Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Human Skin Color: Evidence for Selection
Skin color is controlled by at least six genes. Young scientists learn about skin colors through a documentary. They discuss the topics of pigment, natural selection, and vitamin D absorption. They apply their knowledge to higher order...
Virginia Department of Education
Owl Family Natural Selection
How do genetic mutations within a population lead to future variations? Provide your class with the resources to answer this question and more upon completing an activity on natural selection. The entire class participates in a fun role...
Curated OER
Musical Activities for Early Childhood Inclusion
Get your movers and shakers grooving to the beat with this series of musical activities designed to meet everyone's needs! Ten games, using an assortment of instruments, bring awareness to one's body, brain, and social interactions in a...
National Gardening Association
Migration Mishaps
Elementary ecologists pretend to be migratory hummingbirds. They fly between wintering and nesting grounds, trying to reach a habitat haven. In a musical-chair fashion, some birds will miss out, and are removed from the game. To further...
Curated OER
Penguins: Sensitive Indicators
Students examine how penguins are affected by climate change. In this climate change lesson plan students research the impact of climate change then create a poster to call awareness to it.
Curated OER
Cell Wall Recipe: A Lesson on Biofuels
Biotech engineers discover that changes in the DNA code for cell wall formation can help create crops better suited for biofuel production. They extract DNA from wheat germ. They decode paper strips with codes and relate the activity to...
Curated OER
Meet One Picky Bird
Students complete a research project In this endangered species lesson, students use the "Think, Puzzle, Explore" method to learn about endangered species. Students research and write a report on the red-cockaded woodpecker.
Curated OER
Image Classification
Students explore what are "multi-spectral" or "multi-band" images? They investigate how landscapes change over time- at least over the time-span of satellite imagery, particulary due to human influences. Students explore how to train...
Curated OER
Air: Fuel For Thought
Students consider the impact of vehicle use in their family and brainstorm viable alternatives to this use. They calculate the total emissions for their family cars during the week, then compare those totals with Hybrid car totals.
Curated OER
In the Wild
Third graders examine the concept of ecology and how animals are suited to their habitats. In this animal adaptation lesson, 3rd graders identify a variety of plants and animal species that live in a Beech forest.Students create a food...
Curated OER
Swamps, Shrimp, and Tsunamis: A Simulation of Sustainable Development Issues in Coastal Ecuador
Students examine the economic benefits, environmental losses and dangers of the shrimp farming industry on the coast of Ecuador. They read a script, role-play people involved in the shrimp business, and write an essay of the pros and cons.
ARKive
Animal over Winter
Gosh those polar regions can get cold. So, how do the animals that live there survive the long winters? Learners explore how animals adapted to survive harsh wintry conditions by completing a worksheet and comparing animal survival...
Curated OER
Water in the Biosphere
Environmental explorers examine the campus and take note of living organisms. Introduce them to the biosphere and the questions of the day: How much water can be found in the biosphere? A slide show helps you along, and even contains a...
Curated OER
The Evolution of Canis pedatus
High schoolers examine the given characteristics of a previously unknown dog-like creature, Canis pedatus, to decide if the creatures would survive when relocated to a new environment. They work in small groups to decide whether or not...
Curated OER
The Evolution of Canis pedatus
Learners, in groups, examine the given characteristics of a previously unknown dog-like creature, Canis pedatus. They discuss whether or not this species would show adaptations and survive if it were relocated to a new environment.
Curated OER
Aquatic Insects: Water Quality Index & Diversity Index
Students search stream beds to study the life cycle and adaptations of stream insects. They explore creeks and streams to see the diversity index of creeks or streams and to find the water qualit index.
Curated OER
Desert Dynamics
Students investigate the plants and animals found in Utah deserts and how these organisms have adapted to their environment. They brainstorm ways that desert plants are different from or similar to wetland plants.
Curated OER
Why Should I Care About Global Warming?
Students examine global warming, and the greenhouse effect. They determine the changes that happen and the adaptations that need to be made because of these occurrences. They look at the occurrence and effect of these phenomena in the past.
Curated OER
Estuaries, Estuarine Habitats, and Adaptations
Students conduct research on estuaries. They design and construct an estuary, describe the physical characteristics of an estuary, and create a diagram illustrating an estuarine food web.
Curated OER
Making Your Local Ethical Shopping Guide
Students write a research action plan on how to buy products that are environmentally friendly even in tough world conditions. In this ethical business lesson plan, students learn that the economy, food prices, natural disasters, and...
Curated OER
New Hampshire and the Five Themes of Geography
Young scholars explore the location, place, human-environmental interactions, movement, and regions of the New Hampshire landscape through the use of visual representations.
Curated OER
Adaptive Reuse
Students identify historic buildings in their community that have been adaptively reused. Through "adopting" a building, they will study how recycling of buildings is an environmentally and economically sound practice for communities.
Curated OER
Pond Safari
Students investigate organisms and animals by examining a nearby pond. In this ecosystem lesson, students participate in a field trip to a local pond where they utilize a net to gather animals, plants and pollution items, Students...
Curated OER
Nowhere to Hide
Middle schoolers examine the topic of natural selection. As a class, they write their own definition to survival of the fittest and watch a video. Using the internet, they research how Darwin started to examine this process using finches...