Books published by publisher Lawrence Hall of Science, Univ of Calif., Berkeley

Students explore this crucial topic in a wide variety of formats, from hands-on science activities and experiments to a simulation game, analysis of articles, a story about an island threatened by rising sea levels, and a world conference on global warming. The unit helps students see environmental problems from different points of view. Extensive background for the teacher is provided.

Grades 5-8 What has Juan Tuno, an inquisitive student, discovered? And what does Avery Wun have to do with it? The "crime" is a mysterious environmental calamity - a fish die-off that began five years ago. The scene of the crime is the "Gray Area" watershed that includes forests, a city, a town, a coast, three rives, a lake and a pond. Student sleuths are challenged to finger the culprit in this series of investigative classroom activities. The suspects? Operators of a water slide, a toy factory, and a golf course; loggers, hunters, and fishers; a cow ranch, an oil tanker, automobiles, and ordinary households. Students become eager environmental detectives to determine what's killing the fish. Environmental Detectives includes background information and diverse resources for the teacher. No special knowledge or training is necessary to successfully present these activities.

Scatter Matters is one of five Investigations units from EQUALS which give Middle School teachers and students opportunities to explore mathematics skills and concepts in familiar contexts that make sense. These 4-8 week integrated units encourage sustained work that involves students in high level thinking, creative problem solving, planning their own approaches, and communicating their own ideas.

Students, grades 3-6, play games that involve coins, spinners, dice and Native American game sticks. They investigate chance and probability with concrete materials, learn how to gather and analyze data, make predictions, and draw conclusions. As they gain direct experience, they also build confidence in their ability to explore probability and statistics. This popular guide is complete with background information on real-life connections and careers, and on the probabilities involved in each of the games.