All Informal Education resources

Journal Article

Place-Based Education

The Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative (GLSI) is a statewide network in Michigan that promotes rigorous place-based education experiences for K–12 students....

By Sarah Waters, Brandon Schroeder, and Tracy D'Augustino

Informal Education

Journal Article

Cocreating Transformative Change

Leveraging community to create a mobile, cultural makerspace that travels to schools, powwows, and community events throughout a Native American reservation in Montana....

By Holly Truitt, Ruth Swaney, William Swaney, Nick Wethington, and Nathalie Wolfram

Informal Education

Journal Article

Do Children Make Good Citizen Scientists?

Participating in citizen science—where members of the public collect data for use by scientists—has become popular over the past 5 to 10 years, with teachers increasingly looking to incorporate citizen science into lessons (Gray, Nicosia, and J...

By Christine L. Goforth

Informal Education

Journal Article

Fabricating Fidgets to Support Inclusive Maker Education

With the goal of supporting an inclusive maker education learning experience, a science museum, university, and middle school partnered to engage students diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in an authentic design challen...

By Alexandria K. Hansen, Eric R. Hansen, and Danielle B. Harlow

Informal Education Inclusion

Journal Article

Accessible Making and Tinkering

Maker spaces and programs offer tremendous opportunities for all learners to explore new materials, expand their practical skills, think creatively, and exercise social-emotional skills such as problem-solving and collaboration. With this in mind, ...

By Charlotte Martin

Informal Education

Journal Article

Taking the Maker Experience From a Local Phenomenon to National Implementation

MAKESHOP at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh is open for all to experience hands-on building and tinkering, and their initiative has spread nationwide. ...

By Chip Lindsey, Lisa Brahms, and Kathryn Koffler

Informal Education

Journal Article

Through My Window

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By Beth McGinnis-Cavanaugh, and Isabel Huff

Informal Education

Journal Article

Science Investigation and Developing Students’ Science-Process Skills Through Citizen Science

It’s 7:15 on a Friday morning and the ‘early birds’ have arrived. Eager students don their binoculars for Ms. Vigeland’s before-school birdwatching club. Ranging from fourth to eighth grade, these Hilltop Country Day School students...

By Jennifer Fee

Informal Education

Journal Article

Philly Scientists

The Philly Scientists project engages underserved youth in grades 5–8 and their educators in a curriculum that includes a mobile application with a digital badging reward system.    ...

By Rasheda Likely, Magdalene Moy, and Nancy Songer

Informal Education

Journal Article

Curiosity Machine

The Curiosity Machine Family Program at Iridescent Learning brings underserved families together over five weeks to do open-ended engineering design challenges with the help of scientists and engineers, who mentor the families as they build. &nb...

By Wallace Louie, Tara Chklovski, Maggie Jaris, and Audra Torres

Informal Education

Journal Article

Connecting Fossil Clubs With K–12 Teachers

FOSSILs4Teachers! is a professional development workshop that allows K–12 educators and museum paleontologists to collaborate on fossil resources and standards-aligned lesson plans about fossils.    ...

By Jeanette Pirlo, Bruce J. MacFadden, Eleanor E. Gardner, Victor J. Perez, and Denise Porcello

Informal Education

Journal Article

Engaging Learners in Authentic Science With Environmental Data

Citizen science has long been touted as a way to engage in-school and out-of-school learners in authentic science, but the opportunities have largely been limited to collecting data. FieldScope from BSCS Science Learning is changing that by offerin...

By Daniel C. Edelson, Audrey Mohan, and Sean O'Connor

Informal Education