Students explore how landscapes undergo constant changes with urban development. They plan and build their own "city" by including features that have minimal resource demands to sustain the city itself.

Students explore water. In this water cycle lesson plan, students conduct a scientific investigation that requires build a terrarium models of the earth. Students record their observations of the changes regarding water in the...

Sixth graders investigate the difference between rocks and minerals. They name the three kinds of rocks (sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic) and know the differences between them.

Students study the reproductive strategies of reef building corals.  In this coral reef lesson students describe the behaviors of reef building corals and their nutritional strategies. 

Sixth graders explain that earthquakes are sudden motions along breaks in the crust called faults. They list the major geologic events including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and mountain building, which are the result of crustal plate...

Students build sundials and observe changes in shadows over the course of one or more days. They identify patterns in the shadows and discuss how shadows may be used to tell time.

Students discover how engineers use solar energy to heat buildings. They investigate the thermal properties of different materials. They evaluate the usefulness of each material.

Students construct a model of the water cycle in action using two-liter pop bottles to build a terrarium. Locate examples of evaporation and condensation in the water cycle (e.g., water evaporates when heated and clouds or dew forms when...

Eighth graders research the connection between the convection currents within the mantle of the earth and the moving of Earth's plates. A connection to lessons at previous grade levels on the rock cycle and important background...

Students will design and build a structure to support a rock. Students will use their knowledge of movement of objects to determine the proper base to be built to support their rock. Students will explore their natural area for...

Students recreate the greenhouse effect. In this environmental science lesson, students gather materials and follow procedures to create the greenhouse effect on a small scale.

Students explore weight by building a spring scale and observing how it responds to objects with different masses. Each team of students can make their own spring scale by following steps which are specifically outlined in the plan. As...

Students explore what the soil temperature would be on the north and south sides of a building. In this temperature lesson, students hypothesize what the results will be using a thermometer and then after a week see what the...

Students explore how to build an efficient windmill design by taking into account how the lift and drag caused by the movement of wind can be used to make the blades of the turbine move. Through their readings, hypothesis and by trail...

Students create a model of a glacier and observe how it moves. In this landforms lesson, students learn what a glacier is, build a model glacier and observe how it moves in a manner that more closely resembles a liquid than a solid.

High schoolers design and build one of three engineering problems dealing with living and working in space.

Students build a model aquifer to study groundwater zones and water table formation. Students use the models to measure the movement of polluted groundwater.

Students build a collage of an ecosystem. The goal is for them to understand interactions in a community, plant and animal adaptations, and how all life depends on plants. This activity is based on Wump World and students describe what...

In this airplane worksheet, students build airplanes out of paper and test their accuracy while flying them. Students build 6 planes and fill out test logs to go with them.

Learners design a functional model of a coral reef ecosystem. For this coral reef lesson, students identify the energy sources and material cycles of a coral reef. They write an essay about their niche in their own ecosystem.

Learners explore the potential challenges of living in space.  In this investigative lesson students search the Internet to locate 16 nations that are working together to build the Independent Space Station, then they divide into...

Students discuss differences between man made and natural features on the Earth's surface. In this natural and man made features lesson, learners brainstorm a list of features and categorize them on the board. Students study a landscape...

Students explore wind power as a renewable resource.  In this wind power lesson students build models of wind turbines and experiment with different changes to see if it increases efficiency. 

Learners build a sundial to measure the local noon time. In this third grade science instructional activity, students build a sundial out of common materials and align to measure the local noon. This instructional activity is a hands-on...