Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's Down There?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Investigate the coral reefs around Mokolai Island, Hawaii by researching and writing about improving the reef ecosystem.  Students map threats to the ecosystem and use the list of key words to assist in their descriptions
Lesson Plan
California Academy of Science

Buoyancy Bulls-Eye

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Why does a seastar sink, but a jellyfish float? Through a fun investigation, learners examine the concept of buoyancy using simple household items. The challenge: create neutral buoyancy for an action figure in water. With ample...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Whale Challenge

For Students 4th - 5th
In this review or quiz about whales worksheet, students read phrases describing something about whales and identify the answer. Students choose 10 multiple choice answers.
Lesson Plan
Poetry Class

Tackling Climate Change

For Teachers 4th - 9th
Get your kids thinking about climate change with a series of activities that include creating a ditty box poem for the planet, a poem that identifies concepts or objects they would want to preserve.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson on GPS

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students investigate global positioning systems. In this technology and mapping instructional activity, students view a PowerPoint presentation in which they identify the features of a GPS, state its uses, and follow steps to find a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Easy Whales Crossword Puzzle

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
For this vocabulary worksheet, students examine facts about whales by solving a 6 clue crossword puzzle. Students also color the picture.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Food for Thought

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students explore the food chains in a variety of ecosystems and its relationship to the survival of threatened or endangered marine animals or fish in the ocean. The interdependence of the species is investigated in this lesson.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Follow the Leader

For Teachers K - 2nd
What are the qualities of a good leader? Of a good follower? A reading of Leo Lionni’s Swimmy launches a discussion of leadership and cooperation. Class members brainstorm how they can be leaders at home and how they can encourage others...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ocean Zones

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students create a mural showing ocean zones and the diversity of ocean life. They use reference books to create a list of plants and animals that would live in each zone.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

For Creative Minds: What Makes an Animal a Mammal?

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students read about categories of mammals and their features. Students then construct a marine animal, using given print outs in the lesson. Students then create adaptations for their mammal, using a web site reference for guidance.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fossil Formation

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students discuss fossils. In this science lesson, students simulate fossils within Earth's layers by using gummy fish and bread.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Seashore Sweep

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students gather information about sea animals. In this ocean lesson, students read a story about the ocean and seashore. They discuss the needs of seashore animals and create a Mystery Ocean Animal riddle book. Students also discuss...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Coral Bleaching

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the relationship between corals and zooxanthellae, identify stresses to corals, and explain coral bleaching.  In this sea life lesson students predict the effects of increased temperatures on coral reefs. 
Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

What's This? Breathing

For Students 6th - 12th
Crazy fact: Some animals can survive months without oxygen. An online resource describes some unique ways animals collect oxygen and even live without it for an extended time. Learners read about these special animals and use pop-up...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Light Stick Chemistry

For Teachers 5th - 8th
In groups of three with the lights off and the shades drawn, investigators place inactivated light sticks, in three beakers: one filled with ice water, another with lukewarm water, and the other with room temperature water. They wait...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Questions - Appearances are Deceiving

For Students 9th - 12th
Five evolution-related questions are answered by beginning biologists on a separate sheet of paper. First, they are asked to list adaptations that allow organisms to survive under various conditions. The second question refers to...
Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

What's This? Sensing

For Students 6th - 12th
There is a scallop that relies on sight so much that it actually has more than 100 eyes! There are many species that rely heavily on one sense or another. An online interactive resource has youth read about several of these animals. The...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Faking It

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle school earth scientists describe the behavior of the Coriolis force. They compare and contrast conditions under which the Coriolis force has a significant impact with conditions under which it has very little. They model the...
Lesson Plan
Florida International University

Design Your Own

For Students 9th - 12th
Apply scientific principles to designing an experiment to study organisms living on the coral reef in our oceans. Through reading, individuals learn about the coral reef ecosystem and important factors that affect its function....
Worksheet
Curated OER

Irregular Verbs

For Students 3rd - 5th
Divided into two 10-question exercises, this worksheet provides practice with irregular verbs in the simple past tense. Ten present-tense, monosyllabic verbs are given in a word bank; learners write the past tense form in a blank in each...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Online Information: Fact or Fiction

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Discuss ways to determine if the information middle and high schoolers gather online is accurate. Using the Internet, they cite two sources that show conflicting points of view on a subtopic of conservation. They summarize and analyze...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wildlife

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
The centerpiece of this lesson plan is a predator-prey simulation in which colored paperclips represent different species of animals camouflaged against a colored background. Relevant follow-up questions are provided. The activity is...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Whale Crossword

For Students 3rd - 5th
For this whales crossword puzzle worksheet, students use the 10 clues and the terms in the word bank to help them correctly complete the word puzzle.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students explore water properties by conducting a class experiment. In this buoyancy lesson, students make predictions as to whether or not specific objects will sink or float in water. Students conduct the experiment and record their...