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Book Chapter |
The word adaptation, as used in everyday speech, refers to a choice that individuals make to adjust to a new environment. In biology, adaptation refers to changes in populations that result from natural selection. This…
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Bacteria: The Good, The Bad, and Getting Rid of the Ugly
Book Chapter |
Most students think about bacteria primarily in the context of disease. However, bacteria are the most numerous organisms on Earth, and only a fraction of them cause disease. The exploration in this chapter—growing…
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Book Chapter |
As mammals that live in the water, whales have been an enigma since the time of Darwin. In the past 20 years, biologists and paleontologists have uncovered a remarkably complete story of whales’ transition from land to…
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Book Chapter |
Reading strategies can be important for helping students improve reading, but students need something more. They need to begin to view reading as an active search for meaning that is within their control. In this…
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How Do You Know That? Helping Students With Claims and Evidence
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Making claims (often called conclusions) and providing evidence are at the heart of the practice of science. Any simple activity that has students focus on making a claim and supporting it with evidence can be used as a…
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Book Chapter |
This chapter has two main goals. The first goal is to ease students into the reading procedures described in Chapter 1 by using two reading passages—“On Your Mark!” allows students to practice using the codes to show…
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Book Chapter |
The lesson in this chapter is designed to open a unit on cells and cell parts. In the exploration, students will view plant, animal, and bacteria cells through a microscope while looking for the answers to their own…
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Book Chapter |
The basic ideas in this chapter are simple. The cell duplicates important parts (including DNA) and then divides in half. Students often find the topic of cell division difficult because they become bogged down in the…
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Book Chapter |
All animals have some form of a skeleton. Fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals have an internal skeleton, made of bones or cartilage. Arthropods have a stiff internal skeleton. Worms and other soft-bodied…
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Book Chapter |
The topic of plants does not excite many middle school students. Learning about the inner workings of xylem and phloem feels far removed from any practical applications in their lives. This chapter uses a (true life!)…
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Book Chapter |
This chapter focuses on the relationship between genes and alcoholism. Examining this relationship can help students make wise choices about drinking, and it also can help them gain a wider perspective on genetics—a…
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Materials Repurposed: Find a Wealth of Free Resources at Your Local Recycling Center
Book Chapter |
By looking at the function and purpose of any piece of equipment, a creative teacher can find a suitable replacement for many premade science materials, sometimes from the most unlikely places. This chapter features a…
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Making Mendel’s Model Manageable
Book Chapter |
Genetics is often a fascinating but difficult subject for middle level students. They can see the results of genes in every organism, but trying to visualize what happens at the level of genes is challenging for…
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Looking Forward Into the 21st Century: Implications for the Science Leader
Book Chapter |
Science education and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education are often used interchangeably. As science educators in search of our place in STEM education, we face a professional identity…
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The Role of Leadership in Fostering Inquiry-Based Learning and Teaching
Book Chapter |
In this chapter, the author first address the concepts of inquiry and leadership presented in the National Science Education Standards (NRC 1996). Then presents examples of leaders who foster inquiry-based learning…
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