Young scholars examine themselves as being part of a global community. In this global community lesson, students investigate GPS systems. Young scholars gain knowledge on how the device works. Students discover that satellites provide...

Learners use the Live Access Server (LAS) to form maps and a numerical text file of snow cover for each continent on a particular date and analyze the data for each map, corresponding text file to determine an estimate of snow cover for...

Learners use data to determine if the climate in Portland has changed over the years.  In this weather lesson students complete line graphs and study long wave radiation. 

Students use distance measuring tools to follow directions and chart the path the pilgrims made from Plymouth, England to Boston, Massachusetts. In this Pilgrim voyage lesson, students use a map to chart the distance traveled by the...

Students explore islands. They create a two- or three-dimensional map of an island. They explain how the topography of an area influences the location of water sources, ecosystems, and human settlements. Lesson includes adaptations for...

From the layers of Earth's spheres to latitude and longitude to looking at topographic maps, learners discover the elements of Earth's systems. 

Middle and high schoolers use the Pythagorean Theorem to complete a table showing with the magnetic field strengths in given cities. They find the average value of the Earth's magnetic field and plot one of the three-dimensional values...

How do we know where we are in the world? A presentation for middle schoolers explains absolute location and other geography terms such as relative location. It also gives scholars the opportunity to practice finding absolute location on...

Scholars investigate levels of nitrogen dioxide in the Pacific Northwest by examining the role of nitrogen in air pollution and how remote sensing can be used to measure nitrogen levels. An Excel spreadsheet calculates the difference...

Here is an interesting activity on satellite tracking. Learners use various tracking techniques to find out where they go on a daily basis, what the environmental conditions are, and what they are doing during their "migrations." A...

Students explain why compass angles need to be corrected for regional magnetic variation. They observe the difference between magnetic and true north. Each student measures the angle of variation for a town in a different state.

Learners answer the following question: "Using the lines of latitude and longitude, what is the distance (in degrees) if you were to travel from NASA Dryden to NASA Ames?" They use the distance formula to find the distance (measured in...

Students research and demonstrate volcanic activity. In this volcanism instructional activity, students research the types of volcanoes and define related terms using the Internet. They demonstrate volcanic activity with water, corn...

Students explore continents, draw map, discuss cultures, use research to learn geography, and investigate cultures.

Learners practice finding the location of cities across the world by using an interactive Web site, and figure out the world's time and the value of time zones the world over.

Learners correlate surface radiation with mean surface temperature of several geographic regions. They observe how these parameters change with latitude and construct an understanding of the relationship of solar radiation to seasonal...

Students locate and access data to help them with their science inquiry.  In this geographical positioning lesson students evaluate and compare data sets. 

Students evalute evolutionary theories and processe of Geology. They examine evidence that the movement of continents has had signicicant global impact, major geological events. Students evaluate the forces which shape the lithosphere...

Young scholars examine the relationship between altitude, atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity at a particular location. They practice science and math in real world applications. They write reports detailing their scientific...

Students explore and analyze atmospheric conditions for a high mountain retreat. They examine the relationship between altitude, atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity at a particular location. In addition, they write reports...

Students use Cartesian coordinates or degrees of latitude and longitude to locate important locations within their specific countries. They Use a grid to apply the concept of latitude and longitude, or positive and negative Cartesian...

Students investigate the migration route of one bird, Osprey B4, using information gathered from satellites to track birds over a two-year period. They coimpare their graphs with maps of B4's migrations that have been plotted by...

Students read about a volcano and use the latitude and longitude information to plot and describe the volcano on the map. They discuss patterns seen on the map. In addition, they color code a map according to zones, plates, etc.

Students explore earthquakes. Using the National Earthquake Information Center website, students plot daily earthquakes on a map. They observe the magnitude of each earthquake. Students identify the pattern of earthquake locations and...