Carbon is in the air; should we care? Teach the class why it is important to pay attention to carbon levels and how the world population and various countries across the globe affect the carbon levels in the atmosphere. High schoolers...

Purifying air and water, providing soil in which to grow crops, and moving water through its natural cycle are all services an ecosystem provides that benefit humans. Lesson four in a series lets learners explore and discuss the value of...

How do green plastics reduce waste and environmental pollution? Budding scientists create and test a variety of compounds used in green plastics during an insightful experiment. Beginning with startling statistics and ending with...

How do humans affect ecosystems? Learners read two articles and interpret a graph to develop essays on the human impact on ecosystems. They read about human impact on tigers and manatees as a basis for their overarching papers.

Young historians research the Southwest Trail, which ran through Arkansas back in the 19th century. Pupils are divided into four groups. Each group researches a pioneer who blazed the Southwest Trail. Then, the group presents an oral or...

How do greenhouse gases affect the climate on Earth?  Pupils explore the concept by first building their own apparatuses to model the greenhouse effect. Then, they record data to measure temperature change and determine...

With a piece of plastic here and a piece of plastic there, here a piece, there a piece, everywhere a piece. Teams go on a field trip in order to document the locations and kinds of plastic trash in an area near them. The eighth...

Whose home is it anyway? Design teams plan a housing development in which they must also protect a native species. The teams consist of a project manager, civil engineer, environmental engineer, and graphic designer. Teams present their...

Besides serving as awe-inspiring monuments of human achievement, skyscrapers are built to perform a wide range of functions in urban communities. The second lesson in this series begins by exploring the history of the Empire State...

What are the factors that influence voting patterns? How do these factors influence government funding? Is participation the squeaky wheel gets the grease? Class members interpret graphs and analyze trends to determine what...

Immerse your young marine biologists in the world of marine animals. The lesson includes several activities that are age-appropriate for preschoolers and kindergartners, including coloring pages, gluing feathers and sand onto paper...

Ecology explorers collect soil and invertebrates from a monoculture and a polyculture area. They relate the number and types of invertebrates to the surrounding environmental conditions. This activity can be used as an introduction to...

How did Theodore Roosevelt stress the importance of conservation during his time as president of the United States? Take a closer look at the language Roosevelt used himself in a 1907 address to Congress, and have your young...

Whether you are teaching environmental science in junior high or studying recycling in kindergarten, there is something for all in this set of lessons designed for environmental education. The 110-page packet comes with tips for...

To go or to not to go — the question for a mission to Mars. This resource provides details for a possible manned mission to Mars. Details include a launch schedule, what life would be like on the surface, and how the astronauts would...

Young scientists explore nature's water treatment plants in this simple science demonstration. By placing a stalk of celery in a cup of water mixed with food coloring, children are able to observe how plants absorb nutrients and...

Celebrate the geography of the Americas and develop map skills through a series of activities focused on the Western Hemisphere. Learners study everything from earthquakes and volcanoes of the Americas and the relationship...

Class members explore the carbon cycle in the final installment of the 10-part Discover Your Changing World series. They play a simulation game where they walk through the steps carbon takes as it cycles through the different layers...

Students answer discussion questions and analyze technological innovations, scientific discoveries, and environmental crises from a human rights perspective. They research and report back to the class about a related topic.

Learners answer a variety of discussion questions about human rights and how they may apply to and influence formal literature, the media, educational textbooks, advertising, and commercial publications.

Pupils make cards illustrating things they think they need and want to be healthy and happy. Groups then sort these cards into "wants" and "needs." The whole class discusses what it means when people's basic needs are not met and the...

Young scholars select a picture from a given set and participate in a discussion about the picture. Students discuss the rights from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that can be associated with their pictues. Young scholars...

Students analyze the physical characteristics of different regions of the United States and how these physical characteristics affected settlements across the States.

High schoolers examine the role of the elephant in the culture of Thailand through many different class activities based on a PBS program "The White Elephants of Thailand with Meg Ryan". Students also look at the impact of technology on...