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Critical science "skills"
What are the critical skills you think students need to be successful in science? —Niki, Baltimore, Maryland In science department meetings, we often agonize over what and how much content to “cover.” We lament that students don’t see...
By MsMentorAdmin
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What was your favorite color when you were five? Many young girls like pink, a stereotypically female color....
By Peggy Ashbrook
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Have you seen the National Science Foundation’s new online magazine Science Nation? The NSF’s news release dated June 1, 2009, states that this video program will “take a dynamic, entertaining look at the research, and the researche...
By Mary Bigelow
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Read “Safety First” by Sarah Pounders and you can reassure your director and students’ parents that you are informed about how to avoid potential health hazards in eating food from a school garden. Did you guess that washing hands is on...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Raise your hand if you're a scientist!
I received the greatest compliment while sitting at the lunch table with a mixed age group of my students who are enrolled in the end-of-school-year camp. The children were playing a conversation-starter game they’ve developed of asking the lu...
By Peggy Ashbrook
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I’ve been asked to teach a different science course next year. I’m looking forward to the change, but I’m a little nervous about teaching a subject I’ve never taught before. I was told I am “highly qualified.” What...
By MsMentorAdmin
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In an earlier blog, I spotlighted the Teachers’ Domain website, with its collection of lesson plans and multimedia resources. The more I see of this, the better I appreciate it!...
By Mary Bigelow
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Rocks: collecting and classifying
On the playground two sisters collected rocks and set them on a bench where they grouped them by size. When I asked, “What kind of rock is that?” one said, “A triangle” referring to its outer shape. They also had a group based on material— ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
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Many current approaches to the design of curriculum and instruction are emphasizing the use of “big ideas” (aka essential questions, overarching themes) as an organizing framework for courses or units. I’ve done several presentation...
By Mary Bigelow
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I’m concerned about the decrease in scheduled time for science instruction, especially in the primary grades. The teachers say that it’s all because of NCLB (No Child Left Behind) and its emphasis on reading and mathematics. Is this the c...
By MsMentorAdmin
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Although I credit my early childhood exposure to orchard, field, woods, and creek as the foundation for my understanding of the natural world, I would despair if I thought that same understanding is lost to children who grow up in urban, constructed ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Preschool play as assessment tool
Preschool play can reflect young children’s knowledge about the natural world and the human interaction experiences they’ve had. I get to observe and learn what the children express through play when we finish our opening discussion and they move...
By Peggy Ashbrook
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The June/July issue of Learning and Leading with Technology has a description of the website Science Buddies, a comprehensive resource for science fair participants of all ages....
By Mary Bigelow
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My school does not have a recycling program, but as a science teacher I’d like to set an example of “green” behavior. What can I do in a single classroom? — Tyler, Louisville, KY I’m sure you’ve heard of the expres...
By MsMentorAdmin
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From the Early Years photo cache (click the pic for more)....
By Peggy Ashbrook