Learners discover gardening by documenting plants grown on school grounds.  In this botany lesson, students utilize digital cameras to capture images of plants on photo hikes which are turned into a slide show.  Learners plant...

Students investigate and assess scientific issues for which government regulation has been or might be enacted. Using their research, students write letters to lawmakers supporting or contesting related legislative efforts.

Learners explore aviation.  In this physics lesson, students work cooperatively to construct kites, paper airplanes, and paper plate discs. Learners launch the object created and observe characteristics and length of flight. ...

Students utilize the scientific method to design a way for a balloon to be suspended between the floor and the ceiling.

Students study and make a hologram. In this holography mini-unit, students study the science behind holography and in the culminating activity they create their own holograph. This mini-unit includes six lessons and a culminating activity.

Students record observations of a living organism over a period of time. They observe meal worms and record their observations in a scientific journal.

Students work collaboratively to exchange data with their peers (groups of students at other schools) about their worm bin project. They discuss differing findings and hypothesize reasons for these differences.

Second graders investigate the reasons animals hibernate. They measure their own heart rates and compare them to those of a hibernating bear. In their journals, 2nd graders record facts about and characteristics of hibernation and...

Fourth graders observe demonstrations how heated air rises and becomes a low pressure area. After watching several teacher-conducted experiments, 4th graders, in groups, discuss and answer questions in their journals. Finally, they...

Students explore reasons why people are interested in exploring other planets. After reading an article, they identify developments in the mission to Mars. Using the internet, they research the history of exploring Mars and create a...

Students research various perspectives on Japan's commercial whaling industry and formulate position papers representing these views. They read the Times article, Yuk! No More Stomach for Whales. Groups present their perspectives on...

Sixth graders engage in problem solving, communicating, reasoning, and connecting to represent and solve problems, using geometric models.

Students explore the health benefits of dark chocolate. They research other foods which they consider to be both healthy and delicious for a "classroom pantry."

Young scholars state reasons why spiders are grouped in specific categories, including what distinguishes a spider from an insect. They report on their observations of the spiders. They illustrate their report with drawings in their...

Students examine their prior knowledge of the space program. After reading an article, they explore the conclusions of the Columbia accident. In groups, they research various space programs and discover the scope of NASA. They write...

Students explain the meaning of "use value" of nature's resources by researching and writing studenT books personifying an aspect of nature. They produce public service announcements regarding use value for their local community.

Students reflect on the dynamics of human flight and how objects fall through the air and how science principles are used in flight. They create a How-It-Works poster diagramming the science behind one method of flying. In addition,...

Third graders experiment to gain understanding of the shape and rotation of the Earth. In this Sun and Moon science instructional activity, 3rd graders understand that the Earth rotates on its axis and how that explains the appearance...

Sixth graders explore scientific observations by analyzing a group of data. In this fingerprint identification lesson, 6th graders identify the reasoning behind fingerprinting and create their own ink fingerprints. Students discuss the...

Young scholars use inductive reasoning to study different scenarios related to environmental issues. They evaluate various scenarios to develop common definitions and key concepts in environmental health ethics.

Students investigate different types of landforms. In this landforms lesson, students explore landforms by participating in a WebQuest. Students research the reasons behind landforms changing and create a picture using KidPix.

Students explore the food chains in a variety of ecosystems and its relationship to the survival of threatened or endangered marine animals or fish in the ocean. The interdependence of the species is investigated in this lesson.

Students understand the importance of each member of a food chain through a game.  In this food chains lesson, students receive background information and then play a game to simulate what happens in the food chain of an endangered...

Water, water, everywhere? Each pupil first uses an Internet program to select 50 random points on Earth to determine the proportion of its surface covered with water. The class then combines data to determine a more accurate estimate.