Lesson Plan
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Beautiful Soil

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners discover what are the components of soil. They examine how it is formed and it's importance. They engage in garden activities and processes. They hold a handful of garden soil and describe what they see. They take a...
Lesson Plan
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Playground Greenup

For Teachers 1st - 4th
Students document changes in the playground vegetation during the year by making drawings or taking digital photographs of grass, trees, bushes, weeds, and other vegetation. They study how the color of vegetation changes during different...
Lesson Plan
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Biology: Cells and Chemical Changes

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the numerous functions of cells in both plants and animals. Following a pre-assessment, they construct cell models and examine onion cell slides stained with iodine or dye. After participating in experiments on how to...
Lesson Plan
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Plant Observation and Morphology

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students use plant specimens to explore how to recognize differences in plant morphology and to develop a vocabulary to describe these differences. They brainstorm: What is a plant? What parts do plants have? What is a leaf? Students...
Lesson Plan
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Plant Identification: New Jersey vs. Ecuador

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders discover the different plants that grow in different climates through specimen collections.  In this botany lesson, 6th graders examine plants from both New Jersey and Ecuador and discuss what conditions could create...
Lesson Plan
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Plant an Ozone Monitoring Garden

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students create a garden.  In this ozone lesson plan, students discuss ozone injury, identify plants sensitive to ozone, and then plant their own ozone garden.
Lesson Plan
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Seed Socks

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Young scholars explore how seeds travel. In this seed disbursement lesson, students head outside in their bare socks. Young scholars walk around then before going inside they take the socks off and examine what their socks picked up. As...
Lesson Plan
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The Discovery of Photosynthesis

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners explore how scientists discover photosynthesis. In this biology lesson, students identify the basic requirements for photosynthesis to happen. They recreate past scientists' experiments and record their observations.
Lesson Plan
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Seeds & Germination

For Teachers 1st - 12th
Students study the types and parts of seeds and how they have evolved.  In this germination lesson students complete experiments that show the effects of variables role in seed germination. 
Lesson Plan
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I See a Coyote

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students role-play coyotes looking for natural resources.  In this natural resources lesson, students examine the relationship between animal life and the environment.  Students play a game that demonstrates how natural...
Lesson Plan
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A Day on the Farm

For Teachers 1st
First graders, with a collection of various art supplies, plant a seed to observe it growing and record specific data on a data record sheet. They create a collage from various magazines of ten different foods farm animals eat and make a...
Lesson Plan
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Structure of Seeds and Effects of Fertilizer on Plant Growth

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Investigate the structure of seeds and the effects of fertilizer on the growth of plants. Young scientists observe a peanut and determine if it is a monocot or dicot plant. They plant seeds and make varying solutions of fertilizer, then...
Lesson Plan
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Rice Farming in Texas

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders explore how rice farming came to Texas. In this rice farming instructional activity, 3rd graders discover the history of how farmers began to grow rice in the United States. Students color code maps and create a timeline...
Lesson Plan
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Make Your Own Newspaper Plant Pots

For Teachers K - 4th
Students make plant pots out of newspaper as part of a recycle, reuse, and reduce instructional activity. In this recycling instructional activity, students fold a piece of newspaper to make a pot in which to start plants. They fill it...
Lesson Plan
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Let's Get Carried Away

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students discover how seeds travel from their parent plants in search of water, sunlight, and nutrients, and conduct experiments in which they note characteristics that encourage seed dispersal by means of wind, water, animal carriers,...
Lesson Plan
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Feed Me, Seymour

For Teachers 6th - 11th
Students work in small groups to create posters illustrating the major facts and functions of plant organs. Within their groups, they assume the role of specialists creating specialized posters pertaining to the different parts of plants.
Lesson Plan
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Investigation 3 - Weathering

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders study 4 types of weather processes: wind, running water, plant growth, and freezing water. They explain how the processes of weathering and erosion change and move materials that become soil. They draw diagrams...
Lesson Plan
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Water Supply

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders complete three activities. In this water supply lesson, 4th graders learn that water can exist in different forms and watch a demonstration of each form. Students explore the water cycle and make a water cycle using the...
Lesson Plan
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Managing Ecosystems

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students take a closer look at managing ecosystems in Britain. In this geography skills lesson, students determine how applying climax vegetation theories to the Salisbury Plain have helped or hindered the area.
Lesson Plan
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Acid Rain

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Learners understand the dynamics of acid rain and its impact on the living and non-living environment. They hypothesize how acid rain affects water pH levels in two lake systems with differing watershed features.
Lesson Plan
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Chemistry in Soil-Plant Relationship

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students apply the science of chemistry to soil and plant relationships. They define diffusion and indicate for which of these nutrient(s) would you expect diffusion to be the most important for movement to the plant root? Pupils...
Lesson Plan
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Wiggley Worms

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students investigate how worms affect plant growth.  In this biology lesson, students construct a worm ecosystem in a plastic 2 liter bottle and plant a seed in the soil.  They later compare the ecosystems with worms to ones...
Lesson Plan
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In The Zone

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders identify ways that ocean animals grow, survive, reproduce, and adapt. They use computer Internet skills to acces and collect information. They create a PowerPoint presentation. They demonstrate writing skills throughthe...
Lesson Plan
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On The Farm

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Students study a dairy farm and also the crops that grow on farms. They research how we depend on farms to get the food we eat. They transform their findings and describe one the farms or make up their own. They turn the information...