Curated OER
Children's Health on the Decline
Demonstrate the importance of children's health with this cross-curricular lesson, which includes elements from health and science as well as expository writing. Middle schoolers develop realistic and obtainable one week health and...
The New York Times
Writing Fiction Based on Real Science - NYTimes.com
Refuse to alienate your scientific-minded young scholars during your creative writing unit. Learners explore how literary writing can reflect observable fact, and be based in actual science. The links include examples of fiction and...
Curated OER
Environmental Harmony
Learners use information from a variety of media to evaluate different artists' views on the human relationship to nature. From these sources, class discussion, and personal experience, students will synthesize a thoughtful,...
Workforce Solutions
A Colony for Lunar Living
Two lessons explore the possibility of living on the moon. First, scholars read various scenarios to identify which careers would best transfer to life in space. Finally, pupils examine a website to locate items made for outer space,...
Curated OER
Adventure Writing: Oregon's Landscape as a Setting
Students identify geographical features of different regions encountered by migrants on the Oregon trail. Students research how the Oregon landscape may have affected life and 19th century westward migration. Students write a narrative...
K20 LEARN
No Imitations, Please! Avoiding Plagiarism
With all the stuff available online, good essays are just a click away. But talk about tracking! Writers beware! New tech can now identify plagiarism, and the consequences of presenting someone else's work as your own are severe. Here's...
Science 4 Inquiry
Rocks Makin' Rocks: Rock Cycle Simulation
Scholars review prior knowledge before completing a hands-on simulation of the rock cycle. They write stories or songs summarizing their simulations to demonstrate mastery.
Curated OER
Keeping Your Heart in Good Shape: What are the Benefits? - Biology Teaching Thesis
Learners name the main parts of the heart and what events occur there. They write a reaction that contains complete sentences, and uses proper spelling and grammar, after viewing a video. Students define the following terms: contraction,...
Curated OER
Writing an Essay- The Circulatory System
Fifth graders write an essay. In this writing lesson, 5th graders research the circulatory system and organize their notes into an outline. Students write an informational essay on the circulatory system.
Curated OER
Learning About Hurricanes
Students write a research paper on hurricanes. In this weather lesson, students use a science text book to write down facts about hurricanes on note cards and then outline their essay. Students use the outline to create an organized essay.
WindWise Education
Where Do You Put a Wind Farm?
This is not your ordinary farm! Using a case study, small groups study two proposed locations for a wind farm. After researching all the information about the sites, the groups choose a site. Each team member writes up the proposal...
Curated OER
Writing About Winter
Students investigate the concept of winter as a season and they write an essay as a reflection upon the acquiring of new information. The class should have a list of vocabulary or a word wall available for observation to aid in the...
Curated OER
Down in the Dumps
After an introduction to municipal sludge, middle school ecologists consider the pros and cons of dumping in the Hudson River Canyon. The class is split into two groups: one to debate in favor or dumping and one to debate against the...
PBS
Stories of Painkiller Addiction: Learning About Opioids
Feeling high is not the only side effect of abusing prescription opioids. Middle and high schoolers learn more about specific painkillers, including Fentanyl, Oxycodone, and Clonazepam, as well as their common brand names and extensive...
National Math + Science Initative
Reading an Informational Text: "It All Started with Sputnik"
Sputnik was one of the greatest scientific advancements of the 1950s, and this reading lesson does it justice. Pupils start off with pre-reading questions and a video. They then read an excerpt from an article, which is accompanied by...
Curated OER
Ag in My Community; Agriculture
Students build knowledge about agriculture as it relates to their communities' commodities. In this agriculture lesson, students brainstorm about conditions in their community with regards to growing different types of crops. Students...
Scholastic
Final Project: The Earth, Inside Earth
Follow in Jules Verne's footsteps and take a journey to the center of the earth! Middle schoolers work together to design a trip inside the earth using their knowledge from the previous lessons in the unit.
PHET
Features of the Sun
There are so many things to discover about the sun! Pupils discuss their knowledge of the sun, explore its features, apply their knowledge by labeling photographs, and then reflect on their learning by working in groups to draw and label...
National Energy Education Development Project
Great Energy Debate
If someone yelled for eight years and eight months, they could produce enough energy to heat one cup of coffee. A lesson on energy encourages scholars to research 10 different energy sources in groups before playing a game. Twenty...
Curated OER
If I Were the Wind
Eighth graders are introduced to authors in the conservation community. As a class, they describe a personal experience they have had with nature. They identify examples of an author's descriptive writing techniques and answer questions...
WE Charity
High School–Module 3: Food Waste
Advances in packaging and refrigeration help keep food fresher longer. That's just one of the ways science is addressing global food waste. With the third of five lessons from the WE Are Innovators—High School Modules set, scholars use...
WE Charity
High School–Module 5: Transportation Solutions
Planes, trains, and automobiles ... the abundance of today's transportation options comes at a hefty price. Using the fifth and final lesson plan from the WE Are Innovators—High School Modules set, pupils explore how modern...
Kenan Fellows
Determining Stream Health by the Diversity and Types of Benthic Organisms
How diverse are the benthic organisms found in local streams? Using the information learned in previous lessons on identification of macroinvertebrates and on calculating stream index values, groups determine the health of local streams....
Curated OER
Building a Mini-park And Bird Sanctuary Lesson 3: Location, Location, Location
Students work cooperatively using the democratic process to select a place for a park. They identify how the garden in the park will look. They write a five paragraph essay as an assessment.