Do school vouchers for private schools improve public school education, or do they lead to worse academic performance? Scholars read the top four pros and cons to decide if school vouchers are a good idea. They also participate in an...

Hibernation isn't just about staying fed, it's about staying warm. Young environmentalists explore the importance of staying warm in the wilderness with a short lesson about surviving in the wild. Using gelatin to represent warm-blooded...

Educate scholars on pollution—air, water, and land—with a series of lessons that begin with a thorough explanation of each type. Learners then take part in three activities to reinforce the importance of reducing pollution. They...

What types of government programs are designed to improve economic inequity in the United States? Introduce your learners to government programs, such as low-income housing, Social Security, and Medicaid, how they work to improve...

Equip young campers with the tips and strategies for a safe trip to the outdoors with a series of lessons. They learn how to start fires with and without firewood, keep warm in snowy weather, and purify water to make it safe for drinking.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher helps bring difficult, but important, topics such as suicide and bullying into the classroom. An educator's guide for the novel provides activities and discussion questions to help teens explore the...

Serena Williams, Mia Hamm, and Danica Patrick are living proof that women enjoy sports just as much as men. Sports enthusiasts read about the importance of gender equality on the playing field. They discover barriers to participation and...

Building an accelerometer app for your Android device. Groups develop an app that uses the accelerometer on an Android device. The purpose of the activity is to reinforce the programming design. The post activity assessment challenges...

Help learners develop the ability to offer appropriate, meaningful compliments to others—an essential social skill. Here you'll find a quick photo cartoon illustrating a right and wrong way to give a compliment, as well as a brief...

Should police officers wear body cameras? Scholars consider the question as they use the resource to conduct independent research about the debate topic. They read a brief background and peruse the main pros and cons about the issue....

Sometimes science lab can be ... delicious! Middle school science scholars extract DNA from strawberries and other fruits in an engaging lab activity. The teacher's guide includes pacing, materials list, and worksheets with answer keys.

Tropical fish make great art projects! Use paper plates to design, color, and assemble round and oval-shaped fish based on photographs of actual fish found along the Moorea Coral Reef. Kids learn about different fins- including the...

Can you build a better mousetrap? Broken into two sessions, this plan introduces learners to the design process. The first session has pupils look at the world through a design perspective by redesigning everyday objects. In the second...

New Horizons set forth on a mission to Pluto in 2006. Ten years later, the spacecraft is still on its way. Here, enthusiastic scholars predict what they will be like—likes, dislikes, hobbies, etc.—when New Horizons arrives at its...

The teenagers in your class are probably involved in romantic relationships, but are they keeping themselves safe? Guide learners through the warning signs for dating violence with a series of lessons and discussions. 

From actor to volume, the 90 terms on a theatre vocabulary list are must knows for any student of the dramatic arts.

I need something to test. The three sessions in this lesson have individuals build and test a prototype of their design. The first two sessions are devoted to prepping for the prototype by drawing up specifications and materials. The...

Clara becomes Marie, The Mouse King becomes a rat, and the Shadyside section of Pittsburgh becomes the setting for a modern interpretation of Tchaikovsky's famous ballet. Intended as a resource guide for a 2012 performance, the...

How is the wind up there? The class builds a topography model using materials available in the classroom, then place wind flags in different locations on the landscape. Using a fan as a wind source, pupils collect data about how wind...

How is risk determined? Through the use of a reading passage, individuals or groups learn about bird interactions with man made structures along with wind turbines. Pupils use information from the second reading passage to conduct an...

Is wildlife affected the same way by different electricity generation methods? Teams work together to research four electricity generation sources and their impacts on wildlife. The teams create a summary report and share their...

It is just batty! A resource outlines a case study scenario of reducing the risk to bats. Teams learn about the bat populations in the area of the wind farm, then research and propose a solution. 

What does it cost to keep the lights on? Through a hands-on activity, class members use a watt meter and determine the amount of energy different types of light bulbs use. The class then determines the financial and environmental...

Let's go fly a kite. By flying a kite, class members observe the difference in air flow. The class notices the characteristics of banners tied to the kite string to determine where wind turbulence stops. Adding an anemometer to...