Calvin Crest Outdoor School
Survival
Equip young campers with important survival knowledge with a set of engaging lessons. Teammates work together to complete three outdoor activities, which include building a shelter, starting a campfire, and finding directions in the...
Curated OER
All About Seeds!
How do fruits relate to flowers and seeds? Identify the seeds and their purpose with a coloring activity for kindergartners. Once they color the seeds of apples, bananas, and peas (among others), kids get hands-on experience with bean...
Royal BC Museum
Kids Page - Whales
Read about the physical features of whales and how they are grouped according to their method of eating food. A neat activity is described on the page; consider carrying this out in class. The resource makes a nice addition to a lesson...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Are All Plants Created Equal?
Photosynthesis requires energy and produces food, and cellular respiration produces energy and requires food. An interesting lesson analyzes the factors that affect the rates of photosynthesis and respiration. Classes spend one day...
Curated OER
Respiratory, Circulatory, and Urogenital Systems in the Rat
Here is a lesson plan which describes a lab activity in which a rat is dissected, and its heart is studied. The lesson plan has ample background information about three of the rats internal systems, and excellent lab sheets that support...
Curated OER
Light and Starch Production in Photosynthesis
Students are given the unique opportunity to see the contrast between parts of a leaf that have photosynthesized and parts of the leaf that have not. This visual image helps students see the results of this biological process. At the...
Outdoor Learning Center
Outdoor Survival
Which of the following can you survive without for the longest time: water, food, or a positive mental attitude? The answer may surprise you. Guide learners of all ages through games, activities, and discussions about surviving in the...
Brooklyn Museum
"Workt by Hand": Hidden Labor and Historical Quilts
Just like a painting or the symbols on a flag, quilts can express ideas that reflect a cultural context, space, and time. The class discusses the history of quilt making throughout US history and what different types of quilts mean. They...
Curated OER
Twig Construction: Recycled Materials
Construction projects of any kind require learners to use spacial reasoning, creative thinking, and critical analysis skills. They design and make a twig/leaf structure out of natural and recycled materials. This project would be great...
Curated OER
How About a Classroom Epidemic?
Have individuals wash their hands with soap and water, give one of them a yeast-covered piece of candy, and then have him shake hands with the person next to him. Handshakes continue down the line until everyone in the class has had...
Curated OER
Photosynthesis and Respiration
Providing an overview of photosynthesis, this presentation would be a quick and easy way to go over information learned in class. This attractive and clear presentation would be a great way to kick off an exploration of photosynthesis.
DK Publishing
Real-Life Word Problems
Prepare your second graders for word problems with a straightforward review worksheet. Use it after a unit on addition and subtraction up to 100, or after you have worked on money math. A sample word problem prompts young learners to...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Insulation
Youngsters compare the heat-holding abilities of three different cans by insulating two with different materials and measuring the temperature change of hot water over a 20-minute period.
Curated OER
The Last Lecture: Exit Slip
Here's an exit slip activity that asks readers of The Last Lecture to identify three lessons from "Part III: Adventures and Lessons Learned" that resonated for them.
Curated OER
Stone Soup
Students examine the topics of conflict, resolution, and solution using the book "Stone Soup." They create a class pictograph using real vegetables brought in by the students, answer story comprehension questions, and sequence the events...
Curated OER
Ecology
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...
Curated OER
Paper Production
Students compare paper making by hand and by assembly line. In this manufacturing instructional activity, students compare and contrast the two main ways to make paper, by hand or by machine. Students research paper making and have...
Curated OER
Are Beds Made of Balsa Wood?
Here is an interesting resource which describes different kinds of wood and their uses. There is a table with six different types of furniture wood listed, and the number of worm holes found in each one. Based on the information in the...
University of Wisconsin
Rain Garden Species Selection
The activity really comes to life within its intended unit on starting a rain garden. Working in groups, participants research native plants and coordinate them with the conditions in the designated garden area. Give the class access to...
University of Wisconsin
Follow the Drop
Young surveyors look for patterns in water flow around campus. Using a map of the school (that you will need to create), they mark the direction of the path of water. They also perform calculations for the volume that becomes runoff. The...
Virginia Department of Education
Weather Patterns and Seasonal Changes
Get your class outside to observe their surroundings with a activity highlighting weather patterns and seasonal changes. First, learners take a weather walk to survey how the weather affects animals, people, plants, and trees during...
Nuffield Foundation
Investigating Transport Systems in a Flowering Plant
Some weddings have flowers in a unique, unnatural color to match the theme. Young scientists take part in this process to learn about the function of the xylem as they observe colored water moving through a flower. Then, they experiment...
Curated OER
Fair Shares and Geometric Spirals
Students tackle the problem of how to divide a triangular piece of land fairly among four people. They decide whether their method of fair division always works or if it only works in special cases.
Curated OER
Drip... Drop... Raindrops
Students demonstrate the steps of evaporation, cloud formation, and precipitation within the water cycle. They make and demonstrate how to use a hygrometer to record daily humidity and describe how rain, snow, and sleet form.