Curated OER
The Earth, Sun Mood and Stars Unit (Planets too!)
Fifth graders prepare five activities to do then show their energy saving skills. In this investigative lesson students create five projects then participate in an energy saving demonstration.
Curated OER
Robot Earth
Students construct a simple robotic energy transformer. In this space science lesson, students explain how energy is transformed from one form to another. They identify the different uses of robotic devices.
Curated OER
Sunspot Activity
In this space science worksheet, students find the data that is needed to help them acquire the knowledge concerning sunspots through observation and data collection.
Curated OER
What Makes Day and Night? The Earth's Rotation
Students discover that the Earth rotates on its axis in a cyclical fashion. They examine how this rotation results in day and night.
Curated OER
Solar System: The Four Inner Planets and Earth's Moon and Astronauts
Second graders read THe Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System. For this language arts and science lesson, 2nd graders explore the four inner planets. Students view the inner planets using Google Earth.
Curated OER
Day and Night
Third graders view a classroom simulation that demonstrates how the Earth's rotation creates day and night.
Curated OER
Earth, Moon, Mars Balloons
Students demonstrate size and orbits of Earth, Moon, and Mars. In this space science lesson plan, students will use balloons to show how the size and distance between the planets and satellite compare.
Curated OER
Crashed on the Moon
Students compare and contrast the environments of the moon and the earth. They discover how the differences might change one's daily activities.
Curated OER
Life on the Moon
Students study the physical properties of the Moon. In this life on the moon lesson students describe the ways life on the Moon would be different than on Earth.
Curated OER
Volcanoes in Space
Pupils research volcanoes on the Internet to compare/contrast the volcanoes on Earth to the ones found on Io, a moon of Jupiter. Students list the similarities and differences in science journals, and illustrate pictures of the volcanoes.
Curated OER
Sundials and Shadows - What Can They Teach Us About Seasons?
Students collect and analyze data relating to seasonal changes. They view a video, research web sites and build a sundial to collect their data.
Curated OER
Analyzing the Relationship between Snowpack and River Flow
Students use the Internet to research current and past snowpack levels and river gauging station readings. They determine the relationship between snowpack and river flow. They predict future river flow.
Association of American Geographers
Project GeoSTART
Investigate the fascinating, yet terrifying phenomenon of hurricanes from the safety of your classroom using this earth science unit. Focusing on developing young scientists' spacial thinking skills, these lessons engage...
NASA
Christa's Lost Lesson: Newton’s Laws
How do the laws of motion work in space? Learners explore Newton's laws of motion in different experiments as part of the Christa's Lost Lessons series. They rotate around the room in three stations to experience each law in action using...
Teach Engineering
Antimatter Matters
Use science fiction movies to teach pupils about antimatter and alternate universes. Individuals learn about the portrayal of antimatter and alternate universes in movies such as Star Trek and Angels & Demons. They consider three...
Monroe City Schools
Clouds! Clouds! Clouds!
Here is a beautiful lesson on clouds designed for your 1st graders. Learners study three different types of clouds. They construct drawings of cumulus, cirrus, and stratus clouds. The Cloud Book, by Tommie dePaola is used to...
Teach Engineering
Air Under Pressure
Introduce your class to air masses and how they affect the weather with a activity that focuses on the differences between high and low air pressure systems. The class explores actual weather data using archived weather data.
American Museum of Natural History
What is the Greenhouse Effect?
Without the greenhouse effect, Earth would not be inhabitable. A thorough online resource describes the greenhouse effect and how it occurs. The source highlights the different types of gases that work together to absorb the sun's...
American Museum of Natural History
Field Trip Mars
Fly around the Martian surface. Pupils view a presentation on the planet Mars featuring a flyover that shows different views of the surface where rovers have landed and explored on different missions. As individuals watch the images, the...
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Gravity Launch
Getting a ship into orbit isn't rocket science. Oh, wait...that's exactly what it is! Learn the basics of the concepts of thrust, launch angle, and gravitational pull in this fun and progressively challenging game.
NOAA
Exploring Potential Human Impacts
Arctic sea ice reflects 80 percent of sunlight, striking it back into space; with sea ice melting, the world's oceans become warmer, which furthers global warming. These activities explore how humans are impacting ecosystems around the...
Channel Islands Film
Restoration Channel Islands Debate
Introduce learners to the debate format with an activity that uses the National Park Service's controversial Channel Islands restoration program as a topic. Class members learn how to generate provocative debate questions, how to prepare...
Curated OER
Space Exploration Missions
Eighth graders explore and discuss the various space exploration missions. For this space mission lesson students work in pairs and create a PowerPoint presentation on the contributions of space exploration missions.
Curated OER
Watch This Space!
In this space instructional activity, students, with a partner, answer five questions about the universe and read and discuss ten questions regarding astronomy.