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Journal Article

Science Sampler: Familiar toys and abstract ideas

In this article, learn how to use some toys to teach students various abstract science concepts, such as ratios, percentages, and conservation of mass....

Journal Article

It's Alive: Students observe air-water interface samples rich with organisms

After collaboration with a university researcher, students found that the air-water interface was a thin biofilm on the surface of still water composed of a rich variety of living microorganisms. Samples exposed to day-night intervals and in total da...

Journal Article

A Pond Investigation

What lives in the pond? Did frogs hop from another pond to ours? How do tadpoles get into the pond? And Could our pond be polluted? These questions were addressed in a professional development program that takes advantage of a school pond to teach en...

Journal Article

Rolling on the River: Professional mentors motivate students to learn environmental science

Students participate in an interdisciplinary project, Research@the.River.com. By collaborating with their professional mentors while working in the field, students learned environmental science curricula through discussion and interaction. Most impor...

Journal Article

Idea Bank: Fruit Fundamentals

The Idea Bank provides tips and techniques for creative teaching, in about 1,000 words. This month’s Idea Bank features a unique activity using halved apples, oranges, and onions as the "specimens" that teaches necessary dissection skills to prepa...

Journal Article

Writing a Statement of Teaching Philosophy

Writing a statement of teaching philosophy is a cornerstone of reflective and scholarly practice in teaching and learning. A strategic set of practical and philosophical guidelines, including a definition, elements, and structure of a statement of te...

Journal Article

Weekly Reports: Student Reflections on Learning

Weekly reports, a structured journal form of formative assessment, allow instructors to receive information from the students, to address students’ difficulties in a timely manner, and to alter their instruction based on the students’ needs. In a...

Journal Article

Wacky Machines: A unit on simple machines gets a new twist with old junk

The next community yard sale might be a repository of old, quirky items that are just the things to get students thinking about simple machines. By introducing some "wacky machines" at lab stations as mystery objects, teachers can watch students' min...