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How Pollution Disrupts Our Natural Environment
Students conduct experiments to illustrate global warming. In this air pollution instructional activity, students first examine how a layer of greenhouse gasses might impact the earth's atmospheric temperature, then evaluate how the...
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Rocks and Minerals
Students are able to describe earth processes (e.g., rusting, weathering, erosion) that have affected selected physical features in students, neighborhoods. They are able to identify various earth structures (e.g., mountains, faults,...
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Glaciers and Global Sea Rise
Learners explain how melting glaciers affect global warming. In this earth science lesson, students investigate the change in ice density as it melts. They discuss the human and environmental impact of rising sea levels.
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Chain Reaction
Students study animal behavior and how it changes to its environment. In this animal lesson students design and conduct experiments.
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You're as Cold as Ice!
Students study the movement of glaciers and how they have affected the Earth. In this geology instructional activity students simulate the effects glaciers have on landscape and watch video segments.
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Phases of the Moon
Middle schoolers explore why when you examine the moon depends on its location in relationship to the sun and Earth. The moon never goes away or changes shape-we just see a different fraction of sunlight being reflected from the moon to...
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Burning Up! A Look at Global Warming
Students investigate global warming. In this global warming lesson, students watch movies about global warming, discuss problems in their local community and see how communities have changed over time. Students realize the importance of...
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The Reasons for the Season
Students explain the reason for the changes in season. In this lesson examining the relationship between the Earth and the Sun, students use an applet to discover how the alignment of the Earth and the Sun cause the change in seasons.
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Mountain Pine Beetles
Students research and develop power point presentations that answer the question, "What is changing our forests?" In this ecology lesson, students research the niche of Pine Beetles and their increased effect on the forests in...
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Discover Magazine: Size and Scale
Students research measurements of the moon and Earth as well as the distance between the two in order to create scale models of the Earth-moon system. With a marble to be used as the moon, they must determine how large to make Earth...
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Graphing Sea Ice Extent in the Arctic and Antarctic
Students graph sea ice data and predict long term trends in the data. In this climate change lesson, students use sea ice data from the Arctic and Antarctic to construct line graphs. They use their graphs to predict the effects of global...
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Length of the Day
Students investigate how the Earth's rotation affect the length of day. In this earth science lesson, students construct a sighting apparatus and record their observations over a few days. They analyze data collected and formulate a...
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Teaching About the Hydrosphere
Eighth graders are introduced to the Earth's hydrologic system including the cycling of water in the atmosphere and the movement of water on the surface of the planet using the Great Lakes watershed as an example.
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A View Of Home From The Front Door and From Space
Students discover how distance can change how our view of an object. Students build a representative model of where their home is located from different distances. They create three drawn models of their home from various elevations as...
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Magnetic Storms
In this magnetic storms and Earth's magnetic field worksheet, students use a bar graph showing the Kp Index for planetary variability. Students use the bar graph to answer 3 questions about the solar storms and their Kp values.
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The Future of Arctic Sea Ice
Students research about the importance of sea ice to world climate and sea organisms. In this earth science lesson, students create a model of present and future Arctic sea ice communities. They discuss how ice melting affects...
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The Big Burp: Where's the Proof?
Young scholars research the evidence for prehistorically formed methane hydrates contributing to global warming. In this climate change lesson, students work in groups to research methane hydrates, global warming, The Cambrian Explosion,...
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Using Repeat Photography to Map Environmental Hazards
Students investigate the changes of their environment by experimenting with photography. In this environmental observation instructional activity, students compare historic photographs of areas with pictures they have just taken....
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Thinking About Life in Geological Time Scales
Students create a large (classroom-sized) timeline showing the history of life on Earth for the last 5 billion years. They are able to identify the events that are relevant to their taxonomic projects (the Origins and important...
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Problem Based Learning Scenario
Students research about the function of MPA's. For this marine science lesson, students explore how humans influence changes near these areas. They explore different MPA's in the Great Lakes region.
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A Basin Filled With Time
Students use fossil leaves and a mathematical formula to study climate change. In this climate change and fossil lesson plan, students determine the differences in temperatures during two different times during the Cenozoic era using...
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Paleoclimates and Pollen
Students analyze soil for types of pollen to determine the probably climate conditions. In this earth science lesson, students make conclusions on what a climate is like based on soils samples. Students use a model soil...
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Jeopardy 8th Grade (Science)
There are so many topics touched upon in this Jeopardy-style science game, that it is difficult to classify! The categories include electricity, matter, ecology, earth and space, and scientific investigation. This would best be used at...
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World Geography: Climate Change Round Table
Students are able to explain the suspected causes of relatively recent climate changes, specifically the observed global warming. They discuss how unusual or extreme global warming disrupts the balance of the earth's geo-spheres.