Poetry is a wonderful way to explore language, express topical understanding, and incite creative thinking. After a trip to the local natural history museum (or zoo), learners write an acrostic or a cinquain poem describing one of their...

Here is a fine lesson for fifth graders that will give them an idea of the variety of impacts that human-introduced pollutants have on the environment. After an initial class discussion and teacher-led demonstration, pupils brainstorm...

Fifth graders brainstorm the relationship between trees and humans to determine how humans benefit from trees and how they benefit from us. They discuss oxygen/carbon dioxide exchange, soil stablization, animal habitat, shade, medicine...

Fifth graders decide how one uses resources within a particular bioregion.  In this decision making lesson, 5th graders consider the biodiversity and complexity of the ecosystem.  Students select a resource (water, paper,...

Why not walk in the footsteps of Teddy Roosevelt and become a conservationist? After discussing issues and reasons for animal extinction, the class creates their own conservation plans. Each small group is given mock data regarding a...

We have all heard that we are what you eat, but what are we eating? An informative lesson opens with a discussion of the foods pupils have recently eaten. Then, young scientists perform four experiments on seven...

Calcareous ooze ... what an interesting name! The 15th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on sediments found on the ocean floor. After viewing the slideshow lecture,...

Students research energy conservation devices. They also create their own light efficiency project and presents their findings on science fair night.

Explore the harsh climate of Antarctica and its wildlife. Participate in experiments to determine how humans survive in the continent's climate, and address the difficulties faced by scientists.

Students investigate and design various models of size and distance related to the solar system. They work together to build a solar system model. The models should focus on distance and scale. They don't include moons or satellites in...

Young scholars examine the problems of the continued development of aquaculture. They also brainstorm ideas that people in this field would need to be successful.

Third graders make alphabet cards that depict the wide variety of life forms found in the Sonoran Desert. A terrific lesson that combines language arts, visual arts, and life science all into one wonderful package. Each of the cards has...

Youngsters explore their sense of smell by working in pairs. One child is blindfolded, while the other holds things for him to smell. They switch after a while. All of this leads up to learning about the amazing ability sharks have to...

Students design a proportional model of blood out of red gelatin, a plastic bag, and rice. They study the components that make up blood and investigate what happens when the arteries in different scenerios. They work in pairs in order to...

Students examine the discipline of biomedical engineering or bioengineering. They complete worksheets by participating in reading background information and completing a hands on activity. They design a prototype of a cast to set a...

Students explore, experience and experiment identifying the human impact on the environment of vegetative differences within the same biome. They assess what causes deserts, rain forests, savannahs, tundras and saguaros and how these...

Students explain nutritional strategies of benthic organisms.They describe nutritional strategies of benthic organisms and describe these physical characteristics.

Have you ever tried following confusing or incomplete directions? In a hands-on experiment, partners give and follow directions to build a structure. Scholars apply their years of experience taking instructions to prove they know...

Work on research procedures in this activity, which prompts writers to collect and evaluate information pooled from a number of sources. They work in teams to collect information about crocodiles from different sources. They compare the...

First, biology pupils research land and marine habitats along the route of skipper Rich Wilson's Great American II. Then, using colored paper clips scattered across a colored paper background, they play the predator-prey game to...

Students discuss ecosystems, eliciting their current knowledge of an ecosystem. Students receive an Ecosystems document and look at the picture. Students brainstorm connection between the cover picture and ecosystems. The indicated...

Students determine what types of information can be determined by looking at fossils. In this fossil lesson, students examine facts about and images of the Tyrannosaurus Rex at an assigned web site. They apply their knowledge to develop...

A reading of Whale Journey, a fact-filled picture book by Vivian French, launches a study of the life cycle and migration of three generations of gray whales. The interdisciplinary lesson offers opportunities extensions into all subject...

Fifth graders are introduced to the important topic of renewable, and non-renewable, resources. They are expected to be able to correctly categorize different types of resources as renewable or non-renewable. Another emphasis of this...