A student looking in a microscope, very scientifically

STEM Lesson Plans

Search our growing library of STEM lesson plans. Arizona teachers are contributing their best STEM lesson plans to an archive that is aligned with Arizona Academic Standards. This repository is provided free of charge through a collaboration with the Arizona Educational Foundation.

Grades: 8th Grade

In this lesson, students will be introduced to mutations in DNA. They will create beaded or illustrated "codes" to represent 5 different mutations to their original protein codes. These codes will be

Grades: 8th Grade

In this lesson students are introduced to the idea that DNA is the code to create proteins and that proteins can be structural or functional. Students are given a problem to create a model of a

Grades: 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

Students have the opportunity explore different materials that use nanotechnology and then discuss the key differences between macroscale and nanoscale impacts on those materials.

Grades: 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

This lesson uses a PhET Simulation to allow students to collect data on the orbits of planets around our Sun, then summarize and share their results. It is designed for students in Grades 9-12.

Grades: 7th Grade, 8th Grade

This is a multi-day engineering design project. I use this for 2 weeks, a total of ten 50-minute periods. Students will research and design a dog house, creating a 3D model in a web-based computer

Grades: 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

Part one of a four part project exploring the movement of the brain upon impact in everyday activities. This lesson uses Pocketlab Voyager sensors to analyze brain movement in high impact activities

Grades: 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

In this lesson students learn about how to generate power from wind turbines. Students test the efficacy of their creations and attempt to modify their turbines for better output. Depending on skill

Grades: 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade

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

Grades: 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade

In this lesson, students work with an assigned customer to create a 3D-printed nameplate. Working through the steps of the engineering design process, students use a 3D modeling software, Tinkercad

Grades: 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

This is a high-school level hands-on project that allows students to build their own working sundial, make predictions and assess their accuracy. This lesson ties in with the study of Kepler's Laws.

Grades: 11th Grade

Students learn about photochemical reactions which are chemical reactions that require light as activation energy. Students create ball and stick models to recreate sample photochemical reactions

Grades: 11th Grade

In a chemiluminescence chemical reaction, light is generated as a product. What causes light to be generated from chemicals that interact? This chemistry lesson explores the reasons why light is