Activities for Middle School Science Classrooms for March

Ah! It’s almost spring! I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some sunny days, budding trees, and melting snow! In my classroom, I like to change things up a bit, sort of do some spring cleaning. Here are some resources you can use in your middle school science classroom this March.

Saint Patrick’s Day animated banners

I use these for my Google Classroom header, for my daily checklist slides, my Google Form banners, and basically anything digital I send out to the kids. Lots of variety here – even some spring time banners.

Rainbow Science – the Physics of Light Waves

Everyone loves a rainbow, but do your  middle school students know how they are formed? This is not one of those primary grades rainbow activities, and if you’re looking for an arts and crafts activity, this isn’t for you. This is a study in the physics of light waves with an in depth, middle school appropriate, exploration of refraction, reflection, and dispersion as well as frequency and wavelength. This resources is a Google Slides Drag and Drop activity.

The Science of the Seasons

I’m perennially shocked by how many students (and adults) think that summer is warmer because the earth is closer to the sun. My response is always, “Think about the southern hemisphere. They are having winter now.” Perplexed faces, interesting dialogue, a little phenomenon that we can dig into a few times a year. I like to do this activity on the equinoxes because I love a little egg balancing trick (which, of course, you can do any day of the year). This resource is a Google Slides Drag and Drop activity. It includes a graphing activity using Google Sheets to compare the amount of sunlight throughout the year at different latitudes.

Women in Science

March is Women in History Month, and here’s a middle school activity to celebrate women in science this March. I think we owe it to  our students to remind them that science isn’t just for men. This resource includes pics and short bios of a dozen women in science and some guided questions. I use it as a picture walk and hang the photos around my room but it could easily be adapted for remote students as well.

Spring Flowers Genetics Activity

Review and reinforce dominance and recessiveness with this spring flower activity. Toss a coin to see if your spring flower inherited the dominant or recessive phenotype for 9 different traits. Use digital drawing tools to draw your flower. Drag and drop features allow students to record their data easily.

St Patrick’s Day Customizable Magic Pixel Worksheet

This magic pixel worksheet can be customized for your own questions and answers. So if you’re currently teaching the rock cycle, you can use rock cycle questions.

What kinds of activities do you use in your middle school science classroom for March?