In collaborative groups, young ecologists measure the temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen for three different freshwater samples. They examine each sample with a microscope and record observations on the microorganisms in the pond...

The class will examine a series of live or stuffed animals in order to learn how different animals survive in distinctive habitats. As they examine each animal, they will be asked a series of critical thinking questions geared at getting...

Here is a very age appropriate idea that can be stretched, modified, or used as is. Learners review plant parts, discuss pollination, read the story The Tiny Seed, and write a retell sentence. Their sentences describe to way a seed...

Analyze a Happy Meal™ for nutrient content and calories. Blend the contents into "McMush" and use Biuret's solution to test for protein content. There are a few problems with the lesson plan: the resource links are no longer...

Eleventh graders explore the origins of the Prohibition Movement in the United States. In small groups, they analyze the influence of World War I in the passage of the eighteenth amendment. Students explain how different demographics of...

An upper-level biology activity, the comprehensive worksheet found here accompanies a PowerPoint and the video The Making of the Fittest: The Birth and Death of Genes, both of which are linked to through the website. Depending on the...

Middle schoolers complete a writing assessment task to demonstrate their ability to craft a narrative based on a variety of informational texts. They view West of the West's documentary Magic Isle, read three print resources about...

Clever! Earth science learners construct a model of a planet containing a magnetic core. The planet, Terrabagga, is made out of a paper grocery bag, magnets, a dead D battery, and rubber bands. Pictures of each step of the construction...

Make sure that your pupils have mastered complex literary nonfiction by the end of the year and use this resource to help get them to that point. After a brief description of the Common Core standard, a list of age-appropriate...

What causes earthquakes? Second graders learn about stresses from plate movement with a set of hands-on activities. After tracing fault lines on a map with yarn, class members create a paper plate model of Earth to show its layers...

Need some activities to go along with your unit? A collection of hands-on activities from PBS offers opportunities to add to your electricity, sound, and force units. The electricity activities revolve around building a...

The battle of the sexes? Scholars first examine data on hurricane-related deaths and create graphical displays. They then use the data and displays to consider whether hurricanes with female names result in more deaths than hurricanes...

Viewers learn about three different weather measurement tools in installment five of the 10-part Discover Your Changing World series. They build weather vanes to collect data on wind speed, barometers to determine air pressure, and...

How did the environment and natural resources found on the Channel islands influence the culture of the Chumash? Archaeology meets technology in an activity designed for middle schoolers. After viewing West of The West's documentary Once...

Foster's Rule? Allopatric speciation? After watching West of the West's documentary Island Rotation, class members use Venn diagrams to compare endemic species on the Channel Islands with mainland related species. They then create a...

Slide the class into a skewed view. Learners alter the location of the median relative to the mean of a normal curve to create a skew distribution. They compare the curve to a histogram distribution with the same skewness. 

What does the graph mean? Pupils view 10 graphs and determine whether they are possible based on their contexts. The contexts are distance versus time and profit versus time.

Make a volcano erupt in your own classroom! Young scientists use household and craft materials to model and simulate the eruption of a volcano.

Scholars make a model to discover how the force of trade winds over the Pacific Ocean creates an El Niño. Super scientists observe how the severe weather affects life in water and on land. 

Teach your middle schoolers to use their ears to their highest potential! Pupils practice active listening skills and reflect on how careful listening might prove to be important in and out of the classroom.

Help your youngsters find meaning in the text they read with this series of five intervention lessons. Offering explicit, step-by-step instructions for walking children through shared readings of leveled books, these...

Provide young readers with the extra support they need using this series of 10 literacy lessons. Following a repeated sequence of learning activities, these lessons engage children in expanding their vocabulary...