After cutting down a forest to make a farm, how long would it take the environment to turn an abandoned farm back into a forest? Scholars study this exact scenario while they interpret many charts and graphs of the changing ecosystems as...

It is positive that how one performs on the first test relates to their performance on the second test. The three-question assessment has class members read and analyze a scatter plot of test scores. They must determine whether...

Scholars become architects in an engaging unit on building structures. The Reading Adventure Pack features Roberto: The Insect Architect by Nina Laden and Construction Zone with photographs by Richard Sobol and text by Cheryl Willis...

R-e-s-p-e-c-t, find out what it means to your class! After a grand conversation about what is, and how one can show respect, scholars take part in a plethora of activity choices such as role playing, a game of Simon Says, wood working,...

Lead your class through the amazing world of isotopes as they investigate the various properties they contain and further understand their respective location on the periodic table. They explore half-lives and radioactivity as each...

How can December 21 be the shortest day of the year when all days are 24 hours long? Pupils see how to build a model showing the differences between winter and summer solstices and equinoxes. Using this model, classes can then discuss...

Most of us have heard of Rosa Parks, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and Martin Luther King, Jr. But what about Claudette Colvin, Virginia Durr, Freedom Summer, or the Birmingham Children's Crusade? A five-lesson unit prompts class...

Blow classes away with a hands-on lesson investigating wind speed. Learners use common materials to design and construct anemometers. They then test their anemometers and collect data on the wind speed created by a fan.

Pair dancing, music, and art into one elementary lesson. Using the work of Henri Matisse and Rudy Autio as inspiration, kids spend a few days listening to music that fits the moods of various pieces of art, then work on their own...

Teach young environmentalists to protect their planet's resources with a set of interactive experiments. Kindergartners and other youngsters learn about watersheds and the water cycle, while older elementary learners focus on fertilizer...

As part of a series of critical thinking exercises, kids consider issues of social justice, especially the factors that must be considered when trying to balance conflicting rights and freedoms.

Building on prior knowledge of the pervious lesson in the series, pupils explain the previous lesson to each other. Then they write a simple guide for a young child to read on the same topic. 

There are many ways to correlate coffee to life, but in this case a worksheet looks at the price of two different sizes of coffee. It requires interpreting a graph with two unknown variables, in this case the price, and solving for...

Meant to be a simulation of a deep-sea exploration, this requires that another lesson be completed first. In that lesson, titled "Animals of the Lost City," marine biology buffs construct murals of benthic communities. In this lesson,...

Role play community members who are both for and against the construction of a dam. Research the pros and cons and then hold a classroom debate. This activity ideally follows a series of stream studies, links to which are included. Use...

Inspired by the humanitarian work of President Jimmy Carter after he left office, high schoolers explore the history of civic action in the United States and generate ideas about problems at the local, national, and international levels....

After drawing and labelling a microscope, forensic science explorers use one to solve a simulated murder mystery. They examine each piece of evidence and draw what they observe at each magnification. Working in groups of four, your...

Tiny pictures of buildings found around town can be matched with their names in this exercise for beginning English Learners. Indefinite articles are included with vocabulary; nice way to reinforce the "a/an" rule. Pictures are quite...

Students investigate the concept of a model and how it is used to represent something that is real. They recognize how the model can be applied to other types of concepts like the solar system. Students create a scale drawing of a house...

Second graders read the book Gingerbread Baby, identify local features and cardinal directions on a map, and then construct their own map. In this mapping lesson plan, 2nd graders construct their own map in groups based on where the baby...

Students explore characteristics of effective group work. In this multi-cultural social studies lesson plan, students work in teams to design and construct a headdress similar to what would be worn during the Bahamian festival of...

Pupils participate in a holiday giving activity to learn about community involvement. In this community outreach lesson plan, students discuss giving and receiving as well as the gift of time. Pupils prepare songs and holiday cards to...

Third graders examine all the features of communities, including an examination of their histories. They draw a mural that includes their community's unique features. Students also construct a replica of the main street of their town.

Students design a community with minimal environmental impact. They rate each other's community's presentation using the "Planning and Zoning Commission Rating Scale".