Earth Sciences Activities

The Landfill & Waste Crisis Mystery – Detective Case File | Human Impact

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on the waste crisis and landfill pollution. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve the mystery of h

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

Agriculture & Fertilizer Runoff Mystery – Detective Case File | Human Impact

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on agriculture, fertilizer runoff, and water system collapse. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solv

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

The Freshwater Crisis Mystery – Detective Case File | Human Impact, Ecosystems

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on freshwater scarcity, drought, and water system collapse. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

The Fossil Fuels & Energy Crisis Mystery – Detective Case File | Human Impact

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on fossil fuels, energy use, and environmental damage. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve the m

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

Fast Fashion & Consumerism Mystery – Detective Case File | Human Impact

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on fast fashion and consumerism. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve the mystery of how fast fas

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

Supervolcanoes & Mega-Eruptions Reading | 6th, 7th, 8th Grade | Pyroclastic Flow

Created by
TWFScience

This grade 6–8 reading introduces students to the extreme power of supervolcanoes and mega-eruptions and how these rare events can affect the entire planet. It explains what supervolcanoes are, how they form, and why scientists closely monitor them despite eruptions being very rare.The article break

6th - 8th Earth Sciences, General Science, Physical Science

The Rock Cycle Reading | 6th, 7th, 8th Grade | How Rocks Are Made and Changed

Created by
TWFScience

This grade 6–8 reading introduces students to the rock cycle and how Earth’s rocks are constantly being formed, broken down, and changed over time. It explains the three main types of rocks—igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic—and how natural forces such as heat, pressure, weathering, and erosion d

6th - 8th Earth Sciences, General Science, Physical Science

Also included in: Reading Comprehension Article & Question Mega Bundle | 6th, 7th, 8th Grade

Lab-Grown Meat and the Future of Food Reading | Grade 8 & Up | Cell, Plant-Based

Created by
TWFScience

Lab-grown meat is one of the most fascinating (and controversial) innovations in modern food science, and this Reading Comprehension Passage and Questions helps students understand how cultivated/cell-based meat is made and why it’s being developed. Students learn how real meat can be grown from ani

8th - 12th Science, Biology, Earth Sciences

Exoplanets and How We Could Get There Reading | Grade 8 & Up | Habitable Zone

Created by
TWFScience

Exoplanets and Interstellar Travel is one of the most fascinating and mind-bending topics in modern astronomy, and this Reading Comprehension Passage and Questions helps students understand what exoplanets are, how scientists find them, and what it might take for humans to ever reach them.Students l

8th - 12th Science, Biology, Earth Sciences

Also included in: Science Reading Comprehension Article Mega Bundle | Grade 8 and Up

Love in the Animal Kingdom Reading | Grade 8 & Up | Social Monogamy

Created by
TWFScience

Love in the Animal Kingdom is a fascinating and engaging biology topic that helps students explore how many animals form strong pair bonds, cooperate with mates, and raise offspring together. This Reading Comprehension Passage and Questions introduces students to the science behind animal “love,” sh

8th - 12th Science, Biology, Earth Sciences

Also included in: Valentine's Day Science Activities | STEM, Project, Readings | High School

Chocolate & Cacao Trees Ecology Project | Human Impact | 6th, 7th, 8th Grade

Created by
TWFScience

In this project, your students will explore how cacao trees depend on healthy ecosystems and how human activities affect the future of chocolate. Students will investigate where cacao trees grow, the environmental conditions they need to survive, and how deforestation and climate change threaten cac

6th - 8th Science, Biology, Earth Sciences

NGSS MS-LS2-2, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5

Also included in: Valentine's Day Science Activities | STEM, Project, Readings | 6th, 7th, 8th

Love and Pair Bonding in the Animal Reading | 6th, 7th, 8th Grade |

Created by
TWFScience

This grade 6–8 reading introduces students to the science of love and pair bonding in the animal kingdom, showing how many animals form long-term partnerships, cooperate with mates, and raise offspring together. It explains what monogamy and pair bonding mean in biological terms and why these behavi

6th - 8th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

Also included in: Valentine's Day Science Activities | STEM, Project, Readings | 6th, 7th, 8th

Flowers, Pollinators, Ecosystems and Human Impact – Flower Ecology Project

Created by
TWFScience

In this project, your students will explore how flowering plants depend on pollinators and healthy ecosystems, and how human activities affect the survival of pollinators and the plants—and foods—people rely on every day. Students will investigate how pollination works, why pollinators are essential

7th - 9th Science, Biology, Earth Sciences

NGSS MS-LS2-2, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5

Also included in: Valentine's Day Science Activities | STEM, Project, Readings | High School

The E-Waste & Technology Pollution Mystery – Detective SUB PLAN | Human Impact

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on electronic waste (e-waste) and technology pollution. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve the

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

The Ocean Acidification Mystery – Detective SUB PLAN | Human Impact, Fossil Fuel

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on ocean acidification and marine ecosystem disruption. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track chemical and ecological pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, Marine Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

The Forever Chemicals Mystery – Detective SUB PLAN | Human Impact, PFAS

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on forever chemicals (PFAS) and environmental contamination. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track chemical pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve the

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, Marine Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

The Light Pollution Mystery – Detective SUB PLAN | Human Impact on Ecosystems

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on light pollution and artificial nighttime lighting. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solve the my

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, Marine Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

The Urban Heat Island Mystery – Detective SUB PLAN | Human Impact

Created by
TWFScience

Turn your students into science detectives with this engaging, real-world investigation focused on the urban heat island effect and rising city temperatures. In this case file activity, students analyze evidence, track environmental pathways, interrogate suspects, and build a scientific case to solv

6th - 9th Biology, Earth Sciences, Physical Science

NGSS MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5+3

Also included in: Science Detective Mystery Bundle | Chemistry, Human Body, Environmental Science

Winter Animal Survival Adaptations and Strategies Reading | 6th, 7th, 8th

Created by
TWFScience

This grade 6–8 reading introduces students to how animals survive winter by using physical and behavioral adaptations to cope with cold temperatures, limited food, and harsh conditions. Students learn why winter is such a challenging season and how animals have evolved strategies that help them stay

6th - 8th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

Also included in: Winter Weather & Snow Bundle - Lessons, Project, Activities | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Why Do Roads Get Salted? Reading | How Salt Melts Ice, Winter | 6th, 7th, 8th

Created by
TWFScience

This grade 6–8 reading introduces students to the science behind why roads are salted in winter and how salt helps melt ice to make roads safer. Students learn how water freezes, why icy roads are dangerous, and how adding salt changes the freezing point of water through a process called freezing po

6th - 8th Biology, Earth Sciences, General Science

Also included in: Winter Weather & Snow Bundle - Lessons, Project, Activities | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Winter Weather Adaptations Ecology Research Project - Structural and Behavioral

Created by
TWFScience

In this project, your students will explore how animals survive extreme winter conditions through specialized structural and behavioral adaptations. Students investigate how cold temperatures, snow, wind, and limited food shape animal survival strategies, and how these adaptations help organisms rem

6th - 9th Science, Biology, Earth Sciences

NGSS MS-LS1-4, MS-LS1-5, MS-LS4-4

Also included in: Winter Weather & Snow Bundle - Lessons, Project, Activities | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Snow Day Science Activity Bundle - Snow, Snowflakes, Winter | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Created by
TWFScience

The NO-PREP bundle includes a two readings (The Science of Snow, Snowflakes, and Frost / Winter Animal Survival Adaptations and Strategies), two simple at-home investigations (Snow Density and Volume Investigation / Snow vs Ice Activity - Which Melts Faster), and my Winter Weather Adaptations Projec

6th - 9th Earth Sciences, General Science, Physical Science

Extreme Winter Weather Reading | Snowstorms, Blizzards | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Created by
TWFScience

This grade 6–8 science reading comprehension article introduces students to the wild and powerful side of winter, from blizzards and ice storms to polar vortexes and nor’easters. Students learn how different types of extreme winter weather form, what makes each storm unique, and how these storms imp

6th - 8th Earth Sciences, General Science, Physical Science

NGSS MS-ESS2-1, MS-ESS2-4, MS-ESS2-6

Also included in: Winter Weather & Snow Bundle - Lessons, Project, Activities | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Winter Weather & Snow Bundle - Lessons, Project, Activities | 6th 7th 8th Grade

Created by
TWFScience

This NO-PREP, comprehensive Winter Weather and Snow Bundle guides students through the science of winter by exploring how snow forms, how winter weather works, how animals survive cold environments, and how physical science concepts—such as states of matter, heat transfer, density, freezing point de

6th - 9th Earth Sciences, General Science, Physical Science

NGSS MS-LS4-2, MS-LS4-4, MS-ESS2-1+4