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Non Native Species: English Ivy-Landscape Plant or Deadly Killer?
Students study the impact that invasive species have on biodiversity and more natural areas.
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The Formation and Value of Temperate Grasslands
Students get an overview of the climate and organisms of the North American Prairie. After a lecture, and watching some videos imbedded in this plan, students compile research data on the North American Prairie.
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Simple Thermodynamics of Transportation
Students watch videos about various modes of transportation, they examine the energy transformations that occur in each, and they be introduced to the laws of thermodynamics.
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Mammals: Mammals and Their Ways
Students study the difference between innate and learned behaviors. They observe the adaptations and behaviors of mammals in this series of lessons.
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Landfills: A Solid Waste Management Plan
Middle schoolers are able to list the types of household waste that they produce daily. They are able to describe some other types of waste that are produced by industry or agriculture to help maintain their lifestyles. Students are...
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Flowers and Plants
Young scholars are assigned to bring five flowers. They explore flowers to distinguish different physical features of flowers. They compare and contrast different flowers to determine what features they have in common. Students...
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Digging Detectives
Learners demonstrate basic procedures for archeological excavations. They explore an archeological site, students using various archeological methods and techniques to determine some of the aspects of past life and culture.
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Local and Global Sustainability Unit
Students examine the characteristics that define a sustainable community at the local and global level. They create and prioritize a list of traits, read and discuss a magazine article, and create a poster.
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The Time of Man
Young scholars demonstrate visually Mankind's relative place on the earth's timeline. They familiarize themselves with the use of the metric system in measuring and producting a timeline.
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Threatened Species and Public Policy
Middle schoolers discuss the Endangered Species Act and its impact on people and the environment. They read the act and watch video footage. They examine why sea turtles are endangered and efforts to protect them. They analyze numerical...
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Relative Dating - Telling Time Using Fossils
Students use fossil range charts to explain relative dating. They graph for ammonites, marine organisms that went extinct at the same time as dinosaurs.
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Ecotourism in National Parks and Wilderness
Middle schoolers research a wilderness or natural area and develop a plan for ecotourism.
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Testing the Caverns
Students build model caverns using paper mache or clay and bury them in a tray of sand. They test the models by dropping balls onto them to simulate an asteroid hitting the earth. They evaluate the effectiveness of a structure against...
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Economic Use of Public Natural Areas
Students examine the public controversy between the use of public natural areas for economic activities by viewing video clips, researching on the Internet, and calculating sustainable land.
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Floods: Rising Waters and You
Students examine the relationship between human-made structures, flood waters and the increasing population through video clips, websites and a lab experiment.
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Co-evolution of Plants and Pollinators
Young scholars, while studying the rolls of pollinators and plants, explore co-evolution of mutualistic relationships.
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Non Native Species: English Ivy-Landscape Plant or Deadly Killer?
Young scholars examine an area overrun by English Ivy. They explore how invasive species affect an ecosystem. They also study about the lack of biodiversity and how to measure it out in the field.
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Salmon vs. Dams: The Dam Removal Debate on the Elwha River
Learners use roll playing to discuss the merits of tearing down these dams so that the Elwha River can run free. The activity is presented in the form of a council meeting to encourage students to try to build consensus in finding...
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Volcanoes:How Safe Are They?
Students explore volcanoes, locate them on maps, record general information about volcanoes, and organize information on a fact sheet.
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Project 1
Learners are given a coin to observe and make inferences about. Using a worksheet, they make two columns to list their observations and inferences in an organized manner. They develop a hypothesis based on one of the inferences and...
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Early Humans
Eighth graders work together in groups to examine the earliest civilizations. After reading two stories, they compare and contrast the facts with those stories with other ones they have read. They discuss the different hypothesis on...
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An Elephant Never Forgets
Students are introduced to the Addo Elephant National Park in South Africa. For this natural science lesson plan, students identify the elephants by name according to the diagrams. Students study the unique characteristics of the...
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Early Native Americans
Students create a scrapbook illustrating the culture of Native Americans that settled in the Kickapoo Valley. Working in groups, students choose a topic related to the Kickapoo Valley Indians. Using traditional and technological...
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Does This Belong to You?
Fourth graders examine legislation that has been passed to protect the rights and religion of Native Americans. In groups, they discuss their feelings on others taking artifacts from Native American sites and what they do if they find...