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Use this lesson plan to learn about an article type called Explainers that is published by Science News Explores in print and online. You can also access a lesson plan template that can be used with any Explainer article. Explainer articles take a deep dive into a key scientific concept or process.

Use this lesson plan and the provided template to have your students practice the Cornell Note-taking System with any article. This literacy strategy organizes notes into two columns that provide structure for note-taking, analysis and review and that will help increase students’ learning, comprehension and retention.

As global temperatures increase we’ll need to change how we design our buildings. Climate responsive architecture includes buildings that are designed with the regional climate in mind. In this activity, students will design a building that stays at a safe and comfortable temperature throughout the day. In their designs, students will have to consider the Sun’s movement in the sky and their buildings’ materials and shapes. Students will model and test their designs before learning about a new idea scientists have for climate responsive architecture.

Cases of sleeping sickness, a disease that can cause brain damage and death, are at an all-time low. An experimental drug called acoziborole could help to eliminate the nightmarish parasitic illness. Use the graph “Sleeping sickness efforts pay off” to have students analyze the reported cases of both forms of sleeping sickness from 1990 to 2021.

The success of vaccines has sometimes obscured the power of infectious diseases to sicken, kill and upend lives. Still, the epidemics of the last century contain stories to listen to and learn from. Use the data table “Big Impact” to have students analyze how vaccines have impacted the number of disease cases.

When Ötzi, the mummified iceman, was discovered in 1991, researchers thought they knew how he got his ink. But new findings cast doubt on those assumptions. Learn about unconventional approaches to tattooing and answer experimental design questions, such as the importance of sample size to a scientific study and the difference between quantitative and qualitative evidence.

Social media is part of our everyday lives. It provides entertainment, news, reference information, and so much more. However, not all the content we find on social media is accurate. In this activity, students will investigate the prevalence of misinformation on popular social media platforms. In their investigation, students examine how platforms’ biases and algorithms influence the type of content social media users see and the level of misinformation displayed.

Being legal doesn't mean a drug is harmless. As the adult legal access to cannabis products goes up, teens' perception of cannabis risks falls. Learn how science reveals the harm THC may pose to teens while answering questions and discussing how the evidence from such studies supports conclusions.

Patients with a genetic disorder that increases the risk of severe heart disease took a gene editing medicine called VERVE-101 in a clinical trial. Have students answer a set of graphical analysis questions to learn more about the trial’s outcomes and the scientists’ proposed next steps.

Humans have modified organisms for millennia through selective breeding and other techniques. But only in the past few decades have people gained the ability to directly alter organisms’ DNA to create Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). GMOs can help advance fields such as medicine and agriculture. In this activity, students will learn more about GMOs and their uses before creating an awareness campaign to address GMO misconceptions.

Air pollution and wildfire smoke are affecting many areas of the country. Check your air quality index and learn how poor air quality could impact your health with this quick activity!

The world population has reached 8 billion people, according to the United Nations. In this guide, students will learn about how the human population has grown over time and how it is projected to grow in the future, then analyze a graph of world population data. In a quick activity, students will think about how a growing human population might impact various industries and how changes at the national or international level might help those industries support a larger population.