STEM Lesson Plans

In this lesson, students use real-world data to explore criteria for air pollutants. If students continue to the next lesson in this series, they create data-based art to deepen and demonstrate their

This lesson is designed because kids love to compete and it primes them to use the Engineering Design process to build a boat and revise their design as needed. Students must use at least one rubber

This STEAM lesson is ideal for Tucson/Pima County Middle School Students who can participate in the annual KIDStruction building contest, but you can also duplicate many of the learning opportunities

Students read the story "Just a Second" to introduce students to geologic time. Next, they are given an activity to understand how long is 4.6 billion years. Then students complete a lab that allows

In this 3 day lesson plan, students will discover the relationships between the sun, earth, moon, solar/lunar eclipses and the tides.

In this lesson, students will be introduced to the concept of solar angle and how Earth’s tilt on its axis and revolution around the sun are responsible for seasonal changes in temperature, daylight

Get your students up and moving! Together, you and your students will move and create a model of the solar system. Your kinesthetic learners will love this lesson! The solar system comes to life

Students use an interactive map and ArcGIS software to analyze the impacts of climate change on global populations.

This lesson walks students through the movement of air in the atmosphere and the energy that drives it. It contains a PowerPoint, activity, worksheet and assessment.

In this lesson, students will be creating a working model demonstrating Earth’s rotation and revolution. Students will be able to explain the differences between Earth’s rotation and revolution

This lesson serves to provide an extension to lesson one. In this lesson, students will have the opportunity to build their own model of the solar system to scale, utilizing math concepts of exponents

Students will explore the phenomenon of length of day that is created by Earth's tilt on its axis in relationship to its orbit around the sun. Students will collect and analyze data about the length

This lesson serves as visual example of the concept of exponents and how scientific notation is utilized in science. Additionally, students will utilize scientific notation to measure distance of

Students will explore how gravity plays a role in orbits and the attraction between objects in space, using online simulations. In addition to the online simulations this lesson contains ideas for

Students will explore the drought in Arizona and design a solution for it. They will create their design in a 3D design program, write an informational paper, and present the design and information to

Students will use geometric reasoning and the engineering design process to construct solar ovens while learning about renewable energy.

This lesson is an activity to see what an angle is and how is can be used to approximate the time of day or even navigating vessels by measuring other celestial bodies. Students will use sextants to

Students are tasked with using the Engineering Design Process to create a system of harvesting rainwater to meet the needs of residents in communities that have a scarce water supply (shortage of

Students will research what techniques engineers use to help a building withstand an earthquake and implement two researched strategies into a cardboard structure that will survive a medium sized

Students will focus sunlight through a pinhole onto a sheet of paper. Knowing the distance between the projection and the pinhole allows students to calculate the diameter of the Sun using ratios.

Within this lesson students will present their master-planned community to a test audience and potential clients. Focus on presenting to the client rather than reading information off the slide

In this lesson students analyze clues that help them make a claim about a phenomenon they are introduced to- a video of ash and debris-filled water rushing down a forest hill in Flagstaff. Students go

Students will use published scientific data and current evidence to identify the phenomenon known an urban heat island effect. Students will first analyze temperature data as well as land-use data

Students will continue from their research and start an investigation to help with their solution. They will first learn about compost and what it does. They will then develop and investigation and