Daily Bellringers for Middle School Science

What are Daily Bellringers?

Daily Bellringers or Do Nows are quick 2-5 minute assignments that students begin as soon as the bell rings every day.

Why use Bellringers?

Some schools require daily bellringers for all classes, but, even if your school doesn’t require one, they’re still a great idea.  Here are some reasons I love them:

• Daily bellringers get your students settled, focused, and working immediately which helps your classroom management.
• Daily bellringers give you a few minutes to take attendance and check in with students returning from absences, etc.
• Bellringers are great for fast and effective formative assessments.

What are great daily bellringers for middle school science?

For middle school science, daily bellringers can take any form. Some general categories are:

• Content related review
  • formative quiz on yesterday’s activity or homework
  • review vocab or concepts with think-pair-share, pixel art, Boom cards, I have, Who has or task cards
• Content related preparation
  • picture walk – based on these photos around the room (or on the projector), ask students to form hypotheses about a concept
  • Assemble materials for a lab
  • Read background information for a lab
  • Highlight new vocabulary words in a handout
  • Examine phenomena in the form of photos, demonstrations, videos, or models related to new lesson.
• Random
  • Today in Science – Write a response to a prompt based on a historically significant event in science on today’s date.
• Team Building and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)
  • Rock, Paper, Scissors championship
  • Find a partner and share what you did this weekend, or what costume you’re going to wear for Halloween, or what your favorite tv show is, etc.
  • Arrange yourself in height order (or birthday order, etc.) without talking.
  • 4 corners – go to this corner of the room if you prefer McDonalds, this corner if you prefer Wendy’s, this corner if you prefer Subway, and this corner if you prefer Burger King. Try it with Coke, Pepsi, Sprite, and iced tea. Or The Office, Walking Dead, Parks and Rec, and Stranger Things. The possibilities are virtually endless.
  • Two truths and a lie
• STEAM based
  • What’s in the mystery tube?
  • Work with your table to build a card tower in 5 minutes.
  • Write directions for making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
  • Logic puzzles.
  • Write a meme to go with this photograph.

How do you start your class period to get students ready to rock ‘n roll?