“But when will we have to know this?” Every middle school teacher has heard this lament. It’s hard to make Newton’s Laws or simple machines exciting, and it’s hard for a 7th or 8th grade student to engage with heavy dry material. But when you can make the science engaging or relevant, kids will digContinue reading “The Science of Summer Sports”
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Citizen Science with Middle Schoolers
Science isn’t just a subject in school. It’s a body of knowledge studied by people all over the world. Your middle schoolers can participate in real science collaboration by collecting data and contributing to citizen science. Participating in citizen science with middle schoolers gives them a sense of how big the scientific community is andContinue reading “Citizen Science with Middle Schoolers”
Virtual Visit to the Statue of Liberty
What is an Interactive Virtual Field Trip There are times when talking about something just isn’t good enough. Great examples are glaciers, deserts and canyons. There are still plenty of places I want my middle school science students to “visit” that just aren’t possible. An interactive virtual field trip allows students to learn about aContinue reading “Virtual Visit to the Statue of Liberty”
How the Earth Day Escape Room works
The Earth Day Escape Room helps students learn about the history of Earth Day and how they can help solve some of the environmental problems facing the Earth. Every year, Earthday.org chooses a new theme for Earth Day. The theme for 2022 is “Invest in Our Planet.” The Earth Day Escape room this year isContinue reading “How the Earth Day Escape Room works”
Think, Pair, Share with Middle School Science
What is Think-Pair-Share Think-Pair-Share is a simple three step process. Given a question (“How many times should we repeat this experiment to confirm our data?” “Which planet would you most want to travel to and why?”), students stop for a minute and compose their answer. Then, they find (or are assigned) a partner, and shareContinue reading “Think, Pair, Share with Middle School Science”
Walk Up Songs
I love baseball. I love the pomp of opening day and the sounds of the crowd. And I love listening to the song that a player has chosen as his walk up song. In the 1989 movie “Major League,” Ricky Vaughn walked onto the field to “Wild Thing.” Braves Chipper Jones walked in to “CrazyContinue reading “Walk Up Songs”
Death Valley National Park Virtual Field Trip
What is an Interactive Virtual Field Trip There are times when talking about something just isn’t good enough. Great examples are glaciers, deserts and canyons. There are still plenty of places I want my middle school science students to “visit” that just aren’t possible. An interactive virtual field trip allows students to learn about aContinue reading “Death Valley National Park Virtual Field Trip”
Why Bellringers?
What is a bellringer? A bellringer is an activity or small assignment that students complete when they first enter a classroom. They can be writing assignments, quick formative assessments, or partnered activities. Why should middle school teachers use bellringers? Bellringers gives students an opportunity to transition from one task (or class) to another and mentallyContinue reading “Why Bellringers?”
Index of Spring Resources
Celebrate the spring equinox with resources for your middle school science classroom: The Science of the Seasons – 9 interactive slides for students to drag and drop information about how the revolution of the earth produces seasons. This activity works for earth science units as well as aspecial lesson that you can use to introduceContinue reading “Index of Spring Resources”
Virtual Field Trip to the Tropical Rainforest
What is an Interactive Virtual Field Trip There are times when talking about something just isn’t good enough. Great examples are glaciers, deserts and canyons. There are still plenty of places I want my middle school science students to “visit” that just aren’t possible. An interactive virtual field trip allows students to learn about aContinue reading “Virtual Field Trip to the Tropical Rainforest”