Curated OER
Water and Ice
Students explore the physical properties of water. For this water lesson, students explore water as it changes states. They observe, measure and use communication skills to describe change.
Curated OER
Shasta Dam: How High is Too High?
Research water use in California, environmental protection laws, and the proposition to raise Shasta Dam by 200 feet. Researchers use their findings to build an argument which will be presented at a mock decision panel. Groups then...
Curated OER
You Are What You Drink!
Students explore water treatment systems. In this water conservation ecology lesson, students identify and explain several processes used for water treatment and define related vocabulary after listening to content information given...
Curated OER
Reading the River
In collaborative groups, young ecologists measure the temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen for three different freshwater samples. They examine each sample with a microscope and record observations on the microorganisms in the pond...
Curated OER
Where in the world is the Hydra Electron?
Walk your class through the journey water takes once it leaves your kitchen sink, all the way through the water cycle. Demonstrations support your lecture. This plan is thoroughly written, but ideally you would follow it up with water...
Curated OER
Getting the Lead Out
The article for this lesson no longer accessible through the links in the lesson plan, but can be found in the National Center for Biotechnology Information website. After reading it, environmental science students answer questions and...
Curated OER
Let the River Run
Students explore the environment by reading a story in class. In this water formation instructional activity, students define environmental terms such as rivers, streams, gulf, oceans and lakes. Students read the story A River Ran Wild...
Curated OER
Watershed Protection
Students explore environmental care by participating in an Earth science activity. In this clean water instructional activity, students discuss what a watershed is, how they become polluted, and how it affects the overall quality of...
Curated OER
Green Classroom Audit
Students audit their classroom for environmentally friendly practices. In this "green" lesson, students take an inventory of the classroom and identify ways to improve practices. Students complete a worksheet, brainstorm new ideas for...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Working with Watermills
In collaborative groups, emerging engineers or environmental scientists plan and construct a water wheel or watermill that rotates for a total of three minutes. Everything you need to carry out this lesson is included: objectives,...
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Water's Journey Expedition
Step into a scientist's shoes to go online and discover the Florida Springs Expedition, and participate in two activities focusing on how humans impact the environment. The first activity asks scholars to summarize the six...
Curated OER
Water Quality and Watersheds: A GIS Investigation
Requiring more than one class period, this resource takes earth science learners on a journey through a watershed. Using ArcGIS Explorer, an online geographic information system, they view maps of watersheds and surrounding landscapes....
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Building a Parabolic-Trough Collector
Amateurs of alternative energy build a mini parabolic-trough solar energy collector and use it to heat water. Temperature is recorded over a three-minute period and the data is graphed and analyzed. Note that in order to paint aquarium...
Curated OER
Fracking: Positive or Negative Impact?
Your teenagers may have heard of fracking, but do they really know what it is? And could they debate the benefits and risks? Educate your environmental science class with a lesson about hydraulic fracturing, non-renewable energy...
SF Environment
Waste-Less Lunch
Is it possible to have a waste-less lunch? Can your class become leaders in conservation? Discuss the importance of reducing waste during lunch time with a fun lesson that can be extended to everyday practices. First the class examines...
Curated OER
Water - The Transporter
Students discuss the role of water in transporting sediments and dissolved particles. In this interdisciplinary lesson, students read about how water transports sediments and changes the landscape. They complete a variety of...
Curated OER
Leaf Stomata as Bioindicators of Environmental Change
Learners perform an experiment to determine the stomaltal index on the upper and lower epidermis of two species of leaves. Stomatal densities change in response to changing atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide and to annual rainfall.
Curated OER
Is Environmental Health a Basic Human Right?
High schoolers examine basic human rights as defined by the United Nations. They develop a list of rights by class consensus, read an article, answer discussion questions, and complete a worksheet.
Kenan Fellows
Determining the Effects of a Golf Course on Stream Health
Do golf courses affect the water organisms in nearby streams and ponds? Small groups collect samples of water upstream and downstream from a golf course and analyze the macroinvertebrates found and the stream index values of...
Curated OER
The Influence of Human Activity on the Environment
The surge in human population in the last 2,000 years, due in large part to better health care, has brought a surge in the demand for resources and in pollution. The graphics, photographs, and real-life examples in a thought-provoking...
Curated OER
Watershed Tourist
Learners recognize and categorize different bodies of water. In this watershed and water environments lesson, students "Follow the Water from Brook to Ocean." Learners define the different bodies of water and sort from smallest to...
Curated OER
Learning About Watersheds
In this learning about watersheds worksheet, students answer 15 questions using links to web resources about water use in their community. This page includes numerous links to helpful websites.
College Board
2004 AP® Environmental Science Free-Response Questions
Radioactive isotopes have a wealth of uses, but their waste may cause some concern. One of four free-response questions challenges learners to devise a waste removal strategy for medical radioactive substances. Other questions address...
Cornell University
Fibers, Dyes, and the Environment
Nanofibers can be made through electrospinning or force spinning in order to reduce the negative impact on the environment. Pupils study the role of fibers and dye on the environment through a series of five hands-on activities. Then,...