Students conduct online research regarding the origins of the city of Timbuktu and discover why it became such an important place. Students write about the city's origins until it became a part of Mali.

Middle schoolers read maps and artifacts for information indicating the existence of a trade network in Old Babylonia and beyond. They list goods imported to and exported from Babylonia. They indicate trading centers on a map of ancient...

Elementary-aged scientists discover that all matter has mass. They are shown the difference between mass and weight, and learn how to calculate mass using the appropriate tools and methods. The scientific method is used while estimating...

Are you looking for a good, solid instructional activity on sedimentary rocks? This one, produced by the Illinois State Museum, is just such a instructional activity. Middle schoolers identify common rocks and minerals by analyzing...

Young learners listen to a read aloud of Gail Gibbons book, Apples and the story A Red House With No Windows and No Doors. They compare characteristics of a number of kinds of apples, graph them and create a apple print picture. Learners...

What is on your to-do list today? The second instructional activity of a three-part series on Lost Heroes of America investigates the laundry list of items in front of the second Continental Congress. Scholars research, analyze, and...

Students investigate who the Mongols were and where their empire was located. They research Kublai Khan and the region he ruled. They study the major products of 13th Century China.

Students examine Marco Polo's route from China to Sumatra. They investigate the geography and climate, the religions and architecture of modern Indonesia. They study the use of spices and why they were so important in medieval times.

Students study the route from Hormuz to Constantinople that was traveled by the Polos. They explain the importance of Constantinople in medieval time and discuss its location, and outer wall structure.

Young scholars role play as Marco Polo to detail his travels. They include the terrains, foods, religions, people and cultures that were encountered. They write a journal entry as if they were Marco Polo detailing one aspect of his travels.

Learners investigate Marco Polo's life as a young boy in 13th century Venice. They analyze maps, explore various websites, complete a chart and answer discussion questions, and create a travel brochure about visiting 13th century Venice.

Students complete a unit of lessons that examine life in early America from 1740-1840. They compare items with similar objects we use today, explore various websites, create a paper doll, try and guess the function of various objects,...

Students investigate the history of Pompeii and its destruction. They take a virtual field trip to the ruins of Pompeii, create a travel brochure to attract tourists to the site, and write an account of their trip.

Students complete a unit of lessons that examine the Holocaust from the point of view of those who actively resisted the Nazis. They analyze a timeline, participate in a class debate, explore various websites, and write a letter.

Second graders sped the day exploring about balance by playing with and making balancing toys. They discover how varying the amount and position of mass affects the toys' balance. Pupils explore gravity and balance while playing with the...

How diverse is the rainforest? How much more diverse is a rain forest than a temperate forest? Explore these focus questions in a lesson that explores the plants, animals, and insects in forests. After listening to a reading...

Young learners will view a math adventures video and practice math concepts.  Afterwards they will navigate through Internet sites to participate in teacher selected math adventures. This guide walks you through integrating...

Review the difference between rocks and minerals using this resource. Learners identify and investigate the physical properties of these objects. They create a Venn diagram to compare and contrast types of rocks. This is a motivating way...

After reading a short passage about glyphs, kids must follow the provided directions to create a star glyph.

Plants need sun and water to survive. Let kids discover these facts by reading a block of informational text and considering a scientific quandary. They read the text, then use the information to complete a two-part question about plant...

Heat things up in your earth science class with this collaborative lesson on volcanoes. After first being introduced to the different types of volcanoes and how they are formed, young geologists work in small groups to...

Host an exciting lab in which learners burn fruit rinds to better understand hydrocarbons. A reading passage and analysis questions wrap up the lesson. 

Test your learners' sensory awareness with three hands-on activities that ask pupils to use their other senses to identify and describe everyday objects hidden from sight.  

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,...