Provide your class with the opportunity to view our carbon cycle close up. Young scientists research the cycle of oxygen as it completes the tasks of photosynthesis and respiration. They explore the importance of carbon in an ecosystem...

Do research projects at your school look like a class of eighth graders staring at a blank screen? Use the Big 6 research method to guide middle schoolers through the process of finding a topic, searching for and evaluating sources,...

Work on your map skills with a packet of activities about the river basins in the Democratic Republic on Congo. Learners study the maps provided before answering the geography questions and writing an acrostic poem about the region.

Geometric design makes a fashion statement! Challenge learners to design a hat to fit a Styrofoam model. Specifications are clear and pupils use concepts related to three-dimensional objects including volume of irregular shapes and...

What properties does area possess? Solidify the area properties that pupils learned in previous years. Groups investigate the five properties using four problems, which then provide the basis for a class discussion.

As they investigate scaling figures and calculate the resulting areas, groups determine the area of similar figures. They continue to investigate the results when the vertical and horizontal scales are not equal. 

Using a similar process from the first lesson in the series of finding area approximations, a measurement resource develops the proof of the area of a circle. The problem set contains a derivation of the proof of the circumference...

Are pyramids and cones similar in definition to prisms and cylinders? By examining the definitions, pupils determine that pyramids and cones are subsets of general cones. Working in groups, they continue to investigate the relationships...

Lead a discussion on the similarities between the properties of area and the properties of volume. Using upper and lower approximations, pupils arrive at the formula for the volume of a general cylinder. 

If we stack up all the cross sections of a figure, does it create the figure? Pupils make the connection between the complete set of cross sections and the solid. They then view videos in order to see how 3D printers use Cavalerie's...

What causes people to move from one place, one city, or one country to another? Using the provided migration questionnaire, learners interview family members about the factors that cause them to be pushed from an area or pulled to...

New Horizons set forth on a mission to Pluto in 2006. Ten years later, the spacecraft is still on its way. Here, enthusiastic scholars predict what they will be like—likes, dislikes, hobbies, etc.—when New Horizons arrives at its...

New Horizons began its journey to Pluto in 2006. Ten years later, it continues its mission. In that time, scholars have surely grown, but how much more will they grow by the time New Horizons reaches its destination? Find out with an...

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....

It takes a lot of planning to achieve a random result! Learners compare results of random assignment, and conclude that random assignment allows results to be attributed to chance. They also realize the set of random means...

Round and round we go. Learners first complete a task on writing equations of circles. They then take part in a collaborative activity categorizing a set of equations for circles based on the radius and center.

Double, toil ,and double linear dimensions. Learners first complete an assessment investigating how doubling linear dimensions affects the area of pizzas and the volume of popcorn containers. They then complete an activity investigating...

Parallel parking might be difficult, but finding parallel lines is fairly simple. In this lesson, learners first complete an assessment task involving parallel and perpendicular lines in the coordinate plane. Individuals then take part...

Identify the identity. Learners first solve equations to find the number of solutions. Scholars then determine if given equations are always, sometimes, or never true, leading to the concept of identities.

So what exactly is climate? This first installment of a six-part series introduces the concept of climate using real-world data tables and topographic maps. The timely lesson includes a comprehensive overview of climate, as well as...

How do scientists know what the Earth was like in the past? This second installment of a six-part series focuses on paleoclimates and provides an overview of how geologists determine information about past climates using fossil...

How does Earth's orbit around the Sun affect climate? This third installment of a six-part series looks at how Earth's orbit affects the amount of insolation at locations on Earth involves different experiments used in conjunction...

What do plate tectonics and ocean currents have to do with global climate? This fourth installment in a six-part series focuses on how plate tectonics and ocean currents affect global climate, both now and in the past, outlines an...

Does carbon dioxide really affect temperatures across the world? This fifth installment in a six-part series investigates the relationship between carbon dioxide and global temperatures. Graphs created from genuine data help...