Sadly, science often gets pushed to the side in elementary school. While focusing on math and reading is understandable, students must begin learning about science! The subject is so much fun and addresses vital information about our world. So, during the last few years, I’ve been able to come up with little-to-no-prep activities to teach Earth Science! Yes, this means you will not spend hours hunting down lab supplies and equipment! These hands-on activities allow students to experiment and learn the material without relying on a textbook. Ultimately, the Earth Science resources will show students how engaging and unique science is!
BIOME GO Activity
Students are going to LOVE this super engaging activity! They will get up and move while learning about different biomes and animal adaptations. Specifically, 30 animals in 5 different biomes are waiting for students to discover them!
Students will find one animal per round. They will fill out their “Biomedex” by recording data and answering questions about the animal they discovered. Students will even give their animal’s power moves based on unique adaptations. Then, they will go and hide the biome animal for the next classmate! As a helpful tip, tape or glue the animal circles to a popsicle stick to avoid them from blowing away.
Biomes include Forest, Desert, Tundra, Tropical Rainforest, and Aquatic (Saltwater). Additionally, there are in-depth directions, animal facts, graphic organizers for all animals and their biomes, and recording sheets. Students will love learning about biomes!
Identifying Rocks, Minerals, and Gems
Students often become amazed when looking at different rocks on the playground! Honestly, it is rare a week goes by that students don’t come rushing in from recess wanting to showcase their rock collections. Therefore, this activity is a student favorite! Students will learn the requirements needed for minerals and all about the rock cycle. Additionally, they will use the Mohs scale to determine the hardness of minerals, learn about lister, and identify fracture types. Students can apply their knowledge by making predictions about different rocks and testing their hypotheses using the scale.
Easy Ocean Zones
It can be tough to visualize the ocean zone! Thankfully, this activity does a great job showing this information with only a few supplies. Specifically, this includes plastic water bottles, blue food coloring, and vegetable oil.
Teachers or students will fill the bottle halfway with water. Then, they will add about 10 to 15 drops of food coloring. After this, fill the rest of the bottle with veggie oil using a funnel or squeeze bottle. Now, it is time for students to be amazed!
They can shake up the bottle as hard as they can! Just be sure the lid is on tight. Students will see three distinct layers when the water and oil finally settle. These layers resemble the three zones: sunlit, twilight, and midnight (or euphotic, disphotic, and aphotic zones). Students can label their bottles and take the ocean home with them! Parents will love seeing Earth Science resources come to life!
For more great hands-on learning ideas, check out Weather and Science STEM Activities!
Earth Science Interactive PowerPoints
When students hear the word ‘PowerPoints,” they often think of lectures. However, teachers will transform student opinions on PowerPoints with these virtual experiences!
Students will learn about so many units, such as the rock cycle, space, oceans, plate tectonics, minerals, ecosystems, biomes, volcanoes, and climate. Every slide brings learning to life with real pictures and interactive elements. Students will feel like they are going on a field trip when learning with Earth Science resources like this!
Best of all, this resource is adaptable to fit different classrooms. For instance, they work great as powerful classroom presentations. However, students can also click their way through them on individual computers.
Earth Science Interactive Notebooks
Often, students need to use their hands to learn and pay attention. Thankfully, these interactive notebooks will allow them to do that for many Earth Science topics!
Topics within the Earth Science Bundle are the rock cycle, minerals, plate tectonics, and volcanoes. Additionally, students will learn about weather, ecosystems, Earth’s cycles, photosynthesis, biomes, and energy. However, students won’t just sit there and listen. They will fill out flip charts, draw pictures, and place material in different categories. There are over 600 pages of interactive learning material to help students become curious scientists.
Earth Science Complete Curriculum Bundle
Hopefully, students will fall in love with science with the amazing Earth Science resources above! They are hands-on, inquiry-based ways for students to learn about their world and environment. Luckily, there is an entire bundle containing incredible resources for students!
Specifically, there are 12 units in the bundle. This includes the rock cycle, rocks, and minerals, plate tectonics, ecosystems, biomes, and photosynthesis. Additionally, students learn about energy, Earth’s cycles, weather and climate, volcanoes, space, and oceanology.
Students will love using this curriculum! Each unit includes reading passages, interactive notebook activities, and interactive PowerPoints. Furthermore, there are STEM challenges, exams and assessments, and projects.
Earth Science resources should be fun and exciting for students. There are so many incredible topics to learn about! Luckily, all of these fantastic resources will bring learning alive for students.
If you do not want to miss any of the upcoming lessons, join my email list to be notified of all the interactive lessons coming up! By joining the email list, you will also receive FREE Ecosystem Reading Passages for blog exclusive subscribers!
Leave a Reply