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  • Scale It!

    Book Chapter |

    When building a dollhouse or a model of a car or a cell, close attention to the details is crucial to making it look accurate and realistic. A consistent scaling factor for all details in the model is critical. In this…

  • Earth’s Shape and Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    It is not difficult to think of reasons why it is important for students to understand that a round globe represents our planet. After all, Earth is our home in space. Environmentalists remind us that it’s the only home…

  • The Promise of Professional Learning Communities

    Book Chapter |

    In this chapter, the authors discuss the origin and the characteristics of professional learning communities (PLCs) and summarize the research findings on the impact and results achieved by schools that are organized as…

  • "Late-Start Mondays": The Catalyst for Change in an Urban High School

    Book Chapter |

    At the high school level, the task of creating a whole-school community of practice is often monumental and requires tremendous energy to disrupt the status quo. The story that follows describes the process by which a…

  • Teaching Learning Collaborative: A Process for Supporting Professional Learning Communities

    Book Chapter |

    The teaching learning collaborative (TLC) is a unique professional development strategy that engages groups of teachers in collaborative planning and teaching of a science lesson, coaching and mentoring, and examining…

  • Building Professional Development Cadres

    Book Chapter |

    This chapter begins with a vignette based on several anecdotes that were relayed to the authors during their years working in the Los Angeles basin with a cadre of professional developers. This story sets the stage for…

  • Creating and Sustaining Science-Focused Professional Learning Communities Through Partnerships

    Book Chapter |

    In this chapter, the authors share selected components of The North Cascades and Olympic Science Partnership (NCOSP) model for professional learning communities (PLCs) and the impact those communities had on instruction…

  • Attributes of Content-Focused Professional Learning Communities That Lead to Meaningful Reflection and Collaboration Among Math and Science Teachers

    Book Chapter |

    After five years of developing and investigating professional learning communities (PLCs) in school districts in Arizona, the authors have uncovered attributes that differentiate high-performing PLCs from lower-…

  • The Role of Local and State Science Leaders in Developing Professional Learning Communities

    Book Chapter |

    This chapter tells two stories, both focused on the role of science leadership in developing the teacher leadership that is essential for creating and maintaining professional learning communities (PLCs). The first…

  • K20 Model: Creating Networks, Professional Learning Communities, and Communities of Practice That Increase Science Learning

    Book Chapter |

    The K20 Model develops professional learning communities (PLCs) and has been successful in district-wide and school initiatives across Oklahoma. It is based on four interrelated structures for engaging people in…

  • Distance Versus Time Graphs 1

    Book Chapter |

    This inquiry activity should be used before students learn about velocity and distance versus time graphs. Students will discover how the slope of a distance versus time graph is related to the speed of the object.

  • Acceleration and Mass

    Book Chapter |

    Although this lab is not an inquiry activity, it is very important in learning about acceleration and mass. It is a deeply held misconception among students that objects of different masses fall at different rates.…

  • Inertia

    Book Chapter |

    This lab is an inquiry activity to be used before discussing inertia. Out of necessity to explain the observation, a short discussion of inertia is included, but teachers should certainly spend more time making this…

  • Conservation of Momentum 1

    Book Chapter |

    This lab introduces students to the idea of recoil and how conservation of momentum can be used to explain it. Many people use action/reaction to explain recoil, but conservation of momentum can be used equally well.…

  • Conservation of Momentum 2

    Book Chapter |

    This inquiry activity should be performed after students have learned about momentum, but before they learn about conservation of momentum. Students will discover that when two objects push off each other, the momentum…

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