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CASES Online is a collection of inquiry-based lessons to engage K-12 and undergraduate students in exploring the science behind real-world problems. Through CASES, you can transform your students into motivated investigators, self-directed and life-long learners, critical thinkers and keen problem solvers. Our cases are grounded in Problem-Based Learning (PBL), Investigative Case-Based Learning (ICBL), and related student-centered pedagogies.

The Innovative Technology in Science Inquiry project engages students in STEM activities through the integrated use of technologies that include modeling, computational thinking, and real-time data acquisition. This comprehensive project will assist teachers in preparing diverse students for STEM careers by engaging them in exciting, inquiry-based science projects.

 is a web-based library of inquiry-based character-driven animated mysteries paired with differentiated supplemental activities that exposes students to the thrill of problem-solving. Mosa Mack allows educators to engage students while teaching standards-aligned content in a fun and engaging way while modeling scientific processing skills. Through its female protagonist whose passion for problem solving drives each story, Mosa Mack promotes diversity in the sciences while simultaneously providing teachers with an accessible way to incorporate inquiry into the classroom. Mosa Mack's unique inquiry-based approach targets the development of critical thinking skills for all students, with a particular focus on girls and minorities with historically low participation STEM fields.

CASES Online is a collection of investigative lessons, or "cases," for K-12 and undergraduate science education. Using principles of Problem-Based Learning and Investigative Case-Based Learning (and related student-centered pedagogies), our cases are designed to engage students in exploring the science behind real-world problems. Our cases address a variety of learning objectives across the sciences and mathematics. Although our K-12 cases were designed for use in Georgia and meet our state education standards, we have also included the relevant National Science Education Standards. CASES Online is designed to be used by K-12 and undergraduate science educators. By searching our collection, educators can find cases appropriate to their grade levels, subjects, and topics of interest. In order to download case materials for use in the classroom, educators must first register. While there is no charge to register, download, or use these cases -- we request that all users follow the guidelines outlined under our Terms of Use. Educators are also encouraged to submit cases of their own to our collection. To learn how best to use CASES Online, explore the User Guide; otherwise, begin to transform your classroom by searching for cases.

"What is Ambitious Science Teaching? Great teaching can be learned. This web site provides a vision of ambitious science instruction for elementary, middle school and high school classrooms. Ambitious teaching deliberately aims to support students of all backgrounds to deeply understand science ideas, participate in the activities of the discipline, and solve authentic problems. We feature 4 core sets of teaching practices that support these goals. These core sets make up the Ambitious Science Teaching Framework. The framework has been based on classroom research from the past 30 years-research that has asked, "What kinds of talk, tasks, and tools do students need in order to fully engage in meaningful forms of science learning?""

Engaging list of 10 human genetic disorders (minimal information of structural mutations)

This case study takes place at a fictional biotechnology company developing herbicides against invasive plant species. The case study focuses on five herbicides with different effects on photosynthesis. Students play the role of lab interns and explore photosynthesis and the herbicide effects by engaging in concept mapping, experimental design, data manipulation, and data analysis. The goal is to use the experimental data to predict the steps in photosynthesis that are inhibited by each herbicide. Students should come away from the case study with a process-based understanding of photosynthesis. This case study is designed for the "flipped" classroom with suggested preparatory videos and associated assessment questions included. Videos can be supplemented with textbook readings or mini-lectures. This activity was developed for a non-majors introductory biology course but it could also be used in any general biology course, including majors' courses. It might also be used to establish foundational knowledge for more advanced discussions of photosynthesis in plant biology (botany) courses.

Socrative is a smart student response system that empowers teachers to engage their classrooms through a series of educational exercises and games via smartphones, laptops, and tablets.

All introductory biology textbooks, and many sophomore-level genetics textbooks as well, describe several classic experiments in molecular biology. This interrupted case study takes students through two of these classic experiments, namely, those by Griffith and Avery, McCarty and MacLeod that showed DNA to be the genetic material in Streptococcus pneumoniae, and the experiment by Meselson and Stahl that demonstrated DNA replication to be semiconservative. Engaging students with the experiments in a more exploratory manner can reinforce the nature of scientific discovery and the logic behind these findings. The case, which has been formatted as two separate exercises that can be used independently, was developed for use in introductory biology classes for biology majors. The material is accessible enough to also be useful for non-majors college biology or high school AP biology students.

We create interactive lessons for high school and college educators to engage their students in discussions of ethics and personal genetics. The lessons are relevant to multiple subjects, including biology, health, social studies, law, physical education and psychology. All of our lesson plans contain background reading for teachers and students, a selection of classroom activities, discussion points, in some cases a slide presentation or video clip, and an evaluation. Each lesson can stand alone, or all the lessons can be taught as a unit.

The Ethics Primer provides engaging, interactive, and classroom-friendly lesson ideas for integrating ethical issues into a science classroom. It also provides basic background on ethics as a discipline, with straightforward descriptions of major ethical theories. Several decision-making frameworks are included to help students apply reasoned analysis to ethical issues. Although the Primer is designed for secondary school science classrooms, it has been used by teachers in a variety of classes and grade levels. It is particularly suited to social studies and integrated/interdisciplinary classrooms. It has also been used with adults. The Primer is not designed to be used cover to cover. Teachers should review materials and select lessons that fit their needs. The Primer is also intended to be used as a general resource, with a wide variety of topics.

The Climate Education Week Toolkit is a free, easy-to-use, ready-to-go resource with everything you need. The Toolkit includes a week's worth of lesson plans, activities, and contests for K-12 students that meet Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core. Each day covers a different theme related to climate change with two highlighted activities handpicked by Earth Day Network for your use. This cross-disciplinary resource has a range of activities from an energy conservation action plan to reading and discussing Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, with the goal being to educate and engage your students on climate change.

3:32 video Narrated by anthropologist Nina Jablonski, this engaging animation shows how human skin cells produce the pigment melanin, which gives skin its color.

3:16 video To track commercial fishing activity around the world, SkyTruth, a small nonprofit based in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, has recently launched Global Fishing Watch in partnership with Google and Oceana. This prototype tool analyzes a satellite-collected feed of tracking data from ships' automatic identification systems-which vessels use to communicate their location to one another-to map movement over time and automatically determine which ships are engaged in fishing activity. Each vessel is pinpointed on a map outlining fishing laws around the globe. This map will be publicly available on theWeb, allowing anyone with an Internet connection to act as a watchdog and see when and where commercial fishing activity is occurring.

Video segments describing evolution in engaging cartoon format

TeachUNICEF is a portfolio of free global education resources. Resources cover grades PK-12, are interdisciplinary (social studies, science, math, English/language arts, foreign/world languages), and align with standards. The lesson plans, stories, and multimedia cover topics ranging from the Millennium Development Goals to Water and Sanitation. Our mission is to support and create well-informed global citizens who understand interconnectedness, respect and value diversity, have the ability to challenge injustice and inequities and take action in personally meaningful ways. We hope that in providing engaging and academically rich materials that offer multiple voices, we can encourage the exploration of critical global issues while presenting opportunities to take action.

"Survival of the Fittest: Variations in the Clam Species Clamys sweetus" is a guided inquiry. This series of hands-on activities complements the HHMI DVD Evolution: Constant Change and Common Threads and requires simple materials such as M&Ms, Reese's Pieces, food storage bags, and paper cups. This activity has been designed to engage students in thinking about the mechanism of natural selection by encouraging them to formulate questions that can be answered through scientific investigation, data collection, and pattern recognition.

This case study follows purveyors of peas, Joel E. and Jolene Greengiant, as they learn about the origin, biochemistry, genetics and eventual artificial selection of sweet (wrinkled) peas, all in the context of evolutionary biology. This integrative approach employs both problem-based learning techniques and directed questions as students engage in a series of modules. 

 Students must consider the role of rumen bacteria and how genetic modification may alter the potential of these bacteria. The case engages students in learning basic principles of bacterial genetics and biotechnology as they consider how microbes and microbial processes impact the environment. The case could also be used in an introductory genetics or biotechnology course.

Project NEURON develops curriculum materials for middle and high school teachers to use in their science classrooms. Each unit addresses various science education standards, including the Next Generation Science Standards, within the context of neuroscience topics and research performed on the University of Illinois campus. All of our completed materials, which have been classroom-tested and revised, are available on this website to teachers and educators for free. For teachers who wish to engage with our materials hands-on, we also provide professional development opportunities through local workshops and national teaching conferences such as NSTA.