Lesson Plan
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Create an Illuminated Alphabet Word Book

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students create a class alphabet book. In this letter recognition instructional activity, students use line and color to draw an object whose name begins with a specific letter. Students use adjectives to create a sentence describing the...
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Forces and Motion

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students build parachutes for chicken eggs. In this physics lesson plan, students describe the forces acting on a falling object. They predict which of the three parachute models they made has the best chance of keeping the egg intact...
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Applied Science - Science and Math Post Lab

For Teachers 2nd - 7th
Students utilize a balance scale. In this applied science lesson, students compare the weights of two objects using an elementary balance scale. Students balance the scale with weights to find how heavy an object is.
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Ojibwa Sewn Bead Designs

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students recognize and describe the sewn beading style of the Ojibwa tribe that was influenced by seventeenth-century French floral embroidery and fabric prints imported by the French traders. They adapt and recreate an Ojibwa bead motif.
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Forces

For Teachers 8th - 10th
In this forces worksheet, students read about what affects the force on an object. Students identify push forces and pull forces in 5 diagrams. They answer 13 questions about the forces in two diagrams and they draw vector diagrams to...
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Color Poems

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Learners describe colors. For this descriptive writing lesson, students brainstorm color descriptions using all of the senses except sight. Learners write poems including similes, sensory images, and interesting word choice. Examples are...
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Why Do Certain Things Float, While Some Sink?

For Teachers 1st
First graders conduct an experiment. In this density lesson, 1st graders work in groups to test 10 different objects to see which ones sink and float. Students discuss why certain objects float and others do not.
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Polydron Fun

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students investigate nets as they relate to volume and area. In this geometry lesson, students use nets as a visual to deepen their understanding of surface area and volume of objects. They make conjectures about different objects and...
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Laws of Motion

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students explore centrifugal and centripetal force. In this motion lesson plan, students expand on their knowledge of motion to study velocity, acceleration, and friction. Students examine multiple objects to demonstrate the laws of motion.
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If These Walls Could Talk

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students compare Neoclassical objects from the Getty collection to American civic architecture of the time. They discuss the moral and political ideas of the Enlightenment and articulate how these art forms influenced democratic thought...
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Classifying Candy I

For Teachers K - 3rd
Students explore the observable properties of matter. They develop two binary classification systems using concrete objects. based on two different properties of the concrete objects.
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Static Electricity

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students are introduced to the concept of static electricity and its causes. After viewing video segments, they observe its effect on various objects. In groups, they discover how static electricity is produced and how objects with...
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It Matters

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students use descriptive vocabulary to discuss the attributes of matter. Then, they sort objects or pictures by the type of matter they are comprised of. Finally, students match objects of matter with similar attributes and create a...
Lesson Plan
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Movement and Migration: the Gold Nugget that launched the Gold Rush

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Learners learn what it was like to be a gold miner. In this California gold rush lesson, students watch a movie about the California gold rush and discuss what they learned. Learners use the Internet to examine the gold nugget that...
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Light and shadow

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students experiment with light and shadow. In this light instructional activity, students look at the relationship between shadows and light. They experiment with light source, shadow size, transparent objects and reflective objects. 
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Classification

For Teachers K - 4th
Students explore the observable properties of matter and utilize them in classification. They use a binary classification system to divide objects, then justify their scheme.
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States of Matter

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders define the term matter. They compare properties of solids, liquids, and gases. They describe how matter changes from one state to another. They classify objects as either solid, liquid, or gas.
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Melt Away

For Teachers K - 4th
Learners explore objects before and after heating using their senses.  For this matter and energy lesson, students experiment with a variety of objects and use their senses (except taste) to make predictions and record observations...
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Big Enough?

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students explore the concept of density and buoyancy. In this physics lesson, students discover the different factors that affect an object's density and buoyancy in water. Students conduct several investigations to further...
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Indirect Measurement

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students measure and apply their knowledge of proportion to solve problems. In this geometry lesson, students measure using a meter stick, small mirror and measuring tape. They compare and contrast their measurements to objects outside...
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Magnetism

For Teachers 1st
First graders investigate magnetism. In this magnetism activity, 1st graders classify objects as being magnetic or nonmagnetic. Students receive a pile of objects to test. Students test the items and give a rationale of why they think...
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Speedy Trials

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders investigate how forces affect the motion of an object. In this physics lesson, 5th graders calculate an object's speed using a mathematical formula. They discuss how force and mass affects the speed.
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Visual Arts Lesson: Pear-Shaped Bottle

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders examine how art from China arrived in Mexico during viceregal period, create blue monochromatic designs in wash by direct observation to illustrate simple objects from nature, and create vase or bottle shape that...
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Game Day

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders bring in a playgound item, i.e.: ball, jump rope, skateboard and develop a physical activity to go with the item. They describe in writing how to do the activity. They set up their stations on a "Game Day" and lead their...