Students study spiders. In this spider lesson plan, students divide into four study groups, research their topic, and give a report over their findings. The four topics are Characteristics of spiders, life cycles of spiders, fun facts...

Ninth graders create a model of a hydroelectric generator. In this physics instructional activity, 9th graders discuss how energy can be transformed from one form to another. They make a flow chart for different energy generating plants.

Students examine the importance of aseptic technique, become familiar with media plates, and general microbiology techniques. They study the benefits and dangers of bacteria and other microorganisms in their lives.

Students determine how engineers decide on choices for final designs and sites for construction. They look at a surveyor's report while they evaluate sites where a pyramid could be build. They consider the distance the pyramid would be...

Eighth graders conduct Internet research about Constitutional Amendments and present oral reports on their findings. Their reports also include visual representations depicting their chosen amendment's focal point. Students discuss the...

Students trace images on paper with glue and then sprinkle on colored sand they have made to create sand art pictures.

Young scholars embark on a scavenger hunt around the school looking for indoor air pollution and mapping source locations. They predict and observe sources of indoor air pollution, understand and give examples of technologies we use...

Fourth graders create a salt relief map of the four regions of Virginia. They indentify land forms and bodies of water, and summarize how they made their project.

Fourth graders collect data about the habitats of pinniped adaptations using digital probes. They determine how pinnipeds make adaptations to their natural environment by completing an experiment to determine how human and pinniped...

Middle schoolers work together on computers to practice measuring for navigation. They discover that errors in their calculations can lead them in the wrong direction. They examine the need of computers by engineers.

Students go on a GPS scavenger hunt. They use GPS receivers to find designated waypoints and report back on what they found. They compute distances between waypoints based on the latitude and longitude, and compare with the distance the...

Young scholars explore the concept of stem and leaf plots.  In this stem and leaf plots lesson, students plot the 50 US states' capitals on a stem and leaf plot according to the first letter of each state.  Young scholars...

Students answer the question, "Why do Eskimos build houses out of ice to keep warm. Since heat goes from hot to cold, don¿¿¿t the ice walls take away the warmth inside the house?" They explain how snow or ice can actually be insulators.

Students write a book, newspaper, or other chose published writing that explains the connection between engineering and the environment. They determine why engineers need to be good communicators.

Students form a Political Campaign Agency and try to secure the job of crating a studenT book about politics through the eyes of Students.

Students perform activities to explore how their arm works and what muscles are involved. They view animated comparisons of human and robotic arms. Students create a model of the human arm.

Students investigate germs and how they travel. They graph the places in the classroom that have been touch by students to determine which five places have had the most contact. They write stories from a germ's point of view.

Students explore germs. In this literacy and health lesson, students listen to the book Germs! Germs! Germs! by Bobbi Katz and discuss methods that prevent the spreading of germs. Students cut symmetrical shapes out of construction paper...

Students conduct an experiment in which they create open and closed circuits.  In this insulators and conductors activity, students review open and closed circuits and then get in groups to make both kinds of...

Students build metal atomic models using styrofoam. In this chemistry lesson, students identify the different unique properties of metals. They explain how metal atoms bond.

Students explore how to visually identify asteroids in SDSS images. They are able to explain that stars are so far away that they do not appear to move, even over the course of a human lifespan. Students identify the location of most...

Sixth graders investigate the role of owls in their ecosystem. In this food chain lesson plan, 6th graders illustrate an owl food chain, dissect an owl pellet, and analyze data. Students discuss what would happen to owls if there were an...

Students look carefully at shells and observe the differences between species and the names of common shells. Then they identify and complete a Mollusk Matching handout included in the lesson and write the letter of each shell in the...

Students observe crystals and their shapes and formation. In this crystal formation activity, the teacher prepares crystal gardens for the students to observe, then the class finds examples of crystals in nature and observe a teacher...