JoinAll Blog Posts
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I was planning a lesson for fifth grade about constellations. If you have any ideas, I would love to hear them. —B., Illinois...
By Gabe Kraljevic
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Bring STEM Practices Into the Secondary Classroom
STEM—Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics—is discussed in the news, politics, and education journals, yet what does it really mean for classrooms? The Council of State Science Supervisors (CSSS) works to support secondary science in ...
By Juan-Carlos Aguilar, Anne Petersen, Megan Schrauben
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Identifying and Implementing Instructional Materials in Middle School
Identifying and implementing science instructional materials that equitably engage students in active learning of science concepts, practices, sensemaking, problem-solving, and decision-making can be overwhelming for schools. The Council of State Sci...
By Michael Heinz, Erin Michael Escher, Ellen Ebert
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Ensuring All Elementary Students Have Access to Science Learning
Ensuring all students have access to science learning is part of the vision in A Framework for K–12 Science Education. Yet in many elementary schools, teachers have little time for science. This is such a disservice, as engaging in the science and ...
By Kathy Renfrew and Amber McCulloch
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New NSTA Press Books Help Young Students Apply Science to the Real World
Would you like to help your students understand the connections between learning science in school and using it in their everyday lives? The STEM Road Map Curriculum Series from NSTA Press was developed to do just that. With the goal of infusing rea...
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
Late last month the House Education and Labor Committee passed H.R. 4674, the Democratic bill to revise the Higher Education Act (HEA)....
By Jodi Peterson
Blog Post
If a student receives a bad test score, how do you interpret it? Would you allow the student to retake a modified version of the test? — B. , Ohio There are many possible interpretations of a poor score on a test....
By Gabe Kraljevic
Blog Post
Experts Agree: Connecting STEM Learning and Teaching Works!
On December 7, NSTA is offering a virtual conference designed to bring together some of the best thinkers in the field focused on learning and teaching by connecting in-school and out-of-school STEM experiences....
By Carole Hayward
Blog Post
<i>“Why Do We Need to Know This?!”</i>
Hubble Deep Field Image How do you explain to your students that what you’re teaching is important even if there is no obvious real-world application? — B., Ohio I’m sure every teacher has heard this refrain!...
By Gabe Kraljevic
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Science Festivals Focus on Community, Diversity
According to Marc Schulman, executive director of the USA Science and Engineering Festival (USASEF), “the modern era of science festivals…was kicked into gear” when the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a grant to four institutions in 2...
By Lynn Petrinjak
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When a construction site is next door
Street closures and high noise levels from construction on or near school grounds or other early childhood programs may disrupt the daily routine....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
What advice would you give to first-year teachers who want to give life to their lessons, yet they have a budget that is small or non-existent? — J., Iowa I always had living things in my classrooms— just going to a park or garden you can find so...
By Gabe Kraljevic
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Students at Chillicothe Women’s Correctional Center in Chillicothe, Missouri, examinelunar rocks from NASA in Mary Haskins’ environmental science course. Photo credit: SHONA SIMPSON, CCC STAFF...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
What happens in your block area?
When playing and building with blocks, children experience the way the properties of matter, shape, weight, and proportionality affect balance, stability, and position within their structures. Beginning with open exploration, children measure as th...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Why must we meet so much as a physics team when I need time alone to prepare for my classes? —M., Indiana ...
By Sharon Delesbore
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Teacher Cohorts to Support Science Instruction
Written by Debbie Ericksen ...
By Korei Martin
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Safety Training for Non-Science Instructors
Unlike science teachers, non-science educators have little to no training in hazard analysis, risk assessment, or safety-related issues. As a result, non-science employees, such as teachers of other subjects or special education and paraprofessionals...
By Kenneth Roy
Blog Post
My third-grade class created models of plant and animal cells with various items that they found around the house. Many of the kids did a great job, and their projects were very colorful. I brought samples to my Professional Learning Community (PLC)...
By Sharon Delesbore
Blog Post
Making Cooperative Learning Groups Work
How can I keep my students more engaged in their science cooperative learning groups? —A., California...
By Sharon Delesbore
Blog Post
Sample new science lessons from NSTA Press books
NSTA Press authors offer a rich selection of fresh lessons and strategies in their newest books, and you can download samples from each of them through the ...
By Claire Reinburg
Blog Post
When informal science institutions (ISIs) offer professional learning opportunities to teachers to support science in schools, they create the potential for dynamic science educators and classrooms that can support high-quality science learning for s...
By Dr. Vanessa Lujan
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Out-of-School Time (OST) organizations play a vital role in our education system by providing youth with ways of discovering and exploring the world of STEM that complement the learning they experience during the school day. But OST programs often fa...
By Dr. Irene Porro
Blog Post
The Wade Institute for Science Education has long valued the power of informal institutions to create precisely the kind of student-led inquiry-based learning and real-world problem solving envisaged by the three-dimensional learning of NGSS. Through...
By Angela Damery
Blog Post
Helping Educators Develop Young Ocean Problem-Solvers
Myrtle, the green sea turtle. Photo credit: W. Chappell Informal science centers are in perfect alignment to provide rich NGSS supports using three-dimensional learning and real-world connections....
By Corrine Steever
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House Leaders Introduce The College Affordability Act
Democrats Introduce Bill to Reauthorize Higher Education Act House Democrats introduced a long-awaited bill earlier this week that would update the Higher Education Act for the first time in more than a decade....
By Jodi Peterson
Blog Post
Media literacy week, October 21-25, 2019
A shared reading experience is one of the most powerful strategies for building children’s literacy skills according to the International Library Association (ILA pg 3) and in my experience as a reader, educator, and parent. Once a week I am a gue...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Does my Administrator Trust Me?
I am a first-year teacher at a high school listed as a priority to the district (i.e. school improvement needed). I like the school and the students but it seems like the administration is in my classroom all the time. I’m concerned that they do no...
By Sharon Delesbore
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Join NSTA Press book authors for workshops at NSTA area conferences in Fall 2019
NSTA Press book authors will lead workshops at NSTA fall conferences around the U.S....
By Claire Reinburg
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Sylvia Shugrue award winner 2019
Lori NelsonRoger B. Chaffee Elementary School, Huntsville AL...
By NSTA Web Director
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Teaching Agriculture to Elementary Students
Students at Moss Haven Elementary School in the Richardson Independent School District in Dallas, Texas, learn about agriculture at Moss Haven Farm, located on the school’s campus. Most students “are pretty interested [in agriculture] because it...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
Learning About STEM and Preventing Fires
During a state-mandated earthquake drill held by Wilson High School in Los Angeles, California, and the Los Angeles Fire Department, students learn how to properly move an earthquake victim....
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
I am a preservice teacher planning some lessons on how to group plants and animals according to observable features. I am struggling to think of different activities. — V ., Maryland...
By Gabe Kraljevic
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According to the NSTA Position Statement titled “The Integral Role of Laboratory Investigations in Science Instruction,” there must be adequate storage space for all materials. From a safety and environmental regulation standpoint, proper storage...
By Kenneth Roy