In this lesson designed to enhance literacy skills, students learn how to use fractions to interpret the nutritional information contained on food labels.
This video segment from Nature features ravens, the most intelligent birds in the crow family.
This informational text introduces students to the discipline of geology, and specifically polar geology. Students meet Julie Codispoti, assistant curator of the U.S. Polar Rock Repository, and learn how she overcame an initial dislike of science to become a geologist. Students also learn that rocks, like books, can teach us about the world long ago. The text is written at a grade four through grade five reading level. This version is a full-color PDF that can be printed, cut and folded to form a book. Each book contains color photographs and illustrations.
Students create and decode DNA for mans best friend to observe how variations in DNA lead to the inheritance of different traits. Strips of paper that represent DNA are randomly selected and used to assemble the dog's DNA. Students read the DNA and create a drawing of their pet, and compare it with others in the class to check for similarities and differences.
This video segment from NatureScene describes the characteristics of redwood trees at Redwood National Park.
Are you related to a lizard? This Adaptations Activity gives students insights into
how very different organisms are actually related (distantly). Students search for two somewhat closely related organisms (like two kinds of insects, or a spider and an insect) to compare, using Venn diagrams. Then they debate which two organisms studied by a team are most closely related, supporting their ideas with evidence and reasoning. Finally, they interpret a “Tree of Life” diagram to see how living things on Earth share common ancestors. This activity helps students develop a foundation for understanding key ideas about evolution.
In this activity, the learner explores various ways in which organisms reproduce. The learner discusses the role that reproduction plays in the cycle of life. By watching short videos and participating in follow-up discussion: 1. They observe that no individual organism lives forever and in order to continue species, organisms must pass their genetic instructions on to the next generation. 2. They learn that organisms reproduce asexually, by dividing and producing two identical copies of themselves. 3. They learn that many plants reproduce sexually, often using complex strategies that have evolved over millions of years. 4. They explore the pros and cons of asexual and sexual reproduction and the reasons both strategies persist.
In this lesson designed to enhance literacy skills, students learn about the advantages and disadvantages of the two basic forms of reproduction for the living things that practice them.
In this video segment adapted from NOVA, learn about the critical role of flowers in seed plant reproductive biology.
In this video segment from NatureScene, discover some reptiles in the swamp forest ecosystem at Congaree Swamp National Park.
This video aims to provide an illustrative lesson about the respiratory system in birds and how the adaptations of that system over time have made it different than that of other living creatures, especially mammals. Birds are omnipresent in our lives, and students will come to understand and appreciate the fascinating inner workings of these beautiful creatures. This lesson discusses avian features and differences for 20 to 25 minutes, with approximately 20 minutes of in-class student activities.
This video segment from Kentucky Life describes how scientists control pollination of one of the few remaining American chestnut trees to develop blight resistant trees.
This informational text introduces students to the discipline of geology, and specifically polar geology. Students meet Julie Codispoti, assistant curator of the U.S. Polar Rock Repository, and learn how she overcame an initial dislike of science to become a geologist. Students also learn that rocks, like books, can teach us about the world long ago. The text is written at a grade two through grade three reading level. This version is a full-color PDF that can be printed, cut and folded to form a book. Each book contains color photographs and illustrations.
This informational text introduces students to the discipline of geology, and specifically polar geology. Students learn that rocks, like books, can teach us about the world long ago. The text is written at a kindergarten through grade one reading level. This version is a full-color PDF that can be printed, cut and folded to form a book. Each book contains color photographs and illustrations.
In this video segment from NOVA scienceNOW, meet researchers who are studying obesity and trying to understand the role that hormones and genetics can play in regulating appetite.
In this video from Science City, meet Romiya Glover, a chemist who develops products for HIV/AIDS testing. She describes the multidisciplinary nature of her job, how she decided to go into science, and how her work benefits others.
Learn how ravens benefit from sharing information and working together in this video segment from Nature.
Learn about root systems of trees in the Congaree Swamp National Park in this video segment from NatureScene.
The topic of photosynthesis is a fundamental concept in biology, chemistry, and earth science. Educational studies have found that despite classroom presentations, most students retain their naive idea that a plant's mass is mostly derived from the soil, and not from the air. To call students' attention to this misconception, at the beginning of this lesson we will provide a surprising experimental result so that students will confront their mental mistake. Next, we will help students better envision photosynthesis by modeling where the atoms come from in this important process that produces food for the planet. This lesson can be completed in 50-60 minutes, with the students working on in-class activities during 20-25 minutes of the lesson. As a prerequisite, students need an introductory lesson on photosynthesis, something that includes the overall chemical equation. If students have already studied the intracellular photosynthetic process in detail, this video can still be very helpful because students often miss the big picture about photosynthesis. Materials needed include red, white and black LEGO bricks (described in downloadable hand-out) or strips of red, white and black paper plus paper clips (directions provided in downloadable hand-out). In addition to class discussions, the major in-class activity of this video involves the students' modeling with LEGO bricks or colored paper where the atoms come from in photosynthesis.
In this video segment adapted from Northwest Indian College, Lummi Elders explain how a decline in the availability of salmon reflects a threatened environment that must in some way be protected.