Determine your class's prior knowledge about the necessities of life with this pre-assessment for a unit on living things. Learners draw pictures of themselves with all the things they need to live, grow, and survive. These drawings will...

Imagine having to give up cell phones, computers, and TV? What would be lost? What gained? An examination of the Drokpa, a nomadic people who live in the grasslands of Tibet, provides class members an opportunity to consider how access...

Students demonstrate the interrelationships of animals and plants. In this ecology instructional activity, students discuss the things plants and animals need for survival and study the glacier food chain. Students simulate the web of...

Explore ocean habitats with a lesson that showcases the home of manatees and loggerhead turtles in Belize. Here, pupils compare and contrast the homes of ocean animals to those of humans, listen to an original short story about...

How did San Francisco supply enough water for its residents over the last two centuries? Learn about droughts and water conservation in California, as well as specific historical events that led to the water system today. Kids read...

Students use the Internet to read about an explorer's survival in the Antarctic. They try to find a better route for him to have taken.

Extend learning through summer with these activity ideas! Individuals can choose one or all nine of the activities, which range from a summer reading goal to an examination of local insects (with accompanying story prompt). See the...

Many people know cats mark their territories by rubbing the back of their necks to leave a scent, but not many people know beavers also leave a scent to mark their territories. During the first activity of two, scholars use their noses...

Students explore animal habitats.  In this cross curriculum animal survival and writing lesson, students view a website about wild horses on Shackelford Island and discuss ways in which the horses have changed to this...

Students read about the Three Sisters of the crops that helped the Native Americans and plant a garden based on companion planting. In this crops lesson plan, students complete garden designs and then create their garden.

Students read about and study insects--their distinguishing characteristics, habitats, camouflage methods, defense mechanisms, etc. They draw pictures and write a story from the viewpoint of an insect and share their pictures and stories...

Students analyze Jack London's use of anthropomorphism to identify the importance of adaptability in life. In this literature lesson, students use the novel The Call of the Wild to identify key elements in survival. Students...

In this natural selection learning exercise, students read a cartoon about cricket mating that explains natural selection, fitness and evolution. They answer four questions about each of these topics.

Pupils investigate the life of an animal and how it responds to winter. The lesson's focus is on reading and research skills using pictures to assist in the understanding of the information presented.

If the Lorax were to write a letter, what would he write? Introduce your class to systems and feedback loops through the whimsical stylings of Dr. Seuss. Learners take on the Lorax's point of view to write a letter, among other activities.

Take a walk on the wild side with a project about animal habitats. After kids observe a chosen animal in its home, they describe the animal's food and water sources, shelter, and how it raises its young. They then write a short fictional...

Explore 1870s when a "bone rush" led to amazing discoveries, as fossil-hunters risked life and limb in their quest for dinosaur remains. The class uses the attached visual encyclopedia to prep for a discussion on early paleontology. Two...

Students recognize that achievements of human beings throughout human history can be considered part of the ongoing story of human evolution. They research settings such as the biosphere and Mars and write imaginative short stories using...

Students decide which of a group of animals should take priority over others for survival. They listen to a story of endangered animals and in groups or pairs complete a worksheet to save three of the animals on the worksheet as the...

Here is a great lesson on constructing line graphs. Learners identify common characteristics of birds, ants common needs of all living things. They also write a story from the perspective of an ant or a bird that has lost its home and...

Grizzly bears can be up to 600 pounds and require a great deal of food, especially to survive hibernation. Comprised of multiple games, the third lesson of five only uses one setup. Pupils run around a large field, sorting and collecting...

Learners examine the importance of plants to individuals and society through a multi-discipline set of activities. They observe and draw different leaf structures and then create a book about trees and photosynthesis. They explore ways...

Is losing cultural traditions the cost of social progress, or should people make stronger efforts to preserve these traditions? High schoolers watch a short film about the native Yup'ik people in Alaska and how they handle the shifts in...

Young scholars develop a flow chart using computer software to show a food chain combination.  In this food chain lesson, students are first read The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry, then they create a story map of the story. ...