Curated OER
Environmental Science/Water Pollution
Students study natural habitats, aquatic life, renewable and non-renewable resources. They discuss conservation efforts for sea otters and desert toad in this units.
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Eyes on Dissolved Oxygen
Learn about the factors that affect the way oxygen dissolves in salt water with a chemistry lab. After studying the molecular structure of water, young scientists figure out how aeration, temperature, and organic waste affect...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Introducing Ecosystem Services
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...
University of Wisconsin
Rain Garden Species Selection
The activity really comes to life within its intended unit on starting a rain garden. Working in groups, participants research native plants and coordinate them with the conditions in the designated garden area. Give the class access to...
Curated OER
Reptiles and Amphibians
Introduce your class to various reptiles and amphibians. They will meet and identify a representative from each of the four major reptile families, then learn about and discuss reptile characteristics. Next, they will identify and...
Curated OER
Water Quality
Students investigate the water cycle and evaporation. They study the porosity and permeability of groundwater, and the capillary action in soil in this unit.
Curated OER
All Washed Up
Fourth graders simulate filtration of water containing contaminates to determine how nature cleans water. They make predictions, report observations, and construct reasonable explanations concerning their outcomes. then connect this to...
Curated OER
The Web Of Life - Overlapping Food Chains
Students perform an activity in which they discover what happens when food chains overlap in an ecosystem and discover the three components of a food web.
Curated OER
Water, Water Everywhere
Students estimate the amount of water that can be found in its various forms including oceans, lakes, glaciers, rivers, etc. They view a demonstration about water distribution and discuss flash flooding safety precautions.
Curated OER
Ecology: Effects of Land Use on Natural Streams
Eighth graders examine how humans affect various ecosystems. In this ecology lesson, 8th graders discuss different ways that contaminants enter the stream. They explain the consequences of eutrophication in lakes.
Curated OER
Charting the Moon
Sixth graders observe changes in the moon's appearance over a month and keep records of their observations. They write a plan for recording what they see, and a paragraph reflecting on what they have learned over the course of the month.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan of a Thematic Project - Water
Sixth graders investigate the properties of water. In this life science lesson, 6th graders create a concept map of water. They share their work with the class.
Curated OER
Models of Succession
Students create a model city in order to understand the effects human habitats have on the environment. In this environment lesson, students examine the effects human habitats have on the environment. Students create a model...
Curated OER
A Brief History of Rubber
Students explore the history of rubber. For this rubber lesson, students listen to their instructor present a lecture regarding the history of the product and its uses in society. Students create timelines that detail the...
Curated OER
Salmon and the Non-Native Species
Students investigate the affect of non-native species on Pacific Salmon. In this non-native species and Pacific Salmon lesson, students participate in a competition and habitat loss game. They play the game in groups, while answering...
Curated OER
Population Growth
Learners grow duckweed, observe what happens when an organism population is allowed to grow without predation or competition, view videos about invasive species, and develop a proposal for controlling the growth of an invasive species in...
Michigan Sea Grant
Food Web II
A food web consists of complex food chains and the more complex the web, the better likelihood of survival. Learners compare and contrast food webs and food chains and discuss concepts like the predator-prey and consumer-producer...
Curated OER
Turtle Legends
Learners listen to the legend, Thirteen Moons on Turtle's Back. They create a new moon for the calendar based on this natural part of everyday life in the seasons. They illustrate it under the story using water color paints.
Curated OER
Preserving the Harvest: Dry it Out!
Students explore how people preserved their food in the past. In food preservation lesson, students create different models that enable someone to dry out food, such as a food dehydrator. Students also learn how to...
Curated OER
Air Pollution
Students seek solutions to environmental problems. They discover how to conserve and protect natural resources. They examine the role of acid rain on plants and discover how to filter pollutants.
Curated OER
The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry
With The Great Kapok Tree, by Lynne Cherry as the hook learners discuss the rainforest, the animals that live there, and conservation efforts. Then, students write a letter to the man in the story asking him not to cut down the Kapok...
Curated OER
Wildlife Conservation I
Focusing on the wildlife in their area, learners identify endangered and threatened species and what these animals need to survive. While this lesson plan involves animals in the Long Island area, it could be adapted for use with any area.
Curated OER
Amazon Food Chain
Explore food chains in the Amazon Rainforest using this resource. Learners discuss the predator vs. prey relationships in the food chain. Then, they create a food web to describe this relationship. This is a simple and effective way to...
Curated OER
Costa Rican Food Chain
Discuss the animals and plants in the rainforest food chain using this lesson plan. Learners talk about and do research on the top predators from the Costa Rican region and create a model of one of them in class. They also make a visual...