Young scholars complete a worksheet that asks them to calculate the true energy cost of various appliances. They compare appliances with energy saving features, rebates and other economical incentives.

Comparison shop for health insurance? Yep. Young adults compare and contrast several health insurance plans to determine which would provide the most coverage at the best price. They discuss and work through deductibles, premiums, and...

Eager ecologists explore ecosystems through video and photographs of a Mangrove. They discuss the animals in this habitat and how they interact with each other after reading and discussing "The Sea, the Storm and the Mangrove Tangle."...

Kids are given a lot to think about, as they delve into the world of high-tech foods. They discuss GMOs, biotechnology, food enhancements and domestication. They view videos, engage in class discussions, complete worksheets, and learn...

Students list the attributes of chocolate as an unprocessed and processed substance. They conduct a taste test of various chocolate bars and give a rating for each attribute they previously listed. Students create a consumer review...

Students watch a video on how marketers plan their strategies in supermarkets. In groups, they are given a set amount of money and asked to go through a grocery store simulation with a list. After the simulation, they discuss the...

Students compare/contrast the media messages they see in two different communities in their city. They list the elements of art and the principles of design in the photographs they have taken in those two different communities. They...

Discuss nutrition and identify components of a healthy diet, view a Food Guide Pyramid, and create a Personal Food Pyramid, listing all foods eaten in the past 24 hours. Compare food lists with the standard Food Guide and determine where...

Three lab guides are given here that detail experiments to illustrate the oxidation of glucose for the production of ATP. The first will compare photosynthesis and respiratio and show theimporatnce of both to plants. The next will show...

Kids fight obesity by comparing the USDA food intake suggestions to what they personally consume throughout the day. They watch a video, read texts, and explore related vocabulary which they use as they compose an oral presentation. 

Through a series of problems, learners determine the variability of a data set by looking at the deviations from the mean. Estimating means of larger data sets presented in histograms and providing a way to calculate an...

Pupils practice budgeting skills. In this event planning lesson, students plan all aspects of an event of their choosing. Pupils establish a budget for the event and create portfolios that document their plans.

How are the reactions between American and European consumers different when it comes to genetically modified foods? Use the New York Times article "Consumers in Europe Resist Gene-Altered Foods" to inform your middle schoolers...

Young mathematicians use bags of Skittles to help them gain practice in graphing and organizing data. They work in pairs, and after they have counted and organized their Skittles, they access a computer program which allows them to print...

Facilitate healthy eating habits with this collection of activities. This worksheet, made for 4-H originally, covers nutrition, health, and fitness. Middle schoolers focus on the life skill of making healthy lifestyle choices. They...

Youngsters compare the teeth of plant-eating dinosaurs with those of meat-eating dinosaurs. The concepts of herbivore vs. carnivore are also introduced. There is an excellent worksheet embedded in the plan which shows five skulls of...

Sixth graders investigate the understanding of where coffee is grown by conducting a survey. They study the natural history of coffee and examine bird habitats in the areas where coffee is grown. They write letters to explaining the...

It is more important than ever that 21st-century learners develop the skills they need to become savvy consumers of media. Young learners locate and identify reliable sources of information with a helpful media lesson.

Statistics can be manipulated to say what you want them to say. Teach your classes to be wise consumers and sort through the bias in those reports. Young statisticians study different statistical reports and analyze them for...

How much plastic do manufacturers use to create water bottles each year? The class explores the number of water bottles used throughout the years to determine how many consumers will use in the future. Class members compare different...

The New York Times offers of two articles and two summaries for learners to consider. They read each article and then post a blog response to each of the seven related questions. The topic of the articles asks the question; Is TV...

When judging diversity of an ecosystem, both species evenness and species richness must contribute. After a discussion of diversity and a guided example using the Shannon-Weaver function, scholars use the same function on two other...

Students locate and compare the costs and options available of three comparable compact, midsize, or luxury automobiles. They utilize websites and a worksheet imbedded in this plan.