JoinAll Middle School resources
Book Chapter
It Slices, It Dices--It Gathers Dust!
In case you can't tell from the title, this chapter is about machines. No, not salad shooters and makers of julienne fries but rather everyday things such as scissors and bottle openers and car jacks. These are known as simple machines, and they in...
Book Chapter
Temp-a-chur and Thermal Energy
In this chapter you will learn the basic concept of temperature and what it means for one thing to be hotter than another. The hotter something is, the faster its molecules are moving. And that means that a hot collections of molecules has more kin...
Book Chapter
Close the Door--You're Letting the Cold In!
Actually no, you aren't letting the cold in when you leave the door open in winter. That's a common misconception that will be gently put to rest in this chapter. There will, however, be a discussion of the tranfer of energy that makes things hott...
Book Chapter
Energy transformations take place all over the Earth without humans ever getting involved. Being the control freaks that we are, though, we spend a lot of time trying to direct those energy transformations to make our lives easier. This chapter is ...
Book Chapter
In Which We Describe Motion and Then Change It
As far as inanimate objects are concerned, if you know what the object is doing and know all the things that will affect that object, you can predict what the object will be doing at a later time. That's useful for lots of things, such as flying pla...
Book Chapter
There's No Such Thing as Gravity--The Earth Sucks
What happens when you drop an object on the ground? Though it might not be obvious, the object speeds up as it falls. That means it's accelerating and there must be a force acting on it. The force that's acting on it is--all together now--gravity. In...
NSTA Press Book
Energy: Stop Faking It! Finally Understanding Science So You Can Teach It
Confounded by kinetic energy? Suspect that teaching about simple machines isn’t really so simple? Exasperated by electricity? If you fear the study of energy is beyond you, this entertaining book will do more than introduce you to the topic. It wi...
By William C. Robertson, Ph.D.
NSTA Press Book
Force and Motion: Stop Faking It! Finally Understanding Science So You Can Teach It
Intimidated by inertia? Frightened by forces? Mystified by Newton’s laws of motion? You’re not alone—and help is at hand. The Stop Faking It! Series is perfect for science teachers, home-schoolers, parents wanting to help with homework—all of...
By William C. Robertson, Ph.D.
NSTA Press Book
Safety in the Elementary Science Classroom (flipchart)
It’s a safety resource your classroom should not be without! As attractive as a poster and as convenient to use as a calendar, the completely updated Safety in the Elementary Classroom flipchart is a quick-read resource on how to prevent or solve s...
Journal Article
Scope on the Skies: Ancient Skies
Writing this month’s column is quite literally a once in a millennium opportunity. As the New Year, century, and millennium get underway, many of us are wondering what lies ahead. But before we take look at the evening skies of our future, the auth...