Curated OER
Marine & Aquatic Habitats -- Journey of a Drop of Water Through a Watershed
Learners discuss pollution and the steps in the hydrologic cycle. They follow a drop of water through a watershed simulation. They discover the components of a water cleaning system as well.
Curated OER
Biodiversity: El Imposible National Park, El Salvador
Fifth graders explore the concept of how the more diverse an ecosystem is, the more interdependence of species exists within that system. The complex relationships among diverse species are difficult to identify. As species disappear or...
Curated OER
Air Quality and Transportation
Second graders study about air pollution and the effects it has on our Earth. Students tally cars on a sheet that has been categorized as follows: One person in car, two persons in car, or three or more persons in car. Students go to...
CPALMS
Florida State University Cpalms: Florida Students: Comparing Plants and Animals
A tutorial that compares and constrast plants and animals. Explore how living things their obtain basic needs, protect, support, and reproduce. A PDF file of the tutorial is available.
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Polar Discovery: Compare the Poles
A detailed comparison of many aspects of the two polar regions. Includes physical features, seasons, weather, types of ice, plants and animals, human population, and climate change.
Michigan Reach Out
Reach Out! Michigan: Animal or Plant
This site provides a basic lesson plan from Reach Out! Michigan comparing plants to animals.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Activity: Comparing Crops
Take a closer look at some of the earliest farming civilizations and the plants and animals they domesticated. This quick exercise using the Agriculture and Civilization Infographic has you consider the regional differences in...
BioEd Online
Bio Ed Online: Living Things and Their Needs: Plant or Animal?
In this lesson plan, learners investigate and compare the needs of plants and animals. The lesson plan can be downloaded in PDF format.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Trb 4:4 Investigation 1 Identify & Compare Fossils
Fourth graders will look at different items to see if they can recognize fossils.
Read Works
Read Works: Drilling for Alaska
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read about drilling for oil in Alaska. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in comparing and contrasting.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Fourth Grade Science: Life Science: Habitat Destruction
Looks at ways plants and animals, including humans, can impact the environment in this learning module.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: What Is Alive?
This lesson is the opening lesson for a unit of study entitled "Why Doesn't A Caterpillar Grow Up To Be An Oak Tree?" during which students take a look at life cycles of plants and animals. This lesson will encourage students to explore...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Finding Food in the Amazon
In this activity, the students will investigate a variety of plants and animals common to the Amazon through research. They will determine the plant or animal characteristics that make them edible or useful for the trip and learn to...
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Phenology and Weatherguide Calendar
An activity where students observe the grounds around their school to study the plant and animal life cycle. Students will make a map of the school to keep track of their observations. Students will also compare their phenology calendar...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Who Needs What?
The teacher leads a discussion in which students identify the physical needs of animals, and then speculate on the needs of plants. With guidance from the teacher, the students then help design an experiment that can take place in the...
Other
Science and Kids Activities: Pollination and Seed Dispersal
Second graders learn how plants depend on animals to disperse their seeds. Students will learn about ways that animals can disperse seeds. They will design their own model and compare it to the real action of plants and animals. In the...
Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments: Probing an Aquatic Ecosystem
In this activity, students' use a pH sensor and Temperature Sensor to measure and compare the pH and temperature of three aquariums over a period of several weeks. They will compare and understand how plants and animals affect the water...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: School Publishers: Exploring Ecosystems
Compare and contrast three very different ecosystems - the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, the Florida Everglades, and the Arctic Coastal Plain in Alaska. Learn what makes each of them unique, and about the adaptations plants and animals had...
Curated OER
Tree Frog
This site provides a basic lesson plan from Reach Out! Michigan comparing plants to animals.