing paper, each student creates an original line drawing of a subject that interests them. They can create a geometric design. Students place the completed drawing under an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of...
Curated OER
Wildwood Dancing: K-W-H-L Reading Strategy On Prejudice
As part of a study of Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing, class members create a KWHL chart listing what they know, what the want to know, how they will find information, and what they have learned about prejudice.
Media Smarts
Broadcasting Codes
Let your learners be the judges for a series of case studies that focus on broadcast codes in Canada. In order to familiarize your class with the codes and guidelines that govern the broadcasting industry, in particular Canada's...
Curated OER
Physics Park
Young scholars research and design a playground for a park or school in their community. They explore the physics concepts that are present in the design and, if applicable promote their ideas to city or school officials.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
How Novel Icefish Genes Can Improve Human Health
Designed to accompany the 13-minute video The Making of the Fittest: The Birth and Death of Genes, this handout serves as both a viewing guide during the video and an analysis of how the adaptations of the icefish might help treat some...