JoinAll Blog Posts
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#NSTA14 Heats Up in NOLA with the STEM Iron Chef Competition
Attendees of NSTA’s 2014 STEM Forum and Expo will be challenged to cook up a recipe for STEM success next month....
By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Blog Post
NSTA conference in Boston: Reflection and making connections Part 1, Th and Fri
I didn’t see the swan boats in the Public Garden or tea in the Harbor, but I did see many things—skylines, modern art, sunrises and fabulous sessions at the conference....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
How many of us have said that students don’t study enough? A more fundamental question: Do they know how to study? Teachers may assume so, especially for secondary students. Many of the featured articles in this issue focus on strategies that f...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Sylvia Shugrue award winner 2014
Lisa Ernst models perseverance and critical thinking for her elementary students, encouraging them to persist when faced with challenges. Throughout her career, Ernst has developed project–based units that allow her students to tap into their creat...
By admin
Blog Post
I inherited a classroom-lab from a retired teacher, and I want to replace some of the generic posters with displays of student work. One of my colleagues says this is not a good idea. She didn’t explain her reasons, but now I’m not sure w...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Next Generation Science Standards Turn 1!
It’s been one year since the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) were adopted (on April 9, 2013)....
By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Blog Post
Earth Day 2014 is right around the corner (April 22), and I’ve noticed a huge number of NSTA members talking about Dr. Suess’s The Lorax on our members-only lists. Coincidence?...
By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Blog Post
Language development in science
For many students, science itself is a new language, with specialized vocabulary and an emphasis on observations and evidence, rather than feelings or opinions. Even the graphics in books and websites go beyond being decorative to include the languag...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
NSTA was in Boston last week, where more than 11.5K science teachers gathered for our national conference on science education. It was no surprise that all the selfies seemed to be group shots—because that’s what science teachers do, they share!...
By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Blog Post
Top 10 reasons for visting the conference exhibit hall
With a nod to David Letterman, here are my top 10 reasons for spending time in the exhibit hall: 10. Interacting with people. You get a chance to meet and talk with other members and vendors....
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Elementary Extravaganza, Ramps and pathways
The Elementary Extravaganza was pulsing with energy as educators from many settings rushed in at 8am to get personal attention from the hundreds of presenters who were ready to share their work. Thanks to the sponsors–www.BioEdOnline.org, Delta...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
On the train to Boston on Wednesday, the view for most of the ride was gray and dreary. But coming out of the station–blue sky and sun! After what seemed to be an endless winter, I hope that was a sign to indicate the bright ideas we’ll l...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
NSTA National Conference in Boston–early childhood too!
I’m looking forward to learning, collaborating, meeting, laughing, learning, sharing, and getting a break from the usual schedule while attending the National Science Teachers Association’s conference in Boston. It’s one of several ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Share Your Conference Experience
This is my sixth conference with NSTA — my first, in 2008, was in Boston as well. When I tried to walk through the NSTA Science Store this morning, it was packed virtually shoulder to shoulder (the lines are considerably shorter now if you want...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
Students as peer-editors (p. 2)
A previous question from a teacher related to using the peer-editing process in science class. Jaime Gratton follows up with a summary of her experiences:...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
My students are working on research papers about inventions or chemical processes set mostly during the Industrial Revolution. I was wondering if you had any suggestions about peer editing. —Jaime, Goffstown, New Hampshire...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
When I was in elementary/middle school, the earth and space sciences were largely ignored in the curriculum. We looked at some rocks and learned the names of the planets and a few constellations, but that was about it. In high school, earth and space...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
So what is a “must do” at an NSTA Conference?
This month we are looking for comments and recommendations on what you are most looking forward to at the upcoming conference on science education in Boston! Help our fellow educators by highlighting your “must do” session along with the reason w...
By Christine Royce
Blog Post
Going Wild with the Go Wireless Temp Sensor
The sensor is fairly small compared to an iPad Air....
By Martin Horejsi
Blog Post
“Think globally, act locally” is a phrase we hear, and for younger students, thinking locally is important, too. Earth Day is celebrated on April 22, but the activities and investigations described in this month’s featured articles ...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
New teacher "nightmare"
I am looking forward to my first teaching job, but I’m concerned about how parents will react to my being a “newbie” in the science department. Will this be an issue? What can I do to start off the year on a positive note?...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Watching children and teenagers use computers, tablets, and smartphones, it’s easy to assume that these digital natives are very familiar with all of the new technologies. I’ve found that while they know what relates to their interests, m...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
It's Debatable! Using Socioscientific Issues to Develop Scientific Literacy
“Should schools charge more money for ‘unhealthy’ foods?” “Should animals perform in circuses?” Should rare Earth elements be mined in the United States?” “Should prescription drugs be advertised directly to consumers?”...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Breathe new life into your STEM lessons
Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) hold tremendous interest for students at all grade levels. The breadth of the topic areas teachers can cover in STEM lessons reinforces for students that these fields are interconnected and linked to ...
By Claire Reinburg
Blog Post
NSTA’s K-College Science Education Journals: March 2014 Issues Online
Interactions are our focus this month—in ecosystems and classrooms, among science teachers teaching a variety of disciplines, and using the latest technology. This month’s K-College journals from the National Science Teachers Association have...
By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Blog Post
Ecosystems: Interactions, energy, and dynamics
In an NSTA discussion forum, a question was raised about studying ecosystems and food chains at the elementary level. I pointed the readers to articles in this month’s edition of Science & Children, which has a variety of classroom resource...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Ecosystems outside the school door
Since it is now March and in my area we just had our 10th snow day, I am dreaming of planting seeds rather than actually planting them. What should the children plant in the raised bed school garden, a tiny sliver of ground that could not be incorpor...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Sylvia Shugrue Award winner 2013
As Director of Distance Learning for University of Minnesota’s Bell Museum of Natural history, each year Chris Tower created and provided professional development for more than 300 teachers throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin via two distance–lear...
By admin
Blog Post
At the end of a unit, there are always students who haven’t completed some assignments. Coming in before or after school is not an option for most of my students. Rather than moving on to the next unit, knowing they’ll fall even further behin...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Observing students as an assessment
As part of a science methods class, we’ve been assigned to create an observation tool to assess students. I’ve seen many articles and suggestions online for helping students become good observers and tools for administrators to use when o...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
What science teachers are reading February 2014
From lessons on writing in science class to exploring and debating socioscientific issues to translating NGSS for classroom instruction, take a look at what science teachers are reading in February on NSTA’s website....
By Claire Reinburg
Blog Post
Afterschool Science Engagement
In this month’s Reaching the Stakeholders section of the Leaders Letter, there is mention of a feature on NPR which raised the point about engagement of students in science in the classroom. A follow up point about engaging students in science op...
By Christine Royce
Blog Post
Science Literacy and Pseudoscience
A recent blog post “Whole Foods: America’s Temple of Pseudoscience” got me thinking about a topic of deep personal concern. As head of the National Science Teachers Association, one of my overarching goals is to improve science literacy in the ...
By David Evans, NSTA Executive Director
Blog Post
I’ve recently switched from a self-contained sixth-grade classroom to a middle school science position where I meet with five different classes each day. I find it challenging to connect with students the way I used to when I had the same students ...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Science of the Winter Olympics: Stability & Vibration
You think the 2014 Winter Olympic Games are over? Not by a long shot. Glue your eyes back on NBC for the Paralympic Winter Games March 7–16. There, you’ll watch Iraq war veteran and Paralympian Heath Calhoun take advantage of the same technology ...
By Judy Elgin Jensen
Blog Post
This is a wonderful themed issue, with all of the articles focusing on helping younger students investigate and understand the science of sound. Unfortunately for secondary students, the science of sound might not get a lot of attention in the curric...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Early childhood science in preschool—a conversation on Lab Out Loud
Listen in on a conversation between early childhood educator and researcher Karen Worth and the science teachers hosts of Lab Out Loud, Dale Basler and Bria...
By Peggy Ashbrook