Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Welcome to My World!

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students use maps to locate information. They read the story, "It Looked Like Spilt Milk", view images of the continents and discuss the various continents. Afterward, they make their own Atlas to record information that they can later...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Volcano Contour Models Activity and Tracing the Highs and Lows in San Francisco

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students investigate how to draw topographic contours and read topographic maps.They examine the topography of San Francisco and contrast the elevation of different points within San Francisco.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ecological Pyramids

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Learners apply the ecological pyramids of numbers and biomass with an activity using topographic maps. In this trophic level lesson plan, students work in groups using a topographic map to determine the number of organisms that can live...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Listen to the Land

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students discover how we use land. They gain insight into the way we use the land, both for benefit and consequence. Students explore how to 'listen to the land' as they make decisions on how it should be used and the consequences of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mud Maps

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students discuss the location of stores, buildings, and homes in their community. Afterwards, they create a 'mud map' demonstrating the route from one point to another. In pairs, students read travel directions from a brochure, while...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Analysis of Atmospheric Conditions for a High Mountain Retreat

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students 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...
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Channel Islands Film

Island Rotation: Lesson Plan 1

For Teachers 4th - 12th Standards
How do scientists provide evidence to support the theories they put forth? What clues do they put together to create these theories? After watching West of the West's documentary Island Rotation class members engage in a series of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Geography And The Revolutionary War

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students gain a deeper understanding of both geography and the Revolutionary War. They practice using on line research in examining historical events and using political, physical, and topographic maps.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 8: Changes in Deerfield, Massachusetts Shown in Maps

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders study maps of the same area from different time periods which show the ways in which the land stayed the same, and the ways this New England village changed over the years.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Map It!

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders collect and explore different maps and their uses before using the program Pixie to create maps of geographic features, political features, and economic information for the state in which they live.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mapping My Trip to the 2002 Winter Olympics!

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders map their route from their local community to Salt Lake City, Utah for the Winter Olympics. Using atlases, they gather topographical information and use the internet to research any landmarks they might pass on the way....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Trailblazers - Now and Then

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Learners, working in pairs, use maps to determine the most efficient routes between two cities. They research which route would have been used by early trailblazers. They present a first person account of one of the trailblazers place in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Where are the Watersheds in San Francisco?

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students create a mental map of San Francisco. They compare it with actual topographical maps of the city. Then they label various locations on the San Francisco Hillshade map and locate watershed boundaries.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Book: Spain

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students, after reading Chapter One in the book, "Spain," design and re-create the political boundaries as well as the physical features of nation of Spain. They utilize play-doh or salt dough to illustrate and create their three...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Make a Community Almanac

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students gather geographic information about their community. They work together to create a community almanac.
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Curated OER

Making A New Nation

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders read standard road maps and topographical maps, and examine the lives of pathfinders who opened the trails to the West. They develop Living History presentations, role-playing a character from the past.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

COLONIAL FLYERS/TRAVEL BROCHURES TO THE COLONIES

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers investigate concepts of history and geography in this lesson. They create travel brochures for travelers who are crossing the Atlantic Ocean to populate the colonies of early America. The brochure has topographical...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mapping Seamounts in the Gulf of Alaska

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students describe major topographic features on the Patton Seamount, and interpret two-dimensional topographic data. They create three-dimensional models of landforms from two-dimensional topographic data.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mapmaking: Colorado Quarter Reverse

For Teachers K - 1st
Students examine the Colorado quarter reverse and draw symbols of the state's land and water features on maps. Using copies of the Colorado reverse, they color the coin design. They list reasons for the state's motto of "Colorful Colorado"
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Special Relationship: Connecticut and Its Settlers

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Pupils study both geological and geographical features of Connecticut and the New Haven area. They focus on map works and rock formation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cookie Topography

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students construct a cross section diagram showing elevation changes on a "cookie island." Using a chocolate chip cookie for an island, they locate the highest point in centimeters on the cookie and create a scale in feet. After tracing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Analyzing the Relationship between Snowpack and River Flow

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students use the Internet to research current and past snowpack levels and river gauging station readings. They determine the relationship between snowpack and river flow. They predict future river flow.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Landforms And The Oregon Trail

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders investigate the historical context for the founding of The Oregon Trail. They conduct research to put together the events that led to the geographical route that was taken. The lesson also strengthens geography skills with...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Physical Habitat of a Stream

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners measure in metric units and use a stopwatch, calculator. They collect data with minimal instructions after the initial pre-activity briefing, then record data in the data sheets provided.