NOAA
Vertebrates II
Mammals of the ocean unite! Or not. The 20th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program investigates how warm-blooded marine mammals survive in water. In the class activity, learners use...
NOAA
Ocean Layers II
Now that you know the ocean has layers, let's name them. The seventh installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program covers terminology associated with ocean layers, such as thermocline and...
EduGAINs
Chemical Properties Investigation
This instructional activity demonstrates differentiated instruction at its best. Over the course of 2-3 class periods, young chemists have the opportunity to gain a thorough understanding of metals and their chemical properties from a...
Maine Math & Science Alliance
Earth as a System
Ecosystem, human body system, weather system. We hear the word system a lot, but what does it really mean? In the activity, pairs or groups of learners discuss how a bicycle is a system and then analyze objects in their classroom and...
NOAA
El Niño
El Nino, La Nina ... and the Santa Maria? The 11th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program explains the mechanism of El Nino/Southern Oscillation. Pupils use previous data to determine...
Curated OER
Insurance Quotes
You're in high school and you just got the coolest car ever! But, now you need to start thinking about car insurance. Luckily, your teacher prepared you by engaging you in a life skills lesson plan like this one. The class actually calls...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Radio Reception and Transmission
After reading about radio transmission, application, and the difference between AM and FM, small teams of engineers use a kit to construct an FM radio and then send and receive broadcasts. This is an ideal activity for middle school STEM...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Vocabulary: Word Meaning, Inside Information
Support the acquisition of content area vocabulary with this foldable resource. With space for studying three new terms, pupils determine the definition, write a sentence, and provide examples for each word.
Bethel School District
Observations and Inference
What's the difference between qualitative and quantitative observations? Learners make observations, inferences, and predictions about their environment with a set of questions and activities that are applicable to either language...
Curated OER
Fly Detective
Learners use classification skills and clues to determine which flying insect is the one they need to circle. They read four clues and examine each of the five insects depicted. They then deduce which one is the mystery insect. Answers...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Vocabulary: Word Meaning, Word Wrap
Support young learners' acquisition of new vocabulary with this pair of graphic organizers. Using context clues and reference materials, children complete each section of the activity, including the definition, synonyms, examples and...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Mapping Genes to Traits in Dogs Using SNPs
Genetic analysis has gone to the dogs! Learners use real DNA information collected from dog saliva to study the relationship between genotypes and phenotypes. They analyze alleles to determine correlations to coat color, length, and...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Testing a Hypothesis
Are sickle cell disease and malaria related somehow? Scholars learn about both illnesses and the hypotheses that they are related. They discuss, view a video, and answer questions to demonstrate understanding. The resource includes an...
Agriculture in the Classroom
A Rafter of Turkeys
How did that turkey get from the early Aztec culture to your table? Learn about the history of wild and domesticated turkeys in North America, as well as their inclusion in Thanksgiving traditions, with a two-part agricultural science...
Curated OER
How Does Your Garden Grow? Discovering How Weather Patterns Affect Natural Cycles
For the warm-up in this cool climate lesson, you will need to click on "Mapping" and then "US Mapping" once you arrive at NOAA's "US Climate at a Glance" page. Earth science explorers realize that 2012 was a warm winter for us. They read...
National Wildlife Federation
Bird Behavior Hike
Bird behaviors have a distinct purpose. Using a tally sheet, learners observe and record different bird behaviors in nature. They practice their observation skills while learning how birds act and why.
National Wildlife Federation
Watershed Web: A Field Trip
Observing plant succession doesn't have to be a decade long process. A hands-on lesson has groups study succession over a designated space. Learners use their observation skills to record differences in plant and soil characteristics in...
National Institute of Open Schooling
Chemical Equilibrium
Le Chatelier's interest in thermodynamics and building materials such as cement and plaster led to the Le Chatelier Principle in 1884. Activity 13 in a series of 36 extensively explores chemical equilibrium. Learners read about...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Visualizing Gene-Expression Patterns
How do genetics gurus know so much about gene expression? See traits materialize before your very eyes using a presentation with embedded simulations. Science scholars develop an understanding of the techniques used to follow the work of...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Calculating Iridium Fallout from an Asteroid Impact
Should we be afraid of a large asteroid impact on Earth today? Young scientists estimate the size and composition of an asteroid similar to the one that caused the K-T mass extinction. They apply algebraic formulas to answer questions...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Natural Selection and Evolution of Rock Pocket Mouse Populations
Can evolution repeat itself? Scholars analyze amino acid data in two separate populations of mice. They learn that evolution repeats itself, but natural selection prefers some mutations over others in different environments. Analysis...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Discovering the Wallace Line
When studying locations of specific species, interesting patterns emerge. Young scholars discover this as they plot the location of specific species on a group of islands. Patterns emerge as they identify the Wallace Line. They then...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Pulse Chase Primer: The Meselson-Stahl Experiment
Experimental design can make or break an experiment. Young scholars analyze the pulse-chase analysis procedure by studying the Meselson-Stahl experiment. Using a video presentation, they discover how the pulse-chase analysis led to the...
National Wildlife Federation
Call of the Wild: Grades K-4
The sound a frog makes lets people know what it's up to. A two-part lesson begins by discussing the life cycle of a frog and the individual stages with drawings. The second part has learners listen to the frogs' different sounds and what...