Topics

Labs - All Labs are Recorded in Lab Journal

• New! Images from NASA - A collections of amazing photos from the past 50 years! Print them out and decorate your classroom!

• Science Alphabet Border : (Word Doc) (Earth Science Version) Print, Cut & paste onto construction paper to create a great border or word wall, helps to reinforce vocabulary. Version with Clip Art in PDF

• NEW! Exploring Earth Online Visualizations by McDougal Littell

• Lessons from NASA - an extensive collection of all types of lessons, covers climate, oceans and life.

• Activities using paper plates to teach about the universe!

• I, ROBOT - Lesson Plans for the book by Isaac Asimov

• Wanted Poster Project: Research a famous scientist and create a wanted poster!  Great for beginning of the year and to post around the school.  | Biography List | Treasure Trove Biography|  Distinguished Women | Famous Astronomers | Mug Shots | Quotations Page |

Weather & Atmosphere

• Hurricane Unit with links and worksheets

• New! A Hurricane's Life Worksheet (pdf) by TFK

• Weather Unit - Adopt a City Weather Unit -  Topics:  Atmosphere, Air Pressure, Temperature, Isotherms, Air Masses, Isobars, Fronts and Storms, Cloud Identification, Fog, Precipitation, Wind, Wind Chill, Humidity, Climate, Microclimate, Weather Prediction , Thermometer Skills, Compass Skills, Map Skills, Weather Symbol Skills, Graphing Skills,   

• Rain Fall Bar Graph Skills Sheet pdf |

Tornado Links:

• Yesterday's Tornadoes as recorded by NOAA

• The Tornado Project: A site with tons of information on Tornadoes:

• Tornado Theme page - This is a great resource of links and worksheets by a teacher in Canada. It is geared towards 5th graders, but you can modify it for older kids - Worksheets.

• And what unit on tornadoes doesn't have a tornado in a bottle lesson?

Space Shuttle & Challenger Links

• Perfection in Space - Students will simulate an Astronaut's use of space gloves to perform tasks.  Work Sheet (pdf) NASA lesson no longer posted

• Challenger Mission : Center for kids to explore space

• Stardust - This site has TONS of info on Comets, be sure to check out the educator page.

• Human Space Flight - everything you need to know about shuttle missions and more!

• The lives of stars - learn about the different stages in a star's life cycle

• Earth & Sky for Kids

• Earth & Sky - tons of information for teachers about the night sky

• Sky Observation Project- Students will make a series of 5 nightly observations.

• Updated Link: How to make a star wheel or Planisphere.

• NEW! Color Star Wheel and directions on how to make and use one.

• Lesson:  How to use a Planisphere -  As an enrichment to this lesson, I would give each student a small inexpensive compass and give them a few minutes to figure out how to use, or at least orientate, the planisphere before I actually begin the lesson.

• New: Using a Planisphere Lesson (pdf)

• NEW! Make your own sundial

• How to make and use a simple Astrolabe 

• Using an Astrolabe Activity Sheet PDF

• What types of stars are in our universe? This is great small or large group lesson to use when studying types of stars and the h-r diagram.

• Group Activity:  Cut out and laminate the color images from the last few pages of the lesson and have students sort images according to size, distance, and age. Lesson plan : Cosmic Survey What are your ideas about the Universe? PDF and the Worksheet I made to use with this lesson plan (pdf)

• Cosmic Poetry using "magnetic paper" word cut-outs:  Instructions (pdf) and word lists (pdf)

• Group Activity: Star Classification (pdf) with stars (pdf): Notes - Star Magnitudes and Classification, Hertzsprung -Russell (H-R) Diagram

• HW: Star Color and Temperature Worksheet (pdf)

• HW: Star Magnitude Worksheet (pdf)

• Sandburg Center for Sky Awareness - A Fairfax County Public Schools Planetarium - Lesson Plans

• Sky Watch - Discovery.com

• Hayden Planetarium - NYC

• Astronomy links for kids

• Astronomy Picture of the Day

• Zoom Astronomy - an online resource with a lot of great information|

Interactive:

• New! Star Gazing - can you line up the telescope with the correct angle measurement to find the planets?

• Black Holes - what are they?

• BrainPOP Movie - Lifecycle of a Star Worksheet PDF

Constellations

• New! Big Dipper Star Clock - pdf

• Constellation Study Guide (pdf) Students will keep an information sheet for each constellation we study.

• Project:  Shoe Box Planetarium - Students will research and create a planetarium for an assigned constellation.

• Constellation Myth Project- Students will create their own constellation and myth. 

• Constellation Haikus (pdf)  Students will create original haikus for a constellation of their choice.

•  Personal Constellation (pdf) Students will create a constellation using their first names.

•  NASA - Classical Mythology

• Constellation Myth Study Guides

• Detailed Constellation Myths with Scientific Info

• Night Photos

• Monthly Sky Chart

• Intro to Astronomy

• GREAT star reference sheets for the kids to keep in their astronomy binder: Winter Ellipse (pdf) | Summer Triangle (pdf) | Autumn (pdf) & Spring (pdf).  More reference sheets from Perkins Observatory

Interactive:

• Tonight's Sky - guide to the sky each month

• Internet Activity: Funbrain- Identify the constellation.

• PRACTICE: Lite-Brite Constellations - students will practice making constellation patterns with a Virtual Lite-Brite..Lesson Plan

Moon

• New! Crash Landing (pdf) What supplies do you need if you crash land on the moon?

• Moon Clock (pdf) - students will make moon clock with phases, moon rise and setting.

• Exploring the Moon - NASA resource booklet

• Phases of the moon Vocabulary - Cut 'n Paste Sheet 1 & Sheet 2 (pdf)

• Moon Vocabulary - Cut 'n Paste Sheet 1 & Sheet 2 (pdf)

• Moon Phases Bulletin Board Lesson Plan (pdf)

• Bulletin Board Template (pdf)- Make a large moon phase calendar using this template. 

• Spring and Neap Tides Worksheet (pdf)

• Types of Eclipses Worksheet (pdf)

• Making Moon Craters (pdf) Students will create craters on a "moon surface" using magnetic marbles dropped from various heights.

• Phases of the Moon Daily Log and Flip Book Project:  Students will make observations and record the phases of the moon and then create a flip book.

• Moon Phase Calendar - Students will record the daily phase of the moon. (PDF)

• Moon Phases Movie

• Phases of the Moon -definitions and pics

• Lunar Phases and Elongation from the sun

• What is the Diameter of the moon?  Geometry activity

• Myths, Moons, and Planets - Puzzles about Greek Gods and Goddesses: Moons & Planets

Interactive:

• Birthday Moons - Internet lesson -What moon phase will occur for your birthday this year?  What moon phases will occur after your birthday?

• Lunar Phases Moon Challenge - Can you place the correct phase into the calendar? 3 levels of difficulty.

• Moon Phases Animation - Shows the phases of the moon using real pictures

• Animation of Neap and Spring Tides.

• BrainPOP Movie - The Moon Worksheet (PDF)

• BrainPOP Movie - Eclipse Worksheet (PDF)

• GREAT Interactive SITE - What does the moon look like from the Southern Hemisphere?

Solar System and Universe

• NASA for Educators resource of lessons and info

• Galaxy Trading Cards

• What is your galactic address? (pdf)

• Amazing Space - Lesson and resource information

• Hubble Website

• NASA Space Place for kids

• Galactic Mobile - classify the galaxies and make a cool mobile!

• Cosmo 4 kids

• Lithograph set of the Solar System - NASA

• Hubble Telescope Site

• NASA - Solar system website

• Solar System Exploration Site NASA

• NASA - Solar system trading cards pdf (Remove Pluto prior to use)

• The order of the planets - students will use cue cards and images of the planets to put them in order.

• The size and distance of the planets - student will map out the distance of the planets using rolls of toilet paper!

Interactive:

• Cosmic Collision - When the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxy collide!

• BrainPOP Movie - Solar System Worksheet (PDF)

Geology

• "Digging into Science" - Students excavate a site to find bones and then reconstruct the bones to form an ancient creature.  All worksheets and directions are supplied.

• Forever and a Day (PDF)- Students create a geologic time scale & Color overhead of Fossil Layers pdf

• Faults - paper model activity to examine the 3 types of faults that occur.

• Information and pictures of Faults

• Illinois State Museum - Geology Lessons for grades K-12

Rock Cycle Links -

• Interactive Rock Cycle Animation

• Crayon Rock Cycle Lesson plan

• Ride the Rock Cycle - roll the dice and complete the rock cycle!

Soil

• Handout on soil particle size and the textural triangle (pdf)

• Soil Texture Analysis Activity:  Have students bring in half a jar of soil from their yards. Fill with water, shake, and observe!