Curated OER
Discovering the Physical Geography of Washington
Students develop a mental map of the state of Washington and draw it on paper. Using the Virtual Atlas, they identify the physical features of the state and draw them on their map. They also examine the populations and diversity of the...
Curated OER
The Geography of Tornadoes OR
Students learn some basic facts about tornadoes and map two selected tornado statistics by state, and observe, analyze and speculate about the pattern(s) created by the completed map.
Curated OER
PLATE MOVEMENTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Students label three geological maps with continents provided to analyze the relationships between the movement of tectonic plates and the changes in the climate. In small groups, they discuss their findings and form hypotheses about the...
Curated OER
How Can We Locate Specific Places On Earth?
Second graders discover how to use longitude and latitude to locate specific sites on Earth. They compare old and new ways of locating specific places, and discover how latitude and longitude coordinates are used to locate places on Earth.
Curated OER
Celebrating the Solstice and Equinox
Fourth graders graph the number of daylight hors throughout the year and examine why day length varies. They discover that seasonal changes and latitude on Earth affect the number of hours of daylight in each day. Students listen to...
Curated OER
Clouds
Students explore the characteristics of clouds, their formation, symbols used in their identification, and the relationship of clouds to weather. The lesson focuses on how they are formed and their classification.
Curated OER
Adapted to Fire
Fourth graders explore forest species' adaptations to fire by participating in a scavenger hunt and mapping a burned forest. Students create maps and explore how indigenous species adapted to living with fire.
Curated OER
Exploring Climate Change with GIS
Students investigate climatological changes that are occurring to the Earth. For this climate change lesson, students access an assigned web site to view maps and lessons that show how climate change makes a difference to life on Earth.
Curated OER
Air Masses
Middle schoolers examine the physical characteristics of several types of air masses to discover how air masses can be identified and defined by their temperature and moisture content.
Curated OER
"Tsunamis"
Students visit a PBS Website about tsunamis to consider their causes, effects and steps countries have taken to try to defend against them. They answer questions and create a brochure explaining tsunami facts and procedures to survive a...
Curated OER
Harvest the Wind
Wind is a natural resource available around the world. Help your pupils appreciate the power and importance of wind by researching wind farms, making pinwheels, and designing windmills.
Curated OER
Writing the Wind
Students make a windmill. In this wind lesson, students learn background information about the windmill, complete an activity where they create a windmill, discuss using wind as a natural resource and brainstorm other inventions...
NASA
Erosion and Landslides
A professional-quality PowerPoint, which includes links to footage of actual landslides in action, opens this moving lesson. Viewers learn what conditions lead to erosion and land giving way. They simulate landslides with a variety of...
Curated OER
Trends of Snow Cover and Temperature in Alaska
Students gather historical snow cover and temperature data from the MY NASA DATA Web site. They compare this data to data gathered using ground measurements from the ALISON Web site for Shageluk Lake. They graph both sets of data and...
Curated OER
Differences Between Ground and Air Temperatures
Young scholars examine the differences between air temperature and ground temperature. In this investigative lesson students find NASA data on the Internet and use it to create a graph.
Curated OER
Arkansas State Mineral: Quartz Mineral
The quartz crystals found in the mountains of Arkansas are among the purest and clearest in the world! This lesson has middle schoolers focus on this state mineral of Arkansas as they study the state's geography. A fun game is...
Curated OER
Sea Water Mixing and Sinking
Middle schoolers investigate the role of temperature and salinity in determining seawater density. They use a Temperature-Salinity Diagram to examine the effects of mixing on density.
Montana State University
Meet Mount Everest
Learning about one landform might seem boring to some, but using the resource provided practically guarantees scholar interest. The second in a sequential series of eight covering the topic of Mount Everest includes activities such as a...
Curated OER
Creating Climographs
Students chart statistical information on graphs, interpret the information and use it to explain spatial relationships, and identify the relationship between climate and vegetation.
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How Mountains Shape Climate
Students use raw data to make a climatograph; they explain the process of orographic precipitation and the concept of a rain shadow.
Curated OER
How Does the Earth's Energy Budget Relate to Polar Ice?
Students use satellite data to see how radiation budget relates to the ice that is present in the North. In this energy lesson students correlate data to see a relationship.
Curated OER
Tissue Paper Geography
Pupils explore geographic features of the desert and apply their understanding of the topography of the desert by creating a tissue paper painting.
Curated OER
Reading Satellite Images
Learners analyze satellite images. In this astronomy lesson, students examine 3 satellite images in order to understand how satellite images are taken and what they can teach scientists.
Curated OER
Exploring the Night Sky: Summer
Learners explain how moon phases occur. They describe and explain at least two common misconceptions that people have about the moon. Students explain what a star is. They explain 3 ways that the night sky has been used throughout history.