Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Oh Deer!"

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students play a game where half of them are deer and the others are components of habitat: food, water, shelter and space. They signify their needs by hand gestures and take what they need to their side of the game. They discuss real...
Lesson Plan
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Earth, Moon, Mars Balloons

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students demonstrate size and orbits of Earth, Moon, and Mars. For this space science lesson plan, students will use balloons to show how the size and distance between the planets and satellite compare.
Lesson Plan
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Types of Galaxies

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders take a quiz to review the different objects in space. As a class, they define terms related to galaxies. In groups, they make a model of the Milky Way galaxy using materials provided to them by their teacher. To end the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Beyond The Earth Part I

For Teachers K - 4th
Students explore the solar system. In this space science lesson plan, students take notes on the solar system provided by their instructors. Students then collaborate to design a computer-generated drawing of the solar system.
Lesson Plan
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Solar Relatives

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students examine the solar system by creating a model representation.  In this space science lesson, students research our solar system and the distances between planets.  Students create a model solar system in their gymnasium...
Lesson Plan
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The First Manned Mission To Mars

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers plan the first manned mission to Mars. They discuss, in small groups, some of the information that the group might have heard regarding the red planet and decide which types of occupations should be included in a crew for...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Habitat Mural

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars build a collage of an ecosystem. The goal is for them to understand interactions in a community, plant and animal adaptations, and how all life depends on plants. This activity is based on Wump World and students describe...
Lesson Plan
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Antarctica

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Students explore why Antarctica is so important to the planet. They investigate the physical characteristics. Students create their own unique treaty of governance for Antarctica and discuss how laws are enforced in Antarctica.
Lesson Plan
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Earth and Beyond!

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers investigate one or more of the following topics and develop a plan for the future regarding it: global warming, lunar exploration, space travel, Mars exploration, or terraforming. They disucss the audio files and the...
Lesson Plan
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Exploring the Constellations, a WebQuest Activity

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars explore space science by participating in a class WebQuest. In this constellation identification lesson, students view star charts based on the four seasons and identify the changes our sky goes through in the course of 12...
Lesson Plan
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Sky Pictures

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students investigate constellations. In this space science lesson plan, students view transparencies of constellations and identify the zodiac constellations. Students research the legends connected with the constellations.
Interactive
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What is a black hole anyway?

For Students 4th - 6th
In this black holes instructional activity, students answer multiple choice questions about black holes in space. Students complete 4 multiple choice questions.
Lesson Plan
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Properties of Air

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students conduct investigations to demonstrate and learn that air takes up space, and puts pressure, or pushes, on everything around it. They conduct experiments to learn about feeling air pressure and measuring air pressure. Prior to...
Lesson Plan
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An Invisible Pull

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders explain why objects thrown upward falls back to Earth. In this earth science lesson plan, 5th graders identify the forces acting on objects. They discuss why planets do not float in space.
Lesson Plan
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Earth and Sun's Distance

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students consider the shape of the Earth's orbit around the Sun. They view the first segment of Science Court video and use Timeliner software to construct a scale of the distance between the Earth and the Sun.
Lesson Plan
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Global Climate Change

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders investigate the effect of melting glaciers to sea level. In this earth science lesson, 2nd graders simulate the process in the lab by conducting an experiment using ice cubes and clay. They explain the consequences of...
Lesson Plan
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Star Frames

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders study constellations. In this space science lesson, 4th graders discover what makes stars, how bright stars are, and why constellations were created. Students make their own constellation using Saran Wrap and a frame.
Lesson Plan
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Making a Crater

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students examine the characteristics of craters. In this crater lesson, students discover how meteors form craters on planets and moons as they make their own craters and respond to observational questions regarding the...
Lesson Plan
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Rock Around the World

For Teachers 4th - 9th
Students take pictures and write a paragraph about a rock they have found. For this rock lesson plan, students also send their information to the Mars Space Flight Facility.
Lesson Plan
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Stellar Magnitudes

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers analyze the stellar magnitude scale. In this stellar magnitude lesson, students examine the stellar magnitude scale. Middle schoolers predict the Sun's magnitude from various planets.
Worksheet
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My Shadow is following me

For Students 3rd - 5th
In this outer space instructional activity, students read "My Shadow is following me" and learn about the Solar System and how shadows are created. They then complete the 2 students tasks and answer the 5 questions in the packet. The...
Lesson Plan
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Solar System: Let's Take a Trip

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders consider outer space. In this introductory solar system lesson, 3rd graders complete a KWL chart and listen to the story The Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System, by Joanna Cole & Bruce Degen. They will contribute...
Lesson Plan
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The Impact

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students study different inventors and inventions.  In this invention introduction lesson students pretend that they are an inventor and come up with their own invention.  
Lesson Plan
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The Planets Terra Firma

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the theories of the creation of the universe and examine the properties of celestial bodies. They analyze the relationship between the sun, Earth and the other planets.