After reading about the history of tape dispensers, learners compare and contrast different dispenser designs. Next, teams work within budgetary and time constraints to design a better dispenser. When finished, each engineer reflects on...

Students discover how capacitors help store data.  In this computer science lesson, students investigate how capacitors can store an electronic charge, eventually helping computers store data.  Students create their own...

Improve your youngsters' descriptive writing. They study an object and write about what they see as a warm-up, then they read an excerpt from Paul Guest's memoir, One More Theory about Happiness. The next part of the...

Though they be but little, they are fierce! Young biologists read about eight different species of ants, and discover how the anatomy of their heads can explain the way they live and what they eat.

Help your class get out of a sticky situation! Future engineers explore existing tape dispensers and then design a new system for dispensing tape. To put these systems to the test, they build and evaluate prototypes of their designs.

Students take a field trip to a local prairie. Using identification books, they identify various forbs and grasses in the prairie. As a class, they discuss the importance of forbs and grasses to the ecosystem and review the various types...

If students use and store kitchen equipment appropriately as well as utilize sanitary work habits, the foods laboratory will be a safe and easy place to work. See Preface Materials: As a motivator ask: "Why should I worry whether or not...

First graders examine and identify parts of an apple.  In this biology lesson, 1st graders cut an apple in half and locate all the parts, use the apple halves as stamps, and create a bar graph displaying which apple types the...

Students create Mexican Pottery Clay project. In this natural history/art lesson students construct their own clay bird. Students make connections between visual arts and reading to follow directions. Students also reflect...

Students identify tree species by their leaf characteristics. In this dendrology lesson, students learn leaf vocabulary and collect leaves. They identify the leaves using the leaf characteristics and the vocabulary that they learned.

Second graders explore erosion and find the factors effecting erosion of hillsides.   In this erosion lesson, 2nd graders experiment by creating a hillside and simulating rain.  Students discuss and record their results on...

Students, in groups, record at least four pieces of equipment that fit a specified category as well as a safety tip to observe when using the equipment.

Pupils explain the concepts of charge storage and how a capacitor works. They construct a capacitor and measure the stored charge using the appropriate equipment and measurements. They also demonstrate capacitance and how it can be...

Pupils create a model or drawing of a shark species showing its specific adaptations. In small groups, they research the shark species on the internet looking for adaptations of teeth, body shape, coloration and fins. There is a...

Students are introduced to different types of owls and owl pellets. They list several adaptations that benefit the owls. Students identify the various species of owl that live in Wisconsin. Students discuss owl pellets and identify the...

Learners discover how to identify trees.  In this research instructional activity students use dendrology to decipher what a trees classification is and explore each trees traits. 

Third graders read the story The Stolen Smell, and complete language arts activities based on the book. In this The Stolen Smell lesson plan, 3rd graders complete activities such as discussion, reading, researching, drawing, role...

In this tree identification lesson, 2nd graders read A Tree is Growing, discuss what makes up a forest, brainstorm characteristics of leaves, gather samples of leaves and examine their samples. Students will sort leaves and compare them...

Students find uses for old or discarded items (recycling) by making puppets.

Fifth graders engage in a tasty lesson which assist them with proportional measurements. They use a given recipe written for 12 servings, and use a chart to determine the ingredient amounts for 30 servings (or number of students in class).

Students discuss the names of the people who work on various stuctures. They examine the many different roles people in construction can have. They match tools with the correct job and sing songs about workers.

Second graders examine the formation of fossils and list the different types. They make cast model of a dinosaur fossil. They write about conditions that are necessary for fossils to form and create a model of a buried fossil.

Fifth graders review the definition of mass and volume. They calculate and graph the density of various types of fruit while working in groups on a spreadsheet program. They look at how size of the fruit can be similar but the weight is...

Fifth graders locate the Mississippi River Valley on a map. In groups, they use the internet to research the prehistoric periods of this area. They also examine artifacts and pictures and place them into chronological order. They...