Some people may think dung beetles are gross. After all, they live in and eat animal waste! But Dr. Nicole Gunter, the Museum’s Associate Curator of Invertebrate Zoology, finds them utterly fascinating. In fact, they’re her favorite animal. “Why?” you might ask. Get the scoop in this video. Worksheets available for grades 7-8 and 9-12.

Spend some time studying the Museum’s Sears Hall of Human Ecology with experimental archaeologist Mark Kollecker. Worksheet available for grades 4-6.

Collections Manager Amanda McGee shows off some of the coolest fossils in the Museum’s collections. Worksheet available for grades 1-2.

In this lesson and activity booklet, students will learn about the Underground Railroad, conductors, and routes to freedom taken by Freedom Seekers.

Worksheet to encourage kids to process their understanding of slavery and freedom through art and discussion.

Students will explore a physical map showing natural resources in Canada to analyze the impact of the environment on the distribution of natural resources. Students will write about the information they discover using the provided worksheet and rubric.

Two gray foxes joined the Museum’s menagerie of live native Ohio animals in the reimagined Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center & Woods Garden—Presented by KeyBank, which opened Labor Day weekend 2016. Gray foxes are one of the only canines that can climb trees—a fact that inspired the young foxes’ names. Buckeye and Ash were born in captivity and hand-raised in Minnesota. In the years since the state-of-the-art wildlife center opened, the pair have bonded with their caregivers and become familiar with their homes. Worksheet available for grades 1-3.

Use this graphic organizer to analyze the elements of nonfiction and how the ideas interact.

This writing lesson teaches students how to become self-editors by learning to judge and critique their work.

Join Nick Anderson on a tour of the technology that powers a planetarium, and even sneak behind the dome for the ultimate inside peek at astronomical action! Worksheet available for grades 3-4.

Museum bug wrangler Kate McNeese shows us some of her six- and eight-legged pals and demonstrates how to handle these arthropod animal ambassadors safely. Worksheet available for grades 3-4.

Museum craftsmen Carl and David explain how they create casts of Australopithecus afarensis fossils to display in the Museum. Worksheet available for grades 3-4.

In this week’s edition of Scientist Saturdays, we’ll chatter about those hunks of enamel we use to chow down on our food. That’s right—we’re talking teeth! Last week, you learned about the clues hidden in ancient teeth. Now, join the Museum’s Curator of Human Health & Evolutionary Medicine, Dr. Nicole Burt, as she shares what you can learn from your own pearly whites. Worksheets available for grades 7-8 and 9-12.

Dr. Denise Su, Chief Academic Engagement Officer, Gertrude Haskell Britton Endowed Chair of Education, and Curator of Paleobotany & Paleoecology, tours the Human Origins Gallery, discussing the environment in which Lucy likely lived. Worksheet available for grades 5-12.

In 2016, Dr. Yohannes Haile-Selassie, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s Curator of Physical Anthropology, discovered a “remarkably complete” hominin cranium at the Woranso-Mille Research Site in Ethiopia. He spent the next few years analyzing the specimen with the help of his team of experts to determine its age and species. Now, he’s ready to reveal the face of Lucy’s ancestor, which challenges previous theories about evolution, in an article published in the journal Nature. Learn about this discovery and groundbreaking research from Dr. Haile-Selassie himself. Worksheet available for grades 6-12.

Dr. David Saja talks through the geology of Ohio and shares details about some of his work with the mineral garnet. Worksheets available for grades 7-8 and 9-12.

Did you know sea lampreys aren’t native to Lake Erie? As invasive predators, they’re actually damaging Great Lakes fish and amphibian populations, including mudpuppies. Join host Lee Hall and Curator of Vertebrate Zoology Dr. Tim Matson for this specimen spotlight. Hear about Dr. Matson's long-term ecological research study examining the relationship between sea lampreys and mudpuppies. Worksheets available for grades 7-8 and 9-12.

This site includes videos and articles that expose students to the world of science in regard to space exploration. There are not any materials on the site that are expressly meant to serve as career guidance tools, but the available materials can serve to inform students’ understandings of the subject matter that is involved in space exploration. This resource would probably be most effective as a career guidance tool if interpreted as such by a counselor or teacher. The site is divided into sections based upon grade-level (K-4, 5-8, 9-12), though the individual articles and videos in the elementary section seem to cater to either kindergarten and first graders or third and fourth graders (I think the third and fourth grade materials would also be appropriate for fifth and sixth grade students).

Dr. Gavin Svenson, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s Director of Research & Collections and Curator of Invertebrate Zoology, discovered a new species of praying mantis on an insect survey expedition in the Amazon Rainforest. The mantis, named Vespamantoida wherleyi, is brightly colored and mimics wasps to ward off predators—a combination that has never been seen before. The discovery and analysis have had widespread implications for the Mantoididae family. As part of our Scientist Saturdays series, learn even more about this newly discovered mantis from the expert himself—Dr. Svenson! Worksheets available for grades 7-8 and 9-12.

Everybody loves Lance! But did you know he’s an avid climber? This animal ambassador is full of surprises! Learn all about North American porcupines in this week’s Creature Feature, part of our Wildlife Wednesdays series. Worksheets available for grades PreK-K and 1-2.