Students review the information they gathered on different websites to write a poem about spiders. They use other websites to gain more information if needed. They share their poem with the class.

High schoolers investigate the history and use of the Hubble Space Telescope. They take a quiz in order to establish in any prior knowledge. Students conduct research to find information in conjunction with participating in class...

Students engage in a lesson that investigates finding the dates of the solstices and equinoxes. They define the terms related to the concept and conduct research in order to explain the physical occurrences. They also relate to how the...

Students practice their reading and listening skills in order to obtains accurate information. In preparation for a Moon, Mars, and Beyond Mission project, they read short stories about planet and moon mythology then answer questions...

Students complete an in-depth study of the known planets in the solar system. As a class, students identify the planets that are known in the universe, in the night sky. They explain the differences between planets and stars and the...

Students engage in a lesson that covers the concept of different phases of the moon. They name the cycles of the phases of the moon while using flashlights to simulate the light of the sun. They research information about several...

Students identify the dates of the solstices and equinoxes and how they relate to the various seasons on Earth. After discussing how the solstice and equinox affect the seasons, students use their bodies to demonstrate the how each...

Students incorporate the knowledge they learned about spiders on the ISM Web site, Spider Collection, and other Web sites they viewed on spiders to write a rhyming poem (possibly choosing a poem type illustrated here) about an aspect of...

Sixth graders explore the concept of constellations. In this constellations lesson, 6th graders research Internet and print sources regarding constellations, particularly those that are named for mythological creatures. Students compose...

Students observe star charts to understand the difference between a star and a planet. In this star lesson plan, students also explain why we see different stars at different times of the year.

Pupils create a sundial to measure local apparent time as it relates to the position of the sun in the sky. In this sundial lesson, students cut and glue gnomon to a sheet of thin cardboard.  Pupils then set the sundial in an...

Students construct equilateral triangles and a 'laser' triangle.  For this reflection lesson students build a retro-reflector using mirrors.

Learners construct an interferometer using a simple telescope. In this physics lesson, students explain how light waves create the fringe patterns. They observe patterns made by different objects in the sky and compare them.

Pupils study energy generation by the Sun, which involves atoms and nuclei.

Twelfth graders determine how scientists study the universe and particular astronomical objects using Internet research, images and NIH software. They work in groups to examine and use imaging software as they study astronomical objects.

Students compare and contrast the size, composition and surface features of the nine planets of our solar system with the possible sizes and compositions of extra -solar planets.

Students gain appreciation of the vastness of our galaxy by viewing an applet about the Milky Way. Students hypothesize about how long it would take to get from Earth to Pluto.

Young scholars, in groups, research a planet from our solar system. They create Styrofoam models of the planets and place the planets on a correct distance scale from the sun.

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...

Students parcticipate in a modeling activity that simulates the cyclical role of experimental and theoretical science. Initially, students measure the mass of popcorn. They also record predictions of the mass of the kernels after they...

Students use the slopes of various curves plotted on log-log graph paper to classify stellar objects as binary stars, supernovae, or active galaxies.The data used in this lesson were obtained from X-ray astronomy satellites.

Learners view an applet to study the phases of the Moon in relation to the orientation of the sun, moon, and Earth.

Students create a three-dimensional model of the sun. In this solar system lesson, students design a scale model of the sun using plasticine.

Students measure shadows and explore the altitude of the sun.  In this sun lesson students will graph the length of shadows and solar altitude against time.