Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Digging Into the Past

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders study fossils and how they are charted. In this fossil lesson plan, 5th graders research the excavation process of discovering fossils, and view fossils. They then do a hands on activity that involves plastic fossils that...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Half Life Lab

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders model radioactive decay using pennies, collect data from their model, apply scientific visualization techniques to their data and create animated models explaining the concept of radioactive half-life.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Gold Mine

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students investigate gold. For this gold panning lesson, students demonstrate the process of mining through an experiment using two boxes of sand. Students design a safe way to mine gold.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Look at those Leaves!

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students observe and measure tree leaves.  For this leaf lesson students do on a "leaf walk" then use the leaves they find to complete a few activities. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Rock Cycle

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students explore the concept of the rock cycle.  In this geology lesson, students identify, classify, and observe three different types of rocks.  Students then list and char the characteristics of their rocks. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Give me Food!

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students study the food guide pyramid and use it to create their own eating program.In this health lesson plan students visit websites to calculate their BMR, activity level and weight then create a nutrition plan
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Physical Geography of Australia, Oceania, and Antarctica

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students access information from the United States Geological Survey's Web site This Dynamic Earth to research the Ring of Fire. They answer four questions and then apply what they have learned to create a bulletin board display.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Life Along the Ring of Fire

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students research geological forces that create the Ring of Fire and its effects on cultures. They write reports on how natural disasters influence societies.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Urban Rivers

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students discuss how urban rivers have shaped the region in which they live. They research river geology and ecology. They examine a case study of life and living along the Delaware River.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Environments of Big Sur -- Which Do We Protect?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate the geological, climatic, and biological features of Big Sur. They watch a video, conduct Internet research, and create a script and images in the form of an outline in a simulation of an environmental group.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cypress/Tupelo Swamps

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Learners study the geologic history of terrain, soils, and drainage patterns. They recognize ecological processes that determine the dynamic nature of habitats. They investigate the influence of human activity on the landscape.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Glacier Basics

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers are introduced to the powerful nature of glaciers. Using an atlas, they read the section on glaciers and examine pictures of before and after the glacier moved through an area. In groups, they complete a worksheet on the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Comparing Microscopic Organisms in Fresh and Polluted Water: An Invitation To Inquiry

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students have the opportunity to develop and formulate ideas and explanations through the scientific standard of inquiry. They identify organisms by using an identification key for specific aquatic geographical area.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Understanding Topographic Maps

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers are introduced to the characteristics and uses of topographical maps. Using a worksheet, they examine the use of specific terminology and use cutouts to create their own topographical map of an area. They answer...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

GPS Art

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars design their own logo or picture and use a handheld GPS receiver to map it out. They write out a word or graphic on a field or playground, walk the path, and log GPS data. The results display their "art" on their GPS...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

America Will Be

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers work together to research and create different types of maps of the United States to be used as part of a geography trivia game.Groups research North American annual rainfall, climate, mountain ranges major rivers and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Snow Cover By Latitude

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students create graphs comparing the amount of snow cover along selected latitudes using data sets from a NASA website. They create a spreadsheet and a bar graph on the computer, and analyze the data.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Determining the Percolation Rate of Soil

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students discover how water moves through different types of soils. In groups, they use the same sample from a previous activity and empty it into a milk carton in which they have layered with cheesecloth to determine the percolation...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Slinky and Waves

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Pupils watch a demonstration using a Slinky during a lecture on basic wave properties. Properties addressed in the demo include wave speed, wave length, amplitude, period, and frequency.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing About the Indian Monsoon (Calibrated Peer Review):

For Teachers Higher Ed
Students develop an understanding of the atmospheric processes underlying the Indian Monsoon. They explore the use data to make a scientific argument. They listen to lecture on atmospheric circulation processes.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Investigating Earthquakes: GIS Mapping and Analysis

For Teachers Higher Ed
Students describes the technique of preparing "GIS-ready" data and shows how to map that data and conduct basic analyses using a geographic information system (GIS).They use latitude and longitude fields to plot the data in a GIS and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Impact Craters and Water on Mars

For Teachers Higher Ed
Students explore for water on Mars using impact crater morphology. During this lab, students: investigate how to use the equation writing and graphing capabilities in Microsoft Excel, then develop and apply an impact crater...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science: Draining the Land - the Mississippi River

For Teachers 9th - 12th
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...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Four Seasons

For Teachers 1st
First graders examine and describe the characteristics of the four seasons. Using a computer, they write one sentence about each of the four seasons and draws an illustration to accompany it. They present each drawing and sentence to the...