Lessons

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  Investigating Local Ecosystems

  K-2  |  Hands-On
  In this lesson students explore the habitats of local plants and animals to learn about how living things depend on one another.
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  Introducing Biodiversity

  3-5  |  Hands-On
  This lesson introduces students to the amazing variety of life around them.
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  Marine Sanctuaries

  6-8  
  In this lesson, students will learn about the national marine sanctuaries found in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and off the coast of American Samoa.
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  Yellowstone Wolves

  6-8  
  This lesson uses the conflict between ranchers and wolves to explore the relationships between living things and their environments, and the effects of physical and human forces on the natural world.
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  Managing the Everglades Ecosystem

  9-12  
  Students learn about conservation, explore relationships between species and habitats, and find out how humans have altered the equilibrium in the Everglades.
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  Tigerland and Other Unintended Destinations

  9-12  |  Audio
  This lesson provides an introduction to conservation biology via the memoirs of a scientist who has traveled throughout the world to study and defend endangered species.

Tools

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  Biomes of the World

  K-8  |  Website
  The Biomes of the World resource provides information on rainforest, tundra, taiga, desert, temperate, and grassland biomes.
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  Exploring Caves

  K-5  |  Teaching Aid
  Exploring Caves is an interdisciplinary set of materials on caves.
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  Biodiversity: Life in the City

  K-5  |  Interactive
  In this simple resource, students scroll over a drawing of an urban, park-like setting and find ten examples of hidden "critters." Each critter is then magnified and described.
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  My Life as an Elk

  K-5  |  Interactive
  This interactive story lets you take on the identity of a newborn elk calf and make choices as it grows up in Yellowstone National Park.
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  Coral Reef Adventure Fun Zone

  3-8  |  Interactive
  This resource is part of a larger site on The Coral Reef Adventure, a film that follows the real-life adventures of ocean explorers and underwater filmmakers, Howard and Michele Hall. It has several different activities that you can do.
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  Shape It Up!

  3-8  |  Interactive
  This interactive from Kinetic City provides students with the opportunity to experience how mountains, rivers, and canyons were formed.
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  The Prairie Builders: Reconstructing America’s Lost Grasslands

  6-8  |  Teaching Aid
  Learn about The Prairie Builders, which tells the remarkable story of an effort to bring back part of the native tallgrass prairie in Iowa.
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  The Amateur Naturalist

  3-12  |  Website
  This resource discusses The Amateur Naturalist, by Nick Baker, which is full of information to enhance any outdoor learning experience.
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  Center for Desert Archaeology Exhibits

  6-12  |  Website
  This resource, developed by The Center for Desert Archaeology, consists of online exhibits that illustrate key concepts in preservation archaeology and the prehistory of the American Southwest and Mexican Northwest.
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  Estuaries: Finding the Balance

  9-12  |  Teaching Aid
  Students can use this resource from the National Geographic to examine the conflict between development and the environment by focusing on estuaries across the United States.
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  Wildfire Simulator

  6-12  |  Website
  This fire-growth computer model that lets users see how certain conditions, such as wind speed and direction, affect the spread of a wildland fire.

Science Updates

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  Birdsong and Climate

  6-12  |  Audio
  In this Science Update, you can learn how birds that live in more variable climates sing more sophisticated songs.
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  Changing Oceans

  6-12  |  Audio
  According to a landmark study in the journal Science, climate change is transforming the world's oceans, at a potentially huge cost. You'll hear more about it in this Science Update.
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  Florida Freezes

  6-12  |  Audio
  Draining a wetland can change local weather.
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  Marine Reserves

  6-12  |  Audio
  This Science Update looks at the unexpected impact marine reserves have on their surroundings.
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  Mountain Rain

  6-12  |  Audio
  This Science Update explores why pollution from cities could dry out nearby mountains.
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  Everglades Pythons

  6-12  |  Audio
  A study of the stomach contents of non native Burmese pythons living in the Everglades shows how many different species the pythons have been poaching.