Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Saturn’s Moons

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students compare Saturn's moons to the Earth's moon.  In this moon lesson students work in groups and complete a lab activity then answer questions. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Glaciers As Indicators of Global Climate Change

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students research about glacial ice melting on the four major spheres of the Earth. In this earth science lesson, students explain how this process relates to global warming. They create a presentation and share their findings with the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Metrics And Measurements

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students engage in a study of measuring distances between geographical locations on a map. They are able to define and use the map scale in conjunction with the metric system. For this lesson they make their own maps and measure the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Our Solar System to Scale

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students calculate the diameter of planets and their relative distances.  For this space science lesson, students discover how small or big the planets are in comparison to each other. Students use cross multiplying fractions to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Voyage to Titan

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students go to the linked web page "The Nine Planets" to find facts about Titan. They list elements of the solar system and the five planets of the outer solar system. Students find their weight on each planet. Titan is selected from the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mars Colonization Assignment #1

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders recognize the some day humans may wish to colonize Mars. They participate in an Internet adventure where they compare and contrast Earth to the other nine planets in the solar system.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science - Lesson 42 - Astronomy

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders demonstrate the position of the Earth, Moon, and Sun in a solar and lunar eclipse. They list uses for manmade satellites and write a description of how a satellite would be use.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hoop Trip To The Planets

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students practice locomotor patterns already introduced while reinforcing facts about each planet.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Plan a Mission to Recently Discovered Planet

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Learners plan a mission to a recently discovered planet. In this science lesson, students research spacecraft design, distances in space, long-term missions in space, and life-sustaining planets. Learners work in groups to research an...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Making A Sundial

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Can people really measure time just by using the sun? Scholars venture outside on a nice, sunny day to build sundials and learn how people measured time 600 years ago. The class builds two different sundials while gaining practice with...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

SIZING UP SOL

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders produce a projected, pinhole image of the sun and from measurement of the image and projection distance, calculate the actual size of the sun. They estimate the sun's apparent brightness from different planet.
Lesson Plan
University of Connecticut

Building Your Own Biosphere

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
On September 26, 1991, four women and four men entered the scientific experiment, Biosphere 2; the doors were sealed for two years in order to study the interactions of a biosphere. In the activity, scholars explore biospheres by...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Path of the Sun, the Ecliptic

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers are introduced to the ecliptic, the zodiac and the apparent motions of the Sun, Moon and planets across the sky.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Path to Mars

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Learners compare Earth and Mars to find similarities between the two planets using given websites. They collect and download pictures of geological features of both planets from print and non-print sources. Descriptions of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Planet Research and Brochure

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders design a brochure based on the planet that they researched. In this planets lesson plan, 4th graders include the data, important facts, and completed as a team.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Our Sky: Home of Stars and Planets

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students discover that astronomy is a branch of science that includes the study of planets, stars, and constellations.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Planetary Weather

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students are asked what do they recall about weather. They reasearch weather on the other planets of the solar system. Students work in groups and each group is assigned two planets. They create a display showing the weather on each...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Spacing Out

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore environmental and geological conditions on other planets in our solar system, comparing their findings to information about Earth. They propose technologies that might assist in supporting human life on those planets.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A View Of Home From The Front Door and From Space

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students discover how distance can change how our view of an object. Students build a representative model of where their home is located from different distances. They create three drawn models of their home from various elevations as...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Finding Extra-Solar Planets

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers plot and analyze NASA data to determine the period of an invisible planet orbiting a wobbling star. They explore the motion of a two-body system around a center of mass to better explain how extra-solar planets are...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Interstellar Real Estate - Defining The Habitable Zone

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the orbital characteristics a planetary home needs to support Earth-like life forms. They develop an understanding of critical planetary mass to determine which newly discovered planets might be capable of supporting life.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dark Matter In The Universe

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate the concept of dark matter and how it occurs in the universe. They conduct research using a variety of resources. Students use the information by reading at least two articles about dark matter. They also generate...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

5th Grade, Egg Droppers

For Teachers 5th
The classic "Egg Drop Activity" is described in this fine science lesson plan. Young scientists work together to design a container that will protect the eggs inside of it when dropped from a high place. Lots of good scientific...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Planets Moon

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students explore the theories of the creation of the universe and examine the properties of celestial bodies. They analyze the relationship between the sun, Earth and other planets. They discover the infinite potential of the science of...