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Journal Article
Investigating Microgravity: Using inquiry, students study objects in a weightless environment
In classroom discussions, students often have misconceptions about how objects behave in a weightless environment. This article provides instruction on how to create a weightless environment in the classroom to enable students to examine the behavior...
Journal Article
The Idea Bank provides tips and techniques for creative teaching, in about 1,000 words. In this month’s Idea Bank learn about other potential uses for slime, in addition to polymer chemistry and materials engineering....
Journal Article
After the Bell: Measure for measure
Students are asked to measure objects almost every day, but a number of students omit units when providing an answer. In this article learn why units are so important....
Journal Article
If we want to encourage children to enter into scientific fields in the future, we need to give them a helping hand while they are most open-minded and curious. In this article, the author shares anecdotal stories from the scientific community that r...
Journal Article
Science Sampler: Role playing in the science classroom
By presenting material in a unique and amusing way, students will remember the material better and comprehend more....
Journal Article
Research and Teaching: Encouraging Female Undergraduate Students
Two case studies of undergraduate chemistry departments highlight differences between a department graduating a high percentage of women and one that is not, and provide possible ways in which departments can attract and retain more female majors. A ...
Journal Article
Working as a Team: Preparing a Problem Awareness File
A generic teaching format in which students actively participate in a whole-class collaborative-learning experience is described. The entire class, divided into groups, made a joint effort to overcome a hypothetical outbreak of a new plant disease. H...
Journal Article
Most teachers and parents will agree: Children are natural inventors. They also enjoy building things with such manipulatives as Legos. Robotics was the route to dynamic, problem-based learning for fourth- and fifth-grade students at Emma Sherman Ele...
Journal Article
Science Sampler: Focusing in on the history of the microscope
Teachers can use a historical context to add interest to common science lessons—in this case, the microscope....
Journal Article
Student Teaching Tools: Key factors to remember in the classroom
Upon starting the actual process of teaching you can never be completely prepared for the experience. This author identifies four key factors that will help you through student teaching: organization, confidence, balance, and patience. Ideas on how t...
Journal Article
The Alien Lab: A Study in Genetics
Integrate language arts, mathematics, and art with this creature-building activity. Students reinforce their understanding of basic principles of heredity by creating alien creatures with specific traits. ...
Journal Article
Celebrate Earth Science Week with an exploration of the water cycle and our planet's limited liquid assets. This article, and the poster from the American Geological Institute, supports the theme—Water Is All Around Us. Students are encouraged to...
Journal Article
Crack open an acorn and investigate the organisms that call it home. In this article, students practice measurement skills as they conduct investigations and discuss concepts of habitat, communities, and ecosystem dynamics. Assessment ideas, extensio...
Journal Article
Probing for Understanding: Measuring scientific achievement with assessment probes
Measuring whether students have a deep understanding of scientific concepts is a challenge for educators. Using assessment probes allows inquiry into the meaning of deep understanding. The author shares several probes designed to research and gather ...
Journal Article
Commentary: Supporting the Student Teacher
An opinion piece about how the cooperating teacher continues to be the major influence on the student teacher. ...
Journal Article
Science and Children’s editor shares thoughts regarding the current issue....
Journal Article
Editor's Corner: Training Grounds for the Future
Training student teachers is a critical skill. The Science Teacher’s editor shares thoughts on student teaching....
Journal Article
Commentary: Why We Accept the Challenge
An opinion piece about qualified teachers serving as mentors to pre-service science teachers....
Journal Article
Tech Trek: Celestial observation tools
This activity—where students estimate the orbits of the four innermost moons of Jupiter through direct observation—represents a practical example of how teachers can use technology to explore celestial objects....
Journal Article
Hands-On Homework for Introductory Science
The author and colleagues have designed an Exploration Center to supplement lecture-oriented teaching in large introductory physics courses. At the center, students perform hands-on homework problems derived from lecture demonstrations. The style of ...
Journal Article
Seeing Isn't Always Believing: Investigating the reliability of classroom demonstrations
The author describes a traditional classroom experiment often used to demonstrate the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere, and challenges the high school chemistry students to test the validity of the procedure. Together they developed a way to deter...
Journal Article
Science Sampler: Five guiding principles of meteorology
The language of meteorology could be reduced to five deceptively simple guiding principles. This article focuses on how these guiding principles provide students with the necessary language to understand and make connections between concepts in meteo...
Journal Article
Exploration Science: A case history from Earth orbit
The intent of this case history is to encourage science fair organizers to permit students to submit observational science projects, not just experimental ones. The author shares a condensed example of his own research to illustrate the interplay of ...
Journal Article
This article describes an activity in which upper elementary students created “stream profiles” of an imaginary aquatic environment using science, mathematics, and simple materials. After the simulation, they applied what they learned during a fi...
Journal Article
The Influence of Research-Based High School Science Programs on Undergraduate Students
A survey of past participants in the Grants-In-Aid (GIA) program and the NJAS science fair indicated that 73.5 percent pursued an undergraduate major related to the subject of NJAS research, and early experiences with scientific proposal writing and ...
Journal Article
Excavating Cratering: Bringing a NASA mission into Earth science classrooms
The author brings NASA research on excavating a crater into the science classroom in the form of an inquiry investigation. Students begin to see that science, even NASA mission-size science, is something they can do. Lesson plans, student examples, a...
Journal Article
Awardees from the 2002 Craftsman/NSTA Young Inventors Awards Program relate the stories behind their inventions. The article also lists the 2002 regional awardees including, the name of the invention; the inventor; the inventor’s school and its loc...
Journal Article
The Case Study: The Multiple-Case Method
The goal of multiple-case method teaching is to bring students closer to real work settings or, more specifically, to situations in which they are supposed to act professionally. Thus, its aim is similar to training in competitive sports; afford stud...
Journal Article
Case It! is a project to enhance case-based learning in university biology courses worldwide through the use of molecular biology computer simulations and Internet conferencing. In class testing, university students who volunteered to participate in ...
Journal Article
New teachers often are given the most preparations, classroom moves, and demanding students. In addition, new teachers are sometimes added to the roster at the last minute and never have a chance to tour the school and connect with colleagues. Bewild...
Journal Article
Svithjod, Stories, and Songs: Rewriting Earth Science in Creative Ways
Explore Earth science concepts through the language arts. In this article, creative writing and observation exercises help students to improve their writing skills, increase their understanding of Earth science, and heighten their awareness of geolog...
Journal Article
This dilemma case is based on the true story of Jack and Lisa Nash, whose daughter, Molly, was born with a rare genetic disorder. By having another child with specific genetic markers, the Nashes’ hoped to cure Molly using stem cells from the new b...
Journal Article
Science Sampler: Science signature game
This getting-to-know-you activity is a great way to start off the school year and introduce students to the science topics they will encounter. The teacher hands out a game card containing statements like, "I like fossils and dinosaurs." The object i...
Journal Article
To what extent can Earth’s natural resources support the growing human population? Mathis Wackernagel and colleagues developed the concept of the “ecological footprint” to quantify the amount of land area required to sustain the lifestyle of a ...
Journal Article
One way to improve teacher retention is to adequately prepare preservice teachers while they are enrolled in professional teacher education programs at colleges and universities. In a model developed at Towson University, preservice science teachers ...
Journal Article
Editor's Corner: Create a Sense of Belonging
The Science Teacher’s editor shares thoughts on the mentoring of new teachers....
Journal Article
Something’s Fishy in Paxton Lake
In this case study exploring the mechanisms of speciation, students work in groups to design a series of experiments to determine whether two populations of sticklebacks in Paxton Lake in British Columbia represent separate species. Students consider...