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  • Generating Excitement

    Journal Article |

    Students build their own generator to study the transfer of energy. The generator activity allows students to observe electrical effects without using a battery or power supply.

  • Editor's Note (April/May 2006)

    Journal Article |

    Children's passion for animals is not surprising. Animals can calm and heal both children and adults. Critters--whether furry, cute, large, small, or even a little creepy--inspire and entertain us. Despite their…

  • Science Shorts: The Reasons for the Seasons

    Journal Article |

    Ask a fifth-grader why he or she believes Earth has seasons, and the answer usually involves a mistaken notion about Earth’s distance from the Sun. However, the construction of a three-dimensional model of the changing…

  • The Early Years: Rocks Tell a Story

    Journal Article |

    Sedimentary rocks, formed by an accumulation of sediments (tiny pieces of rocks or minerals) in a water environment, tell a story that many students may be familiar with. They may have visited areas where water or wind…

  • After the Bell: Water harvesting, part 1

    Journal Article |

    The current drought conditions in the United States are correlated with inadequate infrastructure, a drop in the levels of the Great Lakes, desertification, and migration. Taken individually, none of these problems may…

  • Scope on Safety: Plant the seeds of knowledge

    Journal Article |

    Why use plants in your science laboratory? First of all, they are an excellent way to implement hands-on, inquiry-based science at the middle school level. Second, plants help students better understand the role of…

  • Close, Closer, Closest

    Journal Article |

    As educators, we are always deciding what experiences we want to give students in order to achieve our goals of developing science process skills. One of the best ways of teaching about observation is described here.…

  • Learning Lessons from Estuaries

    Journal Article |

    There is something that draws us all to the sea and especially to the fertile estuaries that nuzzle up to its shores. An estuary serves as both a nursery and a grave for sea creatures. This article describes annual…

  • Severe Weather

    Journal Article |

    Educating the public about safety issues related to severe weather is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) mission. This month's insert, Severe Weather, has been created by NOAA to help…

  • Research and Teaching: Contemporary Student Attitudes About Mathematics, Science, and Technology

    Journal Article |

    To more effectively educate their students at Drury College in Springfield, Missouri, the authors developed a new, integrated science and mathematics curriculum (Deeds 1999) that emphasizes the nature of science and how…

  • Idea Bank: Mitosis Flipbook

    Journal Article |

    The Idea Bank provides tips and techniques for creative teaching, in about 1,000 words. In this month’s Idea Bank, the activity shows students that mitosis is a cycle.

  • Idea Bank: Getting Up to Speed

    Journal Article |

    The Idea Bank provides tips and techniques for creative teaching, in about 1,000 words. In this month’s Idea Bank, the author discusses the common high school physics activity of calculating walking speed. The author…

  • Acting Out Science

    Journal Article |

    Role-playing is an effective summative activity that aids student learning and integrates science information and concepts. The authors describe the use of a role-play activity. Senate hearings centered around the theme…

  • Idea Bank: Climate Change Inquiries

    Journal Article |

    How can students engage in authentic inquiry on global climate change if they are not able to do the actual experiments? Many questions about climate change emerge over large areas and long periods of time. The good…

  • Idea Bank: Tips and techniques for creative teaching

    Journal Article |

    The Idea Bank provides tips and techniques for creative teaching, in about 1,000 words. In this month’s Idea Bank the focus is on density slicing—an important analytical tool that allows students to do project work in a…

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