Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Magic School Bus: The Wild Whale Watch Lesson Plan

For Teachers K - 3rd
Learners research information about whales. In this early childhood lesson plan, students create an illustration of a whale to display in a sea scene in the classroom. Learners then use the library and internet to research a whale of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Get to Know a Fish

For Teachers Pre-K - 8th
Learners discover the anatomy of a fish by identifying its body parts.  In this oceanography lesson, students view a live fish in their classroom and draw a poster of the fish one body part at a time while identifying it....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classification of the Nearby Trees

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders practice using classification techniques to identify local trees.  In this plant life instructional activity, 3rd graders discuss how trees differ from other plants and what characteristics are unique to trees alone....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Lives in the Forest?

For Teachers K
Students investigate nearby forests and record their interactions with trees as well as wild life.  In this ecology lesson, students read the book, In the Woods: Who's Been Here?, and attend class observational field trips through...
Lesson Plan
Sea World

Ocean Discovery

For Teachers Pre-K - K
Immerse your young marine biologists in the world of marine animals. The lesson includes several activities that are age-appropriate for preschoolers and kindergartners, including coloring pages, gluing feathers and sand onto paper...
Lesson Plan
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NASA

The Discovery of Jupiter Radio Waves

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Lead your class on a journey to the planet Jupiter and provide them with fun facts in the process. Learners explore radio waves emitted by Jupiter to further understand how this data helps our daily lives. They conclude by discussing...
Lesson Plan
Science Matters

Plot Study

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Small groups investigate plots of land to discover how abiotic and biotic factors interact. After recording their findings, scholars share observations with peers and self-reflect on the learning process. 
Lesson Plan
Science Matters

That’s An Otter Story

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scientists discover how sea otters' habitats have changed due to human impact. Through conversation, video observation, and story reading, scholars identify how human interactions change a specific ecosystem in both positive and...
Lesson Plan
Agriculture in the Classroom

Roll of the Genes

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Animal reproduction in sheep and cattle is explored with the help of Punnet squares. Scholars employ tools using probability to conclude the color of wool a sheep's offspring will have. Acting as animal geneticists, pupils then take...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Beach Zonation

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students explore biology by participating in an organism identification activity. In this beach field trip lesson, students identify the different areas of the beach in which organisms reside and discuss the differences between high tide...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Marine Field Trip to Whytecliff Park

For Teachers K - 3rd
Pupils study the intertidal habitat, tidal pools and the organisms that live in them.  In this aquatic ecosystems instructional activity students take a field trip and experience first hand the local seashore environment. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Investigate Pine Creek!

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Young scholars are invited to become detectives in this Web-Integrated Science Environment (WISE) as they explore a local creek, its environment and ongoing status. Students participate in field trips, acquisition of data through water...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Nature Walk

For Teachers K
Students participate in a mini field trip around the neighborhood to observe nature and changes that are occurring during fall. They collect leaves of various colors, shapes and sizes on their trip. Upon return to the classroom, they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Animal Movement in Water

For Teachers 1st - 6th
Students explore oceanography by participating in field trip activities. In this fish characteristics lesson plan, students attend a trip to a local beach or reservoir and collect different specimens in order to examine them. Students...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science and the Envrionment

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers utilize a digital camera to record interesting objects in their environment.  In this ecology lesson plan, students participate in a mini-field trip around their campus as they take 2-3 pictures of the school...
Lesson Plan
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NOAA

Exploring Potential Human Impacts

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Arctic sea ice reflects 80 percent of sunlight, striking it back into space; with sea ice melting, the world's oceans become warmer, which furthers global warming. These activities explore how humans are impacting ecosystems around the...
Lesson Plan
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Purdue University

Design of a Green Roof

For Teachers 4th Standards
Help scholars develop a green thumb by building a green roof. Groups first grow lettuce seeds under normal conditions, then they try to grow the seeds in trays that are slanted by 45 degrees. They learn about tropism and engineering...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Adaptation and Diversity on Sheffield Island

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Written for an exploration of shoreline ecosystems on Sheffield Island, this gives ecology or marine biology buffs a hands-on experience. Using GPS or visual triangulation techniques, they lay transect lines on a high and a low energy...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Habitats

For Teachers 1st
First graders investigate animal habitats. In this habitats instructional activity, 1st graders visit the woods to identify examples of food, water, and shelter that animals use to survive.  Students complete a worksheet.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Internet Field Trip: Simple Machines

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars observe and identify the types of simple machines. They conduct research and gather data to increase the comprehension of simple machines. Students identify and comprehend data to complete a graphic organizer and focus...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Weighty Issue

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Want to get your students motivated in science class? Given only a piece of aluminum foil, assign groups the task of designing a "barge" that will support the weight of a bunch of pennies.  The group who is able to put the most...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making Tracks

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students cast animal tracks on a field trip. They split up to capture tracks from different areas and use plaster of Paris to mold to the footprint. They bring casts back to class, create a negative mold and paint it black.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Animal Characteristics

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students investigate the characteristics of animals by creating a chart. In this animal life lesson, students create a KWL chart listing all the different animals a class can name. Students take a field trip to a science facility to get...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Skateboards, Rocket Balloons and Newton's Laws of Motion

For Teachers 2nd - 7th
Students investigate forces. In this laws of motion lesson, students visit the Glasgow Science Center or Techniquest to participate in activities related to the Newton's law of motion.