American Museum of Natural History
Cosmic Wallpapers
Decorate your screen with a cosmic wallpaper featuring the Orion Nebula, Helix Nebula, or Supernova.
American Museum of Natural History
A Closer Look at Mars
A website looks at how we know so much about Mars—telescopes, robots, and spacecraft—and the search for martian life. Following the informational text are three questions that quiz pupils about possible life on Mars.
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What Makes a Dinosaur a Dinosaur?
Young scholars explore dinosaur stance and the dinosaur-bird connection. They investigate what distinguishes dinosaurs from other reptiles? Students discuss how dinosaurs stand their legs positioned directly under their bodies. They...
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Understanding Cladistics
Young scholars explore cladistics and create a cladogram of their own. They are shown how the scientist at the American Museum of Natural History use a method called cladistics to group animals. Students are asked how the animals (lion,...
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What Teeth Tell Us
Students view pictures of a variety of animals. They examine the animals' teeth and discuss the differences in them. They experiment with staple removers (carnivore teeth) and two flat rocks (herbivore teeth) and determine which are most...
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Social Studies Wonders: An Exploration
Help middle schoolers conduct Internet research and develop a working definition for the discipline of social studies. From a list of websites, they develop classification skills and differentiate between primary and secondary sources....
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Gotham Equinox
By looking at the direction of the parallel streets of New York and figuring which days the setting sun is directly visible along those lines, your class can calculate the degree and angle of the sun. A really nice lesson, giving a...
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What Is A Dinosaur?
Students use the question of "What is a dinosaur?" in order to establish the context for a class investigation. They use a variety of resources in order to gather information. Students compare and contrast the similarities or differences...
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What is a Fossil?
Students determine what a fossil is and distinguish between body fossils and trace fossils. They examine pictures of fossils and determine which represents a trace or body fossil.
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Cultures
Students examine and analyze photographs of other cultures. They answer discussion questions, identify bias and point of view in the images, conduct research on another photo, and compare and contrast two cultural images.
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Cultures
Students research different cultures around the world. They discover that each culture is a way to express oneself. They compare and constrast how different cultural events are celebrated and draw their own conclusions about them.
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Cultural Diversity
Young scholars examine their relationships to cultural groups and make conclusions about their diverse roles in different cultures. They decide why people play multiple roles in society while creating a cultural treasure chest.
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How Cultures Travel
Learners examine how people and cultures have moved over time. They plot the movement of different groups of people and examine any cultural artifacts. They research a local group of people to determine how their community has changed...
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Comparing Cultures
Students examine the nature of culture, and compare/contrast various cultures and their artifacts and ceremonies. They develop a class list of artifacts, complete a worksheet, and create a poster or diorama describing an object that is...
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Artifacts
Students examine different artifacts and determine the difference between personal and cultural objects. They collect items from their home of cultural importance as well. They identify all they can from artifacts they are given to analyze.
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Cultures for Elementary Students
Students research one or more cultures. They determine what aspects of the culture to research based on their interests. They develop a research proposal and share it with the class.
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Water: H2O = Life
In this earth science worksheet, young scholars explore and describe animals and their adaptations, including their habitats, physical characteristics, and competing organisms. They also explore and describe how others use water around...
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AIDS, HIV and other Microbe Matters
This series of lessons contains sensitive material. Please review to ensure that the content is suitable for your class. It begins by discussing what microbes are. Scholars are then asked to review a few online resources and answer...
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Introduction to Bacteria
Beginning biologists survey several websites to learn about the types, structure, motility, feeding habits, and reproductive methods of bacteria. All websites are linked to the lesson plan, so you can have individuals access it and click...
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Little Oyster: Ceramic Lesson
Children will love researching and then creating a bottom dwelling mollusk of their own. They watch clips describing the ocean ecosystem and how oysters fit into their environment. Next, they research what oysters eat and how they look....
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The Facts of Life
Students explore the different ways scientists gather information about extinct animals. They utilize these methods to create illustrated story books about a particular extinct animal.
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Grouping Dinosaurs
Students investigate sets and subsets as they group coins and dinosaurs. Using scissors and provided sheet, they sort dinosaurs according to their commonalities. Their groupings are shared with the class.
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Using Solar Energy
Students experiment to determine the effect of solar energy on the temperature of water. In this renewable resources lesson, students measure the temperature of water in a flask that is exposed to sunlight. They relate their results...
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The Codex Comes Home: Leonardo Lives in Seattle
Students complete a unit on the life of Leonardo da Vinci and the content of the Codex Leicester. They write an encyclopedia entry, watch a film, complete a data sheet, conduct Internet research, and write a letter to Bill Gates about...