Open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science.

Science curriculum for K—5th grades.

90 sec
  • Hands-on — lead students in the doing of science and engineering.
  • Standards-aligned science lessons — Cover core standards in 1-2 hours of science per week.
  • Less prep, more learning — prep in minutes not hours. Captivate your students with short videos and discussion questions.

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Open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science.

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Is this an egg cracking? Nope -- it’s a mushroom! What do you think it will look like when it “hatches”?
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Whoa, what an odd shape! Do you notice the flies? Why do you think there are so many flies around it?
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Flies like it because it smells like garbage! It’s called a Stinkhorn! It WANTS flies to visit because flies help spread its “seeds” (spores).
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This sweater has a special connection to mushrooms. What do you think it has to do with mushrooms? The next slide has a hint!
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Hint: Some mushrooms can stain people’s hands, like this blue mushroom. Does this give you any ideas about the sweater?
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Mushrooms made the colors in the sweater! Mushrooms can stain (dye) yarn and fabric almost all the colors of the rainbow!
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Do you think that these are the same kind of mushroom? Why or why not?
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They ARE the same mushroom! As mushrooms grow from a “baby” to an “adult,” they change shape!
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You can watch mushrooms grow in your own home or at school with a kit like this. They’re even a kind of mushroom you can eat!
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These lumpy mushrooms, called truffles, are delicious! Chefs love them! But they grow underground and are VERY hard to find…
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This man is trying to SMELL for truffles (they’re stinky), but people don’t have a very good sense of smell! How can people find them?
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People train pigs to sniff for truffles underground! Pigs have a GREAT sense of smell! This pig here found one. Thanks, piggy!
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Some mushrooms are SO strong that they can hold up a person! What could you do with strong mushrooms? Think like an inventor!
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One thing you can do is grow mushrooms into certain shapes, like a brick shape! Once you have mushroom bricks, you could...
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...build a giant sculpture or even a home! The artist who built this hopes that people will make buildings out of mushrooms one day.
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We pulled three questions from our jar. Which question do you want to explore?

  • Where does wind come from?

    -Sally, 3rd Grade

  • What’s the largest flying animal?

    -Lincoln, 4th Grade

  • What makes glue sticky?

    -Norah, 3rd Grade

How can you tell if a mushroom is poisonous?

Watch the video to discover the answer and don't forget to vote for next week's question. There are mysteries all around us. Have fun and stay curious!