All Resources

Journal Article

Exploring Local Environmental Issues to Engage Students in Real-World STEM Problem Solving and Discovery

One of the most cost-effective ways to engage students in real-world STEM is by turning to local issues of emerging relevance through current events. In this middle school lesson, local current STEM events are used to encourage students to explore th...

By Rebecca Grella

English Language Learners Environmental Science NGSS Science and Engineering Practices STEM

Journal Article

Flipped Science Classrooms and the Cornell Note-Taking Method

The flipped classroom is a relatively new innovation in teaching middle school science; however, students often struggle with taking notes that provide metacognitive cues and reinforce understanding. This paper describes the structure of a flipped mi...

By Edward Miller, Angela Kelly

Middle School Instructional Materials Interdisciplinary Teacher Preparation Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Considering Multiple Perspectives and Scientific Consensus: Information Literacy in the Science Classroom

Many young people learn about scientific topics online, yet middle school students have trouble identifying where scientific information comes from and what characterizes good sources of scientific information online. In this article, we discuss five...

By Sara Montgomery, Angela Kohnen, Christine Wusylko

Middle School Interdisciplinary Literacy Multicultural

NSTA Kids

Next Time You See a Snowflake

Click here to view video of Next Time You See a Snowflake This book will have you seeing snowflakes in a whole new way. You’ll learn about the science of snowflakes – how they form, why they are six-sided, what conditions are necessary for the...

Postsecondary Early Childhood Elementary Informal Education Middle School Pre-service Teachers Preschool General Science Mathematics STEM 5E Crosscutting Concepts Disciplinary Core Ideas Multilingual Learners Instructional Materials Inquiry NGSS Phenomena Teaching Strategies Three-Dimensional Learning Interdisciplinary Literacy New Science Teachers Sensemaking

NSTA Kids

Next Time You See a Snowflake (Hardcover)

Click here to view video of Next Time You See a Snowflake This book will have you seeing snowflakes in a whole new way. You’ll learn about the science of snowflakes – how they form, why they are six-sided, what conditions are necessary for the...

Web Seminar

NSTA's Scaling Up For STEM Fellowship 2025: Your Guide to the Benefits of the Program and a Successful Application

Join us on Thursday, November 21, 2024, from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM ET, to learn about NSTA'...

High School Middle School STEM

Journal

Journal of College Science Teaching—September/October 2024

Journal Article

Amy DeJong, Food Scientist

Career of the Month...

By Luba Vangelova

Careers

Journal Article

An Author’s Mission to Include Female Scientists and Inventors of the 19th Century in the Historical Record

Right to the Source...

By Kelsey Beeghly

High School Inclusion News

Journal Article

Teaching Physics as the Awesome Rules of Nature

Focus on Physics...

By Paul G. Hewitt

High School Pedagogy Physical Science Physics Teacher Preparation Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

The Art of Critical Ignoring

Fact or Faux?...

By Sam Wineburg

Literacy News

Journal Article

Equitable Science for a Socially Just Classroom

Editor's Corner September/October 2024...

By Brooke Whitworth

High School Equity Social Justice

Journal Article

Finding Instructional Resources for Teaching about Scientific Misinformation

A classroom guide to resources about misinformation...

By Andy Zucker

High School Inquiry Literacy

Journal Article

Reimagining Science as a Natural Tool for Connection: A Restorative Approach

This paper explores a restorative-type intervention with a high school student who is suspended from school for repeated threats to other students. Throughout the paper, we explore the use of restorative practices in the context of science teaching. ...

By Zachary Schafer

Advocacy Interdisciplinary Social Justice

Journal Article

“Black is Beautiful”: A Culturally Relevant/Responsive High School Biology Lesson

This biology lesson uses the science of central dogma to “critique and question the politics of representation that systematically devalue[s] Blackness” (hooks, 1995, p.131). Students’ understanding of protein synthesis is extended in discussin...

By Eddie Taylor

High School Biology Equity Inclusion Interdisciplinary Life Science

Journal Article

Making chemistry relevant to Indigenous Peoples: An Inuit case study

The ability of our northern Indigenous peoples (Inuit, Iñupiaq, and Yupik) to survive and thrive in the Arctic depends significantly upon underlying chemistry and chemical principles. Here, we explore four of these connections, then show how the Ind...

By Chaim Andersen, Rosalina Naqitarvik, Jennifer Winters, Erica Taylor, Geoffrey Rayner-Canham

High School Chemistry Inquiry Multicultural Social Justice

Journal Article

Using Citizen Science to Learn About Climate Change: Investigating the Phenomenon of Increasing Carbon Dioxide Levels Using Fossil Ginkgo Leaves

Science classrooms are most engaging when students have the opportunity to engage in the practices of scientists. Unfortunately, many attempts to incorporate science into the classroom are disconnected from real scientific practice. When classroom sc...

By Ari Geary-Teeter, Thomas McKenna

High School Citizen Science Climate Change Interdisciplinary Social Justice Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Solar Energy and the Midwestern Farms: Utilizing Place-based Socio-Scientific Issues to Foster Students’ Literacy

Researchers have long called for integrating socio-scientific issues (SSIs) in science instruction, recognizing the importance of connecting science learning with societal challenges. Our proposed three-day unit design addresses SSIs in secondary sch...

By Mutiara Syifa, Fuyi Feng, Chia-Hsin Yin, Lin Ding

Earth & Space Science Inquiry Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Cultivating Teachers’ Indigenous Knowledge through Explorations of Milkweed and Phenology

Providing more equitable pedagogies to all students, including those who are traditionally underrepresented, is a high priority of science education. In this paper, we outline how we coupled Indigenous Ways of Knowing with investigations about plant ...

By Hillary Barron, Emily Mohl, Michele Koomen

High School Biology Inquiry Multicultural Pedagogy

Journal Article

Determining the Relative Mass Between the Nucleus and Electrons Modeling Lab

Freshman general science students already know the atom is composed of a nucleus containing protons and neutrons with electron circling the nucleus. This hands-on modeling lab allows students to visualize and discover the electrons mass is far less a...

By Gary Schlitz

High School Chemistry Labs

Journal Article

Students with Visual Impairments can be Successful in Science

One of the goals of the Next Generation Science Standards is to make science accessible to all students, which includes students with disabilities such as blindness and visual impairments (BVI). However, educators of students with BVI have limited ex...

By Rhea Miles

High School Disabilities Equity Inclusion Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Designing Standards-Aligned Instructional Materials that Connect to Students’ Interests and Community Priorities

All students should have opportunities to investigate issues related to their personal interests and community priorities. Teachers value these goals but often lack materials that follow students' meaningful questions about phenomena while meeting st...

By William Penuel, Kate Henson, Zoë Bracey, Nicole Vick, Ann Rivet

High School Disciplinary Core Ideas NGSS Science and Engineering Practices Three-Dimensional Learning

Journal Article

Uncovering Earth’s History, One Sample at a Time

Teaching Through Trade Books...

By Christine Anne Royce

Early Education Early Childhood Elementary Instructional Materials Interdisciplinary Literacy Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Activating Learning with Phenomena

By Patrick Brown

Phenomena Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Advocating for Science from Within the Classroom

By Jessica Fries-Gaither

Kindergarten Elementary Advocacy Leadership Pedagogy Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Phenomena-driven Science Instruction

Editor's Note...

By Elizabeth Barrett-Zahn

Early Education Kindergarten Pre-K Early Childhood Elementary Phenomena

Journal Article

Why is that Pole Wet on One Side and Not the Other?: Transitioning to Phenomenon and Problem-Driven Teaching in Kindergarten

This paper discusses two teachers’ experiences implementing a phenomenon and problem-driven curriculum for the first time in two kindergarten classes. It describes how teachers shifted their teaching to support students’ collaborative sensemaking...

By Mary Short, Nancy Costanzo, Allison Fleming

NGSS Phenomena Physics

Journal Article

Making Space for Local Science: Strategies for teachers to find and adapt phenomena in science units

This article discusses strategies for teachers to find and use local phenomena in designed science units. The Next Generation Science Standards promote grounding learning in observable phenomena that students investigate using science practices. Howe...

By Katahdin A Whitt, Becky Hallowell

Earth & Space Science Phenomena Teaching Strategies

Journal Article

Dog Days At School: Using Authenticity to Guide cross-curricular Learning in Kindergarten

The presented unit explores the often-overlooked potential of integrating science, social studies, math, and ELA through the lens of a kindergarten unit centered around the creation of a dog park. Emphasizing collaborative decision-making and communi...

By Amanda Sanderman, Chelsie Byram

Interdisciplinary Life Science NGSS Three-Dimensional Learning

Journal Article

Learning to be an Ambitious Science Teacher

Since the release of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), students are expected to learn science according to the three-dimensions (DCI, SEP, CCC). In order for teachers to support the three-dimensional learning of their students, they need ...

By Alex Gerber, Heather Milo

Crosscutting Concepts Disciplinary Core Ideas Leadership NGSS Professional Learning Science and Engineering Practices Three-Dimensional Learning

Journal Article

Remarkable Adaptations

The emperor penguin is one of the most identifiable animals on earth. Its survival depends on a variety of factors, such as temperature and other environmental elements. In order to engage fifth-grade students in exploring the captivating phenomenon ...

By Robyn Yewell, Ron Gray

Inquiry Life Science Phenomena

Journal Article

Mapping in Two and Three Dimensions

Second graders used their own school-ground explorations, using journals and iPads for pictures and narrated videos, to create traditional, two-dimensional models of their school-grounds and all its natural and human-made features. These data collect...

By Jeffery Townsend, Connie Hodge, Sonja Yow, Whitney Cox

Crosscutting Concepts Interdisciplinary Three-Dimensional Learning