Authentic Lessons for 21st Century Learning
In this lesson on how plants grow and develop, students will research specific plant behaviors and perform classroom investigations to learn how the environment affects plant growth. Students will focus on using evidence to explain their ideas and make predictions. (Funding provided by USDA Project... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: May 30th, 2025
Growth and Development of Organisms
In this lesson, students will explore forensic document analysis with an emphasis on handwriting. They will learn about the 12 characteristics of handwriting analysis and use them to analyze samples of their own handwriting and a peer's. Students will apply the skills they practiced to identify the... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: May 29th, 2025
Forensic Handwriting Analysis
Students develop questions about the phenomenon of wolf reintroduction into Yellowstone National Park. They explore published data to explain how different organisms interact to change the entire park ecosystem. Using this data, students take the role of a community member to engage in a role-play and... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: December 19th, 2024
Ecosystem Interactions
This lesson is a middle school adaptation of the high school lesson "How Does Your Garden Grow?" Students will explore principles of soil health, soil chemistry, nutrient cycles, and environmental impacts of soil quality and investigate optimal soil conditions for plant growth. Using the data and information... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: April 30th, 2025
Conservation, Ecosystems, and Soil Health
In this lesson, students investigate the phenomenon of differences in water clarity among four Oklahoma lakes. Students investigate how local environmental conditions and the survival strategies and growth of phytoplankton (algae) affect water clarity. Students then design and conduct experiments that... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: April 8th, 2025
Nutrients, Genetics, and Plant Growth
Observing a polyurea-coated watermelon dropping from a 148-foot drop as a phenomenon, students will develop an understanding of how the coating is formed via a chemical reaction and what properties make the substance so durable. Through models and observational data, students will explain how the molecular... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: April 21st, 2025
Chemical Properties and Reactions
In this lesson, students learn about Complete Blood Count (CBC), blood-specific vocabulary, common disorders which may be detected with a CBC and the role of CBC in patient diagnosis. They will conduct an investigation where they analyze the characteristics of simulated blood samples and diagnose patients... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: June 24th, 2025
Understanding Complete Blood Counts (CBC)
Students will explore the effects of an increase in nitrogen and phosphorus in aquatic ecosystems. They will collect data from an algae growth investigation and complete a reading about human-produced nutrient inputs. Using these sources of evidence, students will develop a causal explanation of the... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: January 31st, 2025
Effects of Disturbance on Ecosystems
This middle school lesson is adapted from the high school lesson "How Does Your Garden Grow?" Students will explore principles of soil health, soil chemistry, and nutrient cycles by testing and analyzing soil samples. Students will also explore humanity's impact on soil health and create public service... Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: April 2nd, 2025
Conservation, Ecosystems, and Soil Health
In this lesson, students investigate how digital and analog waves carry information by developing models and relating these to information transmission. This lesson is Part 3 of the "Beyond the Slinky®" series on waves and their properties. Read more »
Created by: Heather Shaffery
Date Updated: December 6th, 2024
Information Transmission Through Waves
