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Web Research Helps Students Choose Classroom Pets
Instead of writing traditional animal reports ("This is what a hamster eats."), students research, synthesize, and apply information to determine the best pet for a particular classroom. Internet access is all that's needed for this tech-infused science lesson.
Web Research Helps Students Choose Classroom Pets
Instead of writing traditional animal reports ("This is what a hamster eats."), students research, synthesize, and
apply information to determine the best pet for a particular classroom. Internet access is all that's needed for this
tech-infused science lesson.
Search for Ice and Snow
Using an Earth Image database (Space Shuttle images) and world map, students identify places on Earth where there
is ice and snow, and then create a table showing where they found the information, and the geographic location of
the snow and ice.
Croc or Gator?
Students in grades 2-4 read online information about crocodiles and alligators, write down the similarities and differences,
and then create a Venn Diagram.
Dangerous Animal Facts
From sharks to tarantulas to snakes, students often are fascinated by dangerous animals. Capitalize on their interest
with this fun online lesson in which students identify three facts on a dangerous animal then record those facts on
a printable graphic organizer.
Get into the Flow with
an Interactive Volcano
Working in small groups, students in grades 4-8 research volcanos and
create PowerPoint slides. They then make an interactive table of contents
using a volcano diagram and Action Buttons.
An Out-of-This-World
Crossword Puzzle
Make planetary facts fun with this online lesson about Earth's solar system.
Students visit an interactive Web site to research the planets and Sun
in Earth's solar system, then create original crossword puzzles based
on their research.
Plant Growth
Students learn about the parts of a seed, as they plant seeds and observe
and record their growth.
Human Body Board Game
Students research a system of the human body, write questions and answers
on game cards created in Word, and then play the game using a game board
template from Word. This is a great culminating activity at the end of
a unit!
Definition Expedition
Students in grades 9-12 learn three ways to define a term in technical
writing, search the Web for scientific text, then copy and paste sections
into a Word document. Finally, they use the highlighter feature of Word
to highlight examples of definitions within the text.
The Bear Necessities
Does the idea of your K-2 students doing Web research seem impossible?
Check out this simple, but engaging, lesson! With teacher guidance, students
use a KWL worksheet and a single easy-to-read Web site to record what
they know, what they want to learn, and what they do learn about polar
bears.
Prehistoric Pen Pals
Students research dinosaurs, then assume the personality of a specific
dinosaur species in this lesson for grades 3-5. Each student/dinosaur
writes an online "getting to know you" letter to another student/dinosaur
in class. Students swap letters and reply to each other's questions, improving
research and letter writing skills while learning fun dinosaur facts.
Foliage Tracker
The spectacle of changing leaf colors dramatically signals fall's changing
seasons. Students track leaf changes, input data found at one Web site
into another, and then graph foliage changes with a free online tool.
Panda-Monium
Students in grades 3-5 learn basic facts about giant and lesser pandas,
then categorize same or differing characteristics onto an online Venn
diagram. The activity can be done as a whole class, small group, or individual
assignment. Let the panda-monium begin!
Be
on the Lookout!
Students practice research skills as they learn about the characteristics,
diets, habitats, and habits of a variety of bugs.
Hurricanes in History: Where,
When, and How!
Students work in pairs or small groups to complete this fun and challenging
activity. They study a graph showing 100 years of hurricane data, and
then determine what types of hurricanes are most likely to hit an area
in the future. Teamwork, graph interpretation skills, and environmental
science facts are reviewed in this lesson.
Looking
for Wright Brothers Lessons? You've Come to the "Wright" Place!
It was 100 years ago at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, that man first
flew in an engine-powered aircraft. Before that time, such an event was thought
to be centuries away! Included: Five lessons to celebrate the Wright brothers'
achievement plus links to 20 more lessons.
Wild
and Wonderful Lessons About Endangered Species
This Earth Day, put the diversity of plants and animals to work in lessons that
will tame your students' need to know about endangered species. Included: Five
"captivating" lessons that involve research, role-playing, and real-life creatures.
Trees Sprout Classroom
Lessons Throughout the Year
Why not go out on a limb! Springtime and Arbor Day are great times to branch out
and include in your curriculum timely lessons about trees. Included: Lessons for
measuring trees, reading a color key map, creating tree silhouettes and a "good
behavior tree," more.
Five Lessons Teach
Students to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Earth Day, first celebrated in 1970, is just around the corner.
To celebrate, Education World offers five lessons to teach about trash and the
importance of recycling. Included: A Mother's Day gift idea, recycle games, worms,
scrap paper projects, more!
What is the Most
Serious Problem Facing Earth? --
An Education World WebQuest
In this special Earth Day WebQuest, student teams research a critical
threat to Earth's environment as they vie for $1 million in funding from the fictional
Help Our World (HOW) Foundation. Included: student work sheets, lots of Earth
Day resources, more.
Winter Wonderland
-- Lessons for Frosty Days!
Though the weather outside is frightful, wintry lessons are delightful!
Whether the topic is snow, cold, or other icy treats, winter is a frosty focus
that will motivate and entertain your class. Bundle up and brace for wild, windy,
weather outside while showing your students the best of winter activities indoors!
Included: Five lessons that make winter a winning subject!
Plant Seeds of Learning:
Classroom Lessons Bring Plants to Life!
Spring has sprung! It's the perfect time to explore plants in
the classroom. This week, Education World presents five new classroom lessons
that involve students in growing things and learning about scientific classification,
plant cell structure, the importance of plants in our history, and the many uses
of plants!
Teaching Through
Invention
Invite your students to invent a better mousetrap -- or a better
mouse! This week, Education World lessons focus on inventors and inventions, challenging
your students to see the world in a whole new way.
A River of Lessons!
Go with the flow! Celebrate National Rivers Month with five lessons
about rivers from Education World!
Spring to Life!
From tadpoles to frogs, from poetry to pesticides, Education World
provides lessons about the issue -- and issues -- of spring.
Up, Up, and Away!
Aviation Activities!
Ready, set, take off! For thousands of years, people have been
fascinated with flying. This week, Education World offers a cargo of lessons about
aviation that are just "plane" fun!
A Garden of Growing
Activities!
Dust off your gardening tools! It's the time of the year to put
the spring in your step and exercise your green thumb. This week, Education World
offers a plot full of gardening activities that will have students "digging" for
more!
Space: The Final
Frontier
Education World presents "Space: The Final Frontier," the next
chapter in our yearlong Millennium Series.
An Ocean of Activities!
Surf's up! This week, Education World offers ten lessons that
offer students the opportunity to explore the largest bodies of water on Earth:
oceans! Included: Activities that involve students in creating time lines and
posters, learning about ocean mysteries and legends, and much more!
Bug Me! -- Classroom
Activities for Teaching About Bugs
If you thought bugs were for the birds, this swarm of activities
will change your mind! Included: Ten activities for teaching and learning with
bugs.
Volcanoes: Nature's
Explosive Spectacles!
Volcanoes, with their untamed displays of fire and fury, are surely
the most dramatic and least predictable of nature's many spectacles. This week,
Education World brings the drama alive with ten lessons designed to capture students'
interest and extend their learning.
Ten Activities for
Teaching the Five Senses
Our senses allow us to enjoy our food, the sound of music, the
beauty of a sunny day, the softness of a child’s hair -- in short, our lives!
With the aid of the Internet, you can teach your students about the special gift
of the senses and how they work. They will encounter sound by making instruments,
guess what is inside a feely bag by using touch, or rub a homemade scratch ’n’
sniff gingerbread boy! Experimenting with the senses is fun for everyone!
Dinosaurs Sell! An Education
World QuickQuest!
Dinosaurs are in the news again! Invite your students to learn
the reasons for the public’s endless fascination with the mysterious prehistoric
creatures as they complete Dinosaurs Sell!, an Education World QuickQuest.
Leaping Lizards!
Dinosaur Activities on the Web
Too much to do? Too little time? Education World's quick-tivities
create instant teachable moments to take advantage of the opening of the summer
movie blockbuster, Dinosaur. Included: Printable and interactive activities
that students can do online and off, in or out of class!
Science Experiments
Straight from the Web!
Think of your favorite science lesson from elementary school,
and it probably won’t be one that involved a lecture. Hands-on means heads-up!
Teachers are responding to their students’ need for real-life, experimental science
activities. But where can you find them? The Web is brimming with great lessons
for you, so build a guitar, make a raisin dance, or build a solar hot dog cooker.
You provide the supplies, and the Net will show your students how to use them.
Included: Bill Nye tells Education World that there is no substitute for hands-on
learning!
Gems from the Garden
--- Digging Up Activities for All Ages!
As temperatures warm and snow melts, educators search for ways
to invite new growth into their classrooms. The Internet is full of hands-on activities
for the indoor and outdoor gardener. Plant a seed, design a garden, or investigate
the life of a worm --- welcome the new season with those activities and a crop
of others! Included: Online resources for students to plan and plant their own
Fantasy Farm!
Computer Sabotage:
A Lesson Plan
Computer teacher Tom Guy was surprised to find that his students
were coming to him, completely perplexed, with every minor glitch that occurred
in the computers in his lab, even when error messages gave them only *one* option!
He decided to give the kids a crash course in fixing minor difficulties, by "sabotaging"
a computer each day and putting the students on the case.
Add Color ---and
Learning--- to Your Fall Lesson Plans!
Savor the season! Bring the colors of fall into the classroom
with some free foliage from Vermont! Then involve students in some hands-on science
and language activities that will teach important concepts and valuable study
skills. Included: Ten activities to teach about the season!
Internet Scavenger
Hunt: Inventors and Inventions
Education World writer Hazel Jobe has created special Internet
scavenger hunts that will have your students surfing the best on-line resources
for fun facts about some famous and not-so-famous inventors and inventions. Included:
Two hunts -- one for elementary age students and one for older students.
Twister! Understanding
-- and Surviving -- Tornadoes
Whether you live in "Tornado Alley" or not, spring brings to your
state the increased possibility of a deadly tornado. Are you prepared? This week,
Education World helps you learn about the meteorological events that signal the
possibility of a tornado and what safety measures you and your students can take
to survive.
The Endangered Falcon:
Back from the Brink
Recently, plans were announced to remove the peregrine falcon
from the endangered species list. This week, Education World introduces you to
sites featuring this amazing raptor and provides you with activities that will
help you and your students explore the falcon's return from near extinction.
Tracking Sea Turtles:
Lessons in Saving an Endangered Species
Put on your scuba gear and grab your camera -- we're going on
an undersea adventure! Endangered sea turtles are in need of our attention, and
the Internet offers some great activities for learning about sea turtles -- and
even tracking their movements! Are you ready to make some turtle "trax"?
The Return of the
Wolf!
Few efforts to spur the recovery of endangered animals have evoked
as much opposition as recent programs to reintroduce the wolf to the wild. What
is it about this close relative of the beloved family dog that instills such fear
and loathing? Are those feelings justified? This week's activities might help
your students answer those questions.
Track the Meteor
Storm Online!
Astronomers forecast heavy meteor showers for November 17 -- a
"once-every-33-years" occurrence! To help your students understand the causes
and effects of this rare spectacle and to prepare them for the excitement of an
event they're probably hearing a great deal about, Education World offers scavenger
hunts for elementary, middle, and high school students. Included: Cross-curricular
activities for extending the lessons.
Hurricane Watch!
To your students, September probably means new friends, new books,
and new and exciting adventures. But to meteorologists, September signifies an
adventure of another kind. It's the peak month of the Atlantic hurricane season.
This week, Education World brings the two together, providing activities designed
to help your students understand this powerful force of nature.
Create a Whale of
a Lesson!
Fishing for activities to celebrate Keiko's return to his natural
habitat? These activities would make a great addition to any unit on sea animals!
Animals of the World:
An Internet Scavenger Hunt
Where in the world do some animals live? Send your students on
an Internet scavenger hunt! They'll learn about the natural habitats of ten of
the world's animals --- including some animals they've never heard of! (A scavenger
hunt for Internet beginners --- and one for experienced surfers too.)
The Human Body:
An Online Tour
The human body is the most fascinating and fantastic machine in
existence. No one understands all of its many mysteries; and no single source
can do justice to its many parts. This week, Education World tours the Web to
find the best "human body" sites. You won't believe what we discovered! Included:
Sites for all ages. Activities too!
Forecasters Fear
El Niño Year
What is El Niño -- and why does it affect weather? Find out
how forecasters think El Niño will impact you! Included -- activities for
teaching about El Niño across the grades!
Bats in the Classroom:
Activities Across the Curriculum
October -- the perfect time to work bats into the curriculum,
to teach about some of the misconceptions often held about these interesting creatures
of nature.
Photosynthesis:
Don't "Leaf" Out Fall's Most Valuable Lesson!
Autumn is here! Fall's colors provide the perfect motivation for
teaching about photosynthesis across the grades. Included: We've raked up a pile
of activities for you to "leaf" through!
Hurricanes Spark
a Storm of Classroom Activity!
Hurricane season is here! Use some of these activities and Internet
connections to engage students of all ages in a study of these powerful and frightening
storms.
Dive into Learning:
Swim With the Seals!
Put your students in touch with the real scientists at WhaleNet.
Your students will be able to track online the movements of two just-released
seals. (This site is sure to get your students' "seal" of approval!)
What's "Bugging"
You?
Mosquitoes got you down this summer? Ticks? Roaches? Now is a
great time to challenge students to learn more about the fascinating world of
bugs! Try some of these activities. And check out some great Internet sites!
Mission to Mars
A galaxy of ideas related to the Red Planet.
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