JoinAll Blog Posts
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Encouraging class participation
http://www.flickr.com/photos/34053291@N05/3948369923/...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
I’m a new middle school teacher, and last week I had to miss two days due to illness. When I came back, my classroom was in shambles and it appeared that the students did not do any work. What can I do, short of never missing another day, to ma...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Many of the concepts we teach in science relate to the concept of “scale” – things that are at the extremes of small (as in atoms, nanotechnology, or microbes), large (as in galaxies or blue whales), long (geologic time scale), short (h...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Making a dough for classroom play is also a time to teach vocabulary and math skills, and social skills such as cleaning up after oneself. Write the recipe on a page or easel paper to refer to even if your students are not yet reading. Illustrate wit...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Creative Commons handwritten recipe photo posted to flickr by Deb Roby....
By admin
Blog Post
Young children love using a periscope. Maybe because when you look through one, the view is not what your brain expects, somewhat like using someone else’s glasses. (My sisters and I used to take turns running down a hallway wearing my mother’s g...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
How many of use chose careers in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics because of our experiences in school? Some topics or activities must have stimulated our interest and curiosity, and the authors in this month’s edition share som...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Whenever I start a new unit, some students consistently ask, “Why do we have to learn this?” How should I respond? —Kevin, District of Columbia...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Have you seen NASA eClips? This is a collection of video clips on a variety of topics (such as the earth, sun, universe, STEM, aeronautics, and living in space), organized by grade level (K-5, 6-8, 9-12). Some of the notes for the clips include link...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
What's good for the girls in STEM?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimmiehomeschoolmom/ / CC BY 2.0...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
ESP symposium: superpowers not required
Divining the keys to better science education doesn’t require extrasensory perception—just check out the ESP Symposium at the Phoenix Area Conference. Coordinated by Robert Yager, 1982-1983 NSTA president, NSTA’s Exemplary Science Program (ESP)...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
Our students may be used to using evidence to answer questions, but in Elk Habitat: A Case Study of Scientific Inquiry, the authors describe an activity in which students ask questions, examine evidence, ask new questions, and design potential resea...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
I love books. Not only do they overflow the various bookshelves in my house, but they also fill boxes (and boxes!) tucked away in many of my closets. So naturally I spend most of my conference time in the Science Store....
By Jennifer Horak, NGSS@NSTA Project Manager
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I’m trying to use more projects and open-ended assessments this year, but I’m getting bogged down with grading. I know I should use rubrics, but it’s hard to create them for every assignment. Any suggestions on how to streamline thi...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
NAEYC–early childhood and science!
Will I see you at the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s national conference in Washington, D.C., this week? Come say “Hi” and tell me what great sessions you’ve attended. I’ll be in the Learning Galleria, Table 12, ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Did I tell you how happy I was to see the returning three-year old students use magnifiers appropriately? Because this half-day preschool for 2-5-year-olds had moved to a new space over the summer, the “usual place” for everything had to be deter...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Subtle differences in words can make a big difference: for example “arguing” and “argumentation.” Our students see TV shows where arguing is the most common activity. People shout at and interrupt each other, spout ideas that ...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Astronomy resources (mostly free)
Judging by the large audience, teachers love teaching astronomy, and of course they love free resources, too....
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Looking for a little outdoors time in between sessions? If the beach doesn’t do it for you, a short trip up the coast to Hugh Taylor Birch State Park will. Smack dab in the city, this “oasis of tropical hammocks” features native and...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Learning about science curriculum and meeting more early childhood teachers than I expected were the happy outcomes of the two days I spent at the really well-run Virginia Association of Science Teachers 2009 Professional Development Institute....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
With water play students gain experience they can record in writing and drawing
Children observe objects in water....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Interdisciplinary/integrated science
I always look forward to the NSTA journal issues that have a theme with the words integrated or interdisciplinary in them....
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Physics teachers have a chance to get physical—and biological—on Thursday at the NSTA Conference in Fort Lauderdale with a session called Muscular Physics. The hands-on workshop by Umadevi I....
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
Science everywhere, for all students
Your challenge: Show all of the students in your classroom how science affects every aspect of their lives. Need help? Randolf Tobias, an award-winning author, educator, and curriculum specialist, is going to provide it during his presentation at the...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
I’ve heard about “interactive” science notebooks. I would like to use them with my classes, but I think I need to learn more about them before I start. —Randall, Columbus, Ohio...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
Tying your conference experience together
Strands of silk woven into a tapestry. Single strands of thread twined into rope. Strands can be a simple foundation for something greater—more beautiful, stronger, or useful. Following a strand at an NSTA regional conference can have a similar res...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
I’m going to have a student teacher in my biology classes next semester. I’ve never done this before, and I’d like to provide her with feedback on effective science teaching practices. Do you have any suggestions for resources on th...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ cambodia4kidsorg // CC BY 2.0...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
What does SciGirls, Bonsais, wind turbines, pasta bridges have in common? They all are aspects of the science rich community of Minneapolis, MN. The first Science Matters community event was held on Saturday morning for elementary science teachers an...
By admin
Blog Post
Urban science educators share strategies
October 30—It is Friday but I must tell you about the Urban Science Education Leaders (USEL) event. It was very exciting! Why? The participants were so engaging and really were looking for information and answers and just wanted to learn an...
By admin
Blog Post
Seeing might be believing, but sometimes it’s what can’t be seen that’s most interesting. Since the 1930s, researchers have theorized that dark matter—which can’t be perceived by our eyes—is responsible for anomalies in the rotation of ga...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
What’s happening in the early childhood world of Pumpkin Science? Have you planted and harvested pumpkins? Have you weighed, floated, cut-open, counted seeds, printed, or rolled pumpkins?...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Great science in urban middle schools
If you’re an administrator in an urban middle school, come to the NSTA Conference in Minneapolis. You can spend a day with a group of dedicated urban science educators—the Urban Science Education Leaders (USEL)—who are working to change the way...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
SciLinks and cooperative learning
Earlier this month, I was asked to search for and upload resources on cooperative learning for SciLinks (use the keyword “community collaborations”). There were many good sites, although some were published in the 1990s (interesting but ...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Are children getting enough direct experience with natural materials?
There has been an interesting discussion going on among the middle and high school science teachers on the NSTA General Science email list about the lack of direct experience in their students’ background. Some have suggested that early childho...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
The average wind speed in Minneapolis is 10 miles per hour (mph), equal to the Windy City of Chicago, according to worldfactsandfigures.com. While that makes Minneapolis a less-than-ideal location for a wind turbine, it is still good setting for a wi...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
Richard Louv on returning nature to the classroom
By now many of you surely have heard of Richard Louv and his book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. ...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
The editor makes a good point – helping students connect science to real issues can help to dispel the “why are we doing this” question....
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
One of the organizing strands for the NSTA Conference in Phoenix is “Rigor Without Mortis: Challenging and Accessible Content.” Challenging AND accessible? Genetics fits that bill. The science is in our cells, so it’s certainly accessible, and ...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
Asking questions and solving problems
In the article CSI for Trees there a quote that sums up the theme of this issue: “An ordinary activity can be transformed into a lesson that includes nature of science themes simply by adding a few key statements and questions throughout a les...
By Mary Bigelow