Lesson Plans

The lesson will make the connection between isolating a guilty person in a “who-dun-it” with isolating a given variable in an equation. In addition, this lesson will involve students creating a list of procedures to use when solving for a given variable. At this time it is not necessary for students to know the formal names for the properties. It is important for students to understand the concepts and take part in creating a set of procedures for isolating a variable and solving equations.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

Students will construct 3-dimensional representations of each known element of the periodic table using cereal-sized boxes as their mediums. By creating these models, students will gain an in-depth understanding of their chosen element's discovery, history, unique properties, and place on the Modern Periodic Table. Students will also be able to identify and describe basic periodic trends.

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.

This lesson will lead students on a guided discovery to find the inverse of a function given the graph or a table of values. Students will relate the inverse of a graph to finding the reflection of the graph over the line y=x. They will identify characteristics of functions whose inverses are also functions (One-to-One Functions) and will be introduced to the horizontal line test. Students will also apply their knowledge of a graph to a table of values to determine if the table represents a One-to-One Function.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

In this hands-on activity, the students will become Linnaeus by dividing into groups to create their own "Six Kingdom" classification system using various types of fasteners.  They will group the fasteners based on similar characteristics and divide them into domains, kingdoms, phyla, classes, orders, families, genera, and species. They will also have to "name" each taxon for their classification system as well as give the scientific name for each "species" of a fastener.  

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

The lesson will begin by engaging students with a video of a natural landform in Alabama called Neversink Pit. Students will then research the natural and human-made causes and effects of sinkhole formation in Alabama. Lastly, students will create a video PSA to communicate information about sinkhole dangers and methods to protect people and property from sinkhole damage.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

This lesson will lead students through a review of the proof of the Law of Sines. This proof will remind them that they can use the right triangle relationship for Sine to find the height of a triangle. They will then apply this knowledge to find the area of a triangle when given two sides and an included angle. Finally, they will be asked to find the area when no values are given. This result should produce the Area Formula for a triangle given two sides and the included angle.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

This lesson allows students to investigate the slope criteria and characteristics of perpendicular lines using graphing calculators and rectangle/square tiles.  Students will also use equations and graphs.  Students will work cooperatively to develop and justify ideas/conjectures.

This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.

In this lesson, students are asked to provide a written description of both an exponential function and its inverse. They are then introduced to the logarithmic function and will practice writing exponential functions as logarithms and logarithms as exponential functions. Students will evaluate logarithmic expressions and will solve logarithmic equations.

This lesson results from the ALEX Gap Resource Project.

Students will be conducting a series of investigations in order to compare and contrast the various intermolecular forces that exist between compounds. First, students will rank 4 substances according to their melting points. Second, students will work together using the jigsaw research approach to understand the 4 types of intermolecular forces. And lastly, students will use the information gained to go back to their data collected and compare their original compounds and type of intermolecular bond they exhibit.

This lesson plan results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

Students will consider the marketing campaigns of Gatorade to help identify what makes a substance an electrolyte.  Students will plan and conduct an investigation to test common ionic and covalent substances to determine if the substance is an electrolyte or non-electrolyte when dissolved in solution.  

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

Students will design an experiment to relate the voltage difference and current in a circuit. They will collect data, then create and analyze a graph in order to arrive at Ohm's Law. They will create circuits and determine the voltage difference, current, and resistance in the circuit using Ohm's Law.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

This lesson allows students to investigate the slope criteria and characteristics of parallel lines using graphing calculators and school staircases.  Students will also use equations and graphs.  Students will work cooperatively to develop and justify ideas/conjectures.

This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.

This lesson is designed to teach the students that some quadratic equations will have imaginary solutions. The lesson will examine the concept of complex numbers in terms i. The student will use the quadratic formula to solve the equations and write the the solutions in the form a +bi.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

In this activity, students try to work their way out of a circular maze, thereby modeling the movement of a photon as it travels through the radiative zone of the sun. Classroom discussion after they complete the activity is focused on the Standard Solar Model and its importance in further scientific studies of the sun. 

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.

This lesson provides a review of evaluating functions and finding function rules as well as an introduction to the composition of functions. The review is accomplished through the use of an online exploration using a function machine. The idea of a function machine is also used to explain the composition of functions. Instruction is provided in finding the composition using several different representations of functions (input/output tables, graphs, and function rules). 

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

In this lesson, students will gather quantitative information to construct a graph to show the period trends in electronegativity, electron affinity, and ionization energy. Once the trends are recognized, they will construct a model of these periodic trends using the Alabama Science in Motion Lab (Periodic Trends: Graphs and Straws). 

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

This lesson will require students to research the Big Bang Theory and the three main pieces of scientific evidence that support this theory. After students complete their research, they will engage in all steps of the writing process, including prewriting, outlining, revising, and editing. At the conclusion of the lesson, students will create a five paragraph argumentative essay to examine the Big Bang Theory and the scientific evidence that supports this theory.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

This lesson will provide an introduction to finding the inverse of a function or a relation. Through a combination of teacher-led instruction and collaboration, students will discover a method for finding the inverse of a function or relation. The use of an online graphing calculator will aid students with their discovery.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

Students will be motivated to learn how to build new linear functions from existing linear functions.  Students will bring pictures of themselves and their parents from home to personally involve them in the lesson.  Students will learn to use the patterns inherent in functions to quickly and accurately graph linear functions.  This lesson will only deal with vertical shifts and the steepness of the line.  Horizontal shifts will be dealt with in future lessons. In addtion, in future lessons  students will transfer this knowledge to also graph exponential, quadratic, and absolute value functions.

This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.

Students will be able to locate the sun by using the Hertzsprung-Russel diagram to plot the sun's location.  This lesson can be an opening activity, review activity, or a quick lab.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

This lesson is an introduction to Binomial Expansion and the Binomial Theorem. Students begin by expanding binomials using multiplication. They will examine the expansions looking for patterns. These patterns will be used to develop the Binomial Theorem. Both Pascal's Triangle and Combinations will be used to complete the Binomial Expansion.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

Students will analyze the bond energy of the reactants and products in a chemical reaction.  Students will develop a model to illustrate how the changes in total bond energy determine whether the reaction is endothermic or exothermic.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

Students will create a labeled sketch of Earth's interior, read a variety of informational texts and complete a jot chart that will utilize available evidence to describe the Earth's interior layers and explain the role of thermal convection in the movement of Earth's materials.

Students will create a model of the Earth's layers and present this model to their classmates, explaining the role of thermal convection in the movement of Earth's materials. 

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

Students will delve into discussion and writing about plot development, including generating their own reflections, original ideas, and influences on how events interact and shape character, mood, tone, and conflict.

This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.

This lesson will use the process of inverse operations to solve formulas for a given variable. Some formulas will not be recognized by the student. The actual formula is not important, but the variables are.

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

Raising heavy payloads to orbit is challenging.  Rockets require powerful engines and massive amounts of propellants. NASA is looking for creative ideas for launching heavy lift vehicles to deliver supplies to Mars.  Student teams receive identical parts to build rockets. The team that is able to lift the greatest payload into space (the ceiling) is the winner.

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.

This lesson is part of the Nurse Aide Training or Patient Care Technician Course. Students will be able to proficiently perform height and weight measurement skills as outlined by the Nurse Aide or Patient Care Technician Certification. Students will also understand the importance of assessing and analyzing these measurements. This lesson plan could also be used to teach Course of Study Standard #1 in the Health Science Internship Course.

In the urban dictionary, “on fleek” is currently a popular slang term that describes something that is  “flawlessly styled or groomed.”  In this lesson, the students will explore the concept of evolution by using their engineering skills to “build” various bird beaks that are “flawlessly styled,” or “on fleek,” for capturing different types of food.  Finally, the students will use argument-driven inquiry to design an experiment and use claim, evidence, and reasoning to justify which “bird” is best adapted to survive during conditions of limited resources.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

In this activity, the students will be engineers who compete to create their own "safe" and fast free fall ride.  Using graphing and calculations, the students will calculate the fastest ride and determine the minimum and maximum passenger sizes that their ride will hold.  The team that designs the fastest ride that doesn't "hurt" the passenger(s) wins! 

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

This lesson will provide instruction on proving triangles to be congruent using rigid motions. Using the concept of transformations, the students will be able to manipulate the triangle on the coordinate plane. When using the coordinate plane to test congruence, the triangle or other object will slide, rotate, or flip to map onto the other object. Sometimes, the student will use a combination of the transformations. 

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

Students will research various colleges of their choosing in order to best prepare for post-secondary endeavors. The research will be conducted using a handout with specific questions for students to answer about each college. Students will present findings in a brochure or slideshow presentation. 

This is a College- and Career-Ready Standards showcase lesson plan.

Students will be guided through a review of the special angles on the unit circle in degree measures.  They will use a circle/paper plate and paper strips to measure and mark these special angles.  Students will be introduced to the definition of a radian and will discover the number of radians in a circle as well as the measures of the special angles in radian measure.  The students will find the formulas for converting degrees to radians and radians to degrees.  They will then use these formulas to convert angles from degrees to radians and from radians to degrees.  

This lesson results from the ALEX Resource Gap Project.

Students investigate the properties of gasses using the gas laws and explore the application to aeronautics. 

This lesson is adapted from the NASA Education Guide Pushing the Envelope: A NASA Guide to Engines.  The activities used include the following:  Gas Laws (pg 27-28); Gas Law Problems - Boyle's Law (pg 29-30); Gas Law Problems - Charles's Law (pg 31-32); Gas Law Problems - Gay Lussac's Law (pg 33-34); Air Density (pg 61-62). 

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, students will examine the electronegativities of atoms relative to one another to determine if a covalent bond will be classified as polar or nonpolar. Students will use an online simulation to help them understand the importance of lone pairs of electrons as well as bonding pairs of electrons.  Students will use ball-and-stick models to examine and identify the shapes of various molecules.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA. 

Students will begin this lesson by ordering the events of their morning using relative and absolute dating techniques. Students will also write a personal definition of the terms absolute age and relative age. Next, students will work with collaborative groups to order events in Earth's geologic history by relative age, then order those same events by absolute age in a scaled model timeline. Lastly, students will use the time-scale model created with their group members to analyze events in Earth's geologic history.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.