Columbus City Schools
Earthly Waves
How did scientists discover what lies beneath the earth's surface? Dig a hole? X-ray vision? Guide your class through the types of seismic waves and how these waves helped shed light on Earth's many layers. The included resources provide...
NOAA
Ocean Layers I
How is it possible for ocean water to have layers? The sixth installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program investigates factors that cause different water densities to occur. Experiments...
University of Minnesota
Sheep Brain Dissection
Bored with frog and earthworm dissections? Had your fill of fetal pigs? Anatomy students will be intrigued by the sheep's brain, and you will be prepared with guiding questions, extension activities, and pictures as they dissect one —...
American Physiological Society
Feeling the Heat
How do the changing seasons affect the homes where we live? This question is at the forefront of engineering and design projects. Challenge your physical science class to step into the role of an architect to build a model home capable...
Curated OER
Human Body Series - Respiratory System
Elementary schoolers play a respiratory relay toss in order to take in the respiratory system! They also create their own question cards based on several kid-friendly online articles about breathing and the health of the lungs. They use...
Vosonos
Interactive Minds: Solar System
Travel through space as you learn about the galaxy, solar system, planets, and much more. An extensive resource for studying astronomy in upper-elementary and middle school classrooms.
American Physiological Society
Thermal Insulators: Keep it Hot!
There's nothing like a cup of hot chocolate on a chilly winter's day. Except for when that hot chocolate quickly becomes lukewarm chocolate ... or even cold chocolate. What material provides the best insulation to keep the chocolate from...
American Physiological Society
Why is Kettle Corn Cooked in Copper Pots?
The kitchen — it's not just for eating anymore! Specific heat is often a difficult concept to grasp, so give it context by relating it to cooking. Learners gain experience in the principles of thermal energy transfer by designing an...
American Physiological Society
Sit On It
How do product designers come up with the variety of things we see in stores and on TV every day? They identify a need, then create something that meets that need. Sounds simple, right? A two-week lesson puts seventh graders in that role...
Curated OER
Earth's Water
If the majority of our planet is covered with water, why do we need to bother conserving it? With a thorough and varied investigation into the location and types of water on the earth, learners will gain an understanding of why this...
NOAA
Mapping the Ocean Floor: Bathymetry
Bathymetry is not a measure of the depths of bathtubs! Through the three lessons, scholars explore two different types of maps and how they are made. The resource focuses on topographic and bathymetric maps and teaching the techniques...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
The Day the Mesozoic Died
While this is not the traditional, step-by-step lesson plan, it is chock-full of material that you can easily incorporate into your earth history unit. Its main purpose is to serve as a guide to using a three-part film, The Day the...
T. Trimpe
Atomic Basics
Get down to basics with these worksheets on the structure of atoms. Challenging young chemists to identify information from the periodic table and create Bohr diagrams and Lewis dot structures for different elements, this resource would...
University of Florida
The Magic School Bus and the Electric Field Trip
Energize a shared reading of the Magic School Bus and the Electric Field Trip with this collection of supplemental materials. Whether your looking for discussion questions, reading comprehension worksheets, or writing prompts, this...
Lerner Publishing
Teaching Habitats
What makes up a habitat? Use this resource to engage first graders in the exploration of desert, wetland, forest, and ocean habitats. Youngsters classify plants and animals into the four distinct habitats through drawings and cutting and...
NOAA
The Biogeochemical Cycle
The biogeochemical cycle ... no physics? The fourth installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program introduces the biogeochemical cycle by having pupils simulate movement between Earth's...
Columbus City Schools
What’s Up with Matter?
Take a "conservative" approach to planning your next unit on mass and matter! What better way to answer "But where did the gas go?" than with a lab designed to promote good report writing, research skills, and detailed observation. The...
Serendip
Diffusion and Cell Size and Shape
Is your class ready to size up the topic of diffusion? Help them get cell shape savvy with a well-written handout. The resource covers how substances such as oxygen passively move through the cell membrane and how cell size and shape...
International Technology Education Association
Team Up on the Weather
There's a little bit about every aspect of weather in this trivia game. The lesson resource provides 36 questions and answers pertaining to four different topics related to weather: effects, science, technology, and statistics. Groups...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Recent Adaptations in Humans
You've probably spent plenty of time discussing animal adaptations with your young biologists, but what about human adaptations? Explore the evolving traits of humankind through an interactive that combines text and video clips. Scholars...
NOAA
Ocean Exploration
Where am I? The second installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program starts with pupils guessing the years in which major ocean exploration events took place. The instructional activity then...
NOAA
Sediments
Calcareous ooze ... what an interesting name! The 15th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on sediments found on the ocean floor. After viewing the slideshow lecture,...
Kenan Fellows
The Little Stuff Can Make a Big Difference
Great things come in small packages! What better way to illustrate this point than a week-long look at nanotechnology? Earth science scholars explore water quality issues through lab activities, then research new innovations in nanotech...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Unit 4 Pre-Assessment
Pre-assessments are great to help teachers determine what information their classes lack, what misconceptions they have, and how in depth to teach specific concepts. The first in a five-part series is a pre-assessment of middle...