Middle schoolers create a school-wide insect collection investigate the insect world. For this project, each grade level "adopts" specific orders of insects, collect specimens, create classroom collections, and complete related activities.

Learners examine and discuss amber and fossils in amber. They simulate the preservation of an insect in amber using glue, a dead insect, and food coloring, listen to a poem about amber, and view real amber under a magnifying glass or...

In this vocabulary comprehension worksheet, students read a passage about locust, then complete 7 multiple choice questions. An answer key is provided.

Students explore biological evolution and natural selection and its evolutionary consequences. They also explore how organisms are interdependent on one another.

What can you contribute? Scholars read text to determine how ants contribute to the rainforest. First, they categorize and sort facts gathered from reading. Next, readers focus on specific terms in each paragraphs of the text Ants by...

This worksheet calls for young scientists to create a diagram of a butterfly's life cycle and then answer a series of short-answer and fill-in -the-blank questions. The questions are broken down by the stages of a butterfly's life cycle:...

Students discover the life cycle of a butterfly and explain the different stages.  In this exploratory instructional activity students watch a video and create insect art and they will get an opportunity to view live specimens of...

Fifth graders visit the playground to look for signs of life. They search for insects, birds, animal tracks, feathers, nests, trees, soil, etc. They then compose a class list that shows all findings in the schoolyard and post it in the...

Students discover how to locate books on meadow and pond animals and research them. Students discover how to locate fiction/story books about the animals mentioned in the counting book read. Students discover how to locate by author,...

Students define conservation, identify actions that conserve habitat and those that reduce habitat, and generate ideas about how one can practice conservation in everyday life.

They say that a dog is a man's best friend. Why is that? Discuss with your class why people like pets and the responsibilities with owning one. They read an article about pet behavior and write a short essay comparing one of their...

Review basic vocabulary related to mammals. This short quiz game allows students to test their skills and understanding of scientific vocabulary. This game is appropriate for grades 5-7 and covers very basic concepts. 

Using the prairie dog community as an example, middle school ecologists examine the food web. Pairs of learners take one species in the community and research its role in the ecosystem. They share their findings with the rest of the...

Throughout history, the growth of big cities has resulted in the destruction of ecosystems. In the case of Chicago, IL, a grassland that was once home to bison, deer, wolves, and foxes quickly became a booming city of over three million...

Students conduct experiment with water striders by placing the insect in two different solutions and discuss their observations. They discover that weight and surface area are important factors in their experiment.

Students watch a slide show about the Philippine Reefs to explore the topic of fish populations. In this reef and fish population lesson, students watch a slide show about fish populations and how the Peace Corps works...

Students read a story and solve a problem about an unhealthy population of trees.  In this forest lesson plan students study tree disease and then research it online and present what they found. 

Learners research living organisms by exploring their school grounds. In this microscopic observation lesson, students gather materials, insects, and objects from their playground and schoolyard and bring them into class. Learners...

Students describe various ways insects use their sense of smell, and examine why some insects use scent marking. They conduct a scent hunt, searching for a particular scent on the trees on school grounds.

Seventh graders determine the characteristics of insect families after comparing human family characteristics. They categorize insects by looking for similar characteristics on image cards.

Students examine the life cycle of a butterfly. They place caterpillars in a cage and observe their change to a butterfly. Students discover how much a caterpillar eats and annotate growth information.

Students count by pairs and sets of feet, while reading a story that coincides with this practice. In this math lesson, students use their skills to count by multiples and adding on to numbers when they add up feet from humans, and...

Young scholars explore where insects live and how they have adapted to their environment.

Fourth graders study insects in their habitats looking at survival characteristics and whether the insect is a predator or an herbivore. They investigate characteristics that improve the survival of a species and its ability to reproduce.