Students discuss being a responsible student by helping to protect the rainforest. In this citizenship lesson, students brainstorm ideas to help global warming, warfare, human-rights abuses and acid rain. Students write an essay to send...

Show the six-minute video, "Changing Planet: Fading Corals," and then demonstrate how calcium carbonate forms a precipitate in the presence of carbon dioxide. Separate your scientists into small groups to gather information about coral...

Students complete an in-depth study of the known planets in the solar system. As a class, students identify the planets that are known in the universe, in the night sky. They explain the differences between planets and stars and the...

Learners help to create a list of planets in the solar system. They review the terms in the news section and complete the sentences given. They then read the article together and discuss.

Second graders read THe Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System. In this language arts and science lesson, 2nd graders explore the four inner planets. Students view the inner planets using Google Earth.

What do Newton's Laws have to do with getting from Earth to Mars?The activities in this resource show how Newton's Laws work with rockets to get them into space. Background information includes facts about orbits and how orbits...

Create a scaled model of our solar system in your classroom! Scholars work collaboratively to build paper mache planets and hang them in their proper position to showcase each planet's location in the solar system.   

There's no need to stay inside; get out of the classroom and create a scaled map of the solar system on your playground field! In collaborative groups, scholars identify the distance between the sun and other planets, place planet...

Come take a ride on the space bus! Scholars go on an imaginary trip to pick up their peers from the inner and outer planets while reinforcing math skills. First, learners round decimals to identify each planets' distance from Earth....

How do you properly illustrate the extreme size difference between two planets—Earth and Jupiter? With the help of jellybeans, of course! Create a scale model of Jupiter's mass compared to Earth using a fishbowl, 1,400 beans, and a...

Here is a different approach: emerging epidemiologists first go home to interview family on the topic of infectious disease. Then they come to class and view a video and PowerPoint that explore how climate change may increase the...

Resource links to a video, satellite images, data, and photographs of glaciers provide emerging earth scientists the opportunity to examine how the ice has been retreating over the years. A data table is included for pupils to record...

Young scholars study the heliocentric theory of Copernicus, the ideas behind it and the explanations which it displaced. A discussion of retrograde motion of planets helps students explain the logic underlying the ideas of both Ptolemy...

Students compare planet sizes using class members holding fruit to represent the planets. They arrange the nine students in planetary order and compare and contrast the planets. Working in groups, students color and decorate planet...

Students, in gorups, develop a Bill of rRghts for a newly discovered planet. They give the planet a name and they decide upon ten human rights they think are the most important. Then they compare their list with the lists of other...

How in the world can something as big as the solar system possibly fit in your pocket? Complete this simple modeling activity and find out, as young scientists gain an appreciation for the incredible scale of outer space.

Fifth graders explore the solar system. In this solar system unit, 5th graders investigate numerous projects while rotating through learning centers. Students write about space and construct a space shuttle model. Students practice map...

Agriculture, deforestation, and urbanization. How have human's changed the planet and how might we mitigate the effects of human activity on the planet? To answer these questions class members research the changes in human land use from...

Learners use a model to determine the distance between the sun and plants in our solar system. They determine a scale to use that represents the distance between the Earth and sun. Students calculate the scale distance that each planet...

Young scholars explore art when it is used as a source of information about society and material culture. They communicate with students in a foreign country, and share ideas and experiences in order to create drawings of their homes to...

There's more to that glowing ball of light in sky than most children realize. From the overall structure of the solar system, to the changing of the seasons, these hands-on lessons open the eyes of young scientists to...

In part one, your astronomers read an interview dialogue between a reporter and Dr. Maria Ocasio, the chair of the group that assigns names to celestial objects. The topic in question is Pluto's status. Learners research Plutinos and...

In 2006, New Horizons began its mission to fly to Pluto. As it continues its journey, scholars track its progress with the help of an informative website, all the while reinforcing measurement concepts with the construction of a scaled...

Math and science come together in this cross-curricular astronomy lesson plan on planetary motion. Starting off with a hands-on activity that engages the class in exploring the geometry of circles and ellipses, this lesson...