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Natural Selection And Evolution
Students investigate the concept of evolution and how natural selection is used as an indicator that evolution has happened. They recognize the three effects it has on diversity and how adaptations can develop. Diversity is explained as...
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Design a Pollinator
Students make a scientific drawing of a pollinator with at least five traits that make them well adapted to a given plant(s). They describe in their science notebook the adaptations that make their pollinator well suited to a given plant.
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Critters of the Water
Students examine different organisms in various marine habitats. They identify any adaptations that have allowed the organisms to survive. They develop an imaginary organism and describe its life cycle.
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Saving Habitat
Students pick an animal native to Maryland and research how populations of that animal might be affected by land use changes over the past thirty years. They predict population trends for the next thirty years.
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The Birds and the Bees, and the Flowers and the Trees
Students examine the roles in which animals play in the pollination of plants. They recognize that flowers have male and female sexes. Students describe cross pollination and propose reasons for cross pollination through narration of a...
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Amazing Aussie Animals
Fourth graders are introduced to Australian animals through a PowerPoint presentation. They choose an animal of interest and conduct in-depth research using several websites. They design a presentation with their findings.
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Arabian Camel or Dromedary
In this camel worksheet, learners study the diagram for an Arabian camel otherwise known as a dromedary. Students read the characteristics of the animal and may click on associated links to learn more.
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Dive In: Biology At The Beach
Continue the spirit of summer by studying marine life in your classrooms.
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The Birds of a Feather Flock Together
Fifth graders identify all parts of an egg, and explore their importance to the life cycle of a chicken. Learners compare all sorts of birds and place them in categories based on what they look like. This five-day lesson effectively...
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Aquatic Ecosystems
Students study ponds and wetland ecosystems and examine the food chains and webs in them. In this aquatic ecosystems instructional activity students answer questions about the diversity of the flora and fauna in a pond.
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Water's Edge Café
Learners observe water birds feeding at a local wetland, record what they see, and construct an appropriate menu for a "Waterfowl Cafe." They also play a "flocking" game.
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Biomes
High schoolers collect information about different biomes, and locate the biomes on a world map. They read a climograph and match them to the appropriate biomes.
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Habitat Assessment
Third graders demonstrate the effects of varying environmental components on plants and animals: chemical, physical and biological characteristics of a habitat. They find chemical, physical and biological characteristics of the lake at...
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Reading the Dna Code: Making Protein
Young scholars study DNA decoding and protein synthesis. They use the amino acid table to translate DNA, break DNA strands into three nucleotide codes, and translate nucleotides into amino acid protein codes. They research the importance...
ARKive
Turtle Life Cycle
Explore the wonders of the life cycle by first focusing on the growth and development of the green turtle. The class will discuss the life cycle of different plants and animals, then turn their attention to the green turtle. They view a...
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Mealworms
Crawl into the world of the darkling beetle with this scientific investigation. Watch as the insects move through the larval, pupal, and adult stages of life, recording observations along the way. Discuss the necessities of life as young...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Leaf Litter Ecology Lab
Some organisms spend their entire lives in leaf litter. The third in a series of six is a great activity exploring the community of leaf litter. Groups gather and then spread leaf litter over white paper and remove leaves/twigs while...
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Ecosystems
With a variety of multiple choice and short answer questions, the handout found here could be used in many ways in the classroom: pretest/posttest, study guide, reading guide, or entry/exit questions. There is not a lot of space for...
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Soil Scrolls
Third graders examine soil samples and explore the what happens in each layer of the subsoil. They work in cooperative groups to create a scroll that shows what takes place in each layer, and discuss why much of the activity is in the...
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Tropical Forest Food Chain
Learners explore the interdependence of the animals and plants in tropical rainforests. They explore the importance of conserving biodiversity and tropical food chains. They create a tropical forest food chain and identify species that...
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Rainforest Food Chain
Young scholars investigate a rainforest food chain. For this ecology lesson, students are shown pictures of plants and list what animals might eat the plants. Young scholars continue to think of what other animals might eat those...
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Tree Top Canopy Field Trip
Students visit the Greenheart Canopy Walkway. In this environmental lesson, students experience a coastal rain forest ecosystem. Students interact and explore the different layers of the rain forest.
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Where Oh Where Did the Rainwater Go?
Third graders conduct an experiment to determine how water moves through different soils found in the Apalachicola River watershed. They read a scenario, conduct the experiment, answer follow-up questions, and draw the water movement...