Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Charting Diversity

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Pupils organize different species of plans and animals according to various characteristics. Students then determine what characteristics enable them to survive in their habitat. Game ideas and activities are included.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Coral Reef Ecosystem

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners examine the coral reef ecosystem and learn how the living and non-living parts interact.  In this coral reef lesson students view video on coral reefs then create a fictional ecosystem.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Reef of Your Own

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students study the reproductive strategies of reef building corals.  In this coral reef lesson plan students describe the behaviors of reef building corals and their nutritional strategies. 
Organizer
Curated OER

Adopt-an-Insect Butterfly Report

For Students 3rd - 4th
In this butterfly research worksheet, students complete 7 short answer categories pertaining to the life of a butterfly. This worksheet provides a visual template for the students to record facts about one butterfly species in an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Animal Kingdom: Phylum Chordata

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students use a dichotomous key to classify various vertebrate jar speciments into classes. They examine the speciments for general characteristics of each class and fill in a corresponding chart and then complete a few final assessment...
Lesson Plan
NASA

Mystery Planet

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
What can one learn about a planet based on a small surface sample? Learners will explore artifacts from a mystery planet and see what they can determine about the planet based on the evidence in front of them. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Insects A-Z!

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Alphabet insects! Who has ever heard of such a thing? Get ready because your class is going to research insects that start with a specific letter of the alphabet. In small groups, they'll use the Internet and reference texts to locate...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Microfishing

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students use a simple method to collect living microorganisms from natural and/or artificial environments and develop skills in microscopy, observation, drawing, speculation, hypothesizing, oral presentation, and raising questions.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's The Big Deal About Accutane?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars take on the role of epidemiologists. They investigate an "outbreak" in serious birth defects that occur in infants born to teenage girls. students discover a link between the use of the acne drug called Accutane and birth...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Wingra Marsh: A Purple Population Problem

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students engage students in an ecological inquiry. They author a presentation to the Grounds Management Committee of their school giving their recommendation for the control of the invasive species purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Species and Specimens: Exploring Local Biodiversity

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students practice skills essential to all scientific investigation: carefully observing and collecting data. They become field biologists in a series of hands-on activities to collect and identify specimens, and survey and calculate the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

2nd Grade - Act. 25: Creature Creation

For Teachers 2nd
Create a creature using some of the characteristics of a real animal. Second graders will read a book from the "Froggy," series by Johnathan London to learn about the characteristics of frogs. After discussing and recording various...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wild Horses of the Outer Banks

For Teachers 6th - 7th
Students explore animal habitats.  In this cross curriculum animal survival and writing lesson, students view a website about wild horses on Shackelford Island and discuss ways in which the horses have changed to this...
Lesson Plan
SF Environment

Compost Tag

For Teachers K - 5th
Composting is a great way to get children involved in recycling. First, they discuss how biodegradable products decompose to make compost. Then, they talk about what can and cannot be composted. They play a game similar to around the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Catalase: A Bioinformatics Case Study

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate the physical structure of a protein by using a computer simulation tool. They record its primary amino acid structure while viewing it in three dimensions for a better visual recognition. There is also a comparison...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classifying Shells

For Teachers K - 2nd
Pupils observe and classify different types of shells. They compare and contrast an exhibit they created with one that already exists in a musuem. They discover the different characteristics of shells.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Plant Diversity and Distribution

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Students construct a defined plot on school grounds and observed patterns in plant life. They count trees, shrubs, cacti and record on a data sheet. They compare data and generate a plant diversity overlook for their school.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Are You One of Us?

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students compare and contrast insects and arthropods, identifying characteristics of each. In groups, they sort pictures of arthropods into the five different classes of arthropods. They also sort pictures into insect and non-insect piles.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Food Web Chasey

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Learners work together to review the concepts of food webs and food chains. They describe the role of plants and animals when dealing with the cycling of energy. They identify any behavioural strategies to help the animals survive.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sorting and Using Materials

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Learners practice sorting and classifying objects. In groups, they choose a variety of materials and describe how each one looks and feels. They must agree on how to classify each object and share their groupings with the class. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Look Up - Birds

For Teachers K
Students investigate the concept of birds. They identify five different types of birds and name the characteristics that make them different than other living things. Students also name the different parts of the bird and how they are...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sorting

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students identify how objects can be sorted or classified for easy access. In this sorting activity, students will investigate how letters, numbers, and symbols are used in sorting and classifying.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Galapagos Adaptations

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students examine photographs of closely related species found in the Gal??pagos environment, observe differences and similarities between species, and form hypotheses about species differences and the relationship to the environment of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cell Cycle Duration

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students examine the cell cycle and how its duration can vary.  In this cells lesson students complete a worksheet and answer questions.