This page contains interdisciplinary, outdoor-focused activities and lesson plans developed by Blandy's education team through a variety of grant and partnership projects. While upper elementary grade levels (3rd, 4th, 5th) are targeted with the lesson plans, many can be easily adjusted for other grade levels or learning needs.
As always, please contact us with any questions you have about our programs or any of the activities and resources.
| Activity |
Investigative Question(s) |
Link to Lesson |
| What Plants are Good for Pollinators? |
What plants should we choose for a pollinator garden? |
What Plants for Pollinators? Lesson |
| What Plant Where? |
What is a plant’s role in its habitat? What are some physical features that can be considered when choosing plants for a native garden? |
What Plant Where Lesson |
| Habitat Mapping |
What is a habitat? Do all habitats look alike? How does water flow in a habitat? |
Habitat Mapping Lesson |
| Insect Adaptations |
What are some adaptations that insects have that help them to feed on different foods and from different parts of plants, especially flowers? |
Insect Adaptations Lesson |
| Pollination Station |
What plants do pollinatorsvisit the most? What types of organisms pollinate plants? What can this tell us about plant and pollinator diversity? |
Pollination Station Lesson |
| Lepidoptera Life Cycle Timeline |
How do butterfly and moth life cycles differ? What are the host plants for different types of moths and butterflies? |
Lepidopteran Life Cycle Timeline |
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| Activity |
Investigative Question |
Link to Lesson |
| Watershed Models (Including SOLs for 4th - 6th) |
What is a watershed? Do all watersheds look the same? |
Watershed Model |
| Water Cycle- Incredible Journey (SOLs for 3rd) |
How does water move through the water cycle? |
Incredible Journey |
| Schoolyard Surfaces (including SOLs for 3rd - 6th) |
How does water move over permeable and impermeable surfaces? |
Schoolyard Surfaces |
| Roof Models (SOLs for 4th) |
How does water move over roofs and what is the impact of water run-off from roofs on erosion? |
Roof Models |
| Runaway Rain- Word Problems (SOLs for 4th) |
How many gallons of water fall on your roof in a month? |
Runaway Rain- Word Problems |
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| Activity |
Investigative Question(s) |
Link to Lesson |
| Evergreen Tree ID (SOLs for 3rd) |
What are evergreen trees? How do we identify them? |
Evergreen Tree ID lesson |
| Classification of Trees and Leaves (SOLs for 3rd) |
How do scientists identify trees? |
Tree ID Lesson |
| Using a Field Guide to Identify Trees (SOLs for 3rd) |
How do we use a non-fiction book to learn about trees and their uses? |
Using a Tree Guide Lesson |
| Seed to Superlative- Tree life cycles (SOLs for 3rd) |
What are the stages of a tree's life cycle? |
Seed to Superlative Lesson |
| Investigating the American Chestnut (SOLs for 3rd) |
What is the American Chestnut and what were its roles in eastern U.S. forest ecosystems? |
American Chestnut Lesson |
| Decomposition (SOLs for 3rd & 4th) |
What is decomposition? How is it important to a healthy ecosystem? |
Decomposition Lesson |
| How the Forest Grows- with Trees of Virginia DOF book (SOLs for 3rd) |
How does a tree sapling compare to a mature tree? |
How the Forest Grows Lesson |
| Forest Layers (SOLs for 3rd) |
What organisms live in the forest? How do the trees and the other organisms interact? |
Forest Layers Lesson |
| Schoolyard Trees in Winter (SOLs for 3rd) |
How are trees winter habitat for organisms? |
Schoolyard Trees In Winter |
| Schoolyard Trees- Measuring Trees at Different Heights (SOLs for 3rd) |
What are measurable similarities and differences between trees? |
SchoolyardTrees- Measuring Lesson |
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| Activity |
Investigative Question |
Link to Lesson |
| Field Geology |
What are the physical features of rocks in my schoolyard/backyard? |
Field Geology Lesson |
| Rock Density |
What is the density of common Virginia rocks? How do I use scientific tools to investigate density? |
Rock Density Lesson |
| Rock Cycle Analysis |
What is the rock cycle and how long does it take for rocks to form and change? |
Rock Cycle Analysis Lesson |
| Activity |
Investigative Question |
Link to Lesson |
| Bird Spectrogram (SOLs for 5th) |
In what ways are songs of bird species distinct from one another? |
Bird Spectrogram Lesson |
| Migration Mapping (SOLs for 3rd - 6th,VS, USI, USII, WG) |
How far and through what geographic areas and features do birds migrate? |
Mapping Migration Lesson |
| Migration Mapping Bird Information (see above) |
Great Migration Challenge Bird Info Cards to use with Mapping Lesson |
Bird Migration Cards |
| Bird Bioacoustics (SOLs for 5th) |
How do scientists use pattern and frequency to identify bird songs? |
Bird Bioacoustics Lesson |
