Exploration Cards

Exploration Cards encourage students to connect what they are learning in the classroom to their own lives and communities. Over the past several years, we have developed numerous cards covering a wide variety of topics and grade levels.

Alphabet

The Alphabet
The Alphabet_ Z
The Alphabet_ Y
The Alphabet_ X
The Alphabet_ W
The Alphabet_ V
The Alphabet_ U
The Alphabet_ T
The Alphabet_ S
The Alphabet_ R
The Alphabet_ Q
The Alphabet_ P
The Alphabet_ O
The Alphabet_ N
The Alphabet_ M
The Alphabet_ L
The Alphabet_ K
The Alphabet_ J
The Alphabet_ I
The Alphabet_ H
The Alphabet_ G
The Alphabet_ F
The Alphabet_ E
The Alphabet_ D
The Alphabet_ C
The Alphabet_ B
The Alphabet_ A

Anatomy

Investigating Insects Bodies
How We Chew
Animals without Backbones
Animals with Backbones

Animals

Worker Honey Bees
What's on a Penguin's Plate
Wetland Animals
Queen Honey Bees
Penguins
How Honey Bees Pollinate
Butterflies
Baby Animals
Animals without Backbones
Animals with Backbones
Animals Around Us
Animal Habitats Rainforest
Animal Habitats Desert
Animal Habitats

Bees

Worker Honey Bees
Queen Honey Bees
How Honey Bees Pollinate
How Honey Bees Make Honey

County Specific

Hancock County
Hardeman County

Experiment

Water Cycle in a Bag
Science Experiments - Make it Rain
Science Experiments - Float Your Boat

Fall

Sorting Seasons - Fall

Five Senses

Touch Scavenger Hunt
Sound Scavenger Hunt
Smell Scavenger Hunt
Sight Scavenger Hunt

Food

The Plants We Eat
Shapes of Foods

Fossils

Fossils

Habitat

Wetland Animals
Animal Habitats Rainforest
Animal Habitats Desert
Animal Habitats

History

Native American Tools

Human Body

Washing Your Hands
Touch Scavenger Hunt
Sound Scavenger Hunt
Smell Scavenger Hunt
Sight Scavenger Hunt
How We Chew
Brushing Your Teeth

Insects

Investigating Insects - Sizes
Investigating Insects - Names
Investigating Insects - Bodies

Language Arts

Poems
Parts of a Story

Life Skills

What Time Is It - Digital
What Time Is It - Analog
Washing Your Hands
Storm Safety
Place Setting
Naming Coins
Facing Your Feelings
Brushing Your Teeth

Light

Translucent, Transparent, Opaque
Shadows
Light

Magnets

Magnets

Math

What Time Is It - Digital
What Time Is It - Analog
The Winter Solstice
Snowflakes
Shapes of Foods
Naming Coins
Measurement
Investigating Insects Sizes
Graphing
Adding with Dice

Measuring

Measurement
Investigating Insects Sizes

Money

Naming Coins

Native Americans

Native American Tools

Outer Space

Telescopes
Summer Constellations
Spotting Spring Constellations
Space - Earth's Biggest Star
Naming Planets
Finding Fall Constellations

Plants

Trees
The Plants We Eat
Plant Leaves
Parts of a Plant
Parts of a Flower

Science

Translucent, Transparent, Opaque
Telescopes
Static Electricity
Sound
Shadows
Science Experiments - Float Your Boat
Magnets
Light
Investigating Insects Sizes
Binary Code

Seasons

The Winter Solstice
The Summer Solstice
Summer Constellations
Sorting Seasons - Winter
Sorting Seasons - Summer
Sorting Seasons - Spring
Sorting Seasons - Fall
Snowflakes
Finding Fall Constellations

Shapes

Snowflakes
Shapes of Foods

Sound

Sound

Spring

Spotting Spring Constellations
Sorting Seasons - Spring

Static Electricity

Static Electricity

Summer

The Summer Solstice
Summer Constellations
Sorting Seasons - Summer

Time

What Time Is It - Digital
What Time Is It - Analog

Water Cycle

Water Cycle - Precipitation
Water Cycle - Evaporation
Water Cycle - Condensation
Water Cycle - Collection
Water Cycle in a Bag
Science Experiments - Make it Rain

Weather

The Weather
Storm Safety
Snowflakes
Science Experiments - Make it Rain

Winter

Sorting Seasons - Winter
Snowflakes

Additional Resources

INTERACTIVE SITES FOR YOUR CLASSROOM

Code.org®: This education innovation nonprofit is dedicated to the vision that every student in every school has the opportunity to learn computer science as part of their core K-12 education.

ScratchJr: Coding is the new literacy! With ScratchJr, young children (ages 5-7) can program their own interactive stories and games. In the process, they learn to solve problems, design projects, and express themselves creatively on the computer.

STEM LESSONS, ACTIVITIES, GAMES, ETC.

Colors of Nature: The Colors of Nature project blends art and science through programs for students, families, and educators.

Learning Blade:Learning Blade easily integrates STEM, CS, and CTE concepts into a child’s education. Appropriate for grades 5-9, Learning Blade provides 12 “missions” that contextualize learning and engage all students, including underrepresented and special populations, while reinforcing academic standards. Each lesson and resource is indexed so you can see what state standards are being met.

NASA eClipsTM Resources for Rural Educators: Providing educators in rural communities with standards-based videos, activities and lessons to increase STEM literacy through the lens of NASA.

National Geographic Kids:National Geographic Kids has tons of fun activities, games, puzzles, videos and more.

National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Network): The NISE Network is a community of informal educators and scientists dedicated to supporting learning about STEM across the United States.

National Inventors Hall of Fame: Free STEM Activities to Turn Your Classroom into a Collaborative, Creative Space

TeachEngineering: The TeachEngineering Digital Library is an educational resource featuring standards-aligned, design-rich curricula. The goal is to help educators put the ‘E’ in STEM— by making applied science, technology, and math come alive through engineering design and design thinking. Educators and learners have FREE access to our ever-growing collection of peer-reviewed curricula, which include activities, lessons, units, maker challenges, informal learning activities, and living labs.

Tennessee Valley Authority: These lessons—designed by Tennessee Valley teachers for use in the classroom—may be formative steps for tomorrow’s doctors, civil engineers, nuclear scientists, computer programmers, or robot designers. With a strong foundation in STEM learning, the potential is limitless.

STEM AWARENESS AND ADVOCACY

IF/THEN®is designed to activate a culture shift among young girls to open their eyes to STEM careers.

National Girls Collaborative Project: NGCP is a network of networks bringing together organizations committed to informing and encouraging girls to pursue careers in STEM. There is a regional chapter for Tennessee as well.

Science Near Me: Science Near Me is a free resource to help you quickly find opportunities to engage in all types of science, technology, engineering, math, (STEM) events, projects, and programs near you, in person and online.

Tennessee Valley Robotics:Teaching students the STEM skills needed to prepare them for the future job market.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND SUPPORT

Appalachian Association for Children's Early Education: AACEE is a professional early childhood organization serving early childhood educators in Northeast Tennessee.

National Rural Education Association: The National Rural Education Association (NREA) was originally founded as the Department of Rural Education in 1907. It is the oldest established national organization in the United States. Through the years, it has evolved as a strong and respected organization of rural school administrators, teachers, board members, regional service agency personnel, researchers, business and industry representatives, and others interested in maintaining the vitality of rural school systems across the country.

Tennessee Afterschool Network: The Tennessee Afterschool Network supports children, youth, families, and communities by advocating and building capacity for safe, healthy, and enriching out-of-school time experiences.

Tennessee Early Childhood Training Alliance (TECTA):TECTA is a statewide organization committed to providing high-quality training and tuition assistance to early childhood educators.

Tennessee STEM Innovation Network (TSIN): TSIN Regional Hubs: Regional TSIN STEM Innovation Hubs are the nucleus of STEM activity, representing a formal partnership among school districts, post-secondary institutions, STEM-businesses, and community organizations committed to amplifying the impact of STEM programs in their regions.

TSIN Rural STEM Collaborative: The Tennessee Rural STEM Collaborative is a year-long cohort of Tennessee educators that works towards ensuring that all students have access to high-quality learning opportunities in STEM by exposing them to 21st Century Skills and local STEM career pathways.

STEM SUPPLIES, MATERIALS, & MANIPULATIVES

Arbor Scientific - www.arborsci.com
CanaKit - www.canakit.com
Carolina Biological Supply - www.carolina.com
Discount School Supply - www.discountschoolsupply.com
Educational Innovations - www.teachersource.com
Fisher Scientific - www.fishersci.com
Flinn Scientific - www.flinnsci.com
Hand2Mind - www.hand2mind.com/products/stem
Lakeshore Learning - www.lakeshorelearning.com
Learning Resources - www.learningresources.com
Nasco Education - www.nascoeducation.com
Nature Watch - www.nature-watch.com
Resource Area for Teaching - www.raft.net
School Specialty - www.schoolspecialty.com
SparkFun - www.sparkfun.com
S&S Worldwide - www.ssww.com
STEM Supplies - www.stem-supplies.com
Steve Spangler Science - www.stevespanglerscience.com
VEX Robotics - www.vexrobotics.com/