An illuminating activity demonstrates how interference of light waves creates a pattern. Using Plexiglas™ and construction paper, participants see rainbows appear as they twist or press against the plastic plates. After the activity, you...

Paper folding, flu spreading in a school, bacteria growth, and continuously compounded interest all provide excellent models to study exponential functions. This is a comprehensive resource that looks at many different aspects of...

Arithmetic and geometric sequences are linear and geometric patterns. Help pupils understand the relationship and see the connection with an activity that asks them to write the rules and classify the patterns correctly. A sorting...

Prompt your class to interact with Jack London's Call of the Wild. By analyzing the events in the novel, middle schoolers discover how human experiences create who a person becomes. They critique and analyze the reading, focusing on...

The U.S. produced enough wind energy in 2015 to power all of the homes in Alaska, California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and...

Students explore and analyze weather conditions, climates, compositions and characteristics of the atmosphere and weather patterns. They explain in detail the water cycle and its relationship to weather patterns. A lab experiment is...

Using a variety of online resources, learners study life and society in California during the gold rush. They use a map to identify area where gold was located, explore pre-selected websites, describe mining practices, and create an...

Need a unit to teach fractions to fourth graders? Look no further than this well-developed and thorough set of lessons that takes teachers through all steps of planning, implementing, and assessing their lessons. Divided into eight...

Here is a clever, cross-curricular lesson that combines art and geometry. Learners design a painting that uses geometrical shapes and is symmetrical. Sponge-shaped geometrical figures are used to design half a page and fold them to...

Ever seen a crockapeep or a giraffule? How about a catmel? Elementary school artists are encouraged to let their imaginations roam and create images of imaginary creatures by combining parts of two or more animals,

The sky is the limit when printing custom 3-D shape templates from this site. Not only can you pick your shape and pattern, there is an option to upload an image for the different sides of the geometric shape. Let your learners have fun...

Students sort out important information and create a visual framework for reviewing in the future. They organize a large quantity of information thus helping with learning and remembering details, cause and effect, comparison and...

Here is a nicely designed lesson on ancestry and family history. In it, learners read an article entitled, "Where Were Your Ancestors in 1871?" Then, they make up a series of questions to profile their family and their community 100...

Trace simple genetic patterns of inheritance through a small population. Your students create a family pedigree that traces a genetic condition through several generations.

Students create a paper model to illustrate sea-floor spreading.

Start with a NOVA video about car crashes, crash test dummy footage, or other video about seat belt use. Or have groups review attached data about seat belt usage (by state) and share their conclusions. Learners then devise a method to...

Students investigate the link between technology and abuse among teens. They research dating abuse when cell phones or the Internet are involved. Working as a team of reporters, photographers, graphic artists, and page designers, they...

You set the rate! Step into the shoes of a taxi driver in New York City, and also pretend to be a person who uses taxis to get around town. The class will conduct collaborative research to learn about the history of taxis. Then, they...

A well-done and informative presentation, this resource could be used to pique interest in Lousiana's history. This presentation about Poverty Point, a mound created by Native Americans, is a fascinating exploration of this topic. What...

Search a variety of sources to create a multimedia or book project about Japan. Learners use the independent investigation method to plan and conduct research about Japan. They use the information they discover to create a computer book...

Almost every ancient culture observed the stars and saw pictures in the patterns. Studying stars allowed them to guide travelers, determine when to plant crops, when to harvest food, and the stories surrounding the images include some of...

Following extensive modeling about how to apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to learn new words, partner teams create brief word presentations to teach new vocabulary to the class. Preselect words from upcoming social studies,...

Students experiment with water levels and plastic topographic volcano models to determine the contour lines that would be used to create a topograpohic map of a volcano. They use the traced lines to actually develop the map.

Explore the properties of solutions with a lab activity. Chemistry fans determine the boiling point of water, add salt to create a solution, and then repeat the process four more times. They design their own data table and then graph the...