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  • Time-out for Science

    Journal Article |

    The purpose of the time-outs, which last from five to seven days, is to sharpen and assess students' process skills. One of the keys to successful time-outs is developing an interesting selection of assessment tasks.…

  • Living Off the Land

    Journal Article |

    Fourth-grade students at Cutchogue East Elementary School in Cutchogue, New York learned about dependence on natural resources for survival on a visit to Downs Farm Preserve at Fort Corchaug. This is a slice of…

  • Science Sampler: Alien Invaders! A board game about the threats posed by introduced species

    Journal Article |

    Alien Invaders!—loosely modeled after the game of Life, helps students to understand how introduced species can affect native species. This board game allows students to role-play native birds in a world of introduced…

  • Editor’s Roundtable: Share your passion for science

    Journal Article |

    We are not only teachers of science content, processes, and attitudes, but also teachers of writing and reading. The articles in this month’s issue of Science Scope contain numerous strategies to improve student…

  • The Confidence Game

    Journal Article |

    Students are usually quick to draw conclusions about their surroundings. Their generalizations, however, are often based on a single experience or even a story recounted by a friend. As we gain more experience in the…

  • Favorite Demonstration: A Simple Model of Hox Genes—Bone Morphology Demonstration

    Journal Article |

    Visual demonstrations of abstract scientific concepts are effective strategies for enhancing content retention (Shmaefsky 2004). The concepts associated with gene regulation of growth and development are particularly…

  • Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K–12 (books published in 2009)

    Journal Article |

    What makes an outstanding book for a young reader? Although it would be hard to create a rubric for every book, experienced teachers recognize them quickly. They fascinate and captivate with both their content and style…

  • Tricky Science

    Journal Article |

    Science demonstrations can be excellent tools for capturing students' attention. This "magic trick" involves Super Gel (sodium polyacrylate) and "disappearing" water. This inquiry-based activity is designed to stimulate…

  • Editor’s Corner: Science in Society

    Journal Article |

    There are many important reasons for students to learn science. It prepares them, as the next generation of workers, for careers in the ever-expanding science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. It…

  • Science Sampler: Field Journals—Bringing the past to life

    Journal Article |

    In this activity, students travel back in time as explorers to collect scientific information on plant and animal life during various geological eras. The author uses the book, The Deep Time Diaries as way to bring…

  • Comparing Crystals

    Journal Article |

    This standard lesson on identifying salt and sugar crystals expands into an opportunity for students to develop their observation, questioning, and modeling skills. Although sugar and salt may look similar, students…

  • A Virtual Circuits Lab

    Journal Article |

    The University of Colorado’s Physics Education Technology (PhET) website offers free, high-quality simulations of many physics experiments that can be used in the classroom. The Circuit Construction Kit, for example,…

  • Ask the Experts -- February 2006

    Journal Article |

    In this month's Ask the Experts column, the following questions are addressed, "Why does the Moon show phases when viewed from Earth, but Earth always looks the same from the Moon, with only the top half illuminated?"…

  • Research and Teaching: The Visionlearning Project

    Journal Article |

    Although the proliferation of teaching resources on the Internet is extensive, little is known about these materials’ use or utility. The Visionlearning project is a multiyear effort to design and evaluate web-based…

  • Dress for the Weather

    Journal Article |

    “If someone were traveling to our area for the first time during this time of year, what would you tell them to bring to wear? Why?” This question was used to engage students in a guided-inquiry unit about how climate…

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