Activities, Skillathons & Lesson Plans
Number of unique resources found: 37
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– General Information –
Description: A practical guide on how to make effective posters for displays or exhibits, with tips on graphics, fonts, message.
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: Overview of the Scratch game development tool interface.
– Programming Resource –
Description: The 4-H Program wouldn't truly be 4-H without Games! Here are some game activities that you use to lead fun, group forming activities. The activities and games are divided into four sections: 4-H Activities, Group Activities, Ice Breakers, and Problem Solving. series of brief (1-2 page) that can be used by group Facilitator or participant.
Author: Wilson, Suzanne; Brenda Smith, University of Florida
Description: Science can be fun when you "Learn with LEGO's". In this hands-on workshop, participants will use the LEGO CAD program and LEGO Simple Machines project material to learn the basic principles of simple machine design and function. A true "Learn by Doing" project that can be used with youth ages 10 and up. This program not only teaches mechanical science, it also challenges youth to follow directions, work together, and use their imagination. "Let's play with LEGO's" will have a new meaning once you complete this workshop.
Beyond Blame: Reacting to the Terrorist Attack
Author: Jolly, Eric; Stephanie Malloy, Marilyn Felt
Description: Developed in response to the 9/11 terrorist tragedy and subsequent attacks against Arab-Americans, this is a free, 25-page curriculum for middle and high school students focused on issues of justice and mislaid blame. The curriculum features three lessons, designed to stimulate student reflection, discussion, and writing. Lesson 1, "What is Justice? What is the Injustice Here?", guides students through a discussion of the events of September 11th and reports of subsequent attacks and threats made against innocent people perceived to be of Arab descent. Lesson 2, "Has the Past Been Just?", examines parallels between today's events and the internment of Japanese-Americans in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor. Lesson 3, "How Can You Prevent Injustice?" leads students through a discussion of the kinds of actions they can take to prevent injustice, discrimination, and mislaid blame.
Description: The National Science Foundation CS Bits & Bytes is a biweekly newsletter highlighting innovative computer science research. Aimed at high school teachers and students, it emphasizes how computer science permeates and improves our lives and supports progress in many other disciplines. CS Bits & Bytes issues include profiles of the individuals who do this exciting work and include links to interactive activities and videos. You can check out the archive at this site, and/or request the newsletter be emailed to you.
Developing Online Games and Animations in Your Out-of-School Program 
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: Want to add a game development activity to your program but can't afford the cost and complexity of Flash? Here it is! Learn how to use the free software Scratch to easily create graphics, animations and simple computer games: including posting your games online. Get activity plans and contest ideas that you can use tomorrow in your out-of school program.
Engineering With Technology Tools
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Kathleen Jamison
Description: The 4-H SET Mission Mandate creates an opportunity of awareness in staff and youth to learn SET using exciting computer technology tools. Engage youth in relevant, fun learning that focuses on the engineering process. The experiences include problem solving, communication, community service, and aesthetics. Come learn SketchUp, Alice, and West Point Bridge Design software and start engineering your program.
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: Engineering is a fun job because you get to use your imagination to create things that don’t exist yet. Engineers use math and science skills to turn a drawing or an idea into reality. In the past century, engineers have changed everyone’s lives by bringing us electricity, mechanized farming, air travel, compact disks and much more. Here are some activities you can make, then use your imagination to create what doesn't yet exist.
eSource: Games & Activities for 4-H events
Description: The 4-H Program wouldn't truly be 4-H without Games! Here are some game activities that you use to lead fun, group forming activities. Ice breaker games, tag games and other fun games to use with youth or adults.
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: Step right up to state fair season with CYFERnet! Discover the secrets behind the deep-fried, the thrill ride, and those impossible carnival games with a trio of fun activities. Includes recipes and why fair food tastes so good, and the science behind fair rides and midway challenges.
Description: The 4-H Program wouldn't truly be 4-H without Games! The games are reprinted from Games and Sports the World Around, 3rd edition, by Sarah Ethridge Hunt, Copyright 1964 by the Ronald Press Company, and reprinted with permission from John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Turkish Games for Health and Recreation, by Barbara K. Walker and Warren S. Walker, 1983, Archive of Turkish Oral Narrative, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, and reprinted with permission from Barbara W. Walker; and Hawaiian Games for Today by Donald Mitchell. Where appropriate, changes have been made to indicate that these games are to be played by both boys and girls. Games are identified by their continent and country of origin.
Hands-On Healthy Eating and Exercise
Author: Peutz, Joey
Description: Want to get children thinking about healthy eating and exercise? You can be a part of the good health solution by teaching youth about the nutrition and encouraging physical activity. These hands-on activities reinforce the concepts.
Author: Cooperative Extension Sys,
Description: Just for Kids is a list of online activities and resources created by the Cooperative Extension Service and intended for direct use by children (without the mediation of an adult leader or teacher). This page of links is to simplify access and use by children.
Author: Dunham, Trudy (4 more by this author)
Description: Today, one in seven people do not get enough food to be healthy and lead an active life. Yet there is enough food in the world for everyone to have the nourishment necessary for a healthy and productive life. How can this be? How can hunger and malnutrition be the number one risk to health worldwide – a risk greater than that due to AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined? This mission provides activities and games, both online and offline, as well as video and reflection questions to facilitate youth learning about the issues of hunger and food security, and consideration of the importance of this issue in today's world.
Mission of the Month: Backyard Bird Count
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: This is an easy project for CYFAR programs to pull together. Just count the birds (by species) in your backyard (or other convenient location) for 15 minutes (or longer) on one of these 4 days. There are a few more rules, but it is an uncomplicated way to add citizen science and community service activities to your program, as well as introducing the key issues of biodiversity and climate change.
Mission of the Month: Biodiversity
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: Why should we care about biodiversity? In a world of rapid change, isn't it nice to have some sameness? While it may be pretty, convenient and efficient -- it isn't as strong and resilient as a diverse ecosystem. Check out these activities, resources and ideas to learn more about how plants or animals that are susceptible in a monoculture environment, and the extra efforts needed to sustain them. In a biodiverse ecosystem, you will see a complex web of relationships among organisms that allow them all to survive and flourish
Mission of the Month: Capturing History- The making of a documentary
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: Who are you, really? Have your skills and interests been passed down from your parents or grandparents? Where did the habits and customs of today’s American society come from? There is more to one’s history – the history of family and community – than your DNA and the names of your ancestors. What you do and how you do it is an important part of your family history. Take the time to find out how you became who you are today. Interview your family members about one aspect of life or culture that interests you. If talking to family isn’t convenient, use this as an opportunity to learn how your neighborhood became what it is today!
Mission of the Month: CYFERnet Travel Bug Race
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: Would you like to explore the planet vicariously and win a prize as well? Then don’t miss the annual CYFERnet Travel Bug Race. In September, Youth and adult teams can start touring the globe via their Travel Bug: a metal tag that allows contestants to follow their “hitchhiker” trinket. Your hitchhiker can serve as a virtual you — make a club mascot and attach it to the Travel Bug for a more personalized experience. Hitchhikers are a staple of geocaching—the Global Positioning System (GPS)-based adventure game. In geocaching, contestants place their trinkets into official geocaches anywhere in the world, register their Travel Bugs online and track them as other geochachers move them from cache to cache in the real world. The more miles your bug travels, the higher your score in the CYFERnet Travel Bug Race. Read on to learn more.
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham
Description: This month, we examine inner space – DNA, a part of your body that is too small to see, but that makes each living thing unique. After examining what DNA is and why it is in the news today, there are two activities. You may extract actual DNA from banana cells using some commonly found materials and tools. You can also debate the pros and cons of manipulating DNA, a field known as genetic engineering. DNA is the code for life. Each of the cells in your body holds strings of DNA that are too small to see even with a microscope. But even though it is very small, it is very important. It defines what you look like and many other things about you. Learn more about DNA
Mission of the Month: Down the Drain
Author: Dunham, Trudy (4 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: Water - it is essential to life. But to fulfill its essential rule, the water must be "quality". This means that the water must be clean enough so you and other plants and animals can drink it without getting sick. And have sufficient oxygen to support our plants and fish that live under water. We don't always recognize how much our individual behavior and our life style affects water quality. When we put something 'down the drain' either in our homes or in our streets, we impact our water. National Youth Science Day will focus on water quality and its connection to climate change this year. As you prepare for that activity, here are some additional activities and resources to support the learning about our water cycle and how we impact water quality in our communities and the world.
Mission of the Month: Drinking Water
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham
Description: More than two-thirds of the surface of our planet is covered with water, and yet we are facing water shortages! These statements seem contradictory at first, but let's look more closely at water. What is it? When people talk about water they can mean different things. Water is a chemical compound made of 2 hygrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom, H2O. Water is also what comes out of your faucet. That water is more than H2O -- it also contains minerals, oxygen, and other things such as chlorine, which purifies the water. Water is also found in bottles in shops. But the contents of these bottles varies a lot!
Mission of the Month: Engineering and Bridges
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: February hosts National Engineers Week, so this month’s Mission of the Month is all about engineering, and one type of engineering project — bridges. Engineers take the principles of science and math and apply them directly to making things or solving problems. There are many types of engineers and your lives are touched by their work every day. Engineers help make things safe. Buildings, roads, bridges, machines, cars, toys, computers, clothes, furniture, food, bicycles, planes, rockets, boats, pens, medicines, replacement joints, artificial heart valves and cell phones are just a short list of what engineers dream up or improve. They design rides at Disneyland and toys like the Slinky. They are involved in every step of these processes from design, manufacture, testing, and repair.Engineering is a field that offers a wide variety of opportunities for careers that are rewarding personally and financially. As you do this month’s Mission, think about your future and whether you might like to be an engineer. Read more about engineering as a career.
Mission of the Month: Engineering- Designing Issues
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham, Lisa Regalla
Description: Do you enjoy puzzles and challenges? Would you like a career that is about making the lives of others better? Does the idea of being a part of a team that works to cure a disease like cancer, or to solve major problems such as climate change, sound more like what you would like to do with your life? Then maybe you do want to be an engineer! Check out this Mission for a variety of hands on activities and challenges that draw on your engineering skills and innovation -- from constructing a trebuchet to designing a life-size puppet!
Mission of the Month: Growth and Gardens
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: Interested in plants? Here is an opportunity to do citizen science, or just plain science by digging in the dirt, identifying plants, and other activities and science projects.
Mission of the Month: How many worlds would it take?
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: The way we live – traveling, eating, staying warm in the winter – has a cost to the earth. But some of us use more resources to support our lifestyles than others. Some people tread lightly on the earth, and others use more than their share of what the earth has to offer us. How many worlds we need to support ourselves if everyone on earth lived the way we do? There are a lot of factors to consider. The concept of "carrying capacity", the number of living things - plants as well as animals - that an area of land or water can support at any one time might be a good starting point. This and other activities support your exploration of this topic.
Mission of the Month: Innovation and Exploration
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: CYFERnet celebrates National Engineers Week and Black History Month with a tribute to inventors and innovation. We also begin to explore how seasons change with our "It's a Mystery" project. To get the ball rolling, follow the steps listed under each activity.
Mission of the Month: Into The Vortex – All About Tornadoes
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: As the US enters tornado season, there is a lot to know about these funnel-shaped summer storms. What causes them? How strong are their winds? Which months have the most tornadoes? There are lots of ways to study tornadoes without getting close to them. This month’s mission will get you building a tornado model, studying the ways of these fierce storms, learning how to prepare for storm season, plus some things to do if a tornado should hit.
Mission of the Month: Let's Not "Blow" Our Energy Future! It's In the Wind
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham
Description: Wind is an energy source that nature provides to us. What is wind? Where does wind come from? How can wind be used to provide energy for our future? These are all basic questions that need to be considered when we think about wind energy.
Mission of the Month: Music and Sound
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: A song is in the air – but how? When you hear music, how does the sound get from the instrument, radio or iPod to your ear? How do musical instruments actually make sound? This month’s mission focuses on the science of sound, and how to make music – physically and digitally. How to see sound waves in motion.
Mission of the Month: Nano - The Science & Technology of Small
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham
Description: Why is Nano so big in today's world? Because our technologies have developed enough for us to see the teeny tiny particles that make up our world. And our science is advancing so we understand how these tiny particles work. Just what is nano? Check out these activities for greater understanding of nano and how it works!
Mission of the Month: Secret Codes - Know What No One Else Knows
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham
Description: "The main thing is to pay attention, pay close attention, to everything. Notice what no one else notices. Then you'll know what no one else knows, and that's always useful." Secret Codes. Vanishing objects. Hidden meanings. Mysteries are all around us! This month CYFERnet offers a few of them for you to solve using your best analytical thinking, and a little digging through history!
Mission of the Month: Surf and Sail
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: Just in time for the sizzling summer heat, CYFERnet dives into another cool Mission. Learn about waves, wind power and boat building through exciting experiments, investigations, creative activities and some healthy competition:
Mission of the Month:Adventures in Aerospace
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: From Mars explorations to star counting to space parties, this month, youth can go to infinity and beyond with four stellar activities:
Online, Issues Based, Science Learning through CYFERnet's Mission of the Month
Author: Staker, Jay (11 more by this author); Trudy Dunham, Lisa Regalla
Description: Mission of the Month is an online learning opportunity, for youth to experience fun science, engineering, and technology embedded in real-life issues such as hunger, climate change, and biodiversity. Monthly missions are offered on the CYFERnet website. Missions offer a range of experiences and can be used in a variety of settings. Sample missions will be experienced in a hands-on session, including resources from the public television show, SciGirls.
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author)
Description: Overview of the instructions and commands for using the computer game programming tool Scratch.
The Climb: Mastering Self and Aconcagua
Author: Dunham, Trudy (32 more by this author); Jay Staker
Description: Steve Brown climbs Aconcagua, the highest mountain outside of the Himalayas. Activities support youth planning and training for an outdoor expedition, and the physical realities of such treks. Includes background information and reflection questions on mountaineering traditions, health and measurement.