Category: Biology

Biology

The House You Live In

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This classic text is a great introduction to human anatomy (”the house you live in”), originally prepared back in 1904 for use in primary grades in New York schools. I really like the engaging way the lessons are given. The teacher very simply reviews the subject of the lesson (such as the heart, bones, muscles, etc.), then asks the students simple discussion questions that help them understand how the body works.

Included are both the questions for your students and the answers you want them to grasp, so it is easy to lead discussion in the direction you want it to go. No advance preparation is needed by the teacher.

We thing it would be a great idea to use this with  an anatomy coloring book or some more recent color illustrations. These Q&A lessons are so extremely well done, we think you’ll really, really enjoy using this lesson guide with your younger children (Grades 1-3).

To download this PDF ebook, RIGHT CLICK HERE and “save link” to your computer. Mac users, press the “control” key, thne click the link and save to your mac.

 

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Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Classic Picture books, Critical Thinking, Lesson Plans, Living Books, Math, Physics, Science

Using Children’s Literature to Teach Science

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Using Children’s Literature to Teach Science by Patricia Bishop McKean (PDF ebook with multiple PDF files)

Patricia Bishop McKean compiled this wonderful ebook that pairs great picture books / young reader books (including such classics as Stellaluna, Follow the Drinking Court, Swimmy, Curious George, Morris’s Disappearing Bag and many more) with hands-on activities that demonstrate basic science concepts to young students. Subjects covered in the activities include earth science, astronomy, math, ecology, physics, chemistry, and process skills. It’s a great approach that makes both the stories AND the science lessons much more memorable.

From her introduction:

Each children’s picture book is linked to a simple, basic science activity. By showing teachers how to “hook” their students by reading a familiar or new story and then doing a related hands-on, minds-on science activity, I have helped teachers feel more comfortable with teaching science.  Sometimes the story comes before the activity, and sometimes it comes after the activity. The activity will stand alone, as will the reading of the story, but if the hook captivates the mind of the student, the memory of the science concept should last in the student’s mind.

About the format:

Each book & accompanying science activity has its own PDF file, so there’s lots of PDFs to download here, making it a little more complicated than just downloading a single PDF file. But it is worth the effort. Check it out and see if you don’t agree. Use the menu on the site to navigate between sections of the collection.

CLICK HERE to go to the website!

Biology, Lesson Plans

Vintage Lesson Plans on Domestic Animals

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VINTAGE LESSON PLANS ON DOMESTIC ANIMALS (PDF ebook)

Some subjects of study are timeless, and a vintage book about them is just as pertinent and helpful today as it was 100 years ago. Such is the book we feature today, a really sweet collection of read aloud lessons for younger students about a variety of domestic animals: cat, dog, cow, sheep, goat, horse, donkey, pig, hen and duck. Lots of great illustrations and activity ideas in each chapter too!

 

To download this PDF ebook, RIGHT CLICK HERE and “save” to your computer!

Biology, High School Curriculum

Great Vintage Q&A Guide for the Study of Animals

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A GUIDE FOR THE STUDY OF ANIMALS (PDF ebook)

This is an excellent question & answer lesson guide for studying small animals and insects, prepared for high school use in the 1920s. From maggots & beetles to fish & chickens, these are great, easy to use lesson plans suitable both for hands on dissection or simple nature observation sessions.

To download this scanned PDF ebook, RIGHT CLICK HERE and “save link” to your computer. Mac users, press the “control” key, then click the link and save to your mac.

Biology, Optical Illusions

Eye Openers: Exploring Optical Illusions

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The Museum of Vision has put together this wonderful hands-on unit study on how our eyes work, and how they can be tricked by perspective, persistence of vision, and other phenomena.

This study is chock full of great illustrations, fascinating optical illusions, and “hands on” learning activities and projects that will appeal to students of all ages. Highly recommended!

Click here to go to the website!

Biology

The Human Heart

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THE HUMAN HEART

Did you know that the human heart beats about 100,000 times a day, 35 million times a year, and two and a half billion times in an average lifetime?

Did you know that, on any given day, your heart beats roughly 100,000 times and your blood travels about 12,000 miles as it circulates throughout your body?

Did you know the average heart pumps more that a gallon of blood a minute?

Did you know a kid’s heart is about the size of a fist… and an adult’s heart is the size of two fists?

Here is a great collection of links from “Education World” all about the human heart. You’ll learn how the heart works, take an interactive tour of the heart, learn about the heart’s electrical system, blood flow and blood supply, see some amazing videos, and much more.

CLICK HERE then follow the links!

Arts & Crafts, Biology

The Kaplan Anatomy Coloring Book

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This excellent 200+ page anatomy coloring book and review guide from Kaplan  is a perfect resource from which to print out coloring pages to go with any studies of human anatomy.

IMPORTANT NOTE: PARENTAL GUIDANCE RECOMMENDED. This coloring book was developed for Jr & Sr high & college use, and along with every other illustration of human anatomy, it does include some fairly explicit drawings of the reproductive system, which may not be appropriate for younger children. So while this is an excellent anatomy resource, please be aware of this fact, and handle this coloring book accordingly.

To download this 200 page PDF coloring book from Archive.org, CLICK HERE.

Biology, Science

Optical Illusions: Do You Really See what you Think You See?

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The Museum of Vision  put together this wonderful ebook a few years ago on how our eyes work, and how they can be tricked by perspective, persistence of vision, and other phenomena

This ebook is chock full of great illustrations, fascinating optical illusions, and “hands on” learning activities and projects that will appeal to students of all ages. Highly recommended!

To download the PDF ebook directly from the Internet Archive, CLICK HERE!

 

Biology, Science

What? Huh? and Your Sense of Hearing

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How do our ears detect sound? How do our brains interpret it?

Today we return to the Neuroscience for Kids website created and curated by Dr. Eric Chudler to focus on the Sense of HEARING, and learn about the parts of the auditory system and how they work.

Click here to go to the introduction about the sense of hearing.

Click here for a collection of experiments all about your sense of hearing.

And the PDF Lesson Guides: The Teacher’s Guide is HERE. The Student’s Guide is HERE.

Biology, Science

Sniff, Stink, and Your Sense of Smell

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What does your NOSE tell you?  Like your other senses, it tells you such things as:

  1. What is out in the environment.
  2. How much is out there.
  3. Is there more or less of it than before.
  4. Where is it.
  5. Is it changing in time or place.

Today we focus on the Sense of Smell, with this great activity guide and lesson plan from the Neuroscience for Kids website, created and curated by Dr. Eric Chudler.

CLICK HERE to go to the “Smell Experiments” page.

Then for the complete Lesson Plan/Unit Study…

CLICK HERE to go to the Teacher’s Guide

CLICK HERE to go to the Student’s Guide