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Reasons for the Seasons
Students discover how the Earth's axis of rotation affects the angle of sunlight and the length of day. They take a survey and give the survey out to family members and friends. They tally their findings and then determine the correct...
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Earthquake Depth
Students research and locate earthquake epicenters on a map using latitude and longitude. They determine if the depth of an earthquake has any relationship to the distance from a plate boundary.
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Sea to Sky
Students investigate the Earth's major landforms and how they occur, and how engineers apply this knowledge for the design of transportation systems, mining, and measuring natural hazards. They listen to a teacher-led lecture, match...
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Eyewitnesses to Change
Students explore recent changes in the Artic's climate that have been observed by Artic residents. They watch videos, take notes and create a concept map. They also look at historical weather data from a specific Artic community. The...
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Trouble in the Troposphere
Students create graphs using NASA data, compare ozone levels of several U.S. cities, analyze and evaluate the data and predict trends based on the data, and discuss and describe how human activities have modified Earth's air quality.
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Locate-a-quake
Student, use seismic readings of the same earthquake from three recording stations and locate the epicenter of an earthquake on a map.
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Weather Predictions
Pupils play the role of weather personalities by making five day forecasts based on data gathered from observations, weather instruments, and weather maps. Each day a small group makes a class forecast for the next day and reviews the...
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Musical Plates
Students receive current data on the movement of plates on the earth's crust. These plates shift and the magnitude of their shift over time can be tracked. They track this velocity vector on a global map and determine the speed of the...
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Plate Tectonics
Students identify that most of mountain ranges found on all major land masses and in the oceans are external reflections of tectonic movements within the earth. They identify that earthquakes and related phenomena are caused by the...
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And the Rains Came Down: A South American Rainforest
Learners examine the characteristics of a South American tropical rainforest. They analyze maps, develop graphs, listen to the book, The Great Kapok Tree, and create a rainforest mural.
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Volcano Research
Student demonstrates the ability to select and evaluate media. They access and organize information about volcanoes. Each student locates on a map a currently erupting volcano.
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Plotting Earthquakes
Students, after plotting earthquake locations on the map, should correctly; identify the pattern of earthquake locations and identify the ring of fire.
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The Bulbs: Camas and Daffodil
Fourth graders become aware of the importance of the camas bulb to the Nez Perce people, they learn the parts of plants, and gain understanding of the interdependence of Nature. They study about the possible causes and outcomes of global...
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Ocean Currents
Young scholars discover the geography of Earth by analyzing water currents. In this oceanography lesson, students create visual references on a map of the globe where and why major ocean currents are moving water. Young...
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Sky Pictures
Students investigate constellations. In this space science lesson plan, students view transparencies of constellations and identify the zodiac constellations. Students research the legends connected with the constellations.
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Geology and the Battle of Gettysburg
Students create geologic maps of the Gettysburg battlefield. In this geologic skills lesson, students consider the variations of Earth's surfaces and explore strategies employed by the North and South in the Battle of Gettysburg to...
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Environment: Just Around the Bend
Students decipher landforms on a map and corresponding satellite imagery. They consider the impact of pollution on agriculture and water. They draw diagrams demonstrating how pollution works its way into the food source.
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The Moving Continents from Pangaea to the Future
Eighth graders examine how the movements of the Earth contribute to fossil distribution. In this fossils lesson students make maps of the placement of the continents.
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Wet Water, Dry Land
Pupils observe and examine relationship between landforms and bodies of water, recognizing differences between them. Students then define island, peninsula, isthmus, archipelago, lake, bay, straight, system of lakes, and identify land...
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Wetlands: Pave or Save?
Young scholars discuss the characteristics of wetlands and how to make them more productive. Using a map, they locate the major wetlands in the United States and color them using a key. They read an article and in groups answer...
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WATER FROM HERE TO YONDER
Students identify local watersheds and drainage areas by using maps and other resources. They are given copies of the water cycle. Students discuss the movement of water in the environment. They observe, record and transfer information...
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Exploring Plate Tectonics
In this plate tectonics worksheet, students complete 8 fill in the blank questions on plate boundaries, 9 short answer questions on the Earth's crust and 5 fill in the blank on continental drift. There are 3 follow questions at the end.
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Solar Box Cooker
Students explore solar power. In this solar power instructional activity, students build simple solar cookers after they study convection, conduction, and radiation. Students transfer their knowledge of how the solar cooker works to...
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Modeling the Seasons
Students explore the seasons and their attributes. In this geography lesson, students create a 3-D model of the Earth that showcases the elliptical travel of the Earth that causes seasons.