Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Categorizing Celestial Objects

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students work together to develop a classification system for planets. They take a class vote and read an article about an astronomer's classification system. They write an essay on how scientists make decisions for the general public.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Global Warming: Life in a Greenhouse

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers examine the evidence that scientists have used to support the existence of global warming and the greenhouse effect. How the concepts have been developed and evaluated form the focus of this lesson.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classifying Plants and Insects

For Teachers K - 12th
Art and science come together in a activity based on Flower Still Life by Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder. Learners classify plants and insects in the painting by color, leaf shape, size, reproduction, and season of...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Orbits Worksheet #2

For Students 9th - 12th
Brief, but beneficial, this resource draws space scientists into the orbit of a moon around its planet. Assignees answer five multiple choice style questions using a diagram of the planet, the moon's orbit, its focal points, and the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cooling With Sunshades

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners conduct research in order to find the effects of properties exposed to heat and how they change temperature. They consider the effect of sunlight upon objects that are placed outside with the help of an experiment. They also...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Outdoor Observation

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders explore Earth science by participating in a nature observation activity. In this four seasons lesson, 2nd graders identify the four seasons on Earth and the weather patterns they are known for. Students read several books...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's Your Favorite Season?

For Teachers K
Students explore earth science by creating illustrations in class. In this four seasons lesson, students identify the four different types of weather that take place during the year and read the books Harvest Year and Snow Comes to the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Getting to Know Soil

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students make predictions and analyze soil. In this soil properties lesson, students make predictions about soil properties for various soil samples. Students examine the types of soils and record their observations. Students analyze...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Third from the Sun

For Teachers 4th - 9th
Students examine images from space.  In this third from the Sun lesson plan, students examine images from, Landsat, the satellite launched by NASA in 1972.   
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Great Hubble

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners explain how Hubble telescope captures images from space. In this space science lesson, students use the internet to view space photos. They debate on an issue raised by the teacher.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Space Shuttle

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students share what they comprehend about the space shuttle program. They are given information about the first space shuttle mission. Students work in groups to investigate the different shuttle missions from April 1981 through January...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

The Intertropical Convergence Zone

For Teachers 3rd - 11th Standards
Young scientists know it is hotter along the equator, but why is it also rainier? Through the process of completing two experiments and a worksheet, scholars discover the answer is the intertropical convergence zone. First, they...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Oceans as a Heat Reservoir

For Teachers 7th - 11th Standards
Oceans absorb half of the carbon dioxide and 80 percent of the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. Scholars learn how and why the oceans store heat more effectively than land and how they help mitigate global warming. Pupils...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Comparing Graphs of Temperature and Radiation

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students study plots and use a Live Access Server to generate plots.  In this temperature lesson students examine the process of incoming and outgoing radiation. 
Lesson Plan
NASA

Mystery Planet

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
What can one learn about a planet based on a small surface sample? Learners will explore artifacts from a mystery planet and see what they can determine about the planet based on the evidence in front of them. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Mars

For Teachers 4th - 10th
Students, working in small groups construct scale models of the planets and solar system. They examine images of Mars and discuss what might have caused the features. They record facts about their planetary research in their journals and...
PPT
Curated OER

Planetary Jeopardy!

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Space Science can be so much fun, especially when you play Planetary Jeopardy! This game tests students on what they know about Roman Gods, the planets and moons in our solar system, and the Earth's rotation.
Worksheet
Yummy Math

Curiosity Landed on Mars

For Students 5th - 8th Standards
Out of this world math and science are mixed together on a worksheet that would be a great enrichment activity classrooms that are studying our solar system. The information presented is best suited toward middle school math, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Recycling and Composting

For Teachers 1st - 7th
Learners set up composting sites that allow food scraps and paper to be recycled by nature. They are introduced to one aspect of recycling; composting. Students see how God recycles as the worms change garbage into something that brings...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Aerogel

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students identify how technology aids scientists in their research. Through discussion, they explain the various ways scientists use Aerogel to aid in their collection of high-speed particles. Through experimentation, students create...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Comparison Study of Water Vapor Data to Precipitation over North America

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Learners use NASA satellite data to compare water vapor over the United States.  For this data analysis lesson students use an Excel spreadsheet to map their data. 
Activity
DiscoverE

Touch Down

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Protect the marshmallows! Groups create contraptions that will keep marshmallows in a cup, even after dropping them from a certain height. This is a fun way to model the shock-absorbing capabilities of spacecraft.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Good Vibrations Remote Sensing data Collection: Thermal Emission Spectrometer

For Teachers 4th - 8th
The Mars Global Surveyor spent two years creating a mineral map of the planet Mars using thermal emission spectrometry. To help young astronomers understand this remote sensing instrument, have them simulate how data is collected and...
Lesson Plan
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Chemical Signatures of Asteroid Impacts

For Teachers 9th - 12th
What killed the dinosaurs and how do scientists know? Your high schoolers can examine these fascinating questions with a geochemical lens using the engaging 33-minute video, the accompanying data interpretation, and some thoughtful...