I’ve seen “word walls” in elementary classrooms, but I wonder whether older students would find them helpful in dealing with vocabulary. What should I consider in trying this idea?
—Wendy, Chattanooga, Tennessee
When I first learned about word walls, I was intrigued. Many of my middle school students struggled with the specialized vocabulary in science, and I was willing to try something new to help them. It turned out to be a win-win situation: it was a learning opportunity for the students, and one of the bulletin boards in my classroom was used productively (I was not very good at designing them). I also had good results using this strategy with high school students.
A word wall is an organized list of words displayed in a classroom. On most I’ve seen, the words were printed on index cards or pieces of paper that can be moved around with the words large enough for students to see. A small graphic illustrating the word can be included (students can get very creative with this). This is not a static or decorative list, however. During the unit, the teacher and students can refer to the words, rearrange them by concept, and use them for review activities such as card sorts or word splashes.
Word walls should focus on essential vocabulary. As key words are introduced, they are posted. Some teachers also have the students put the words into their science notebooks and personalize the notebook list with additional terms.
If you teach more than one subject, as many teachers do, you’ll need a lot of space! When another teacher and I shared a lab, we divided up the bulletin board. I’ve seen teachers be creative with window shades and wall space. A teacher who floats among classrooms carried a flip chart on her cart with the vocabulary. As a last resort, students could create a “word page” in their notebooks.
The topic of word walls has appeared on the NSTA e–mail lists. Here are some additional suggestions from our colleagues that are appropriate for any grade level:

• Some teachers in my building only put the vocabulary words on their walls, but I put word, definition, and if appropriate a picture. I leave these walls up during test time, but use black paper to cover the vocabulary word.  The students still have the picture and the definition. —Shauna

• I have a “words and roots” list (etymology) for students and quiz them throughout the year. I add those to a section of a word wall as we learn them and practice putting together those seemingly long and impossible words. —Kathy (and others

• I felt silly at first when I did this approach because I thought word walls were only for primary grades but was very surprised by the student response. I cut up strips of paper and had the students each complete one word with the definition and a related visual. For example, I have had students decide to draw a man trying to push a big rock to represent inertia. I then reminded students to use their science vocab when writing about the lesson or answering questions.  The word wall was a good anchor chart. —Sarah

• The students must own the word wall, whether it is in their notebooks, on the wall, or somewhere else. —Suzanne

• Since many of my students are bilingual, I like to suggest that they include the word in their own languages on their cards as well. —Bonnie

• When creating a word wall, the purpose is to provide a place for students to look for words when discussing or writing responses. For example, you would ask the students to refer to the word wall during a discussion. Or you could do a stand-and-say to wrap up class: ask the students to use one of the word wall words in a sentence as they review a main idea. —Aimee

• I would limit the terms to the essential vocabulary (10-15 words per unit), words they will use across multiple disciplines in science all throughout the year. —Kellylyn

• The key on use of word walls is to have them available, used many times, and serve as a reference, continuously connecting lessons with words around the room, highlighting them in presentations, giving time for students to discuss meaning and use with peers, defining together terms that are key for understanding in their own words. —Ursula

Additional resources from NSTA:
Word Wall – NSTA News Digest
Word Wall Connections – NSTA News Digest
Interactive Word Walls: Transforming Content Vocabulary Instruction –Science Scope
Word Wall Connections – Science Scope
Word Wall Work—Supporting Science Talk –Science & Children
 
Photograph: Science Scope

What do the trebuchet, said to have been invented in China in about 300 BC and Paula Creamer, the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open champion, have in common? They both owe their success to the double pendulum effect. Find out why in Science of Golf: Physics of the Golf Swing.

If you live in a northern clime, you might be thinking about putting your own golf clubs away for the winter. So satisfy your links craving by working through the Science of Golf series with your students. The series, from the partnership of NBC Learn, the United States Golf Association (USGA), and Chevron will get your STEM efforts on par. The videos are available cost-free on www.NBCLearn.com.

Look through the lesson plans and adapt any part that is most useful to you. We all know that everyone’s situation is just a bit different, so download the Word doc and modify at will to make it your own. After you give them a try with your students, let us know what you think! Suggestions for improvements are always welcome. Just leave a comment and we’ll get in touch with you.

–Judy Elgin Jensen

Image of Paula Creamer finishing her swing courtesy of Keith Allison.

Video

SOG: Physics of the Golf Swing discusses how torque, centripetal force, and the double-pendulum effect combine to produce high club head speed during a golf swing.

STEM Lesson Plan—Adaptable for Grades 7–12

The lesson plan provides ideas for STEM exploration plus strategies to support students in their own quest for answers and as well as a more focused approach that helps all students participate in hands-on inquiry.

The SOG Lesson Plan: Physics of the Golf Swing describes how students might investigate a question about energy transfer from potential to kinetic in the cases of single and double pendulums.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans: [contact-form 2 “ChemNow]

As the Science Scope editor notes, “Most of our students—and many adults—take modern technology for granted, never wondering how these machines work or what science makes them possible.” Much of this science relates to waves and electronic radiation, and the featured articles in this issue have many ideas for student investigations in these topics, and the articles note how the content and activities relate to the NGSS.
Reflecting Understanding describes some misconceptions students may have about light and plane mirrors. The article describes four learning stations using a “reflect-view” mirror (described in the article). The authors include photos of the stations and discuss how each addressed a misconception. [SciLinks: Reflection, Mirrors]
As the author of Color: The Eyes Have It notes, middle schoolers enjoy learning about themselves. This activity here goes beyond a traditional lesson in the genetics of eye color to have students take a closer look at their own eye colors through digital photography. [SciLinks: Eyes]
Balloon’s Up! illustrates a project in which students partnered with a university for an authentic exploration how ultraviolet radiation, visible light, and sound waves are affected by altitude. Students with their partners designed research projects that could be studied with data collections from the high-altitude balloons they launched.
The authors of Wave Warnings provide suggestions for helping students investigate wave characteristics in water. Making wave “prints” (directions provided) give students a picture of their generated waves and provides an opportunity to study the characteristics of real waves in addition to pictures in a textbook or website. The article has photographs of the prints and student handouts. [SciLinks: Waves]
Two of the monthly columns also focus on waves. Are there sounds in space? The Scope on the Skies article The Sound of Sound has a review of wave characteristics and discusses acoustical sounds vs. the conversion of forms of electromagnetic radiation of celestial objects into acoustical sounds we can hear. [SciLinks: Electromagnetic Waves] When studying waves, students often use thing such as Slinkys, mirrors, lenses, and tuning forks. The Scope on Safety article Wave Warnings has some suggestions for studying waves safely in the classroom.
Students may bring a variety of backgrounds and interest in these topics. Differentiating Inquiry (in this month’s Teacher’s Toolkit) has suggestions for varying the level of inquiry in a topic. Using density as the topic, the authors provide examples and materials for meeting the need of students. The ideas can be generalized to any topic. [SciLinks: Density]
 

I love to try to understand the thinking process children are going through as they work to solve a problem involving objects in space—putting a puzzle together, making a system to carry toys, figuring out which arm to put into a coat sleeve and balancing blocks. What is the motivation and what is the goal for a child working in the housekeeping area, trying to figure out how to store all of the play food in the microwave when pieces keep falling out? I wonder what they are learning.
As children look for solutions to these kinds of problems, we can encourage them to think about what the difficulty is, and explore possible solutions, perhaps more than one solution. Looking at an engineering design process graphic we can see that designing a best solution for a problem is a process that continues, with solutions being tested, reconsidered and redesigned. The October 2013 issue of Science and Children has many resources about engineering practices and how to engage young children in an engineering design process. Beginning with this issue, Science and Children has a new column called “Engineering Encounters” on teaching strategies to support teaching children how to design, explore the ways engineers conduct their work, and include ways in which lessons in engineering can be integrated with science. Reading this month’s engineering column, “Minding Design Missteps,” I learned about the habits of beginning designers and tips for steering them in productive directions. The Guest Editorial, The Next Generation Science Standards and Engineering for Young Learners: Beyond Bridges and Egg Drops by Mariel Milano (pgs 10-16) points out the differences in the engineering design process for different grade levels, also described in the Next Generation Science Standards Appendix I—Engineering Design in the NGSS. 
You may have children in your class who are avid builders, developing their knowledge of the center of gravity, size and weight, the nature of wood, parts-of-the-whole, classification, symmetry, spatial relations and social skills as they work with others in the block area or with natural materials outdoors. These children may always choose a building activity and must be enticed to other activities such as painting at an easel. Other children seem to live at the art table or in the pretend area of a classroom and don’t seem to have the need to build. Early childhood educators know that children can develop skills and knowledge in each of the classroom areas. We can encourage imaginative play in the block area to strengthen children’s ability to interact with others, learn to transform themselves into another role and take on the perspective of someone else. And we can bring building activities to the pretend area to give all children the experiences to develop their knowledge of the center of gravity, size and weight, the nature of materials, parts-of-the-whole, classification, spatial relations, and symmetry that are so obviously developing in the block area.

In the block area, read a book that has a storyline with multiple perspectives such as Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton (1939, 1967), Building With Dad by Carol Nevius, illustrated by Bill Thomson (2006), The House in the Meadow by Shuta Crum, illustrated by Paige Billin-Frye (2003), and The Lot at the End of My Block by Kevin Lewis, illustrated by Reg Cartwright (2001) (Thank you to Marie Faust Evitt and Bobbi Weesen-Baer for the extensive book lists in Thinking BIG Learning BIG.) Invite the children to re-enact their favorite part of the book, or a story of their own making. Blocks can be used for the stage and the characters, or the children can take the parts of the characters.
Reading a book that illustrates different kinds of buildings may inspire children who use art materials in two-dimensions to move to three-dimensions, if scraps of wood, cardboard tubes, corks, bottle lids and small boxes are provided. Here is a short list—add your suggestions in a comment, below.

• Alphabet House by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace. 2005
• Animal Homes series from Capstone, e.g. Animal Homes: Squirrels and Their Nests by Martha E. H. Rustad. 2005.
• Arches to Zigzags: An Architecture ABC by Michael J. Crosbie, photography by Steve and Kit Rosenthal. 2000
• Bridges Are to Cross by Philemon Sturges, and Giles Laroche, illustrator. 1998.
• Galimoto by Karen Lynn Williams, Catherine Stock, illustrator. 1990.
• Houses and homes by Ann Morris. 1992.
• One Big Building : A Counting Book About Construction by Michael S.Dahl, Todd Ouren, illustrator. 2004
• Shapes in buildings by Rebecca Rissman. 2009.

Some children might get involved with building if they have a reason, such as building a house for a stuffed animal, or making a structure from bits of wood to take home. Other children will be attracted when ramps are added to the block area with small cars or ping-pong balls. Here’s a strategy from Lisa Murphy of Ooey Gooey, Inc. to support children who want to build but get frustrated when they inadvertently knock structures over as they add blocks. We can provide squirts of foaming soap to be used as mortar between the blocks, sticking them together. (Use soap that does not say “Keep out of reach of children” and rinse off the soap and allow the blocks to thoroughly dry before storing.)
Older elementary students can participate in engineering design work from the Engineering Is Elementary curriculum and story books. There are 20 units, meant to be taught either concurrently or after students learn the appropriate science content.
Where do the young engineers and designers go from there? In Washington, DC, the Design Apprenticeship Program (DAP) of the National Building Museum provides a group experience for teens to work in groups with design professionals to solve a design problem. One DAP design challenge was to design and build a piece of furniture that would benefit residents in transitional housing.
Support children’s problem-solving with multiple opportunities to be challenged and encouraging words that reflect what they are doing successfully.

This December, the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) will feature a special strand “Engineering the Engineering: Connecting the Why to the How” at our Conference on Science Education in Denver, CO, December 12–14.
Engineering effectively provides foundational knowledge in science, technology, and math through innovative and creative approaches in the classroom, giving all students an opportunity to prepare for their roles in this technology-rich world. This strand will highlight classroom practices that emphasize skills in critical thinking, leadership, problem solving, collaboration, communication, media, and technology in the transdisciplinary context of STEM.
Sessions organized around this strand include a featured presentation on Friday, December 13 12:30–1:30 PM (“Engineering Speed: Using NASCAR to Engage Students in Math, Science, and Engineering”) by Diandra L. Leslie-Pelecky (Professor of Physics, West Virginia University, Author of The Physics of NASCAR: Morgantown, WV). More sessions on Engineering include the following:

• Engineering Solutions: Green Energy and Green Building
• Engineering: Integrate the 3Ds in the NGSS
• Invention Convention with an Ecological Twist
• Fueling the Future: Energy Interconnections and Sustainable Choices
• Can a Shoebox Fly?
• It’s eleSTEMary! STEM Education from Classroom to Community!
• The Amazing Atlatl
• Helping Students Teach Old “Dogs” New Tricks in Energy Savings

Want more? Check out more than 400 sessions and other events with the Denver Session Browser/Personal Scheduler.

Earth Science Week is October 13–19, 2013. Take a world tour, solve a mystery, apply to be named the Environmental Science Educator of the Year, or delve into an entire year’s worth of lessons with this resource collection from the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA).
Elementary Resources

Environments of Our Earth: I Wonder Why: Take a world tour between the covers of a book! Environments of Our Earth guides children through six types of regions that are shaped by rainfall—or the lack thereof. Readers take a journey that starts with dense tropical rainforests and woodlands, travels through grassy savannas and prairies, and ends at dry steppes and deserts. [Read a free sample, or browse all of our kids books, many of which are also appropriate for Earth science week.]
The Dynamic Earth: Recycling Naturally! This free article from the NSTA journal Science and Children provides a series of learning cycle lessons that put a new spin on rock formation.
Everyday Earth and Space Science Mysteries: What are the odds that a meteor will hit your house? Do you actually get more sunlight from Daylight Saving Time? Where do puddles go? By presenting everyday mysteries like these, this book will motivate your students to carry out hands-on science investigations and actually care about the results. [Read a free chapter: The Little Tent That Cried]
Bringing Outdoor Science In: Thrifty Classroom Lessons: When it’s just not possible to take students out to explore the natural world, bring the natural world to the classroom. Clearly organized and easy to use, this helpful guide contains more than 50 science lessons in six units: Greening the School, Insects, Plants, Rocks and Soils, Water, and In the Sky. [Read a free chapter: Rocks and Soils]
Middle School Resources
Earth Science Success: 50 Lesson Plans for Grades 6–9: Designed as a ready-to-use survival guide for middle school Earth science teachers, this book is an invaluable resource that provides an entire year’s worth of inquiry-based and discovery-oriented Earth science lessons, including 33 investigations or labs and 17 detailed projects. [Read a free chapter: Meteorology]
Generating Arguments about Climate Change: In this free article from the journal Science Scope, students participate in a unit on global climate change by engaging in the process of scientific argumentation. The lessons presented in this article were created using the generate-an-argument model to help students understand climate change science.
Project Earth Science: Geology, Revised 2nd Edition: Involve students in activities that focus on how plate tectonics explain characteristics and features of Earth. The 15 hands-on, teacher-tested, classroom activities in this book use readily available materials and provide straightforward and up-to-date explanations of geologic processes and cycles.
High School Resources
Climate Change From Pole to Pole: This volume provides an authentic and rigorous way to engage students in science and environmental issues—scientific methods, evidence, climate, and biological effects of climate change—and is a unique and essential resource for your high school or college-level classroom.
Citizen Scientists: Investigating Science in the Community: This free article from The Science Teacher journal describes numerous examples of citizen science projects that provide meaningful, authentic contexts for students to engage in the processes of science.
Earth Science Puzzles: Making Meaning From Data: Teachers of Earth and environmental sciences in grades 8–12 will welcome this activity book centered on six “data puzzles” that foster critical-thinking skills in students and support science and math standards.
Citizen Science: 15 Lessons That Bring Biology to Life, 6–12: Citizen Science offers you real-life case studies of classes that engaged in citizen science and learned authentic scientific processes and the habits of mind associated with scientific reasoning. The volume has plenty of flexibility, so you can use the lessons with or without access to field or lab facilities; whether or not your students can collect and submit data of their own; and inside your classroom or outside through fieldwork in schoolyards, parks, or other natural areas in urban or rural settings. [Read a free chapter: Bird Migration Patterns in My Area]
General Support for K-12 Educators
Apply for the SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment Outstanding Environmental Science Educator of the Year Award: This $10k award recognizes the outstanding efforts of students, teachers, and community leaders across the country, who are working at the grass roots level to protect and preserve the environment.  The winner will receive $10,000 and an expense paid trip to attend the NSTA National Conference. The deadline is November 30, 2013. Find a complete application and more information here.
Earth, Sun, and Moon: General Characteristics of Earth: This FREE, two-hour, online interactive inquiry-based content module helps teachers better understand the science content they teach. This Science Object is the first of four Science Objects in the Earth, Sun, and Moon SciPack. It provides an understanding of how the different spheres (atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere) of Earth interact and why each plays an important role in making Earth the only planet with the conditions necessary for life. Earth is approximately spherical in shape like all planets and stars. Earth is composed mostly of rock. Three-fourths of its surface is covered by a relatively thin layer of water (some of it frozen), and the entire planet is surrounded by a relatively thin blanket of air.
Looking for more? Search among more than 6,000 resources, quality professional development opportunities (many of which are free), and management and reporting tools. The NSTA Learning Center can help with your professional development needs. To check out The NSTA Learning Center, click here.