Curated OER
Boiling and Freezing Points of Water
Challenge your sixth graders with this lesson about the freezing and boiling points of water. In these activities learners graph temperature data, read and analyze information, and identify the freezing and boiling points of water and...
Kenan Fellows
How Do Chemists Measure?
Young chemists create gold nanoparticles as they learn to measure accurately with the metric system. They create an advertisement for the application of nanotechnology to complete the first lesson in a series of six.
California Academy of Science
Sustainable Food Solutions: Weighing the Pros and Cons
A growing demand for sustainable food systems comes from schools and even some cities. So what are some solutions? Scholars consider four different ways to approach sustainable food solutions and list the pros and cons of each. The fifth...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Are Global CO2 Levels Changing?
According to the Mauna Loa observatory, carbon dioxide levels increased by 3 ppm in our atmosphere between 2015–2016. Individuals analyze carbon dioxide data from around the world and then share this with a home group in lesson...
NASA
Modeling the Periodic Table
Imagine a race to complete a puzzle where each person has the same 50 pieces, knows they are missing other pieces, and must figure out how everything fits together. The winner gets fame, listed in books for years to come, and a financial...
Curated OER
Exploring Biomes Lesson 5: You Need a Vacation
In cooperative groups, emerging ecologists research assigned biomes found in Arizona. Combining photos and facts, they use PowerPoint to produce a fully automated commercial that lasts 45 seconds. In addition to the lesson outline,...
Curated OER
Ocean Commotion Activity - Dioramas
Groups make a model of an Ocean Commotion exhibit based on what they saw during the fieldtrip. These dioramas can be used as an informal assessment of student knowledge acquired at Ocean Commotion.
Curated OER
ABC and 1-2-3 Farming
Students demonstrate how to alphabetize animal names. In this word study lesson, students identify animals that live on the farm and conduct a favorite farm animal survey. Students order animal pictures in alphabetical order.
Polar Trec
Touring the Poles
Would you want to vacation in the Arctic or Antarctic regions? Scholars research both regions and produce a travel brochure trying to convince tourists to visit. The project focuses on the geography, climate, flora, fauna, and indigenous...
Curated OER
Recycling and Composting
Students set up composting sites that allow food scraps and paper to be recycled by nature. They are introduced to one aspect of recycling; composting. Students see how God recycles as the worms change garbage into something that brings...
Curated OER
Weather or Not!
Seventh graders discuss weather. In this meteorology lesson, 7th graders view a movie on weather and take a quiz. They work in groups to make weather tools for a class weather station.
Chicago Botanic Garden
Personal Choices and the Planet
The last activity in the series of four has individuals determine steps they can take to reduce their carbon footprints and then analyze their schools' recycling programs. Through a sustainability audit, they identify how and where their...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Personal Choices and the Planet
How big is your footprint? Activity three culminates the series by having groups complete carbon footprint audits with people in their schools and/or around the districts. Groups then gather their data, create a presentation including...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Are You Bigfoot?
Scholars independently explore several websites to calculate their ecological footprint. Using their new found knowledge, they answer six short-answer questions and take part in a grand conversation with their peers about how...
Polar Trec
What Is My Footprint?
How do one's habits and lifestyle choices affect the environment? Through a short online survey, learners will calculate their own carbon footprints then determine how to reduce their impact on the environment through simple steps, such...
NASA
Down to Earth
There are only 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary and those who don't. The lesson includes four activities in which students learn binary, convert binary to images, understand CCD arrays, and interpret...
Science Matters
Earthquake Building/Shaking Contest
Japan is one of only a handful of countries that constructs buildings that are almost earthquake proof. The 13th lesson in the 20-part series challenges scholars to build structures to test against earthquakes. With limited materials and...
Curated OER
Hawk in Flight
Students use information gathered by satellites to explore the migration of the Swainson's hawk from the western border of Minnesota to the southern portion of South America.
Curated OER
Vaccines
Students explore and explain the role of vaccines in infectious disease, They emphasize immunological principles and viral/bacterial infection processes. Students explore the three main vaccine types: DNA vaccines ("gene gun"),...
Science 4 Inquiry
Battle of the Waves
Which travels faster, light or sound? Scholars work in groups to simulate the ability for waves to travel through solids, liquids, gases, and through a vacuum. Then, they learn about the properties of a mystery wave and must determine...
Curated OER
Storm Clouds-- Fly over a Late Winter Storm onboard a NASA Earth Observing Satellite
Students study cloud data and weather maps to explore cloud activity. In this cloud data activity students locate latitude and longitude coordinates and determine cloud cover percentages.
Curated OER
A Comparison Study of Water Vapor Data to Precipitation over North America
Learners use NASA satellite data to compare water vapor over the United States. In this data analysis activity students use an Excel spreadsheet to map their data.
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Charting the Progress of New Horizons
In 2006, New Horizons began its mission to fly to Pluto. As it continues its journey, scholars track its progress with the help of an informative website, all the while reinforcing measurement concepts with the construction of a scaled...
Science 4 Inquiry
Introducing the Types of Energy
Young scientists explore many different types of energy including light, heat, nuclear, sound, potential, and more. They match the types of energy and identify when energy transfers from one type to another.