Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classic Trash

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students investigate how trash is classified and the options to deal with it. In this trash and recycling lesson, students perform an activity to classify trash into organic, renewable/ recyclable, now renewable/recyclable and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

One Person's Garbage, Another Person's . . .?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars list many, different and unusual items that could be constructed out of refuse and found objects.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

It's A Gas

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students build an organic waste methane generator and learn by running a scientific experiment to see what happens when people alter nature's way of recycling.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Water Cycle

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students are introduced to the components and importance of the water cycle. They are shown how groundwater moves using a model. Students list 9 places on earth where water is found. They define the terms cycle and water cycle.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Starch Yer Thinkin' About Corn Products

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders study the parts of corn and explore the role of starch.  In this corn products lesson students prepare a model of water and stones.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pollution

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders investigate pollution. They discuss pollution and its effects. They create a Venn diagram of pollution and people polluting. They create a landfill and predict what will occur over a week's time. They create two air...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Composting -- Nature's Disappearing Act

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Studenst work together to discover the concept of biodegradability. They build a model of a landfill and how different items decompose. They examine how engineers use this information for better waste management.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fuel Cells

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine how fuel cells and combustion engines work. Using the internet, they research the positives and negatives of the various energy sources. In groups, they complete an experiment with a working fuel cell model and take a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Compost

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students expand their understanding of solid waste management. They examine the effects of packaging decisions. They study engineering advancements in packaging materials and solid waste management.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Recycle Milk and Juice Cartons

For Students 3rd - 4th
In this recognizing the importance of recycling worksheet, learners complete a cryptograph, read facts about milk and juice cartons, and read about making crafts from trash. Students write 10 answers.
Interactive
Curated OER

Ways To Go Green

For Students 3rd - 5th
In this environmental awareness worksheet, learners learn how to "go green" by reading 10 tips that can be used in everyday life. Students answer 10 multiple choice questions. This is an online interactive worksheet.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Trash a Pizza!

For Teachers 2nd - 7th
Students investigate data about America's trash production. In this environmental lesson, students use statistics about what we throw away to create an art pie chart project called a "trash pizza."
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Waste Not Want Not

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students are introduced to the need to save natural resources. Through inquiry, hands-on activities, and problem solving, students increase their understanding of solid waste materials and the need to reduce, recycle, and reuse.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Activity #7 Recycling of Newsprint

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students illustrate the paper recycling process. They collect and weigh all the newspapers that come to their house in a week's time. Pupils multiply this number by all the weeks in a yeat and again by an estimate of the number of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water Is Cool!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students study water as a non-renewable resource. In this water lesson plan, students examine sources of water, uses of water, and explain why it is important to take care of water sources for the common good. They research the water...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

NIMBY...Settlement...This Is The Place

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders identify the discussions, disagreements, and resolutions that zoning or location decisions can create. They explain how NIMBY (NOT IN MY BACK YARD) works and how the desires of the individual and the group affect the NIMBY...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Our Water Becomes Polluted

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students list causes of water pollution, discuss how people contribute to water pollution, and explain concept of watershed.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Landslides

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students study a natural disaster. In this landslides facts lesson, students discover how and why landslides happen and how they have an effect on people. They discuss this information as a class and then work in small groups to create...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A-Scripting We Will Go

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students write script for a puppet show. In this writing lesson, students write a puppet show script using facts from a previous lesson. They listen to DyAnne DiSalvo Ryan's, City Green before discussing the characters and which ones...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: This Landfill Is a Gas!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this activity, students work as engineers to build and observe a model landfill. They will understand the process and pitfalls of the use of landfills as a method for the waste disposal.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Design, Build and Test Your Own Landfill

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students design and build model landfills using materials similar to those used by engineers for full-scale landfills. Their completed small-size landfills are "rained" on and subjected to other erosion processes. The goal is to create...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Eek, It Leaks!

For Teachers 5th - 8th
During this activity, students will try to construct model landfill liners out of two-inch strips of garbage bags within resource constraints. The challenge is to construct a bag that will hold one cup of water without leaking. This...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Solid Waste Takes Over

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this lesson, learners explore solid waste and its effects on the environment. They will collect classroom trash for analysis and build model landfills in order to understand the process and impact of solid waste management. Students...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Composting Nature's Disappearing Act

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this activity, students explore the idea of biodegradability by building and observing a model landfill. This serves as an introduction to the idea of composting. Students learn about the role of engineering in solid waste management.