Classroom Activities

Here you can find suggested Earth science related activities. Most are categorized based on the Next Generation Science Standards, and the earlier National Science Education Standards. Activities are also marked with an appropriate grade level. These Earth science activities are fun and educational. To access these activities, click on the activity name in the chart below.

Find additional activities in our Earth Science Week Activity Calendar and Teacher Learning Activity Manuals.

Helpful search tips: • Don't use quotation marks. • Use the Control key to select more than one grade level or tag below. • Want to search by Next Generation Science Standards? Click here.

Title Grade Level Tags
A Bit of Engineering 5-8 activity, oceans, rocks, core
A Model of Three Faults 7-12 activity, dynamic planet
A Paste with a Taste 3-8 activity, materials, minerals, natural resources
Adaptations of Cave Critters K-12 activity, caves, geology, natural processes, solution caves, NNL, animals, environments, organisms
Aggregates Matter 6-9 activity, aggregates, rocks
Analyzing Hurricanes Using Web and Desktop GIS 9-12 activity, weather, hurricane, speed, pressure, map
Applications of Lidar activity, geologic map, lidar
Are You a Water Waster? K-4 activity, water
Awesome Fossils K-8 activity, fossils, archaeology, rocks, paleontologist
Birdseed Mining 4-12 activity, rocks, materials, minerals, natural resources
Build a Model Aquifer 3-5 activity, materials, water, sediments, aquifer
Build Your Own Weather Station 6-12 activity, weather
Building the Water Cycle Diagram Earth Science Week, activity, water cycle, USGS
Burning Issues 5-8 activity, energy
Carbon Travels 5-12 activity, carbon, fossil fuels, rocks, carbon cycle
Celebrate Wilderness 5-12 activity, nature, land, landscape, wilderness, wildlife
Chemistry of Burning 6-8 activity, energy, fossils
Chocolate Rock Cycle K-8 activity, rocks, chocolate, preocesses, sedimentary, metamorphic, igneous
Citizen Science K-12 activity, environment, observation, education
Clear as Black and White 6-10 activity, geologic map, groundwater, colorblind
Climate and Temperature 5-8 activity, soil, climate, weather
Climate Change and Resilience 6-12 activity, climate change
Collecting Real World Data K-12 activity, data, climate, citizen science
Composting Materials and Rates K-6 activity, composting, soil
Connect the Spheres 5-8 activity, earth, atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, Earth systems

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