Ask any middle school science teacher what their biggest classroom challenge is right now, and there’s a good chance that attention ranks near the top of the list. Not behavior, not funding, not curriculum gaps—attention. 

This isn’t a new problem, but it is an accelerating one. Every platform that students interact with outside of school is engineered to capture and hold their attention. By the time students walk into a classroom, their cognitive baseline has shifted. Teachers are up against an architecture designed by behavioral scientists with billions of dollars behind it.

These distractions aren’t going anywhere, so trying to block them out or compete on the same terms is a losing strategy. The more useful question is, How can we create that same pull inside the classroom? If other environments are winning students’ attention, how can we design classrooms that do the same and channel their attention into curiosity? 

Video Isn’t the Enemy 

The reflex in many schools has been to treat screen time as the problem and hands-on learning as the antidote, but that framing creates a false choice. Online science content—when done well—doesn’t replace experiential learning; it primes students for this learning.

What matters is sequence. When a video opens by posing a question rather than resolving one, it creates the exact cognitive state that makes hands-on learning most effective. A student who has just begun to wonder about magnetic force learns differently than one who walks into a build activity. This is where a “hook and build” approach proves effective. Start by sharing engaging content that sparks a question, then put something physical in students’ hands so they can answer the question. A simple build or experiment turns theory into something tangible. That process (not the watching) is where students experience the “Aha!” that makes learning stick. 

What’s at Stake Goes Beyond the Lesson

Underneath this idea is a more fundamental issue: Before anything else, we have to figure out how to grab and keep students’ attention because we can’t teach them if we don’t have their attention. Middle school science classrooms aren’t just places where students learn about forces, ecosystems, and chemical reactions; they’re where students begin to decide whether they are a “science person.”

Research consistently shows that early experiences in science education shape STEM identity in lasting ways. A student who feels capable, curious, and successful in a science classroom at age 11 or 12 is more likely to pursue STEM subjects (and STEM careers) a decade later. A student who finds those early experiences inaccessible or alienating often doesn’t come back to these subjects.

This means the pedagogical choices being made right now, in classrooms across the country, have implications that extend well beyond the next unit assessment. Engagement is the mechanism through which STEM identity is built or eroded. The way we deliver science in those critical years determines not just what students learn, but whether they see themselves as belonging in science at all.

At Class CrunchLabs, we believe this process starts with earning attention, intentionally and relentlessly, and then turning that attention into action. We have to spark curiosity (instead of explaining); invite students into the problem (instead of giving them the answer); and offer them something real to build, test, and figure out for themselves. This isn’t a layer on top of instruction; it’s the foundation.

The stakes are simple but profound: If we don’t earn students’ attention, we don’t just lose the lesson–we risk losing them from science altogether.
 

Tara Graham is an accomplished Executive Director at CrunchLabs and CrunchLabs.org Foundation, bringing over 15 years of experience in product development, partnership building, and educational initiatives within the tech and media sectors. 

The mission of NSTA is to transform science education to benefit all through professional learning, partnerships, and advocacy.