STEM Lesson Plans

Students will grow to understand what decomposition is and why it is a vital part to their compost bins success.

In this lesson, students will be learning about the challenges of farming in space for future settlements. Specifically they will focus on the difficulty of testing whether plants will grow in soil

In this hands-on lesson, students develop an understanding of the life cycle of a bean. They will grow their own beans and observe the growth over time. Various resources are included along with math

This lesson took place in a 90 minute after school STEM club (could work in 2 - 45 minute class periods). Students may work in small groups of 2-4. An emphasis on sample collection and analytical

Students are challenged to complete a Ziggurat temple with a working marble run attached. It is a challenge for students to construct the longest working marble run.

Students will use SEEK or other species identification tools to create a database of biodiversity on campus. The lesson starts with a discussion of the importance of biodiversity to the functioning of

Students will better understand gas, liquid, and solid states of matter through hands-on learning stations and a create-a-toy design challenge.

When studying Life Science, students are very curious to watch animals and plants growing. In this lesson, students observe growth of baby guppies in fish tanks, understanding life cycles and growing

This is a CSI lesson where students solve mystery on Physical and Chemical change. This is an engaging way as students will conduct an investigation like a real crime investigator.

This is a third grade lesson focused on structure and function. In the lesson, students observe, investigate, and research chickens to create a model focused on the parts of a chicken and their

Students will participate in an engineering challenge or STEM activity that connects to a read aloud. They will be able to ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation

In this lesson, students are challenged to design and build a controlled-release tablet, which will be made from different colored bath tablets and a variety of water-soluble plastics. First, they

In this lesson, students will investigate the properties of a mixture, as if it were a contaminated soil sample near a stream. This activity will show students that heterogeneous mixtures can be

This lesson takes place over three hour-long, before- school STEAM club meetings. Students will discuss and learning about weather and climate. Then they will complete an engineering challenge to

To demonstrate their understanding of how energy is passed throughout an ecosystem and the symbiotic relationships of organisms within an ecosystem, students construct a food web marble run. This

In this engaging lesson, students will participate in an engineering challenge or STEM activity that connects to a read aloud. Students will communicate solutions that will reduce the impact of humans

Using rock salt, ice, juice, and thermometers, students will use their inquiry framework to investigate how slushies are made and see if they are able to replicate the results of a traditional slushy

Students use their knowledge about cells and their organelles to create a dichotomous key to help guide others' thinking to decide if a cell is a plant cell or animal cell. Students need access to

Using the Introduction to Hydroponics lab, introduce students to the features of the Hydroponic Systems. Students will explore the different types of grow mediums and grow lights used in the systems

In this lesson, students will watch seeds grow on a damp sponge by measuring, journaling and observing. They will observe how the roots and shoots grow.

Summary: This lesson is geared towards 3rd graders but can be modified for upper and lower grades. Throughout the next 4 lessons they will describe the role of pollinators and explain their effects

In this lesson, students will learn about and create a wick hydroponics system. There is a teacher prep section along with a variety of other resources included. This lesson can be adapted to fit

In this 1st lesson in a series of 3, students learn about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. They create a model and write and defend a claim about humanity's ability to mitigate the problem. This

It's time to lay down roots in this hands-on lesson! Students will construct a model of plant roots using Play-Doh. They will explain the different parts of a plant and the different roles the parts