How will your early childhood program celebrate the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) annual “Week of the Young Child?” Explorations that relate to all five daily themes offer many opportunities to connect young children to science and engineering concepts, using math and technology to build their understandings in a science inquiry investigating a question or natural phenomena–STEM learning! An initial investigation into how we use our senses might be a good beginning for a longer science inquiry into one particular sense or how we can use technology to extend our senses.

Music Monday

Exploring the connections between the properties of materials and the kinds of sounds they make is a fun way to begin exploring how sound is made. “Becoming Attuned to Sound,” the Early Years column from Science and Children February 2014, describes children exploring how the size and tautness of a rubber band changes the sound it makes when plucked, and how to construct a simple rubber band musical instrument.

The “Young Children Investigate and Engineer Sound Through STEM” session at the 2017 annual NSTA conference provided hands-on experiences and inquiry for teachers to bring back to their children. 

After making sound, children can represent it through drawing, or record it to share with others using an audio recording app on a phone or tablet. Maybe some of us are still using tape players!

Tasty Tuesday

The sense of taste is equally important as the other four for exploring the world but is not part of most science explorations because, for safety reasons, we separate lab work from anything we eat. So we will call it “cooking” to make sure young children understand that in this exploration all ingredients are safe to eat. Tasting is part of the Early Sprouts curriculum, an approach that engages young children in gardening, sensory exploration, and cooking throughout the school year. Try making and tasting their Hearty Apple & Raisin Cereal! While measuring the ingredients children get experience with the concept of volume and while cutting the apple they use an ancient technology–knives (Safety tip: precut apple slices are easy for children to further cut using butter knives). Read more about this approach in the July 2009 Young Children article.

Work Together Wednesday

Mixing materials together to make a change is fun work, and fun to do together. I wrote about the excitement children experience when they mix baking soda and water, and then baking soda and vinegar together, in the Early Years column in the April 2017 Science and Children.  Although some may describe this cool, bubbling-up activity as a model of a volcano, it doesn’t represent any of the earth science processes that form volcanoes. 

Artsy Thursday

Touch is a useful sense when exploring art materials whether you are finger painting, collaging with fabric, or working with potter’s clay. “What can this material do?” is the question children ask as they explore the properties of matter and shape the material to their purposes. Close observation of children while working with art materials will reveal how they feel about different sensory experiences. Marvin Bartel’s essay, “Clay for Toddlers and Preschoolers: How and why,” describes how a young child interacts with clay for the first time, and is “naturally fascinated, motivated, and empowered to keep experimenting.”

There are many vocabulary words to use while exploring the sense of touch. Children who use “soft” to describe both a blanket and a stone can learn the words “fuzzy” and “smooth” to explain what kind of soft they meant–“not hard” and “not rough.” 

Family Friday

Families are so proud of their young children who use magnifiers to extend their sense of sight and can explain how they saw the tiniest bubbles. Young children are proud of themselves as they share their documentation of science and engineering explorations with their families. A family science event can start with an event suggested by NAEYC: Invite parents for a Family Friday breakfast, where children can prepare and share breakfast treats with their families! Maybe they will want to make the Early Sprouts recipe for Hearty Apple & Raisin Cereal.

The Science Teacher (TST) seeks manuscripts of approximately 2,000 words that describe new and creative ideas for the secondary science classroom. Manuscripts should provide practical activities related to the themes listed below. TST also encourages manuscripts outside of the listed themes. For help, see our author guidelines and annotated sample manuscript.

Forensics: Solving Mysteries Through Science
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: May 1, 2017
Forensic science is both an important part of our criminal justice system and also an avenue for engaging students in scientific inquiry. From the stories of Sherlock Holmes to the popular television drama CSI, the analysis of forensic evidence has fascinated citizens for centuries. By its nature, forensics is an interdisciplinary subject, bringing in modern analytic techniques from chemistry, molecular biology, paleontology, physics, and Earth science. Do you use forensics activities in your classes? Have you found new strategies and engaging activities to teach this fascinating subject or enrich other subject areas? If so, TST wants to hear from you.

Using New Tools to Support Science Learning in a Connected World
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: June 1, 2017
As technology evolves, so do the skills needed for success in the modern world. New tools have radically changed the way we communicate, share information, and collect data. This issue will explore how these new tools can support student learning and create a “connected classroom.” Possible topics include ideas for using:
• social media
• online simulations and virtual field trips
• YouTube, online lectures, virtual learning communities, and flipped classrooms
• strategies to improve critical thinking and digital and media literacy
• probeware and wireless data collection in laboratory and field work
• cloud computing
• modeling
• big data
• mathematics and computational thinking tools
• 3D printers
• new presentation and communication tools
• live webcams
• digital graphics, multimedia, and visualization tools.
Please share your ideas for teaching with new tools.

Innovation
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: July 15, 2017
Innovation is crucial to science and engineering fields and also important in science education. Have you developed an innovative activity, assessment, or teaching strategy? Have you found a creative way to integrate science or engineering innovations in your classes? Share your ideas about using science innovation and innovative teaching methods. Possible ideas might include:
• Creating a new twist on an established activity,
• Integrating 21st-century skills development,
• Using new technologies to support student learning, or
using established technologies in a novel way,
• Incorporating recent scientific research, discoveries, or innovations in your instruction,
• Developing unique student grouping or assessment
methods.

General Topics
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Ongoing
The Science Teacher seeks general manuscripts across a variety of disciplines. Do you have an article in mind that does not fit with one of TST’s themes? Submit it for review! General articles not targeted to a requested theme are published in every issue. Possible topics include integrating technology, science on a shoestring, innovation, new twists on classic lessons, community collaborations and partnerships, assessment strategies, engineering and the maker movement, and connecting to the Next Generation Science Standards. Don’t limit yourself to these topics. Our readers want to hear about your classroom-tested activities and teaching strategies.

Science for All
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Ongoing
TST seeks manuscripts for this annual issue devoted to the inclusion of all learners. The issue offers strategies to mitigate academic achievement gaps associated with ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, physical disabilities, limited English-­language proficiency, learning differences, and even gifted abilities. Please share your ideas for what works in the classroom.

Idea Banks
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Ongoing
TST is always seeking Idea Banks—short articles of about 1,000 words. If you want to share an experience, activity, or classroom tip but do not think it will work as a feature-length article, consider submitting an Idea Bank.

Commentary
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Ongoing
Commentaries of approximately 750 words on any secondary education topic are accepted at any time. Do you have thoughts on science education that you would like to share with your peers? Write a Commentary and submit it to TST for review.

Author guidelines

Annotated sample manuscript

Author registration/submission of manuscripts

Get Involved With NSTA!

Join NSTA today and receive The Science Teacher,
the peer-reviewed journal just for high school teachers; to write for the journal, see our Author Guidelines, Call for Papers, and annotated sample manuscript; connect on the high school level science teaching list (members can sign up on the list server); or consider joining your peers at future NSTA conferences.