Students develop a flow chart using computer software to show a food chain combination.  In this food chain lesson, students are first read The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry, then they create a story map of the story.  Next,...

Did you know that meat tenderizers contain DNA cutting enzimes? Did you know that you can isolate your own DNA? Or the DNA of fruit? Explore with your learners the DNA world with a series of experiments using readily available materials...

In this soil learning exercise, students complete 2 pages about the importance of soil in plant growth. Kids read about red worms and answer 2 questions about composting. Students fill out a chart with their observations of plants...

Let's see how complicated we can make this simple task. The last activity associated with a 10-part series has groups design and build a Rube Goldberg machine. Teams determine a simple task to accomplish and use the engineering design...

Every great scientist knows that the process of inquiry is a very important skill. Provide your learners with visual impairments with an opportunity to explore objects scientifically. They examine several pieces of fruit and generate...

Teams use the design process to design, build, and test a model levee to protect the town from a wall of water. A handout provides a price list for the materials learners can use to build their levee within a budget.

Collaborative groups examine the importance of energy resources on quality of life by researching different energy sources and alternative energy sources through data analysis. They make a comparison of different countries and cultures,...

Would you believe that your digestive system stretches to five times your height?! Help your pupils to understand this relationship as they work through the laboratory exercise. The first instructional activity of a 12-part series is a...

When your parents say that your room's a pig sty, tell them about biomimicry. The sixth installment of a nine-part Life Science unit has scholars research the shelters used by animals in the natural world, like turtle shells. Using the...

Boost observational skills with an inquiry-based lesson that takes scholars on a virtual field trip. With help from webcams, learners observe animals in a zoo or aquarium. Observations go into a journal and a discussion is held to review...

Friends arrive at the farm and aspiring agronomists help the farmer to grow what the friends want. With adorable animation and charming background music, little ones practice virtual gardening and farming while developing cognitive...

What is the main difference between an engineer and a technician?  This is one of the driving questions in a plan that proves that analysis at every step of development is crucial to the engineering design process. The lesson...

Small but mighty! Learners explore the role of microbes in a healthy ecosystem. An engaging lesson asks pupils to design an aquaponics system that demonstrates that healthy microbes are necessary to maintain the ecosystem.

All of the people in your class would agree that life would be different without the invention of the telephone! Study Alexander Graham Bell's most famous and influential invention through the primary source document of his...

See firsthand the work plants do to move nutrients through their systems with a lesson that demonstrates the role of the xylem and phloem in plants. Young scientists observe celery move colored water through its stem to the leaves and...

Inquiry-based learning and investigations form the basis of a deep understanding of quadratic functions in a very thorough unit plan.  Learners develop recursive and closed methods for representing real-life situations,...

Students research the evolution of a volcanic island from origin to erosion. They determine the relative ages of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands given their position in the archipelago.

Life science learners view an online animated mini textbook comparing two types of cell division. Working in groups, they use a digital microscope to capture images of cells in different stages of mitosis and meiosis. Then they create an...

Middle schoolers have years of experience when it comes to how their bodies work. Surely they have some questions as well. Here is an opportunity for them to practice the scientific method in an attempt to answer some of those questions....

Students examine cell division and the process of mitosis.  In this cell reproduction instructional activity students grow yeast and observe the results, and learn about the career of scientific illustration. 

Students investigate the decomposition process. In this ecology lesson, students participate in a play, "Up the Treehouse" where the main idea focuses on a decomposing tree and how food chains are effected by decomposition. After the...

Explore the business side of careers in zoological or marine parks. Learners use the internet, field trips, and their research skills to develop an understanding of what skills are needed to work in an animal park environment.

Students are introduced to the process of photosynthesis. In groups, they test the effects of the lack of sunlight on plant leaves and compare the results with their hypothesis. They note the characteristics that plants and animals share...

After reading an article on the alfalfa leafcutting bee, learners chart its characteristics alongside those of the honeybee. Then they draw the leafcutter lifecycle. The article provides fascinating reading when studying the role of...