JoinAll Blog Posts
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Plan Your #NSTA19 St. Louis Elementary Science Experience
The biggest science education conference of the year is happening in St. Louis this spring! Elementary teachers who want to be the student for a few days should join us. Here are 11 reasons why....
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
The Go Direct SpectroVis Plus Spectrophotometer: Listening to Plants (Part 2)
Continuing the story of the Vernier Go Direct SpectroVis Plus Spectrophotometer, we will now apply its power it for a more traditional use; to inspect the transmission and absorption of fluid or a material suspended in a fluid. And that fluid can be...
By Martin Horejsi
Blog Post
Introduction: Pitsco’s Straw Rocket Launcher and its Getting Started Package gives students an introductory rocket activity where they can grasp a variety of subjects including force and motion, thrust, center of gravity, prediction, measureme...
By Edwin P. Christmann
Blog Post
Reflecting on the Flipped Classroom
Doug Stith uses a form of the flipped classroom he calls Learner-Paced Science with his sixth graders at Londonderry Middle School in Londonderry, New Hampshire. Older students serve as his assistants....
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
I am currently reading a book about childhood trauma in the classroom. How do we as teachers help students who have had a traumatic experience? — A., Iowa ...
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
Preparing Future Teachers to Put Investigation and Design at the Center of Their Classrooms
The recently released report Science and Engineering in Grades 6–12: Investigation and Design at the Center makes a strong statement right in the title: engaging students in scientific investigations and engineering design should be the core of wha...
By Cindy Workosky
Blog Post
Learn How to Build Community Partnerships at the 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo
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By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Too cold? Observing animals in winter
With very cold weather settling into many areas, children’s outdoor time may be restricted due to temperature and wind chill limits set relative to the temperature ranges normally experienced in their area....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
“Arguably, the most pressing challenge facing U.S. education is to provide all students with a fair opportunity to learn” (Framework; NRC 2012, p. 282). This challenge is of great importance as we continue to embrace changing demographics in our ...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
It’s too time-consuming… We haven’t been properly trained… Assessment is too difficult… Subject integrity may be relaxed… There are many reasons teachers find it challenging to make cross-curricular connections. But the benefits far outwe...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Merriam-Webster has several definitions for phenomenon—among them are “an observable fact or event” and “an object or aspect known through the senses rather than by thought or intuition.” And just as they find varied ways to look at the wor...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Explorers Lewis and Clark began their westward trip from the St. Louis area in 1804, trying to find a better way to the west coast; as they made their way to the Pacific Ocean, they mapped the area and cataloged its natural resources. If you’re fee...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Books Your Young Readers Will Want to Open and Explore
Engaging students in crosscutting STEM concepts is made so much easier when talented storytellers and gifted illustrators produce the kinds of books that young readers immediately want to open up and explore. The Beaks of Birds...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
I consistently see a variety of forms of plagiarism occurring in the classroom. How can I combat this? – O., Ohio...
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
The Vernier Go Direct SpectroVis Plus Spectrophotometer: A picture is worth 570 wavelengths (Part 1)
Of all the cool things invented by the universe, light is one of the most amazing. It solves all kinds of problems, can travel great distances with little effort, and its very existence has become possibly the greatest metaphor ever. And on the sci...
By Martin Horejsi
Blog Post
I am struggling with the students being on their cell phones. I was hoping that I could get some advice or tips to handle the situation. – E., Ohio In my 27-year career, the worst incident I ever had with a student was over a phone....
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
Rolling from Inquiry into Engineering Design
Guest blogger Jill Jensen began her 24th year as a science educator this fall. For the past twelve years she has been an Inquiry, Design, Engineering, Art & Science (IDEAS) Coach at Glacier Hills Elementary School of Arts and Science in Eagan, MN...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Laboratory Evacuation Training for Science Teachers
School science labs need to be evacuated in the event of a fire, chemical spill, gas leak, the release of chemical toxins, or other laboratory incident or building issue. The top priority in an emergency evacuation is to ensure all laboratory occupan...
By Kenneth Roy
Blog Post
It seems the same students answer my questions and I wonder if they are answering so fast that maybe the other students just need a little more time to think. Any suggestions on how to not deter these types of students from answering while allowing o...
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
Science Teachers and the Course Forward for STEM Education
Science teachers’ voices do count—and are being heard—in Washington, D.C. On December 4, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) published Charting a Course for STEM Education, which presents a five-year strategic plan for how fed...
By David Evans, NSTA Executive Director
Blog Post
English Learners in STEM Subjects
Conducting a review of the research literature on science education with English learners (ELs) would be a demanding task. Reimaging what is possible for ELs in science education would be an even more demanding task. Consider the enormity of the task...
By Kate Falk
Blog Post
Engaging English Learners in K-12 Engineering
Engineering is now part of the Next Generation Science Standards as well as many state standards. As schools and teachers begin to think about how to introduce engineering in their classrooms, they should do so in ways that support all students, incl...
By Christine M. Cunningham
Blog Post
Ideas and inspiration from NSTA’s January 2019 K-12 journals
Happy 2019! This is a milestone year for science teachers: Message From the President: NSTA’s 75th Regardless of what grade level or subject you teach, check out all three K-12 journals. As you skim through titles and descriptions of the articl...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
How Are Car Crashes, Packaging Design, and Bridge Design Related? (Hint: Integrated STEM)
Imagine a nationwide team of STEM education experts creating a GPS system of sorts for educators who want to chart a course toward an integrated STEM approach—one that’s aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards, the Common Core State St...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Ed News: Meeting New Science Standards Requires Greater Emphasis on Teacher Practice
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By Kate Falk
Blog Post
At the New York Botanical Gardens, students and parents play Biome Builder, a game from New York City–based learning games company Killer Snails. Photo courtesy of Killer Snails...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
What makes you believe a student teacher is going to make an excellent teacher one day? – J., Ohio I looked for several things in student teachers to indicate they were on the right track:...
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
What’s Ahead for Federal Education Policy (and Funding) in 2019?
Welcome to 2019. As of January 3, Congressional leaders and President Trump are still working on a final agreement on FY2019 spending and the federal government remains closed for business. As you will recall, federal education funding, including pro...
By Jodi Peterson
Blog Post
Supportive communities for teaching science in the early childhood years
There are times when educators miss opportunities to support young children’s interest in exploring and learning about natural phenomena. We might be otherwise engaged, too focused on the next activity, or uncomfortable with what is happening....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
NSTA’s 75th: A Beginning and Future Forged with a Need for Science Education
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By Korei Martin
Blog Post
This student is too loud. This student is too quiet. This student is…
I have a few students who chatter excessively and need advice on methods that have worked to quiet the disruption. I also need to involve students who are reluctant to participate in a group setting. —H., Arizona...
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
When you have a moment to plan for teaching in January, reach for the 2018 November/December issue of Science and Children for inspiration....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Light, shadow, and literacy: Stories inspired by shadow play
Materials thoughtfully provided or set up by teachers often inspires children’s open exploration of a phenomenon. Much learning happens during this period of using their senses and tools to make observations of what intrigues them as they try thing...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
There are many safety hazards associated with the use of hand and power tools, and teachers and students should be trained to recognize them and understand what safety precautions should be taken to avoid them. Safety Precautions For hand tool ...
By Kenneth Roy