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You've now reached the outer edges of our own solar system It would take you about 23 million years of continuous scrolling on this scale to get to the farthest regions of the observable universe, another 435,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kmor 46 billion light years away. We think we'll stop here. Hands down this is one of the most engaging sites I've ever visited. It is jam packed with fun facts, information, and references about outer space! I find it totally awesome how they created the site to be like a virtual rocket ride through space. You literally scroll the rocket down to get to different regions of space, along the way you get facts about the atmosphere, planets, meteors, and so much more! This site is so engaging that I thinks students will fall in love with it! It is whimsical and very colorful! Teachers could easily incorporate this site when teaching about the solar system. You could have students go on the site and find 5 facts that they found most interesting and have them share with the class. Or as a class you could scroll through space and learn about so many things! I think this site is just fascinating and could be very valuable, especially since there is so much information on space it makes for a great timeline/distance line since it can get confusing! I think every teacher should use this website because its awesome and very engaging and I think students will find it captivating.

In the 1950's three new whale species were discovered, Waharoa ruwhenus, Tokarahia Kauaeroa, and Tokarahia Iophocephalus. Through the study of their fossils scientists have concluded that these three species of whales are part of a new family (species) of whale, Emysticetids. Emysticetids hold an important position on the evolutionary tree between primitive baleen whales and modern baleen whales. These marine creatures lived roughly 25-30 million years ago when the continent of New Zealand, Zealandia, was reduced to low islands and shallow seas. The article goes into great depth about these three new whale species. From their skeletal structure (elongated snout), size (adults were estimated to be 5-6 meters long), and even migratory patterns (continental shelf waters), it is all covered.

This article can be incorporated into a lesson about marine biology and evolutionary trees. It's a little too much for elementary students to grasp but I think it would be an interesting addition to a 6-8 or a 9-12 grade science classroom.

This is a simple, yet, very effective way for students to understand just what is happening during moon phases. It is a very simple activity to put together that has the students sitting in a circle around the "moon" which is stationary and half is colored black. Each student, sitting at different angles draws what it is they see demonstrating the moon phases. I love this activity, it easily illustrates any misconceptions that students may have about the moon and its phases. I could see this being a very useful lesson and activity when discussing the moon, and illustrating how parts of the moon don't actually disappear. I've always thought that being able to visualize things were the best way to learn.

This is an awesome interactive site. This site allows the student to guide his/her own learning while navigating throughout the solar system. It allows the user to move through the solar system and choose a planet, from there it offers several more options:pictures, recent missions, news articles, and endless facts. I could see myself using this as an exploration tool for my students, or I could potentially assign them a planet where they could use this site to gather their information. I really enjoyed exploring this site myself.

Inspired by content from the upcoming PBS series EARTH A New Wild , the Ecosystem Explorer is a collection of videos, games, and infographics designed to take students deep into the ecosystems of three thrilling animals: vultures, wolves, and sharks.

Remove "science" tag and leave the biology one, which is more specific. Use an additional tag to designate what kind of resource this is: activity, lesson, video, field trip, etc.

Inspired by content from the upcoming PBS series EARTH A New Wild , the Ecosystem Explorer is a collection of videos, games, and infographics designed to take students deep into the ecosystems of three thrilling animals: vultures, wolves, and sharks. This is such a wonderful interactive site, which allows students to explore three different animals in their world: the vulture, wolf, and shark. I selected this resource because after navigating through myself I thought how beneficial and intriguing students would see it as well. The site gives facts about why these particular animals are essential to the environment, it also provide pictures of these creatures and games. This resource could be used when students are learning about animals and how essential they are to our environment, and what habitat and how these creatures live. I enjoyed this site and think that it could be a great tool for a future classroom.

In this lesson students earn the basic parts of seeds and what they need to grow into a plant. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I cannot rave about this website enough. It is incredible. The lesson here is on seeds and this website has many portions of the McKendree template prepared already. There is an introduction, instructional sequence, resources, materials, and assessment. I really appreciate the depth of this lesson. It starts with an engaging introduction to get kids thinking and then allows for group work and a hands-on opportunity with seeds. I really like that kids get to hear what the parts of a seed are, view it on a diagram, and also witness it inn reality with an actual seed. This site provides an accompanying video from Sesame Street as well as other websites that would extend the lesson if desired. I would absolutely use this lesson in my classroom. I think something like seeds could be seen as a "boring" topic to some children, but if I used this lesson, I think it would help the topic to come alive and really get the children engaged. I would carry out this lesson as it is constructed, but add my own flair where needed.

Yeah, you read that right, a naked egg. What the heck? What's a naked egg, you ask. Well read on because if you have kids and if they like science at all (or doing cool things) they will love this one! First I'll tell you how to do it and then I'll explain how it ... ______ This is a neat demo that uses vinegar to strip an eggs shell. I have never seen this done before, and it caught my eye as I was searching the web. This would be great to use in a classroom when discussing chemical reactions. I would probably use only one egg and one jar to demo for the whole class to see and observe. The lesson can also lead into discussions of biology in terms of membranes and nucleus.

This lesson helps the students understand and explore what technology is and how it's so much more than "computers." It will also give them the chance to study the history throughout America's past time. I think this lesson would be awesome to have a history tie-in simply because they can possibly make a timeline as a class, each student receiving an item and having to research the inventor and how it changed how people operated certain things. i.e. light bulb, electricity, cars, computers, phones, etc. They will use computers and tablets for their research. This way they're using technology to learn about technology.

Most of us probably remember the classic science experiment of cleaning a penny with a mixture of vinegar and salt. This website demonstrates stepping that up a notch and experimenting cleaning a penny with different types of substances. This activity allows for the students to make inferences and predictions on what liquid will make the penny cleaner or shinier and what liquid or substance will make it duller.

This resource is an interactive introduction to sound. I would use this resource in a lesson on sound and vibrations, and show the website on a smartboard for my students and I to explore together. This interactive resource has multiple pages of images with sounds and animations that allow students to pluck rubber bands to notice sound and compare the speed of sound with the speed of other familiar vehicles. Another page of animations also shows students the speed of sound in the air in relation to thunder and lightning, something all students should be familiar with. I like this resource but I think teacher involvement would be required. It is not something young students could explore or read on their own.

This technology based resource allows students to create their own sounds and vibrations using a "drum machine." The students are able to change and customize the sounds that they want, if they want a high or low tone, and whether the sound is loud or soft. I chose this resource because it is technology based and something that the students could use in the computer lab or if they have extra time during class to use the computers in the room. It also goes along with my standard 1-PS4-1. I could use this in my future classroom after teaching the students about different sounds and the vibrations that they make. It would be beneficial to have students experiment with this resource and get an understanding for the high and low tones of sounds and their vibrations.

By creating a beach in a pan, students are able to make observations about how erosion occurs in nature. Place rock and damp sand at one end of the pan. Place a brick under the pan on the end with the sand so that the pan is tilting. Pour water into the opposite end of the pan. With a sponge in the water, press down on the sponge to create waves that hit the beach. The students will then be able to observe what happens to the sand and gravel after the waves continue to crash into the sand. I chose this resource because it allows the students to have a hands on activity and watch erosion take place systematically.

This lesson demonstrates a model of a species life cycle and how traits and the environment effects a species. Rather than looking at a worksheet that explains how traits are inherited or adapted due to the environment, this lesson allows students to see three generations of a species that they observe. Three different colored plastic Easter eggs and googly eyes are used for the outside appearance of the species. Two different colors of pipe cleaners are placed inside the eggs. The students make observations of color of the pipe cleaners and outer appearance. After their observation, they would write down their observation. They would take all the pipe cleaners out and throw them into a container. The next day they would come back to find what the next generation looks like.

This online activity will be done at the end of our science lesson on different environments. This game requires that students place the different animals, plants, and objects that would best survive in each given environment. Based on what the students have learned about different environments, they will be able to correctly place each object given. I selected this resource because animals and their environments is a huge content area in first grade. This online game will be available for students to play during centers. Whoever is at computer centers that day will be able to play this game. Having such a fun interactive game will allow them to be very engaged, but still learning at the same time.

The rock sandwich experiment is a hands-on way to learn about a very long process. The bread acts like two layers of sediment on top of each other that will eventually form metamorphic rock. This experiment is simple, cheap, and quick. It will make for a nice addition to a lesson on the different phases of the rock cycle. I could have pairs of students perform this experiment so everyone is involved and all of them have a chance to do a hands-on activity. It is also a great activity to do lab sheets with and a follow up journal entry on what they learned about the formation of metamorphic rock.

This is a book about sheep who take a drive down the country side in a jeep. There are many mishaps along the way. The jeep slows down at the top of the hill and the sheep jump out to push the jeep down the hill. When the jeep gets to the bottom, it gets stuck in some mud and the sheep have to pull the jeep out. I chose this book because of its introduction to pushes and pulls. Students can observe in an interactive way things that have to be pushed or pulled in real life. I could also ask what other things need to be pushed and pulled while I am reading. Although the idea is free, getting the book would cost money but it is only $6.00. I would use this book as an introduction to my lesson on pushes and pulls. This would be a great way for students to acclimated to the vocabulary and how it is used. I could even make the book more interactive by having students do the motion of pushing and pulling in their seat whenever a push or a pull happens.

I would use this lesson as a transition from plants needing sunlight and water to now the importance of birds and insects to plants. Throughout this lesson students will learn the role of flowers and pollinating birds and insects in the garden and that different pollinators have different needs.I chose this lesson because it is important for students to understand that insects and birds play an important part in plant life. I also liked this lesson because it explains why certain insects are attracted to certain flowers. This is a lesson I would use to introduce the new topic to my class.

Composting is the oldest form of recycling. It provides an opportunity for students to observe the decomposition process and energy cycle at work; produces a valuable soil supplement; and reduces the amount of organic material requiring a landfill or incineration. This is a neat hands on lesson that can last up to the whole year! The students get to understand the process of composting and will learn that there we can use other methods of eliminating our trash. My favorite part is that they get to physically see what is happening in the soil. I would start this activity towards the beginning of the year. The students can volunteer to bring in items from the materials list to help feel involved in the prep. I would have the students keep a journal about the chances they see when we check on the compost bin.

In Gro Flowers children learn about the important role bees play in the pollination of flowers and the production of honey. Through age-appropriate activities children will design flowers, manipulate bees in the pollination process, avoid pesticides and collect honey. I would have this app on the iPad in my room (in hopes that I have one). I chose this app because it fits perfectly with the previous lesson I posted about the importance of insects pollinating flowers. This would also be good to use before the field trip so students can visual what they need to observe. I would then use this app for centers. I would break my class down into 4 groups and have 4 different centers. I will first teach and review the lesson, then break my students down into the centers. Everyday the groups will switch so everyone has an opportunity at each center. Adding an app to my center is a great way to add technology into my teaching and what student does not love to play on an iPad.

This is an activity in which students use slices of bread to create replicas of various landforms. After introducing the varying types of landforms to the class, the teacher will provide students with slices of bread with which they can create different land types (such as islands, peninsulas, gulfs, straits, and isthmuses) in a hands-on, memorable manner. After the students have created the landforms, they can glue them to a piece of paper, or simply eat them as a snack! This activity caught my eye because I feel as though it would be engaging for the entire class. I also thought it was cost-effective and simple to execute. This activity would be an excellent way to introduce a unit on landforms because it gives the students a chance to become acquainted with the topic in an appealing, memorable way.

A foundation in geography begins with an understanding of the terms geographers use to describe the features of Earth. Help students grow their vocabulary and learn to recognize common landforms such as islands, lakes, peninsulas, gulfs, straits, and isthmuses in a hands-on lesson using soft and squishy slices of bread! I love this because the students get to visually make the landforms when learning about them. It keeps the students involved in the lesson. I would use it when first learning about the landforms to help the students better remember them.