Students consider toys as more than items for playing, compare and contrast inventors and toys they created, and discuss purpose of specific toys, including whether toy was created for education, financial success, or both.

Students read and analyze original telegrams to learn about people involved in and process of building the world's first Ferris wheel, examine correspondence between inventor and engineer to understand planning necessary to build Ferris...

Eleventh graders analyze a chart comparing U.S. census data from 1850, 1880, 1900, and 1920. They read a handout summarizing immigration legislation from 1882-1996 and create a graph charting how open / closed U.S. immigration is over time.

Students rank a list of everyday risks to compare with classmates. They rate each risk on both its ability to be controlled and its observability in the environment. Results are graphed.

Advanced lab apprentices prepare zinc and copper solutions to which they will compare the same minerals from a multivitamin. Using absorption spectroscopy, they analyze the contents of the multivitamin for concentration. This lab can be...

Students develop their abilities to solve problems both in school and in a variety of situations similar to that they have encountered in life. They define the term ecosystem in nature by comparing them to familiar organizational...

Review one of the most memorable cases in the history of the United States. After reading To Kill A Mockingbird, young scholars read and select court transcripts and other primary source material from the Scottsboro Boys Trial of 1933....

Seventh graders investigate theoretical and experimental probability by conducting a series of experiments with multiple trials, comparing results, combining results and making conclusions. They express probabilities as fractions,...

Third graders investigate two mathematic scenarios and determine which is correct. They compare adding columns and places (such as the tens place, hundreds place, and so on) and familiarize themselves with how to add larger numbers.

Students compare and contrast assimilation and acculturation. They explain the idea of "The Melting Pot" as it relates to what it means to be American. They write an 8 page response paper on a selected author.

Investigate life along the Old Spanish Trail! They visit websites and identify the history and environment. They create journals, dramatic enactments, and maps to discover the role individuals played in society. They also explore the...

Written as field trip preparation to Gateway National Recreation Area, this resource is also appropriate for any class that is studying the impact of human activity on the environment. During the first activity, learners identify...

Fifth graders conduct Internet research about the governmental balance of power. They create Kidspiration projects demonstrating the workings of the three branches of government. They compare U.S. democracy with other forms of government.

Young journalists get a chance to practice their story writing skills by listening to an interview. Using the provided script, a class member interviews a treasure hunter (the instructor) while classmates take notes and then compose a...

Comparatively speaking, does a bug travel farther than a human in 10 seconds? Get a bug and measure how far it travels in 10 seconds. Have a human team member run for 10 seconds and calculate the distance ran. Answer the question,"Who...

How can we identify shapes in the Universe? High schoolers will compare and contrast elliptic and hyperbolic geometry. They will also explore one possible way to measure the curvature of the Universe, namely, by measuring the sum of the...

Do you have a class that gets excited about technology? Bring in a lesson that allows learners to explore linear equations. Using spreadsheet software, individuals find key features of linear equations and then compare slopes...

Get your classes up and moving and learning math at the same time! Learners collect data on the length of time it takes to complete a wave compared to the number of people participating. They then create a scatter plot, calculate a...

Students watch a demonstration to introduce them to the consistency of mudflows and how they move. In groups, they compare and contrast volcanic avalanches and mudflows. They create their own model of a volcano, simulate how it erupts...

Anyone that lives around snow knows that adding salts to water increases its melting point. Are there solutes that affect the boiling point as well? A scientific experiment has learners add different solutes to water and then...

In this electron configuration activity, learners write the electron configurations of 22 elements and compare their valence electron configurations. They list the elements that are similar in terms of their electrons. They identify the...

Mark Twain's life, politics, writing, and role as a mirror of pre- and post-Civil War American culture are the focus 11th and 12th graders in this section from an expansive author study. A critical writing assignment comparing Twain...

Kids observe, classify, and measure tree leaves with a scientific eye. They examine leaves, group them according their attributes, and use standard units of measurement as they compare their sizes. They access a web site to learn how...

Young statisticians explore the concept of histograms. They construct histograms of various data such as change in a student's pocket, and guessing on a test. hHey analyze data represented as a histogram and a box plot and compare...