Virginia Department of Education
Determining Absolute Age
How can radioactive decay help date old objects? Learners explore half-life and radioactive decay by conducting an experiment using pennies to represent atoms. Young scientists graph data from the experiment to identify radioactive decay...
Curated OER
The Gay '80s, '90s and '00s
After reading and discussing a news article from the New York Times regarding gay and lesbian issues of the last thirty years, students engage in several activities to explore current events. They create a timeline, either electronically...
Agriculture in the Classroom
Growing a Nation (1950-1969): Prosperity & Challenges: The Story of American Agriculture
A wonderful lesson on the development and impact of mechanized farming! History or agriculture classes learn the historical background of the United States' food production by creating a pamphlet with information on the cause and...
Early Childhood Learning and Knowlege Center
My Body My Senses
In a comprehensive unit of activities, learners explore the five senses. Youngsters discover the many different body parts and their functions that allow humans to have sense of sight, touch, smell, taste, and hearing. The best way to...
National Wildlife Federation
Branching Out – Exploring Dendrochronology
Tree rings from North America give a continuous history of El Nino intensity over the last 1,100 years. Scholars learn how scientists use tree rings to create timelines demonstrating variations in weather patterns. The cumulative...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Children Resemble Their Parents
Gregor Mendel's work revolutionized agriculture from an art to a science. Explore Mendel's work with an interactive lesson that includes animations, video, and practice problems. The instruction describes the early discoveries that...
Curated OER
Paleoclimate of the Hudson Valley
Young scholars recognize how the climate of the Hudson Valley has changed since the last glaciation and be able to explain these changes. They reconstruct the paleoclimate of the Hudson Valley.
Polar Trec
The Amazing Antarctic Trek
This resource provides two ways to engage learners in using latitude, longitude, and research skills. In pairs, or on their own, learners will locate several Antarctic regions on a map. They will write the name of the place and a few key...
Global Oneness Project
Exploring the Creative Process
Launch a discussion of the creative process with a short video that features the daily ritual of Slobodan Dan Paich, a San Francisco artist. Slobodan models his approach to tea painting and shares his reflections on the...
Science Friday
Fossil Detectives
What can this rock be? Pupils pretend to be paleontologists by sketching fossils and making predictions about their types. To determine whether they can identify the type of dinosaur, class members compare their observations and...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Historical Climate Cycles
Scientists use ice core samples to obtain temperatures of the earth from 400,000 years ago! The third of five lessons instructs pupils to interpret historical climate data to see changes over time. In part I, participants interpret...
Curated OER
Nucleic Acids: information storage
This sequence of slides covers each main macromolecule that is involved with human structure and function. The history of nucleotide research and the way that they are formed is summarized, a diagram accompanies the explanation. The main...
Curated OER
Candlemaking
There might not be a butcher or baker, but you'll have a class full of candlestick makers after a hands-on lesson plan about candles make from beeswax. After a brief history of where beeswax comes from, young artisans craft their own...
Channel Islands Film
Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island: Lesson Plan 4
Imagine being stranded all alone on an island for 18 years. How would you survive? Class members are challenged to makes necessities out of natural materials that would likely be found on an island.
Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature Trust
The Lost World
Fans of Sherlock Holmes may be surprised to learn that in addition to stories of the famous deductionist, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is also the creator of Professor Challenger. An irascible, unpredictable scientist, Challenger was featured...
NASA
Water Works on a Blue Planet
Keep within a water budget. Learners find out that less than 2.5% of Earth's water is available to drink—and that there is a fixed amount of water. Scholars read an interesting article comparing the available water to a game of Monopoly...
Curated OER
History of the Periodic Table
Students sort a group of manipulatives and then explain their organizational system to the class. They discuss the work of scientists trying to organize the elements into a system that made sense and the development of the periodic table.
Curated OER
Fossil Fuels (Part II), The Geology of Oil: Topographic Mapping, Crustal Deformation, Rock Porosity, and Environmental Pollution
Students review an interpretation of geologic history and relate it to the formation of oil deposits. They explore and explain factors controlling the porosity and permeability of sediments and sedimentary rocks. Pupils also interpret...
Curated OER
Fossil Fuels (III), The Geology of Coal: Interpreting Geologic History
Students hypothesize about why various samples of coal have different characteristics. Pupils use information that they found during Internet searches to ascertain the validity of their hypotheses and verify the "story" of coal. ...
Curated OER
Dorothea Lange and the Relocation of Japanese Americans
Learners consider the relocation of Japanese Americans during World War II. In this Japanese relocation lesson, students examine photographs by Dorothea Lange, the "Pledge of Allegiance," and a US government flyer from 1942. They use...
Curated OER
Observing the Sky
Middle schoolers explore astronomy. In this astronomy instructional activity, students discuss the history of the movement of celestial bodies and then communicate with other middle schoolers regarding the movements that they observe in...
Curated OER
Industrial Revolution in America: Exploring the Effects of the Heat Engine on the Growth of Cities
Eighth graders examine the reasons for the growth of cities in North American. Using the internet, they research the causes and effects of the Industrial Revolution and determine if the growth of cities is a sign of progress. They...
Curated OER
The Physics of the Planets: How 16th and 17th Century Physicist Helped Us Understand Our Solar System
Eighth graders draw the paths of the planets in the solar system. In this astronomy lesson, 8th graders calculate speed of objects using distance and time information. They research about the work of scientists in the 16th and 17th century.
Curated OER
The Structure of the Periodic Table
Students investigate the periodic table, the structure of the atom and the subatomic particles. In this periodic table lesson plan, students complete 5 activities in order to better understand atoms and the periodic table. They use...