Curated OER
The Kapok (Ceiba) Tree
Students explore the rainforest. They listen to The Great Kapok Tree and create a web using Inspiration software. They research kapok trees and create posters to make others aware of the plight of the rainforest. They role-play the...
Curated OER
Interactions Among Living Things
Students role play predators and prey, classify organisms as predator or prey, and describe factors that affect population growth and size.
Michigan Sea Grant
Sea Lamprey
Learners discuss the types of technology that are used to control the population of sea lamprey in the Great Lakes. They explain the parasite/host relationship and understand the devastating impact invasive species have on ecosystems....
Channel Islands Film
Human Impact on the Food Web of Santa Cruz Island
What happens when a non-native species is introduced onto an island? Santa Cruz Island, part of the Channel Island chain located off the coast of southern California, provides the perfect laboratory for young environmental scientists to...
Curated OER
Marine Sanctuaries
Middle schoolers delve into diverse marine ecosystems and the problems they face. They discover students the national marine sanctuaries found in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and off the coast of American Samoa.
Curated OER
A Walk in the Woods
Eighth graders observe and identify the different levels of the forest. In this forest zones lesson students observe, identify and name a variety of forest components and describe how humans impact the forest ecosystem.
Curated OER
A Tale of Two Wetlands
Students observe 2 separate wetlands (following downloadable worksheets) and record 10 similarities and 10 differences between them. Then they present their recommendations to the class who roleplay the government's wetland conservation...
National Science Teacher Association
Middle School Sampler: Science
Focus on inquiry-based learning in your science class with a series of activities designed for middle schoolers. A helpful packet samples four different texts, which include activities about predator-prey relationships, Earth's axis...
Curated OER
Relating Number of Insect Species to Water Quality
Students are asked to respond to questions such as:" Have there been surveys of the area to inventory the species?" (For example, for a wetland area, do they know what amphibians live there and how abundant they are?) Are there any...
Curated OER
Ecological Organization
Students examine the concepts in the ecological organization unit. For this ecological lesson students explore news articles that have to do with the study of ecology.
Michigan Sea Grant
Wetlands
Wetlands may not sound particularly ornate, but they are as important as any habitat! With a hands-on activity, young scientists build a wetland model and observe its many functions in action. They discover the importance of wetlands to...
Curated OER
Animal clues
Fifth graders use general knowledge to make educated guesses about the habitat and survival strategies of animals from Australia, Antarctica and Africa. They research to confirm and check ideas and group animals in a variety of ways.
Curated OER
Coral Reefs Endangered
Learners research where in the world coral reefs are located. For this ecology lesson, students create food chains and food web. They simulate growing coral reefs to understand their characteristics better.
Curated OER
Assessing Water Quality in a Local Creek by Sampling Aquatic Macroinvertabrets
High schoolers experiment collecting macroinvertebrates from a stream and identify the specimens collected and then log in the information into a data table. From the data, they make qualitative and quantitative interpretations of water...
Curated OER
Critical Habitat
Students watch the video clip and create a web map showing the cycle between producers, consumers and decomposers. They also tell why it is important to conserve the old-growth forests.
Curated OER
It's all Interconnected
Learners participate in a number of activities to investigate the food web, species extinction, predators and prey, and biological diversity.
Michigan Sea Grant
Fish Habitat and Humans
Strict habitat requirements are needed for the survival of fish populations and fish variety in the Great Lakes. Young scientists become experts in the basic needs of fish and understand how survival necessities can vary with different...
Curated OER
It's a Small World After All! (Pond Microcosms)
Students use microscopes to investigate the diversity of life that exists in pond water. They then conduct a controlled investigation to study the effect of a pollutant (rice) on a microcosm ecosystem.
Curated OER
Prairies
Students identify the basic characteristics of the prairie ecosystem, and several commonly known prairie species. They create a classroom mural of a prairie ecosystem; and create reports about what they have found out.
Curated OER
Hypoxia and the Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico
Students investigate the causes of hypoxia, the characteristics of a watershed, and how the actions and management practices of people can both negatively and positively affect aquatic ecosystems.
Curated OER
Eco-Poetry
Students explore the Earth's various biomes and ecosystems using Internet research. They create a multimedia poem using the photos, sounds, and vocabulary from their research.
Curated OER
Cypress/Tupelo Swamps
Students study the geologic history of terrain, soils, and drainage patterns. They recognize ecological processes that determine the dynamic nature of habitats. They investigate the influence of human activity on the landscape.
Curated OER
One Square Meter
Students examine various ecosystems using scientific inquiry. Using the local area, they assess the characteristics and conditions in one square meter. They report their findings in the form of a survey map and data sheet. They...