Natural Resources and the Environment Activities for 4th Grade Science

The Kesler Science Natural Resources and the Environment activities offer a comprehensive 5E lesson for 4th grade, featuring differentiated, multimodal activities that explore how natural resources are used to create energy and fuels and their environmental impact. The resources below will give students a comprehensive understanding of natural resources. All of the following materials are also included in the Kesler Science Membership.

The Kesler Science Natural Resources and the Environment 4th Grade Complete 5E Lesson provides everything you need to teach a comprehensive, engaging lesson with minimal prep time. This student-driven approach allows 4th graders to explore how natural resources are used to create energy and fuels, and how these resources impact the environment. With differentiated, multimodal resources, students can take charge of their learning in both virtual and in-person formats.

Aligned with the 5E Model, the lesson covers all stages of learning, from engaging students with vocabulary and discussions to exploring concepts through stations like Explore It!, Read It!, Research It!, and Watch It!. Output stations such as Organize It!, Write It!, Illustrate It!, and Assess It! provide opportunities for students to demonstrate their understanding in creative ways.

This lesson includes editable PowerPoints, interactive notebooks in English and Spanish, and customizable assessments. Additionally, the Challenge It! station offers advanced students extension activities to deepen their knowledge. Flexible and adaptable, this lesson is perfect for diverse learners in any classroom setting.

The Kesler Science Natural Resources and the Environment Station Lab is a student-led, modular activity for 4th graders to explore how energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their environmental impact. With eight differentiated stations and a challenge station for early finishers, students engage in independent or small group work, saving teachers prep time while fostering self-directed learning.

This station lab includes a variety of input activities such as hands-on demonstrations in Explore It!, digital research in Research It!, reading comprehension in Read It!, and video-based learning in Watch It!. Output activities like Organize It!, Illustrate It!, Write It!, and Assess It! provide multiple ways for students to show their understanding.

Designed for flexibility, the stations can be used in-person or virtually, with materials that teachers likely already have. The bonus Challenge It! station offers enrichment for advanced learners, allowing them to expand their knowledge with creative projects like song creation, making this resource adaptable for all learners.

The Kesler Science Natural Resources and the Environment Student Choice Projects give 4th grade students the opportunity to select a project that suits their creative style. With six project options and a "design your own" choice, students can explore and demonstrate their understanding in unique ways. Teachers can adjust the provided rubric for assessments, making it customizable for different needs.

These projects offer nine choices along with a modified version to support students needing remediation. The flexible nature of the activities allows teachers to differentiate for various learning levels, including advanced students. All projects are designed to use common classroom supplies, with digital and crafting options available.

The projects are accompanied by a Teacher Directions page and editable rubrics to assess vocabulary, concepts, presentation, and accuracy. These resources provide dynamic, multimodal ways for students to engage with the content and demonstrate their learning.

The Kesler Science Natural Resources and the Environment Science and ELA Integrated Writing Activity invites 4th grade students to creatively explore natural resources through writing a newspaper article. This engaging exercise allows students to connect their science knowledge with writing, while fostering creativity and critical thinking. It’s designed for both in-person and virtual learning environments, making it a flexible tool for teachers.

Aligned with TEKS and NGSS standards, this low-prep, high-quality writing activity works as a review or elaboration task alongside other Kesler Science resources. It offers various formats, including full-sized and half-sheet handouts, along with a digital interactive version that can be used for remote learning. Teachers can also project the prompt for whole-class instruction.

The activity can be used in numerous ways, such as a cross-curricular project, formative assessment, or student choice project. It’s ideal for early finishers, extra credit, and TELPAS samples, and can be easily differentiated to meet diverse student needs.

The Kesler Science Earth, Space, and Weather WIKI Tickets provide fun, easy formative assessments for 3rd–5th grade science. This set includes 33 engaging exit tickets aligned to NGSS and TEKS, covering topics like the water cycle, Earth's rotation, weather patterns, and natural resources.

Each topic features five formats: a full-screen display for projection, three printable handout sizes, and an interactive digital version compatible with PowerPoint and Google Slides. A bonus table of contents file ensures easy standard alignment.

WIKI Tickets (“What I Know Is”) serve as exit tickets, bellringers, or quick checks for understanding, making them a flexible tool for both in-person and virtual learning environments.

Year-Round Resources

These year-round activities will increase your students' understanding of many middle school science topics. All of these activities are also included in the Kesler Science Membership.

Visual Data & Graphing

You're not alone if your students struggle with understanding graphs, charts, and tables. It's a skill that takes an enormous amount of practice. This resource will help students build a strong foundation in analyzing data and creating their own data visualizations.

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Bell Ringers and Warm-Ups

These middle school science bell ringers are an excellent way to engage your students as soon as they walk into your classroom. This comprehensive FULL YEAR resource includes everything you need to start off each science class with an interesting warm-up activity.

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Review Board Games

Each game board has been carefully designed to keep students engaged. There are 10 different action spaces on each board and dozens of question cards. All of the actions are related to science concepts and keep the students motivated throughout the game.

Each game is ready to play. Simply print out the board and the cards and let the students enjoy reviewing nine different units.

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Essential Questions

Below are the essential questions associated with the lessons and activities included in this unit. This topic is only one of more than 100 middle school science topics included in the Kesler Science Membership.

Essential Questions

Describe the types of energy and fuels we obtain from natural resources.
In what ways do these natural resources and their uses affect the environment?