Curated OER
Engaging Young Scientists with Inquiry: Part Two
Evaluating data and learning to communicate the results is a big piece of the inquiry puzzle.
Curated OER
Whodunnit?
Want to create an exciting mystery activity? Investigators will identify the elements of a mystery, review mystery stories, then write their own mysteries. They engage in forensic science experiments related to mysteries and learn to ask...
STEM for Teachers
Electromagnificent
This physics pun really hertz, but this STEM lesson plan can help. The inquiry-based activity has young scientists create a testable question about electromagnetic strength; plan and implement their own experiments; and record and...
NASA
Producers Make Their Own Food
During an inquiry-based activity, scholars decide which variable to test and then design an experiment to determine the needs of producers. After two weeks, they complete a full analysis and research paper.
Baylor College
Heart Rate and Exercise
What is the relationship among the heart, circulation, and exercise? Your class members will explore first-hand how different physical exercises affect an individual's heart rate. They will begin by learning how to measure their own...
Baylor College
Serving Sizes
Are serving sizes for different foods always appropriate for what you need? In this hands-on activity, learners work in groups to estimate what one serving size of various foods are, and then evaluate their hypotheses by measuring real...
Curated OER
Shadows & Light, Science & Puppetry
Lights, shadows, action, and inquiry await your artistic scientists. They explore the way light travels, absorbs, reflects, and transmits through shadow play. They create folktale-inspired shadow puppets, explore the science of light,...
NASA
Measuring Dark Energy
You're only 10 minutes late? Do you know how much the universe has expanded in those 10 minutes? Scholars graph supernovae based on their redshift and see if the results verify Hubble's Law. If it does confirm it, the universe is...
NASA
Tools of the Trade
Did you know every state in the U.S. has at least one observatory? During the lesson, scholars research the cost of building and maintaining an observatory. They must present their information in a proposal to build a new observatory,...
Space Awareness
History of the Universe
Your pupils may believe that you and their parents are the oldest things in the universe, but surprise! There are elements of the universe that are even older. Elementary scientists create a class timeline to demonstrate the expansive...
Center for Learning in Action
Introduction to the States of Matter
Liquids, gases, and solids are the states of matter in which scholars investigate in a lesson plan that offers in-depth information and engaging activities that look into the three states and the changes their properties make when mixed...
Chemistry Collective
Virtual Lab: Creating a Buffer Solution
Buffers don't just magically appear in the stockroom when you need them! Give learners a crash course in buffer basics using an interactive lab assignment. Individuals are tasked with creating a buffer with a certain pH that will react...
Center for Learning in Action
Water – Changing States (Part 2)
Here is part two of a two-part lesson in which scholars investigate the changing states of water—liquid, solid, and gas—and how energy from heat changes its molecules. With grand conversation, two demonstrations, and one hands-on...
Longwood University
How Can We Help Maintain Our Water Supply? Conserving Water
Make young citizens aware of their environmental impact early. An inquiry-based lesson helps learners analyze their own water usage patterns and understand the effects of their habits. Individuals look at data to spot trends and see how...
Curated OER
Changes in Nature
The goal of this science lesson is to have youngsters be able to identify the physical and chemical changes in the carbon cycle, and water cycle due to weathering. The in-class inquiry/experiment is quite interesting and easy to...
Polar Trec
Animal Monitoring Introduction
Not only do mealworms taste great, they are also great for classroom science lessons. In pairs, young scientists observe and record what they see as they check out what their mealworms are doing from minute to minute. Each minute...
K20 LEARN
Untwining And Intertwining: Chemical Reactions
What happened when the chemistry teacher told a bad joke? There was no reaction! A creative take on the traditional reaction types lesson invites learners to draw their own conclusions about how compounds and elements combine. Groups...
Curated OER
Independent Plant Growth Experiment
This is an awesome lesson filled with tons of engaging learning activities. Over a period of weeks learners will make observations, collect plant and analyze plant data, read and review agricultural articles, design and conduct an...
Curated OER
Habitat Basics
First graders get out and explore two different habitats to examine how each one meets the needs of the plants and animals that dwell there. They discuss what they've learned about animal habitats as they explore the outdoor environment....
Curated OER
Gravity: What is it?
What is gravity and how do you explain it? Use this presentation to guide an inquiry-based lesson centered on understanding gravity through hands-on experience. Each slide provides a definition, example, or activity for students to...
Curated OER
Lesson Plans for Sweet Dreams: How Animals Sleep
Students explore the sleeping patterns and sleeping habitats of animals. In this where animals sleep lesson, students research different animal species. Students also write and illustrate an animal picture book, make connections about...
NASA
Let's Investigate Mars
Take your science class on a hypothetical field trip to Mars with an engaging astronomy lesson. After first learning about NASA's Mars rover missions, young scientists plan their own scientific investigations of Earth's nearest neighbor.
Curated OER
Understanding the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB)
How did our universe really begin? Explore the Science Big Bang Theory and Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) with this multiple activity-based lesson that demonstrates that the increase of density due to the decrease of temperatures,...
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Amazing Birds
What's so amazing about birds? Find out just how amazing birds are with a physics of animal behavior unit created by Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Have learners explore and tap into their observational skills and notice how birds fly, what...