Ninth graders set up a scale model of the solar system using the same scale for distance and diameter. They calculate scale distances and sizes for modeling the solar system and relate actual distances to difficulties in discovering and...

In 2018, the average fast food burger cost $2.64 while a salad averaged $4.14. Does the price difference matter to public health? Scholars consider that question and others in a brainstorming session about improving our global food...

Ninth graders produce a projected, pinhole image of the sun and from measurement of the image and projection distance, calculate the actual size of the sun. They estimate the sun's apparent brightness from different planet.

Bring the sun to your class! Young scholars analyze actual solar wind data in the second lesson plan of a five-part series. Their analysis includes speed, temperature, and density data.

Approximately 50 percent of people in the world who are chronically hungry work in agriculture. While it seems counter-intuitive, the farther you live from a farm, the more food options are available. Scholars explore concepts related to...

Agriculture, deforestation, and urbanization. How have human's changed the planet and how might we mitigate the effects of human activity on the planet? To answer these questions class members research the changes in human land use from...

Students examine how sand is formed by erosion and that it can be moved by streams, rivers, and ocean currents in this unit of lessons. They study waves and currents, and structures that change how sand moves by creating story charts,...

Astronomy is literally over your head, but this lesson will explain how we study it. Young scientists make telescopes, calculate and compare the light gathering power of lenses, and simulate detection of infared radiation....

Pupils explore the amount of water people use in agriculture and for personal use. They compare water usage for various crops to that of raising animals before considering solutions for increased access to safe drinking water worldwide....

A marine environment covers the majority of the earth but is arguably the least understood. Teach young scientists about the characteristics of oceans and ocean species using an interactive online lesson. The in-person or remote learning...

Students analyze the impact of climate variability and change utilizing a broad span of topics over a wide range of grade levels. This three lesson plan unit is easily adapted for the various instructional levels listed.

Help your class understand the design challenges when trying to land a remote spacecraft on a planet. Class members examine the provided information to understand how each component of a spacecraft is designed in order to safely land a...

The Big Bang Theory is more than a television show. Pupils read how Edwin Hubble observed other galaxies and noticed that the galaxies are moving away from each other. Scholars learn about the idea of the big bang and what happened next...

With global temperatures on the rise faster than ever recorded, the effects of a heating planet could be devastating. Allow learners to discover just what the world is in store for if the warming continues through a series of videos, a...

How do you know there is air? Can you see it, smell it, feel it? To begin the investigation, learners watch a video and discuss what they know about air and the atmosphere. Then, they participate in five different hands-on, inquiry-based...

Write-on! Demonstrate a writing model and support learners as they write an informational essay on a water resource issue of your (or their) choosing. The lesson plan provides a well-scaffolded summative writing...

Students explore the essential components of a habitat, which is food, water, and shelter. They end the lesson by paying the Oh Deer! game.

Groups of students create magazines that contain stories and images of one aspect of the ocean, and ocean life. The expectations for the final products are quite high, so this lesson will require some effort to properly implement. A...

Does the angle of a solar panel change the output? Emerging engineers find out! Demonstrate for your class how they can angle a straw to match the angle of light rays coming from a source. Then turn them loose to experiment with the...

Operating a vehicle remotely can be difficult, especially when the vehicle is on another planet. Young engineers get a feel for some of the real-world challenges as they work to program their rovers (blindfolded group members)...

Water, one of the basic needs of humans, is found in all three states of matter on Earth; no other planet—that we know of—possesses this quality. Here is a unit that allows learners to explore through experimentation what it...

We can learn from the past to protect the future. Pairs look at two historical earthquakes: San Francisco, Calif., and Kobe, Japan. Pupils compare the two earthquakes and their impacts, then determine how engineers may use the...

Fifteen million children under the age of five die each year due to diseases in their drinking water. Water pollution is the topic of lesson 34 in the series of 36. Scholars, through reading and discussing, study numerous aspects of...

The climate at the equator is hotter than the climate at the poles, but why? The lesson goes in depth, explaining how the angles of illumination relate to the heating rate at different latitudes and seasons. Scholars use a strong lamp,...