All Resources

Journal Article

Gone, Gone from the Range

This interrupted case study presents published data on the effect of coyote removal in Texas to teach students about trophic level relationships and the role of keystone species. Students are required to interpret data that are presented graphically ...

Journal Article

Assessing Students’ Ideas About Plants

This article contains an interview protocol that will help you gather information about your elementary students’ ideas related to plants. By implementing the protocol, you will be able to discover what kinds of organisms your students think are pl...

Journal Article

Mark Your Calendar

To help new teachers prioritize their responsibilities, a mentor teacher within the Columbus Public School District in Columbus, Ohio, developed a “New Science Teacher” checklist. The checklist was designed for participants of Columbus’s Peer A...

Journal Article

Little Mito

In this directed case study on the structure of the cell and functions of the major organelles, students examine one of the most important events of evolution: the origin of the eukaryotic cell. Students research the two major hypotheses involved and...

Journal Article

Science Sampler: Writing in Science—Beyond the lab report

“This isn’t English class!” but creative writing can be a useful tool for increasing comprehension of science topics, and writing skills are so necessary that they need to be practiced in all classes. Learn how the author developed a science wr...

Journal Article

Talking Bones

Bones reveal many facts about the animals from which they come, making them a great hands-on educational tool. For several years, the Saint Louis Zoo has offered a summer course on bones, where children in grades three to five learn how animals move,...

Journal Article

There Go Those Kids In Nature

The Kids In Nature (KIN) program is a partnership between Sedgwick Reserve and the UCSB Museum of Systematic and Ecology (MSE) to serve underrepresented elementary students in the surrounding Santa Barbara school districts. Read on to learn how coord...

Journal Article

Diving into Literature, Mathematics, and Science

Students dive into this integrated lesson structured around Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea....

Journal Article

Sticky Notes and Beyond

Successful learning environments thrive in organized classrooms. Organization aids the new teacher in everyday instruction, and also provides stability for the students. The following is a rundown of organizational tips that can replace at least some...

Journal Article

Everyone Needs a Mentor

Mentoring is a complex role that encompasses criticism and praise, pressure and nurturing, logistics, organization, and persistence. While many school districts have specific procedures and objectives for mentoring, the common focus is to provide the...

Journal Article

Scope on the Skies: The school year in space

This column focuses on astronomy throughout the year. This month’s issue features planet observations, eclipses, launches, and the International Space Station's (ISS) continued growth....

Journal Article

Chemistry by the Case

This article describes the structure and content of a one-semester course dealing with chemistry, science, and technology designed for nonscience majors. The course uses a hybrid of two active learning methodologies—problem-based team learning and ...

Journal Article

From Galileo to Snowflake Bentley: Using Literature to Teach Inquiry in Middle School Science

In this article, the authors create new possibilities for using award-winning literature to teach science. Paired texts, or two texts that are related conceptually, are used to integrate science and literacy standards. Literature clusters that addres...

Journal Article

Healthy Water, Healthy People

Learn to differentiate between accuracy and precision with this data-collection activity from the Healthy Water, Healthy People Water Quality Educators Guide....

Journal Article

After the Bell: Parents as teachers—how teachers can help parents promote science literacy

This article contains three simple, highly effective strategies that can be shared with parents to encourage students' more active learning, thinking, and processing of information....

Journal Article

Editor's Note (September 2002)

Science and Children’s editor shares thoughts regarding the current issue. Many of the articles relate to nature....

Journal Article

Tech Trek: Who solved the longitude problem?

This activity is a practical example of how a middle school science teacher can use a variety of media to conduct an in-depth exploration....

Journal Article

Computer-Assisted Instruction

Whether it takes the form of a tutorial, simulation, or educational game, computer-assisted instruction (CAI) is becoming a permanent part of science education. In this article, the author shares some of the current research that demonstrates the suc...

Journal Article

Picturing Physics: Using an image, students determine the distance from an object to the camera

To demonstrate the digital camera's use as a scientific instrument, this exercise challenges students' scientific creativity and provides an experience in the scientific research process. Students designed and carried out experiments to determine the...

Journal Article

Using POE Centers

Predict, Observe, and Explain (POE) centers can be used in the classroom to provide simple and focused activities that promote scientific inquiry skills. This article provides instructions for setting up a POE center, along with several suggestions f...

Journal Article

Energy: Fuel for Thought

Energy is what makes things move, light up, and radiate warmth—energy makes things happen and makes our lives easier, too. But despite the importance of energy to every aspect of our lives, many Americans are not adequately armed with the basic ene...

Journal Article

Refocusing Natural Resource Management

Achieving scientific literacy requires students to understand how science is applied in the real world. A capstone class at Virginia Tech focuses on the role science and scientists play in the process of natural resource management. As a result, stud...

Journal Article

The Case Study: Twixt Fact and Fiction

What shall it be, a real case connected to the real world with blood, sweat, and tears or a fantasy, a twice-told tale by a spinner of yarns around a campfire on a summer night? When a teacher sits down to write a case, he is lured by the former and ...

Journal Article

Snail Trails

Sharpen students' experimental design and observation skills with the help of gastropods. This article describes a five-day activity that incorporates guided and inquiry-based learning. Students spend some time observing the snails, then design and c...

Journal Article

Says Who? Students apply their critical-analysis skills to fight town hall

Biology students critique and challenge a public health proposal to limit citizen exposure to environmental toxins. They won the challenge and learned that while they are only in high school, their abilities to analyze and criticize a public documen...

Journal Article

An Environmental Journey

Captivating young children is at the heart of teaching, making it fun and challenging. Rogoff (1990) argued that children learn how to think and act in various settings mostly through informal apprenticeships in everyday settings that include rich, s...

Journal Article

The Truth About Wolves

Are wolves actually “wicked” and do they eat people? Of course not, but folktales like Little Red Riding Hood perpetuate the misconceptions surrounding the endangered gray wolf. To dispel these misconceptions, this two-week unit on wolves weaves...

Journal Article

Science Sampler: Setting the scene for summer

Students are much more likely to remember science concepts when they are presented in an entertaining way. Learn how the author uses a science play to reinforce concepts presented in the unit on genetics and mutations....

Journal Article

A Universal Idea: Teaching planet classification using the learning cycle

Learning cycle investigations allow science students to model the activities of real scientists. Using the Internet in this learning cycle-based activity allows students to collect accurate and current data about the planets. Students analyze this da...

Journal Article

Scope on the Skies: Where have all the planets gone?

This column focuses on astronomy throughout the year. In this month’s issue, learn how the orbital motion of the Earth causes a shift in the direction we look to see the planets....

Journal Article

Idea Bank: Mystery Objects

The Idea Bank provides tips and techniques for creative teaching, in about 1,000 words. In this month’s Idea Bank find a collection of activities to launch the academic year that generate student interest and motivation....

Journal Article

Science Sampler: Science Survivor

In this article, learn how the "Science Survivor" lesson was applied to the problem of students not doing their homework....

Journal Article

Every Drop Counts: Students develop public service announcements on the importance of water conservation

Students research local water resource issues and translate this acquired knowledge into public service announcements (PSAs) on the importance of water conservation. This project provides a meaningful context for student learning and an opportunity f...

Journal Article

Editor's Corner: Wrapping Up One year While Anticipating the Next

The Science Teacher’s editor shares thoughts on the past year and welcomes a new staff to The Science Teacher....

Journal Article

Bird's the Word: By raising chicks, students study animals in the laboratory

Raising chicks is effective and efficient because the experiment is applied science in action, and the animals are ethically disposed of when the experiment is finished. This experiment provides ample opportunity for students to learn about animals i...