Lesson Plan
Carnegie Mellon University

How Power Plants Work 2

For Teachers 7th - 12th
In this second of three lessons on power plants, future engineers find out how we generate electricity and how coal-powered plants operate. They work in small groups to make electromagnet generators to light LED bulbs. A set of...
Lesson Plan
Carnegie Mellon University

How Power Plants Work 3

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Double, double toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble! Find out what drives a turbine to generate electricity and whether or not it has an impact on the environment. A discussion and lecture is divided by a hands-on activity in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Assignment #10: Internet Scavenger Hunt

For Teachers 6th - 11th
Test your learners' Internet research skills with this scavenger hunt. Of the twenty questions provided, scholars research ten and provide the answer, the URL, the search engine, and the keywords they used. While some of the questions...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Indiana Ice Investigations

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders create a model of the formation of Indiana by glaciers. Working in groups with appropriate materials, they create a model documenting how glaciers moved through the land and formed the geological structure and land masses...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cookie Mapping

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students study the components of a bedrock geology map through a hands-on activity involving a cookie and graph paper.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fossil Inferences

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders use their knowledge about fossils to arrange fossil pictures in sequence from oldest to youngest. They explain how fossils can be used to make inferences about past life, climate, geology, and environments and discover...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fieldwork: Horizons Under Ground: Digging Through Wetland Soil

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students study the different soil types and describe the different soils in various environments.  In this soil lesson students walk to a reserve and discuss what they saw. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fossil Adventure

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students create a book about the process of a dinosaur becoming a fossil.  In this earth science lesson, students are taught about fossils and create a book that tells what happened to a dinosaur's bones after they die.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Coal Derivatives

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students use this hands-on activity to demonstrate the production of coke, one of the most widely used raw materials derived from coal. They are also stimulated to do research into the differences in coal types and coal products.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot!

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students study the different types of volcanoes and how they erupt.  In this volcano lesson students identify where volcanoes are most prevalent and options for predicting eruptions. 
Worksheet
Curated OER

Weathering Walk

For Students 7th - 9th
In this weathering worksheet, students walk around campus and observe ten examples of both mechanical and chemical weathering. They answer questions related to their observations.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Plate Tectonics Study Guide

For Students 7th - 10th
In this plate tectonics worksheet, learners answer questions about plate tectonics including topics such as the lithosphere, the asthenosphere, rising and sinking convection currents, continental drift and the types of boundaries.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Biomes: Coastlines and Seas

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students study the different types of coastlines and their territories. In this marine coasts lesson students identify life forms that are in the coastal regions. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building a Better Sentence

For Teachers 1st
Sentence construction is both a science and an art. This bare bones lesson ties an analysis of earth's geology to sentence formation. Although referenced as a major part of the activity, there are no links to the technology or resources...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ride the Wild Leaf Cycle

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders explore plant life by completing an Internet activity. In this botany lesson plan, 4th graders identify the types of plants that grow locally and the different soils they utilize to survive. Students read assigned text...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Watershed Investigations

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Young scholars find maps of the region to show rock formations and soil types and use GIS to compare radon levels. They describe three types of radioactive decay, interpret graphs, and follow steps to develop a nuclear bomb or energy.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Special Relationship: Connecticut and Its Settlers

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Pupils study both geological and geographical features of Connecticut and the New Haven area. They focus on map works and rock formation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Making a Good Impression"

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Learners are shown how fossils are formed and to learn how extinct organisms lived based on their remains and surroundings. They are shown TAKS review problems on the overhead related to evolution and fossil evidence. Students discuss...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Language Arts: Mississippi River Brochure

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students create brochures about recreational activities along the Mississippi River. Focusing on points of interest, they research attractions and create maps of the surrounding area. Once students write descriptions of their...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Plate Tectonics Vocabulary

For Students 7th - 9th
In this plate tectonics worksheet, students match 9 terms with their definitions. Topics include the types of boundaries, the layers of the Earth's crust, plate tectonics and continental drift.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Volcanic Activity in the U.S.

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Young scholars locate and map ten volcanoes in United States, create chart comparing volcanoes by last eruption, type of volcano, location, and interesting fact, and create Powerpoint slide show describing basic information about...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's in Wetland Soil?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine the organic and inorganic components of soil. In this environmental science instructional activity, students identify the factors that influence soil formation. They collect soil samples, conduct tests, and analyze the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Geologic Timelines

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students create a timeline of geologic events of the Phanerozoic Eon. In this geologic timeline instructional activity, students view a handout that shows a timeline of the Earth's history. They create their own timeline of the...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Landforms

For Students 6th - 8th
In this landform review worksheet, students use 17 provided terms to complete a paragraph about different landforms. After filling in the blanks, they name 4 kinds of mountains and provide examples of each.