Lesson Plans

YMI's educational outreach programs tap into popular culture to create a dynamic learning experience. Browse by subject through our library of free study guides and online resources, to find standards-based lesson plans for your grade level and programs for learners outside the classroom.

STEM Skills

Elementary and Middle School

Give your students a clear view into the future with standards-based science lessons based on Corning’s “A Day Made of Glass” video series, a viral…

Elementary & Middle (5-8)

Help your students make a personal connection to the concept of sustainability through their own eating habits and through the example of New England’s regional…

Elementary (2-4)

Help your students become water wise as they learn how local dairy farmers conserve water on their farms, and how they and their families can…

Elementary (4-5)

Send your students and their families on an adventure that’s literally out of this world! Summer of Mars at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is…

Elementary (4-6)

Add depth to your recycling lessons by having students take a closer look at single-use foodservice packaging — what it is, why it’s used, and…

Elementary & Middle school

Explore one of nature’s most fearsome weather phenomena with this companion study guide to the film Hurricane, which combines footage collected over five years to…

Elementary (2-4)

What do kids and cows have in common? They both use high-tech devices! Show your students how dairy farmers use 21st century technology to keep…

Elementary (2-4)

Take your students on a virtual field trip to five Michigan dairy farms with Meet the Milk Makers!, a video-based online learning game (COMING SOON!)….

Middle School

Introduce your students to the new 2015-2020 USDA Dietary Guidelines with these standards-based lesson plans for family and consumer sciences, health, science, social studies, and…

Elementary (K-5), Middle School (6-8)

Introduce your students to Florida dairy farms and the farmers who provide nutritious products for their communities. Lessons include the science behind dairy production, milk’s…

Elementary (3-5)

Enhance your Earth Day science lessons in April with A Beautiful Planet, a breathtaking portrait of Earth that features stunning footage captured by astronauts aboard…

Elementary (K-4)

Take your students on a virtual field trip to five Florida dairy farms with Meet the Milk Makers!, a video-based online learning game. Then explore…

Elementary (1-5)

Teach your students how they can have a positive impact on the environment by recycling the cartons they use at school every day. Standards-based activity…

Elementary (2-4)

Explore the science behind your students’ dairy favorites — milk, cheese, and yogurt — with these standards-based classroom activities. Students follow milk from the dairy…

Elementary & Middle school

Introduce your students to the wild cats of Africa with this companion study guide to the large format film Wild Cats 3D, hosted by conservationist…

Middle School

Use these standards-based lesson plans to help your students learn more about where eggs come from and how they move from the farm to our…

Middle School

Add some extra excitement to the end of the school year with this unique science program inspired by the new film San Andreas, coming to…

Elementary (K-3)

Let the Peanuts gang help build your students’ language arts, science, and math skills with new bilingual (English and French) learning activities that celebrate the…

Elementary & Middle school

Introduce your students to the great apes of Africa and southeast Asia with this companion study guide to the film The Great Apes, hosted by…

Elementary (3-6)

Introduce your students to the All-American grain — rice! Students learn how rice growing has contributed to American history since colonial times, and how today’s…

High School

Inspire your students with “The Glass Age,” a new video series hosted by TV science investigators Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage. Students learn about the…

Elementary (3-5)

Cook up some excitement in your classroom with lessons that help students discover how science plays a part in everyday life. Kitchen Science introduces basic…

Elementary (2-4)

Take your students on a virtual field trip to five dairy farms with Meet the Milkmakers!, a video-based online learning game. Then explore the history…

Preschool & Grades PreK-2

Start inspiring imaginations in your classroom with these standards-based PLAY-DOH activities that combine verbal, aural, visual, tactile, and social learning to build foundational skills across…

Middle School

Empower your students to conserve energy as they conduct an in-class energy use assessment, research the impact of different energy sources, and create an energy…

Elementary & Middle school

Explore one of the world’s most amazing ecosystems with this companion study guide to the film Galapagos: Nature’s Wonderland, written by world renowned naturalist David…

Elementary (2-4)

Explore how milk and other nutritious foods make their way from local farmers to your students’ homes and school lunches. Students take a virtual tour…

Elementary (2-4)

Find out how farm and city lifestyles connect to help both kids and our planet stay healthy. Students use a Venn diagram to compare Annie’s…

Middle and High School

Celebrate World Space Week (October 4-10) and send your students on a real-world space adventure with this science program based on the new Warner Bros….

Penguins

Elementary & Middle school

Introduce your students to the King Penguins of South Georgia Island with this companion study guide to the film Penguins, from world-renowned filmmaker and naturalist…

Elementary & Middle School

Introduce your students to Newton’s Universal Law of Gravity and Three Laws of Motion in a whole new way with FMA Live!, the award-winning interactive…

Elementary (3-5)

This teaching kit, The Science of Safety, is designed to help you bring The Pillowcase Project into your classroom, with standards-based learning activities that provide…

Elementary (3-5)

Give your students the tools to keep their families safe from harmful bacteria in food, including a FREE Picnic Park game app that makes food…

Smokey's Wildfire Prevention Detectives

Middle School

Enlist your students in Smokey Bear’s campaign to use fire responsibly and reduce human-caused wildfires with this standards-based curriculum that takes a forensic science approach…

Value Your Power

Elementary (3-5)

Inspire your students to Value Your Power as they learn how to save energy at home using math and science activities specially designed to meet…

Air Racers

Elementary & Middle School

Fasten your seat belt for a thrilling ride through the history and science of aviation with this study guide to Air Racers, a documentary of…

Elementary & Middle School

Stimulate your students’ “ecomagination” with these environmental science programs designed for classrooms and community youth groups. The classroom teaching kit features simple experiments that explore…

Elementary (2-5)

Is Earth an alien planet? Let your students decide when they blast off with these fun learning activities based on the 3D animated family film,…

Be an Eco-Hero: Tame the Savage Planet

Elementary (2-4)

Let the LEGO Hero Factory team take your students on an ecological adventure to learn about adaptation, conservation, and the role technology plays in protecting…

Wonders of Wireless

Middle & High School

Explore the possibilities of wireless technology with activities that trace the history of wireless communication, gauge the impact that mobile devices have had on society,…

Alpha & Omega

Elementary (1-4)

Join two unlikely friends (who happen to be wolves) on an adventure-filled trek across the great Northwest with this study guide to the film Alpha…

Music Rules!

Elementary & Middle School

Teach your young music fans the rules of digital citizenship with this multi-disciplinary copyright education program. Students calculate the costs of “songlifting,” examine its impact…

Play by the Numbers with NFL Adrenalyn XL

Elementary (2-6)

Give your students hands-on experience working with numbers as they run plays on a special game board using NFL Adrenalyn XL trading cards. Students compare…

Elementary (3-4)

Let the animal stars of the hit comedy Furry Vengeance teach your students how protecting wildlife habitats can help preserve biodiversity and save endangered species…

I'm a Scoops Scholar!

Elementary (1-6)

Here’s a tasty way to review basic math skills like addition, subtraction, fractions, and graphing, plus a chance for students to learn how telling a…

Middle & High School

Turn everyday household problems into “teachable moments” as students discover how versatile products like baking soda, duct tape, and WD-40 can provide innovative solutions for…

Elementary (1-6)

Let the characters from the Ice Age movies lead your students on a science expedition to learn about Earth’s icy past and how we can…

earth

Elementary (3-5)

Take your students on an amazing journey across our planet with this activity guide to the Disneynature documentary earth. Students follow three animal families —…

Elementary (4-5)

Give your students’ math and technology skills a workout with activities that use the player stats on NFL trading cards for lessons in graphing, statistics,…

High School

Give your students a first-hand look into the business world as they step into the shoes of an executive team working to bring a new…

Liquid Engineering: The Castrol Guide to Automotive Lubrication

High School

Introduce new drivers and future auto technicians to the essentials of engine maintenance with these Castrol guides to automotive lubrication — including an online instructional…

Math's No Mystery with Scooby-Doo

Elementary (1-2)

Let Scooby-Doo show your students how to solve all sorts of math mysteries — coin calculations, number patterns, graphing, even measuring inches and centimeters with…

Surf's Up

Elementary (1-6)

Ride the wave to math mastery with these activities featuring the penguin characters from the hit film Surf’s Up. Students use number patterns and sequencing…

Switch It!

Elementary (1-4)

Switch on your students’ energy smarts with hands-on science activities that guide them through a home energy audit and challenge them to make energy saving…

Take Part in the Smokey Patrol

Elementary (4-6)

Help Smokey Bear teach a new generation how to prevent wildfires with these lessons in forest science and resource conservation. Students learn that, while fire…

Planet Earth

Middle School

Take your students on an amazing worldwide journey to explore the diversity of animal life with this study guide to the 11-part documentary series, Planet…

High School

Launch your students on a learning mission with lessons drawn from the popular video game Flight Simulator X. Hands-on activities teach students how to calculate…

Zoo Tycoon: Marine Mania

Elementary (3-5)

Dive into ocean science with help from the popular Zoo Tycoon video game series. Students investigate the different kinds of animals that live in the…

Elementary (1-4)

Add some elfin magic to your class plans with the holiday classic, Elf, starring Will Farrell as Buddy, a human raised as an elf who…

Zoo Tycoon: Endangered Species

Elementary (3-5)

Add a unit on endangered wildlife to your environmental science curriculum with help from the popular Zoo Tycoon video game series. Students explore different biomes…

Learning with Zoo Tycoon

Elementary (3-5)

Take a hands-on approach to life science with help from the popular Zoo Tycoon video games. Students explore different biomes around the world, research the…

Building the Great Pyramid

Middle School

Uncover the science behind the greatest wonder of the ancient world with this study guide based on the ground-breking BBC documentary series Building the Great…

Middle School

Explore the ocean environment with this study guide to the 8-part documentary series The Blue Planet: Seas of Life. Students conduct hands-on experiments to learn…

The Science of Golf

Middle School

Help your students discover how basic principles of physics translate into majestic drives and impossible putts. Hands-on activities compare a pendulum to a golfer’s swing,…

Middle School

Return to the Mesozoic with this study guide based on the groundbreaking 6-part documentary series Walking with Dinosaurs. Students create a giant timeline of Earth’s…

Smart Cookies Don't Burn

Elementary (1-5)

Teach your students the science behind sun safety with hands-on experiments exploring solar energy and reflected light. Includes separate activity sets for younger and older…