In an interview, a zookeeper at the Columbus, Ohio, polar bear exhibit describes time she spent at Churchill, Manitoba, educating tourists about polar bears and what can be done to help populations in the wild. This interview appeared in the free, online magazine Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears.

In this lesson students will see the different types of evidence scientists use to understand evolutionary relationships among organisms. They will first practice by using shared physical characteristics to predict relationships among members of the cat family and then use this approach to predict primate relationships. They will compare their predictions to evidence provided by analyzing amino acid sequences and build a phylogenetic tree based on these sequences. Finally, they will look at the tree in the context of time in order to see divergence times.

Insert channels in a membrane and see what happens. See how different types of channels allow particles to move through the membrane.

Insert channels in a membrane and see what happens. See how different types of channels allow particles to move through the membrane.

All animals develop and grow over time. The animals in this video segment, however, undergo very dramatic changes on their way to adulthood -- a developmental process known as metamorphosis.

This Protein Purification video lesson is intended to give students some insight into the process and tools that scientists and engineers use to explore proteins. It is designed to extend the knowledge of students who are already somewhat sophisticated and who have a good understanding of basic biology. The question that motivates this lesson is, ''what makes two cell types different?'' and this question is posed in several ways. Such scientific reasoning raises the experimental question: how could you study just a subset of specialized proteins that distinguish one cell type from another? Two techniques useful in this regard are considered in the lesson.

Microbiology covers the scope and sequence requirements for a single-semester microbiology course for non-majors. The book presents the core concepts of microbiology with a focus on applications for careers in allied health. The pedagogical features of the text make the material interesting and accessible while maintaining the career-application focus and scientific rigor inherent in the subject matter. Microbiology’s art program enhances students’ understanding of concepts through clear and effective illustrations, diagrams, and photographs.

This video segment from NOVA: "The Mystery of Animal Pathfinders" explores the migratorial exploits of monarch butterflies.

This video segment, adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, introduces the latest research on a system of neurons that plays a part in how people relate to each other.

In this video segment adapted from Hope in a Changing Climate, learn how an environmentally devastated ecosystem has been restored, benefiting both the local economy and global efforts to fight climate change.

Discover what controls how fast tiny molecular motors in our body pull through a single strand of DNA. How hard can the motor pull in a tug of war with the optical tweezers? Discover what helps it pull harder. Do all molecular motors behave the same?

Discover what controls how fast tiny molecular motors in our body pull through a single strand of DNA. How hard can the motor pull in a tug of war with the optical tweezers? Discover what helps it pull harder. Do all molecular motors behave the same?

This video from Nature features the start of the monarch butterflyŒë_í_Œ_ northward trek.

This video segment follows neurophysiologist Allen Counter as he studies an epidemic of hearing loss in Moriussaq, Greenland, one of the quietest places on Earth. Footage from NOVA: "Mystery of the Senses: Hearing."

his is a fun, casual “mini discussion” that can be used to get students generating and sharing ideas in a low-stakes setting, and to help build a culture of discourse and develop discussion skills within a group. It’s an interesting and fairly easy topic for students to think about and participate in. Students tend to love talking about the “most,” “least,” and “how many” facts about nature. The very broad category of “organism” means all students will probably have something to contribute to the discussion. Engaging in this kind of talk can help prepare a group to participate in similar or more involved discussions later, and it can “run in the background” while the group is eating lunch or a snack, or whenever they seem ready to sit and chat.

This informational text introduces students to Mt. Erebus, a volcano located on Ross Island, just off the coast of Antarctica. Mt. Erebus is the world's southernmost active volcano. The text is written at a grade two through grade three reading level. This is a PDF containing the informational text and a glossary.

This activity sets an exciting tone of exploration and discovery, encouraging an inquiry mindset in students that helps establish a community of curious, active learners. Students gain tools to explore the natural world—and are inspired to discover and attempt to explain the abundant nature mysteries that surround us. NSI works well at the start of a field experience, to get students excited about nature mysteries. It provides an opportunity for an instructor to coach students in inquiry skills, by using the language of science and engaging in scientific discussions. For instructors with less experience leading open-ended explorations and discussions, this can be a challenging activity to lead successfully the first time. The write-up includes detailed support, by providing information and strategies for the instructor. Students focus on a mystery object, generate observations, questions, evidence-based explanations and share what they already know from other sources. Once students are familiar with these practices, they can use them to investigate and make explanations about anything they find in nature through their field experience(s).

This is a lesson about the 4 seasons. The goal is for students to learn the identifying characteristics and names of all four seasons. This lesson incorporates stories, songs, and hands-on activities to learn about all four seasons. This lesson is adaptable and includes accommodation ideas to meet student needs. This lesson will take approximately 80 minutes. 

This is a lesson about the 4 seasons. The goals is for students to learn the identifying characteristics and names of all four seasons. This lesson incorporates stories, songs, and hands-on activities to learn about all four seasons. This lesson is adaptable and includes accommodation ideas to meet student needs. This lesson will take approximately 80 minutes.  Thumbnail Image: "Autumn Leaves (1874) by Mary Vaux Walcott. Original from The Smithsonian. Digitally enhanced by rawpixel." by Free Public Domain Illustrations by rawpixel is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse.

This is a lesson about the 4 seasons. The goal is for students to learn the identifying characteristics and names of all four seasons. This lesson incorporates stories, songs, and hands-on activities to learn about all four seasons. This lesson is adaptable and includes accommodation ideas to meet student needs. This lesson will take approximately 80 minutes.