This lesson allows students to become familiar with a number line. Students can explore a number line and develop knowledge of numerical concepts. While it covers a 6th grade standard, this lesson can be used as part of a 7th or 8th grade lesson on integers.
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
This module includes seven hands-on, inquiry-based activities that will model the effects of weathering and erosion on Earth’s surface. Students will investigate the effects of weathering, erosion, and deposition using various materials such as aquarium gravel, square pretzels, chalk, vinegar, modeling clay, sand, and a hairdryer. This module will provide instruction on the effects of water on land; the effects slope has on flooding; the effects of the wind on land; the effects of different wave actions on land; the effects of glaciers on land; and the effects of mechanical and chemical weathering. In addition, the students will create a model that will demonstrate how groundwater can cause a sinkhole.
Students will examine how they use water daily and calculate their daily water consumption. In addition, students will analyze how the changing human population will affect water consumption globally. Lastly, students will develop methods to decrease their personal water consumption, and/or design a product or policy that could help citizens decrease their water consumption.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
This lesson will begin with students discussing ways that we can feel the sun’s energy even though the sun is very far away from Earth. Then, the teacher will introduce the three methods of heat transfer (radiation, conduction, and convection) utilizing an online video clip, and the students will take jot notes while viewing the video clip. Next, the students will perform an experiment to investigate radiation as a form of heat transfer by recording how the temperature of ice changes when exposed to an energy source (solar energy or heat energy from a clamp lamp). Then, students will perform an experiment to investigate convection as a form of heat transfer using blue dyed ice cubes and warmed red food coloring, to create a convection cycle within a container filled with room-temperature water. Lastly, students will apply the data gathered from the experiments to write a response to the question: “How is heat energy from the sun distributed between Earth’s surface and the atmosphere?”
This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.
Carlos the Centipede and his friend are holiday shopping for friends and family. Carlos will add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals. Carlos will change percents to decimals to get all the great discounts during this season of the year. In addition, he will calculate tax on his purchases.
This lesson is the first of a three-part unit on plate tectonics, which includes hands-on, inquiry-based activities. In this lesson, students will construct a model of continental separation and the ancient supercontinent, Pangaea. After completing this module, students will be able to explain Alfred Wegener's theory of continental drift and the evidence used to support this theory.
This lesson presented as part of the Alabama State University, Math, Science Partnership.
Students will explore greenhouse gases, how they effect the carbon cycle and the human role in climate change.
This lesson was created as part of the 2016 NASA STEM Standards of Practice Project, a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center.
First, students will view an engaging video about the recent arrival of the New Horizons spacecraft at Pluto. Students will create a sketch of the solar system to show their current understanding of the relative sizes and distances of the objects in our solar system. Students will then scale the diameters of the Sun, eight main planets, and Pluto, as well as the planets' distances from the Sun. Students will be required to utilize mathematical skills, such as division, rounding, and metric system conversions. After scaling the diameters and orbits of the objects in our solar system, students will create a scaled model of the solar system using a roll of toilet paper.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
James Reese Europe was an "accomplished orchestra conductor, bandleader, and composer of popular songs, marches and dance music during the early twentieth century...Europe was an effective champion of African-American musical performers and composers and helped to gain acceptance for them in the United States and abroad." Born in Mobile, Alabama, Europe accomplished much in his brief lifetime and deserves a place in every study of World War I.
Students will annotate a biography of James Reese Europe and analyze two photographs of the orchestra Reese led across France. Students will view a documentary film of Europe and his "Hellfighter" orchestra as they fought, performed, and received medals for their efforts during the war.
As a culminating activity on the second day, students will write a eulogy for Europe detailing his role as a leader in Jazz and as an African American officer.
This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
This lesson will allow students to become familiar with the concept of equivalent ratios and similar objects. Through an open investigation, students will develop methods to find equivalent ratios. This is a lesson to be used as part of a unit with Painter Problems and How Far Can You Leap found in ALEX.
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
This lesson will introduce students to an Alabama connection to World War I. The primary document that will be used is a letter to a father from a University of Alabama student, written on March 2, 1917, exactly one month before the United States declared war on Germany. The student discusses typical family topics before ending with his concerns about the possibility of war.
This lesson was created as a part of the Alabama History Education Initiative, funded by a generous grant from the Malone Family Foundation in 2009.
Author Information:Dr. Lesa Roberts (Cohort 1: 2009-2010) Hampton Road Middle School; Huntsville City School System; Huntsville, AL
In this lesson, students will explore a consequence of burning fossil fuels: the greenhouse effect. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to interpret data to explain the greenhouse effect on temperature and how various human activities could cause changes in local and global temperature over time.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
Lesson modified from Global Climate Change and Sea Level Rise plan from the California Academy of Science http://www.calacademy.org/educators/lesson-plans/global-climate-change-and-sea-level-rise.
In cooperative/collaborative groups, students will compare and contrast a two-dimensional pattern and a three-dimensional shape. Students will use a net to label and then construct a rectangular prism. Students will find the surface area of a rectangular prism. As a final performance task, students will create a message box.
Students will begin this inquiry-based activity by predicting how the continents of Earth could move over time. Next, students will complete a lab activity in collaborative groups, in which they will create a model showing how Earth's internal heat energy can create convection currents that result in plate movements. Lastly, students will use their model to explain how Earth's tectonic plates move over millions of years.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
Students will research the ten day weather forecast. They will document the high's for ten days as well as the low's for ten days. Once students document this information, they will find the mean, median, mode, and range of the data collected.
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
This lesson allows students to construct solar system models showing the comparative sizes of the planets to a scale. The students will also use their models to carry out an investigation to analyze and interpret the distances between planets in the Solar System. This lesson uses common objects easily obtained by teachers.
This lesson was created as part of the 2016 NASA STEM Standards of Practice Project, a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center.
In this lesson, children will investigate 6 major pollutants in our world and how they can be eliminated or limited.
This lesson is a continuation of the other Are We Our Own Worst Enemy? lesson plans. It can stand on its own but if you haven't taught the others you may want to show the World Population Over Time video before starting this lesson.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
At the turn of the 20th century, illiteracy was common across the United States. Percentages ranged from 10-30%, depending on location. Rural Alabama suffered from a high illiteracy rate. During this lesson, students will read and analyze primary documents that focus on the importance of literacy for Alabamian soldiers - LIT2010 (6-8)(2 & 7). Students will create a propaganda poster that asks citizens to do their part [SS2010 (6)(3)] in changing the culture of Alabama illiteracy and for teaching Alabama soldiers that literacy is a powerful weapon [SS2010 (6)(1)].
This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
Students will participate in a Socratic Seminar to discuss the idea of non- conformity as a relative theme in the novel Stargirl. Students will refer to text annotations and class discussions (completed TPFASTT optional) to make contributions to the student-led discussion.
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
This lesson will include the use of a primary document and period photographs for a cross-curriculum lesson analyzing setting to identify some adverse effects of the Great Depression for farmers. The student will create a postcard which depicts an understanding of the impact of the Great Depression on farmers.
This lesson was created as a part of the Alabama History Education Initiative, funded by a generous grant from the Malone Family Foundation in 2009.
Author Information: April Mitchell (Cohort 2: 2010-2011); Greenwood Elementary; Bessemer City Schools; Bessemer, AL
During this lesson, students will create two line graphs: one that shows how carbon dioxide levels have changed over time, and one that shows how global temperatures have changed over time. Students will read current news article(s) detailing the human activities and natural processes that could change global temperatures. Students will interpret their graphical data, as well as information in the article, to determine if there is any relation between carbon dioxide levels and global temperatures.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
Students will begin this lesson by accessing their prior knowledge on Earth's natural resources through a brainstorming activity. The teacher will introduce the topic of fossil fuels, which are non-renewable resources such as coal, oil, and natural gas. The teacher will lead students in utilizing the jigsaw literacy strategy, in which students will become members of a home group and an expert group as they research and discuss their assigned topic. This lesson will culminate with students creating a presentation in the form of a research paper, poster, or slideshow to demonstrate their knowledge of the distribution and creation of fossil fuels.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
The lesson will begin with a brief review of the previous lesson from the unit, "Increasing Public Safety During Tornadoes," on how climates and geographic locations can affect weather patterns and produce natural disasters. Students will watch a short video during the before strategy to engage learners in the lesson on a particular natural disaster--tornadoes. Students will read various texts and charts in order to understand the causes and effects of tornadoes, putting the information in a T-chart to help organize their thoughts. Students will then discuss their findings with an elbow partner and then write a two-paragraph cause-and-effect essay which will serve as the summative assessment.
This unit was created as part of the ALEX Interdisciplinary Resource Development Summit.
This lesson is created to have students compare themselves to Michael Phelps and the features that make him such a good swimmer. Students will measure their height and arm span and graph them on a coordinate graph. Students will then compare their height and arm span to their classmates' to see who might be the best swimmer in the class!
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
Students will use primary sources to compare and contrast the viewpoints of two notable persons (Booker T. Washington & W.E.B. Du Bois) of the early 1900s and identify the influence they had on the civil rights movement, especially the Jim Crow Laws.
This lesson was created as a part of the Alabama History Education Initiative, funded by a generous grant from the Malone Family Foundation in 2009.
Author Information: Tammy Brown (Cohort 1: 2009-2010)
Central Elementary School Madison County School System Huntsville, AL
This lesson deals with human growth and our consumption of land resources. This lesson can be used in conjunction with other Are We Our Own Worst Enemy? lessons, although this should be first since it has the video of population growth.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
This lesson will use the substitution property to determine solutions to equations and inequalities. The students will be given a replacement set of values. The student will check the values to determine if the result is true or false. The values that are true will be the solution. The student will graph the inequality solutions on the number line.
This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.
This lesson will allow students to become familiar with the concept of unit rate. Through an open investigation students will develop methods to find unit rate with a table, equivalent ratios, or an equation. This is a lesson to be used as part of a unit with "Painter Problems" and "How Big Should It Be?"
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
This lesson is the third of a three-part unit on plate tectonics, which includes hands-on, inquiry-based activities. Students will learn about the relationship between temperature and density using lava lamps. The students will also model a theory for the mechanism that drives tectonic plate movement by using a hot plate and water to produce convection cells or currents, and food coloring gels to make the currents visible.
In this interdisciplinary lesson, students will apply the Engineer Design Process to design a structure to remove waste from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The lesson involves components of STEM and English Language Arts.
This lesson results from collaboration between the Alabama Department of Education and ASTA.
Students will begin this inquiry-based lesson by accessing their prior knowledge of the positive and negative effects of the sun's energy. Students will be introduced to the concept of space weather, including cosmic radiation and coronal mass ejections, by watching a video clip from the National Science Foundation. Students will use a dipole bar magnet and iron filings to develop a model of Earth's magnetic field. Students will apply their experience from this inquiry to explain how Earth's magnetic field can protect us from space weather.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
In collaborative groups of four, students will act out a dinner party where four dinner guests will attend. The students must act out the different ways to arrange four dinner guests.
This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.
After viewing various videos and images, the students will deepen their understanding of the desegregation movement and its continuing influence on today's society. The students will defend their opinions using an open-mic forum and will creatively demonstrate their understanding through writing poetry.
The lesson provides an overview of cloud formation. Cloud formation results when warm, humid air rises and cools, causing the water vapor in the air to condense and form clouds. In this lesson, students will conduct an activity that demonstrates how this occurs.
This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.
This lesson was modified from NASA series “Investigating the Climate System. They can be freely downloaded at https://www.strategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Clouds_04.pdf
This lesson will include a study of several primary sources that detail the 1918 flu epidemic and how it affected a variety of people in Alabama. Students will work in small groups to study different primary sources and will complete graphic organizers specific to the type of primary source. Groups will then share their information with the class and discuss how the flu affected different populations of Alabama. The focus and outcomes of this lesson will meet the Social Studies standard (SS2010(6)) by allowing the students to describe civilian roles during WWI and to recognize the military bases in Alabama.
This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
