RockScienceGeek

So much fun for students! This is a lab they remember all year, and you know it's a win when they put photos of your class on their snapchat story :) Simple setup, and includes detailed, step-by-step teacher instructions for directing lab during class. Materials needed: colored goldfish, straws, butcher paper, markers. This lab is readily available for free, but my version greatly simplifies it for teachers, and enhances it for students by using different colors of goldfish to represent differen

In-depth guided inquiry investigation of LD50 (Lethal Dose 50%) appropriate for AP Environmental Science students. Set up once, use year after year. Instead of paying for and killing real animals (crickets, brine shrimp, daphnia, etc.), 'kill' some cartoon mice. In this lab, students collect data from mice exposed to various concentrations of 4 substances, calculate mortality %, predict and graph LD50 results, extrapolate to human dosages, answer thought-provoking questions, and complete practic

Many teachers have students make soil horizons with pudding and cookies because we all know students are motivated by food! I created this lab to bring more AP content knowledge into this fun activity. Instead of all making the same soil profile from pudding and cookies, a group of students create 5 different soil profiles that correspond to 5 different biomes and climate characteristics. They need to make observations and answer questions about each profile, and answer other general questions a

Have students use an online ecological footprint calculator to determine their personal Earth Overshoot day, their ecological footprint, how many earths would be needed if every human lived like they do, etc. Then students go deeper into data and compare their results with data from other countries around the world. Internet access required for this activity.

Excellent for practice or review of biomes for APES. This product includes one full google slides document with 8 matching slides for all of the terrestrial biomes and 8 matching slides for all of the aquatic biomes. On their electronic device, students click the photo or text box and drag it to the correct biome name. Each slide has a direct link for students to check their answers after they've tried it (unless you choose to remove that link - these files are completely editable by you). You c

Perfect activity to get your kids outdoors and thinking about all the different topics within the APES course. Simple observation and inquiry - no materials or prep required! Get them thinking, discussing, and asking questions. Get them excited for APES!

Answer Key added! Your students will learn all about the processes, economics, challenges, and wastes of surface mining operations using a chocolate chip cookie. I've revised this lab for simplicity for the teacher and clarity for students, and enhanced it with pre-lab questions, an included grid for mining (with natural features on it), and case-study questions. Materials needed: 3 types/brands of chocolate chip cookies, paper clips, toothpicks

Students watch the video "flush to finish" , which is available for free on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRaptzcp9G4. I use edpuzzle for students to access it, and then have them draw a comic strip representing water traveling through the wastewater treatment process. Students are then directed to websites to further explain the wastewater treatment process as well as how septic systems work. A sample completed comic strip is included, as well as an answer key for the questions.

Simple, colorful, easy-to-understand. All the formulas in one place where someone not strong in math (like me!) can make sense of them, and there are 'thought bubbles' with helpful hints in them too. I've always had trouble sorting out these formulas because they sometimes look different depending on the source, and I think I finally have what works! Includes formulas for percent change, doubling time, population density, birth/death/growth rates (both crude and %), and population change.

UPDATED! Includes powerpoint with guided student instructions, questions interspersed throughout, and review questions at the end. REALLY helps make this an activity, and makes it easy for distance learners to follow. So helpful for visual learners! Helps students sort through lots of air pollutants. Essential information about air pollution condensed onto one double-sided paper (ideally copied on one 11x17 paper, can be copied onto 2 standard pages and taped together). Kids draw, color code, a

Students are engaged in this fast-paced review game called "3 in 5 seconds" that is completely ready for you to open up and use. This product is a powerpoint with 100 slides and a button to randomize the order in which they appear. Each slide has a statement on it, and students need to name 3 things that go with that statement in 5 seconds to earn a point. All slides are AP exam content - some are easy, some are difficult, and they never know which slide will pop up next! Students can be groupe

This activity gives students the opportunity to design a city-wide area using principles of sustainable land use. Students are given an area map, a key, and a checklist of specific requirements that they must include in their town plan. They must then analyze their design and justify their planning decisions. A completed map is included as a student exemplar.

UPDATED to include KEY. I called this a webquest, but I don't direct them to specific websites for the information so I'm not sure it technically qualifies as one. However, this handout is a great way to summarize all the important information about El Nino, La Nina, and the normal situation (some call it 'la nada'), and unfolds as a guided inquiry type of assignment. You can do it with your students as a class, or you can give it to them to noodle through. I couldn't find anything that was a co

An activity using sandwich fixings to simulate geological rock layers. Students learn the law of superposition, relative ages, drawing a stratigraphic column, and correlation by taking 'core samples' of their sandwich and comparing it to others. Lab is written using peanut butter and jelly, but it is fully editable to use any food items you wish.

UPDATED to include KEY. 4-page handout/activity to summarize key concepts about Earth's atmosphere. Diagrams to print are included, and these can be used for student stations or as a whole group lesson (I prefer stations, but that's just me). Students may need to do a little internet research as well to complete all of the questions. Includes concepts such as atmosphere composition & structure, global circulation patterns, monsoons, air masses & fronts, and the atmosphere's affect on climate

This is an assignment I give my future APES students to do over the summer, and I make it due the first week of class. It includes 6 parts, and is meant to be done a little at a time over the summer (although many do it the last week, am I right? lol). The 6 parts of the assignment are listed below, and are designed to give them a flavor of what we'll be doing in the course and a chance to get thinking about concepts related to APES. In this file I've also included the matching quiz I give based

Get your AP students thinking deeply and problem solving about production, transport, and usage of various types of energy throughout the United States. In a hypothetical but real-world scenario, teams of 4-6 are employees of a government contracting company who must analyze national energy data, predict future energy needs/supplies/habits, and propose suggestions for national initiatives (including legislation) to improve sustainability of energy in the USA. Groups compete for the 'government c

Great as a middle school science project, or for earth science or biology class. Open students' minds about the current environmental issues facing humanity today. Students choose from a list of 32 topics (I cut them into slips and have them choose randomly from a cup), and research their topic to create an Environmental Awareness Book. You could have them make a powerpoint or website instead if desired. Could also be used as a project in a grade-level environmental science class. Rubric include

Updated! Quick and impactful activity, with additional reinforcement of solid waste concepts. Bring in some food products you find at the local grocery store that use an excess of packaging (typically single-serve or convenience items), and have students analyze and discuss the elements and impact of all that packaging. Have them work in groups to discuss, then share their discussion points with the class. On the back are some reinforcement questions about life cycle of products and landfill st

Get your kids outside to discover and identify the variety of species found around your school (or their home, neighborhood, etc.) Each student identifies a species, takes a selfie with it, and researches information about that species to create a poster (or powerpoint, webpage, etc.) They're asked to explain and present tons of ecology information about their species, helping to reinforce concepts such as adaptations, classification, ecological impacts, etc. Rubric included.