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Trash Disposal Choices

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students investigate the use of landfills. In this landfill use and recycling lesson, students discuss what happens to trash and junk. They review the types of trash before categorizing a list of items they throw away each day. They...
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Crickets on the Hearth

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate how crickets behave in cold temperatures. In this life science lesson, students explain the beneficial and harmful effect of pests. They research ways to properly manage them.
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Changing Matter

For Teachers 1st
First graders investigate the changing states of water.
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"Tri-County" Project--Ground Water

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students explore data on some of the landforms in Nebraska to distinguish between porous and nonpremeable soils. The state's groundwater is investigated.
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Studying with Chemical Compounds

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students create a foldable to help them remember topics on chemical compounds. In this physical science instructional activity, students differentiate ionic and covalent compounds. Given certain compounds, they identify whether it's...
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What's Gotten Into You?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students use models to investigate the process and consequences of water contamination on the land, groundwater, and plants.
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Toxicology 2: Finding the Toxic Dose

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars brainstorm with group partners to decide upon a chemical they would like to test, and outline a procedure for their investigation. They then present in groups their ideas to the rest of the class as well as the chemical...
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Navvies/ Canals

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate the concept of water permeability in order to help find the best material to line a canal. The goal is to find a material that does not allow water to escape. They also conduct an experiment and record the observations.
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An Online Project - Comparing Terrestrial Ecosystems in Different States

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Young scholars investigate the similarities and differences in soils from different states with an analysis of its physical and chemical properties.
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Let's Settle It!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students investigate and record data about sedimentation rates. They make a sedimentation bottle using aquarium gravel, sand and potting soil. They discuss the sedimentation rates that they see in their bottles.
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Environment: A Day Around the Bay

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars examine various scenarios about pollution around bays and discuss their reactions to them. Among the situations they investigate are construction site soil washing into a tributary, oil from motor boats leaking into...
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Wind Distribution of Weed Seeds

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Learners investigate how many seasons it would take for wind to disperse seeds one mile downwind from an initial growth of one spotted knapweed plant. They construct and use a wind tunnel as part of their experiment and graph their results.
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Erosion And the Cycling of Rocks And Minerals

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate the concept of erosion by water in a problem solving activity. In small groups, they are assigned either sand, potting soil or rocks to construct a mountain that will hold up to a sprinkler can of water dripping on...
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The Chemistry of Coal

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students investigate the chemistry of coal. This lesson serves as a review of conservation of mass, simple reactions and equation balancing. During the lesson, students research chemical components of coal, as well as environmental...
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Planting A Garden On Campus

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars investigate the school campus area in order to plan the best spot for a class garden. They create a map of the school and research the different types of soil that exist in order to find the best spot. The class takes the...
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Land Use

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students examine ecosystems that covered Illinois 200 years ago, investigate some living and non-living components of ecosystems, identify components of prairie system, create food webs, and observe human effects on environment. Lessons...
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Changing State

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Pupils participate in an online instructional activity to investigate the effects of cooling and heating on water.
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Forces in Action

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students ask questions that can be investigated scientifically. They determine how to plan a fair test by changing one factor while keeping other factors the same, to use measurements to draw conclusions and use scientific knowledge to...
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Water Quality

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students investigate the water cycle and evaporation. They study the porosity and permeability of groundwater, and the capillary action in soil in this unit.
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Life cycles

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Pupils identify and explain the parts of a flower and their role in the life cycle of flowering plants, including pollination, seed dispersal, and germination. Students recap the following information: that plants need light, warmth, and...
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Changing State

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students identify the changing states of water, water vapor and ice in the water cycle They investigate how each of these stages can be reversible. Students complete a worksheet describing the water cycle.
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De"compost"ition Activity

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate the decomposition process and the parameters which influence the rate at which it occurs. They design a "controlled" experiment by comparing decomposition rates between two compost piles. Analysis questions include...
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What Is Sustainability

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Students investigate the concept of how people are dependent upon natural resources and how they can apply them to be maximized in usefulness. The students are encouraged to develop an appreciation for the environment. They conduct a...
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Archaeology What Gets Preserved?

For Teachers 1st - 12th
Students view a video on a culture and list what would be preserved over time.  In this investigative lesson students study preservation and what gets preserved in different cultures.