Curated OER
The Slope of Land in Your Community
Learners participate in finding the slope of a sand pile and then other materials. In this geology lesson, students describe what happens to the piles of materials when they are poured through a funnel. Learners measure the slope using a...
Curated OER
Dinosaurs In Argentina
Students study the fossils in Argentina and why it is a good place to find them. For this dinosaurs lesson students learn about the recent dinosaur excavations.
Teach Engineering
Solar Power
Elementary schoolers discover how engineers use solar energy to heat buildings. They take a close look at some of the materials used: sand, salt, water, and shredded paper and evaluate the efficiency of each material. An incredible...
Mississippi State University
The Five Senses
Your learners engage their five senses every day without knowing it. Help them identify their experiences and extend their understanding with a month full of lessons designed for the five senses. Kids focus on a different sense every...
Curated OER
Different Ways to Develop Fine Motor Skills
Adjust your everyday routine to efficiently improve fine motor skills in your classroom.
Curated OER
Growing Learners: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach to Investigating Plants and Flowers
Engage young scientists in these inquiry-based lesson ideas to spring into learning about nature.
Teach Engineering
Capturing the Sun's Warmth
Passive solar heating is a technology that's been in use for thousands of years. Here, elementary schoolers are exposed to this type of heating, the materials that are used in passive solar heating, and they study how engineers design...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Plyler v. Doe: Can States Deny Public Benefits to Illegal Immigrants?
Illegal immigration is an ever-changing source of consistent controversy. A reading passage about the rights of undocumented workers and illegal immigrants—and the lack thereof—guides high schoolers into a mock trial activity. Three...
Curated OER
Everest The Death Zone
Students watch a video about climbers on Mount Everest. In groups, they complete experiments in which they determine the concentration of oxygen in the air. They make predictions before beginning the experiment and complete a worksheet...
Teach Engineering
Solar Water: Heat it Up!
Young engineers are instructed to design and build their own solar water heaters. Then, they calculate the efficiency and cost and compare them to commercially available models. This is a full unit for pupils to apply their knowledge.
Curated OER
Investigating Brass Instruments and Pitch
Students observe the sounds of different brass instruments in order to understand how to create different pitches. In this musical instructional activity, students create a "brass" instrument from everyday household objects. The students...
Curated OER
Plants and Ecosystems
The relationships within and between ecosystems can be explored. after examining an area for living and non-living things students complete the same examination in the forest ecosystem. Students identify abiotic and biotic elements in an...
Center Science Education
Tracking Hurricane News
Here is a unique twist for your lesson on hurricanes. After examining extreme weather news headlines, your storm chasers view a PowerPoint about hurricanes and then zoom in on Hurricane Irene. They map a timeline of her trek up the East...
SeaWorld
Marvelous Manatees
Here is an interesting lesson plan on the manatee for your upper graders or middle schoolers. A game is played where learners work together to complete a successful manatee migration. It's a board game, and all of the game components are...
State of Victoria
Making Healthy Choices, Making Healthy Food: PreK-3 Curriculum Support
From examining how much sugar is in foods and looking at fruit and vegetable varieties to making mini rainbow tarts, this unit provides youngsters with a fabulous overview of proper nutrition and eating habits.
Curated OER
Human Body Series - Bones, Muscles, and Joints
Strengthen understanding of the musculoskeletal system with a structured lesson! Begin with a discussion of bones, joints, and muscles. Have small groups read assigned articles and watch videos to gather information and then write a...
Curated OER
The Politics of Rocks and Minerals
Combine politics with science as the class discovers the intricacies of studying rocks and minerals.
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Educating European Immigrant Children Before World War I
As if surviving a journey to America wasn't enough of a feat for early 20th century immigrants, they then needed to settle into American life. Learn about the ways New York public education attempted to meet the needs of its students,...
iCivics
Municipal Government: High School
Municipal government takes on many roles, not just the ones we are used to hearing about such as Parks and Recreation. Scholars delve into the topic to get a grasp on how the government system functions. They participate in readings,...
National Geographic
Rescuing, Relocating, and Rehabilitating Wildlife
Bring up the Deepwater Horizon (BP) oil spill that occurred in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Display the colorful diagram of the coastal and marine organisms living in the area. Show a video about relocating the eggs of the Gulf's sea...
Habits of Mind
Haileybury Habits of Mind Learning Resource Book
Imagine a learning community committed to using Costa and Kallick's Habits of Mind as the basis of curriculum design. The resource book is packed with lessons that are designed for and identify the standards and...
Curated OER
Our Science Corner: Making Our Classrooms Science Friendly
Students prepare and care for a classroom science corner. In this science instructional activity, students contritubute items to the classroom science corner, and invite other classes of students into their room to share their scientific...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Scale Models
With instructions to adapt the activities for any grade K-12, any teacher can incorporate the concept of scale into the classroom with a simple, yet effective lesson.
University of Minnesota
Beautiful Brain: Do You See What I See?
Can art play tricks on your eyes, and can a still painting really appear to vibrate? The second lesson in a four-part series discusses the way our beautiful brains translate visual images. It highlights the style of optical art and...