Earth Day		Tsunamis
	Earth's Properties		Volcanoes
	Earth's History, Earth Day, and Clean Water		Weather
	Even Kids Can Help the Earth! Lesson Set		Who Knew Mother Earth Has So Many Problems?
	Rocks

Earth Sciences Lesson Plans

1. Alien Pen Pals- Students write a friendly letter to an alien informing it about the planet Earth. Students use editing skills and brainstorming skills to produce a final product.
2. Alternative Snowflakes- Children will discover how snowflakes in nature are really formed, and recreate this process with paper and glue.
3. Arbor Day- Students learn about the reasons for celebrating Arbor Day. Integrates Be Friends to Trees by Patricia Lauber.
4. As the Earth Turns- Why do the sun and moon seem to disappear and reappear making day and night? This lesson demonstrates the rotation of the earth.
5. Be A Planet- To learn what planets are and the names and order of the planets. Planet attributes can also be learned.
6. Climate and Topography, What Is the Connection?- This lesson deals only with the Earth’s climatic patterns as they relate to the interplay of topographic features of Earth.
7. Constellations- To introduce the concept of constellations.
8. Creating Sand Dunes- This experience will also demonstrate to students the importance of proper dune management for conservation purposes.

1. Denver Earth Science Project- 5 complete units.
2. Discovery's Earth Science Lesson Plans- 30 K-12 Lesson in alphabetic order. This site takes a long time to load on standard connections.
3. Earth Bags- Students will write and illustrate ideas for helping our environment on paper grocery bags that will be distributed at the local grocery store.
4. Earth Matters- Students will understand and be able to identify the Earth's equator, prime meridian, lines of latitude, lines of longitude, parallels, and meridians.
5. Earth Science Lessons- Lessons include worksheets and student assessments.
6. Floating Plates on the Earth- Science students develop a concept map to help them organize information, on Plate Tectonics, after reading a selection. Students then organize notes into an outline to further demonstrate knowledge of this topic.
7. Flooding and Other Disasters- This activity may be used in connection with a science or social studiesunit on weather or natural disasters which result in changes to the environment.
8. Just Turn It Off- Energy is often expended when it need not be. Students will investigate the importance of turning off lights, toys, machines, and appliances.
9. Magnetic Fields and Bermuda Triangles- This activity shows how to map a magnetic field, and to find how a bar magnet's field combines with the Earth's magnetic field to form a complex resultant field.
10. Making a Compass!- Students will create a compass and investigate properties of magnetism.
11. Martian Real Estate: A Good Investment?- This lesson has students compare the landscapes of Mars and Earth and explore why the two planets are so different. They will conclude by writing letters convincing fictitious family friends that it is probably not a good idea to invest in Martian real estate.
12. Monster Waves- In this activity, students will build a tabletop village and use it to visualize the relative height and affects of gigantic waves called tsunamis.
13. My Little Island- In this lesson, students will learn about the processes that lead to the formation of an island and study the impact that an island's geographic and geologic history has on the culture of the people who live there.
14. Observe a Leaf- Students will observe and describe leaves.
15. Planets in Balance- Students conduct independent research on one of the planets in our solar system, specifically discovering a planet’s composition, weather, atmosphere, and satellites
16. Pond Action- 30 lessons on pond science.
17. Protecting Our Precious Planet: Sharing the Message of Earth Day- Your students will learn to think globally and act locally by participating in the Internet-based Earth Day Groceries Project.
18. Retrograde Motion- Students will learn the terms for objects in the heavens. Demonstrate the basic motions of heavenly bodies.
19. Salt Water Painting- The students will observe and understand the process of evaporation.
20. Save Our Earth- Students research current environmental problems in order to develop and deliver an oral presentation. This presentation will persuade the audience to act on the student's point of view on the issue.
21. Satellite Communication- This is a hands-on demonstration of the communication between the EUVE satellite and a scientist on Earth.
22. Science Connection- Lessons from Arizona State University.
23. Science Education Gateway- over 200 useful lessons.
24. Seasons Review- This lesson has students distinguish the four seasons after listening to the book Frederick by Leo Lionni.
25. Shadow Sticks and the Sun- Our shadows change over the course of the day and through the seasons. When is your shadow the shortest? When is your shadow the longest?
26. Shadows- To investigate shadows, using literature-based discussion as well as experiences with manipulating shadows.
27. Solar and Wind Power: Clean Energy
28. Space: The Final Frontier- This is a series of experiments about space. This unit was designed for use in the second grade.
29. Spaceship Earth- To develop an understanding of our planet as a system by designing a very-long-duration space mission in which the life-support system is patterned after that of earth.
30. Stress and Strain- To show the stress and strain involved in the movements of the earth's crust with the use of working models.
31. The Big Wet- The northernmost areas in Australia are characterized by a climate known as “tropical wet and dry.” The temperatures are always warm, with a six-month dry season and a long rainy season known as “the big wet."
32. The Four Seasons- To understand that it is the tilt of earth’s axis that causes the seasons.
33. The Lunar and Terrestrial Tug of War- Students work in groups to locate, comprehend, interpret, and evaluate information about celestial bodies that influence ocean tides on Earth. Students apply this information through graphic representations.
34. The Solar System on a Smaller Scale- To model the distances between the planets.
35. Touring Through the Beginning of Earth- Students create a series of newspaper articles about different theories of how life began on Earth.
36. Transpiration- To show how plants act to help maintain the HYDROLOGIC CYCLE.
37. Understanding Rotation- This lesson helps students develop a better understanding of the rotation of the earth through a hands-on experiment.
38. Using the Science and Language of Patterns to Explore the Weather- Learning modules for the NSF.
39. Visual Model of the Planet Earth- A staple of earth science.
40. Water- This simple activity may be easily incorporated into a science unit on water.
41. Water: A Never-Ending Story- Could you be drinking the same water a saber tooth tiger lapped up?
42. Water Magic- This activity is designed to help students understand that water picks up natural and man-made substances as it moves over and through the earth. Students will observe and experiment with water in three physical forms.
43. Way Cool Tools for Mars Exploration- Five activities that follow the NASA mission.
44. What is in Outer Space?- To identify objects in outer space. To differentiate between objects in our atmosphere and those in space.
45. What On Earth- What on Earth Is Earth Science? That is what students discover in this lesson through concept mapping, discussion, and self-discovery.
46. Why Are Species Endangered?- To orient students to the plight of endangered species and to help them understand and gain perspective on human issues that continue to endanger species and threaten our global environment.