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Third Grade Lesson Plans (56 results)

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Earth's Water: A Drop in Your Cup
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-5th
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9 reviews
Photo by Tim McCabe, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Our planet's surface may be mostly covered in water, but how much of that can we use? In this activity, students will see how water is distributed across different sources, how much can be used by humans, and will brainstorm ways to decrease their usage of fresh water. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 5-ESS2-2. Describe and graph the amounts of salt water and fresh water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on Earth.
Explore Shadows with a Shadow Play
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd
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2 reviews
Everybody and everything that is opaque has a shadow. Shadows are fun to play with because you can change their shape and size or even make them disappear. In this lesson, students will first explore how shadows are made and how their appearance can be changed. Then students will use their gained knowledge to create and perform a shadow play. Remote learning: Part 1 on this lesson plan can be conducted remotely. The Engage section of the lesson can be done over a video call, then students can… Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 1-PS4-3. Plan and conduct investigations to determine the effect of placing objects made with different materials in the path of a beam of light.
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Wind Maze
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Lesson Plan Grade: 4th-12th
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2 reviews
Students will explore the elements by designing a wind maze, a device that can direct the wind along a specific path. Learning Objectives Students will: Design and test a wind maze. Consider how to direct the wind down an intended path by creating bends in the maze. Use observations from their tests to compare solutions and iterate on their designs. NGSS Alignment This lesson helps students prepare for these Next Generation Science Standards Performance Expectations: … Read more
How Do Engineers Solve Problems?
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Video Lesson Grade: 3rd-5th
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3 reviews
In this fun video lesson, students will pretend to be engineers at an engineering company that constructs paper airplanes. They will identify the criteria for success from provided readings and define the constraints on their solutions. Using the engineering design process they will prototype, test, and deliver their best paper airplanes. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-5-ETS1-1. Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
Lifting with a Lever
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-5th
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5 reviews
Can your students lift a book off the floor with just one finger? Find out and learn about simple machines in this fun lesson plan about levers. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-5-ETS1-3. Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
Weather Stations and Weather Forecasts: Can You Do It Yourself?
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd
How do scientists know what the weather will be like in the future? In this fun weather lesson, students set up a weather station and collect data such as sky coverage, temperature, and rainfall. As they identify connections in their data, students will realize that these connections can help forecast what the weather will be like in the short-term future. The lesson culminates in students making and presenting a weather forecast for their fellow students. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-ESS2-1. Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season.
Apple Science: Comparing Apples and Onions
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-5th
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7 reviews
Students will explore heredity concepts by comparing observable traits of apples and onions, collecting data on the traits of different apple varieties, and learning about apple production. Additional activities include hands-on methods for testing apple ripeness. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-LS3-1. Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms.
Floating Magnets
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd
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6 reviews
Do your students think making things float in mid-air is a magic trick? Show them how you can do it with science! In this lesson plan they will learn about interactions between magnets and figure out how to make them float. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-PS2-3. Ask questions to determine cause and effect relationships of electric or magnetic interactions between two objects not in contact with each other.
Flowers Seeking Pollinators
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-7th
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10 reviews
"European honey bee extracts nectar" by John Severns In this activity, students learn about plant reproduction and use real data to construct explanations about which flowers are the most attractive to different pollinators. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-LS1-1. Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death.
  • 4-LS1-1. Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
  • MS-LS1-4. Use argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support an explanation for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants, respectively.
Make a Rain Gauge to Study Precipitation
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd
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1 review
Rainstorms can be powerful! Can you guess how much water poured down during the last rainstorm you experienced? Do you know if a brief downpour yields more or less water compared to a daylong drizzle? In this hands-on weather lesson, students design, build and use their own rain gauge to get answers to all of these questions. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-ESS2-1. Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season.
  • 3-ESS2-2. Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world.
Ping Pong Pickup Challenge for Grades 3-5
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Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-5th
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15 reviews
In this fun engineering lesson plan, your students will build devices from paper, tape, string, and paper clips to pick up and retrieve a ping pong ball. The challenge is to pick up the ball from as far away as possible! Middle school and high school versions of this lesson plan are also available. The 2023 competition is over, but you can see what students built and learn about the winners on the 2023 Engineering Challenge summary page. Read more
NGSS Performance Expectations:
  • 3-5-ETS1-2. Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
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