Students explore the development of the geologic time scale. They examine the major time periods in earth's history. Students discuss the role fossils play in helping us understand history.

Learners sequence and model the events leading to the formation of the southeastern coast of the United States, including the formation of the South Atlantic Bight.

Students interpret a graph of ocean depths and topographic features. This task assesses students' abilities to interpret figures, organize and represent data, apply knowledge of scale to a profile, and apply theoretical knowledge.

Learners describe how volcanoes are formed. They name the types of boundaries where volcanoes occur. They utilize models to illustrate the occurence of volcanoes and earthquakes along plate boundaries. They compare and constrast the...

Students explore volcanoes. In this science lesson, students discuss the characteristics of volcanoes and view a video segment about a volcano. Students examine plate tectonics.

Students design and conduct an experiment to compare the water-holding capacity of sand, soil, and moss. They measure the change in weight for each material after adding the same amount of water to each material.

Students explore the nature and composition of a comet. They research comet facts, legends, and myths. They identify different types of comets and describe what happens to a comet as it travels closer to the Sun.

Students view interactive CD-ROM entitled The Arctic Climate Roller Coaster, research evidence of changes in climate through the years, record ways people responded to changes, and create short presentations to share evidence with...

Students study four samples of "rain water". They asked to determine the pH of the samples and then to neutralize them. Students are asked to predict any negative effects which might be associated with water having a low pH and to...

Students explore the close connection between plant roots and the soil in which they grow. They investigate the roots of plants, make models of plant roots using pipe cleaners, and examine photos and images to explore the connection...

Students study the different types of weather and how storms form.  In this weather lesson students make their own "tornado in a bottle" and create brochures.

Students analyze the concept of global commons dilemma.  In this investigative lesson students read an article on the Middle East Media Research Institute and answer questions accordingly. 

Young scholars demonstrate an understanding of tsunamis and possible causes.  In this investigative lesson students view a video and explore earthquakes and movement of tectonic plates. 

Students build a model aquifer to study groundwater zones and water table formation. Students use the models to measure the movement of polluted groundwater.

Students examine the year's cycles by observing the four seasons, their distinctive weather patterns that affect our activities and the weather changes that each brings. The fourteen lessons of this unit offer a good opportunity for the...

Students explore recent changes in the Artic's climate that have been observed by Artic residents. They watch videos, take notes and create a concept map. They also look at historical weather data from a specific Artic community. The...

Students observe, measure, and graph a model of slow down slope movement representing soil creep. This task assesses students' abilities to collect, record, and organize data, set up graph axes, plot data points, draw line graphs, apply...

Students describe the way hydrothermal vents work. Students work on locating vent regions through remote collection of data about water temperature and density. Comparing density and temperatures graphs, students search for indicators...

Students use topographic maps to identify parts of rivers. In addition, they discover gradient and predict changes in the channels caused by variations in water flow. Other activities include sketching a river model with a new channel...

Students conduct experiments designed to detect the presence of CO2 by using a BTB that changes color (blue to yellow) in the presence of CO2. First, students experiment with the CO2 from combining vinegar and baking soda. In part two,...

In this geography comparisons worksheet, students read seven short descriptions of interesting places in the world. Using the ten words in the word bank, students fill in the blanks in the sentences.

In this vocabulary skills worksheet, students read 10 sentences and fill in the blanks in each of the sentences with the appropriate words from the multiple choice answer selections.

Students analyze hydrothermal vents. In this hydrothermal vents lesson, students discover the effects of hydrothermal vents on tectonic plates. Students make model hydrothermal vents to understand how they form and operate.

Fifth graders investigate coral reefs and the dangers they face by labeling and drawing.  In this oceanography lesson, 5th graders view a PowerPoint presentation of photographs of coral reefs in Belize.  Students investigate...