Curated OER
A Community Decision!
Students investigate waste management through a simulated role-playing activity. They use a decision chart to organize their presentatioins and justify their decisions.
Curated OER
Think Before You Toss
Students sort a variety of trash items and determine thier sorting decisions.
Curated OER
What type of soil do worms like?- An Investigation
Students study four types of soil and predict which one worms would use for their habitat. They observe worms in each type of soil and monitor their activity. They create class charts highlighting their discoveries.
Curated OER
Planting A Garden On Campus
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...
Curated OER
Worms in a Bottle
Students gain a better understanding of the worm and its role in the recycling of organic materials into simpler forms by constructing worm bottles and observing for 60 to 90 days.
Curated OER
It’s Your Trash!
Students identify the different sections of a landfill. In this ecology lesson plan, students brainstorm ways that they can help in proper trash disposal. They write a reflection journal about their thoughts on the subject.
Curated OER
Recycled Water?
Young scholars participate in a hands-on activity to investigate how water is recycled in a small environment, and determine how water is cycled on earth.
Curated OER
Night Creatures of the Kalahari
Learners conduct an experiment to demonstrate how fruit fly populations are controlled by spiders. They observe a variety of environments with fruit flies and spiders and consider how vital spiders are to controlling the insect population.
Curated OER
Watching Waste Rot
Students investigate what types of materials decompose, and at what speeds.
Curated OER
Trash or Treasure?
Pupils discover why, how, and where they should recycle or reuse what they throw away.
Curated OER
What is This Toy Truck Made Of?
Students explore how many resources are used to make objects. This exploration should lead to the discovery that everything is made from a natural resource after listing all the raw materials needed to produce it.
Curated OER
A Recipe for Soil
Fourth graders use local materials such as leaves and other plant matter; sand and pebbles to make soil. They plant seeds in the manufactured soil and in natural soil and then observe and record the results.
Curated OER
Conservation Collage
Students identify many different ways the environment is polluted, and determine ways to prevent pollution. They create a collage of pictures describing how the earth becomes polluted.
Curated OER
What's Happening Below The Surface?
Students determine the soil composition of soil layers in their area. They collect soil samples, calculate the percentage soil water content, analyze data, and evaluate each site for future tree growth.
Curated OER
Roots Need Oxygen
Students investigate the growth of plants in soil with oxygen and soil without oxygen. They discuss what roots need to survive, and chart the growth of two plants to analyze the difference between plain soil and soil with two earthworms.
Curated OER
Odyssey of Life, Part II-The Unknown World
Young scholars complete an experiment in which they observe different natural sample in which they uncover the microbial world. They complete a two part worksheet that accompanies the lesson.
Curated OER
Save the Planet!
Third graders explore the Recycle City Web site. They examine ways to save the environment. They write a short interview between a news reporter and an environmental expert. They practice acting out their news report.
Curated OER
Grow Your Own
Students study the growth and care of plants. They take tour of their school site and plant seeds to observe their growth. Afterward, they answer questions about the origin and value of their plants.
Curated OER
Habitat Choice in Woodbugs
Students investigate woodbugs. In this scientific investigation activity, students explore the steps scientists take when conducting an investigation using live specimens. Students explore habitat preferences for woodbugs in various...
Curated OER
Tag the Germs
Students review what happens when they wipe germs off their hands with a wet wipe. Next, they play a game of tag in which some students are germs and others are wipes. They move around while music plays, stop when it stops, and the wipes...
Curated OER
Rhyme at Circle Time
Students study the importance of clean hands and practice the literacy skills of listening, matching, auditory discrimination, vocabulary, and rhyming. They illustrate their rhyme chart with drawings or photos taken doing the different...
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
Tceq: Lesson Plans & Resources for Teaching Environmental Sciences [Pdf]
A large collection of lesson plans on environmental topics. The lessons are broken up into the broad categories of air, water, and waste, and look at issues around quality, pollution, conservation, and recycling. There are activities for...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: 3 Rc (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Compost)
In this instructional activity, students expand their understanding of solid waste management to include the idea of 3RC (reduce, reuse, recycle and compost). They will look at the effects of packaging decisions (reducing) and learn...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Solid Waste Takes Over
In this lesson, learners explore solid waste and its effects on the environment. They will collect classroom trash for analysis and build model landfills in order to understand the process and impact of solid waste management. Students...