Resources for Teaching Science

This resource includes the information for attending a Planetarium show at the Saint Louis Science Center. This planetarium has a show currently being shown called "The Little Star that Could." The trailer for this video can be found at the site listed. I have attended many educational shows at several different locations, but none seem to ever compare to the ones shown at the Saint Louis Science Center Planetarium. The format of the presentation really resonates with the observers and leaves a lasting impression. I would invite my class to go on a field trip to this planetarium after a lesson on the solar system.

The Live Sky Tonight show at the Saint Louis Science Center could be an incredibly fun experience for students who are studying the night sky at home! In cooperation with creating some sort of sky map at home or at school using the internet as well as visual observations, both or either, the students could compare their own work with that displayed at the planetarium! This resource would serve as particularly helpful for visual learners who may benefit from this immersive model, and it might also encourage those who had not been as engaged in star mapping before to become more involved after the experience!

The Children's Creativity Museum has a range of exploratory experiences for children throughout their site, their coding workshop field-trip is exploratory in a whole new manner. Children will experience a coding workshop that is structured to engage and entertain them, while also providing actual coding skills and knowledge that can be applied in other scenarios outside the workshop itself.I envision the field trip going along with coding that we do in class, possibly in conjunction with a school-wide "Hour of Code" via Khan Academy, or something similar.

This game provides some visual assistance and practice when remembering where the bones in the body are located, as well as their names. I selected this resource because the game is very simple, there are no advertisements, no additional frills- it is simply a visual review of the skeletal system. I see this review game being used as something students can play together when they have completed their work when we are covering this topic specifically.

I love the Science Court video series! I saw them once while in an observation and really enjoyed the humor and interactive aspects of each video. This particular video is on living things and could go well in conjunction with a field trip or exploration of the human body. I selected the resource because of my prior knowledge and experience with it, and believe that when used correctly it could be beneficial in introducing broad concepts and getting students engaged and questioning the world around them. I envision this particular resource being used simultaneously with a series of hands on and instructional activities. I think with this sort of video series it can be easy to fall into a sort of pattern where there is little moving around and discussion, but this video series in particular has the potential to be used in much more full and enjoyable ways.

Pocket Universe resembles many stargazing apps in it's layout, hi-def images of all the space you could ever want, but in addition to that Pocket Universe has animated planets and a customization tool for star maps. It's designed for browsing, but also for educational purposes, as it's ability to review astronomical news is built right in next to tours of planets. Pocket Universe, as a resource could provide hands-off student directed instruction extremely easily. This allows students to explore astronomy on their own, without the concern of incorrect or unknown material. I envision this app being cycled through as an activity for students to utilize after their work is finished, as well as possibly being the basis for small group projects- especially those that center around specific planets or astronomical events/news.

Pocket Universe resembles many stargazing apps in it's layout, hi-def images of all the space you could ever want, but in addition to that Pocket Universe has animated planets and a customization tool for star maps. It's designed for browsing, but also for educational purposes, as it's ability to review astronomical news is built right in next to tours of planets. Pocket Universe, as a resource could provide hands-off student directed instruction extremely easily. This allows students to explore astronomy on their own, without the concern of incorrect or unknown material. I envision this app being cycled through as an activity for students to utilize after their work is finished, as well as possibly being the basis for small group projects- especially those that center around specific planets or astronomical events/news.

PBS's lesson on gravity is somewhat of a classic, dropping two objects of different weight from the same height. This lesson utilizes both hands-on experiments, videos, prediction, and a variety of other ways for students to stay engaged and involved in the lesson. Throughout the lesson students predict what may or may not happen to their own experiments, to those done on the moon, and comparatively between the two differing atmospheres. The resource is specifically valuable to me due to it's consistent student directed and inquiry-based nature, examples of higher order thinking questions can be found throughout the lesson. I can see this resource being used in the classroom during an introduction lesson to the concept of gravity, possibly taking place in multiple parts throughout a week or a unit.

This "app inventor app" designed by MIT allows students to harness the process of app making in an app itself. The MIT App Inventor provides six-week training courses, teacher supports, and educational challenges! I see coding, programming, etc. becoming a very large part of our education world very soon, and if it's not, it should be! Providing my students with the knowledge and experience they need to be technologically literate is one of the most useful tools I can send them into the future with! I envision this resource being used specifically as a lesson in the classroom, or a class project- or, alternatively this resource could be used as an additional activity for students to tackle when they are finished with their work (thus allowing them educational screen time.)

This field trip has an array of educational experiences, including sensory activities and visual real life connections to both their own bodies and the biological processes they experience on a daily basis. I selected the You Exhibit from the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry for multiple reasons; because of the overarching relevance of the concept in multiple grade levels (many grades could attend together), the independence and personality that can be found within the exhibit that encourages students to look at how they're own actions affect they're biological home, and the "Google Field Trip Days" opportunities that allow a school with 51% reduced lunch to attend the museum for free ( including transportation, lunch, and museum entry.) Assuming this may be the status of the school I teach at, this could create a relatively inexpensive to free field trip opportunity for my class/school.

Many people think that heavier objects will fall faster than lighter ones. This experiment gives students a chance to test that theory. They can drop objects from various heights and record their results on a teacher-created worksheet. This activity would be enjoyable for the students to predict which items will fall faster than another.

This is an experiment that would give students a chance to test their theory on how fast one object will fall in comparison to the other when each object weighs a different amount. This link provides a worksheet that students can use to rank the objects in the order (from slowest to fastest) in which they think they will fall to the ground when dropped. Students will be instructed to explain their reasoning. I would encourage students to first come up with their own individual theories before collaborating with partners or groups. Then the students would have the chance to test their theories (with a partner or in a group). I will be sure to tell the students that in order for the test to be effective, each object must be dropped from the same height at the same time. After performing this experiment and recording their results, I would have students discuss and explain their thoughts and reasoning based off of the results. I like this experiment because it allows students to come up with their own theories and reasoning while collaborating and working with others. It would be interesting to hear some of the theories that the students would come up with along with their reasoning behind those theories.

This is an interactive exploratory app for kids to learn about the human body. Instead of offering lectures, this app allows kids to go into different parts of the human body, explore, play and observe. It offers many different activities that teach children how each of the different parts in the body work and it explains some of the functions and processes that take place within the human body. One of the activities included is the exploration of a working model of the body, as every part is interactive: the heart beats, guts gurgle, lungs breathe, the skin feels, and eyes see. I think this would be a fun interactive online activity to do in the classroom with the students. It would be interesting to have a class discussion over how the students believe each body part functions and what they think it is used for. Then we could explore the human body through this app and find out more about it. I think creating a KWL chart would work perfectly when using this app in the classroom. Although this would be a great app to use in the classroom, it would also serve as a great resource to use at home as it is designed for kids to discover what we're made of and how we work!

I think this would be a great extension activity following a lesson over the phases of the moon as students will be showing their understanding of these phases using Oreo cookies. Each student is given 8 split Oreo cookies and one plate with the phases of the moon on the bottom of the plate. Students will use their spoon to move the cream off the cookie to model the correct phase of the moon. After completing eight correct moon phases with their cookies, the student will label each phase of the moon with the correct name strip which is provided. Once the student has correctly labeled the 'moons', they may eat the cookies and take the plate home. This is a great way to check and make sure students have an understanding of this material. It also makes it fun for the students as they are able to finish the assignment by eating their cookies!

"Two similar plants are observed as one gets regular water and the other does not." This science lesson and activity can benefit students in so many ways. Students will be observing and making comparisons among two plants as one plant receives water and the other does not. Throughout this week-long project, the students will be coming up with their own theories about what will happen to each of these plants. Along with this, they will be comparing and contrasting their observations and the final results. I believe that students would love an activity like this, and it would be extremely beneficial to them as they learn how living things change and depend on their environment to satisfy their basic needs.

"Learn how to keep yourself healthy by discovering how different exercises such as walking and running can affect your heart rate. Ruby's heart rate will change as you make her sleep, sit, walk & run, watch how her body reacts to the different activities." I think this online interactive activity would be great to use in the classroom! It teaches students about the circulatory system, how the heart works as it pumps blood around the body, why blood goes to the lungs to pick up oxygen and what important roles arteries and veins have in the process. This activity will teach students the importance of keeping healthy and it also helps them understand how the human heart reacts to different activities.

This activity combines science with visual arts as the students learn about animal habitats and then construct their own model of an animal habitat. The students will be assigned and given an animal (a small beanie baby), a shoebox to use as the habitat, and other materials to use to build the habitat. I believe that this would serve as a great extension activity to the zoo field trip I previously mentioned. This activity requires the students to use both their background knowledge and what they have learned or observed about these animals and their habitats. I feel that students would enjoy this assignment as it allows them to use their creativity.

"How do you get your food? How would your eating habits change if you didn't have a microwave? Would it change if you had to grow and prepare all your own food? Why?" I think this is a wonderful idea for a field trip as it would get students involved and excited to learn more about animals and their habitats. A trip to the zoo may seem like a simple class field trip, but many kids have not had the opportunity to go to a zoo and see the many different kinds of animals. I think this would be a great learning experience for students as they are able to observe the animals first-hand and take notes on what they notice about the animals in their habitats.

"Shadow puppets offer a great way of investigate light and shadows. It also links to literacy, storytelling and design technology. Try out this cross-curricular activity." This activity is a great way to demonstrate to students how light travels as a wave, showing them that when you put a shadow puppet in between the lamp and the wall, the puppet blocks some of the light waves. For this activity, I would have sample shadow puppets made along with a script to go with the characters. I would allow volunteers to work the shadow puppets as I read the script aloud. To boost the creativity of this activity, I would allow students to create shadow puppets of their choice. I think this would serve as a great extension activity to a lesson about light and shadows especially because it gets students engaged as it requires their involvement. To make sure students fully understand and grasp the relationship between the light and the shadow puppets, I would make sure that each student has a chance to use their shadow puppet on the "stage."

"If you're looking for a fantastic way to end your spring plant/botany unit, try this fun activity from Ms. Lopez of Coloring Outside The Lines that will have your kiddos snacking through the parts of a plant!" This lesson/activity could tie a unit on plants with healthy eating unit! I would first make a diagram with the students labeling the different parts of the plant to activate their background knowledge. After that, I would go through my different foods I had out and ask the students what part of the plant they thought it was. They would attach their food to their worksheet and once they were done we could eat the different parts of the plant! I think younger students would love this activity!

I found this lesson to be an extremely fun way to get my students involved and excited to learn about what our blood contains. I remember learning this material in 9th grade, but this is a very great way to just cover the true basics of the concept. The fact that it provides a hands on, sensory motor activity totally grabbed my attention. I loved that the prep time was short and the materials to purchase we cheap and some were reusable. Each material represents the red and white blood cells, the plasma, and the platelets. In the classroom for younger students, I would probably read from a book during a read aloud and then I would do a vocabulary introduction and definition game, and finally, I would provide this activity to help give a visible example and assist with building a better understanding of what blood is made out of.

For this activity, you would use a sensory tub to create "blood" by using red water beads for red blood cells, white ping pong balls for white blood cells, and felt pieces for platelets. This activity is great for visual learners so they can "see" what blood really looks like and what it is made of. Having students put their hands in and feel the different pieces of blood gives them experience learning. Once you are finished with the tub, I would have students draw what they saw and label the different objects as red/white blood cells and platelets. Then look at a magnified picture of real blood and compare!

What I like about this lesson is that it can be used cross-cirricularly if your younger class does not allot enough time for a science lesson. Using a book as the main idea of your lesson is a great engagement tool for younger students. This lesson on wind, energy, and renewable resources is fun and lists a lot of extension activities like building a windmill and figuring out the problem/solution using writing skills.

"Learn about the forces of motion and gravity with a new painting technique by exchanging the paint brush for a swinging pendulum. Engage your child with the combination of art and science for a STEAM learning activity. STEAM is the combination of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math." I found this experiment/activity fun and interesting because it combines science and art. During a unit on forces of motion and gravity, you would discuss how a pendulum works. I would do this activity outside and use the washable chalklike paint they give a recipe for on the site. I would have students predict what kind of a pattern they think the paint will go in based off how the pendulum swings with no paint. Once we have done the first paint pattern, we would try to see if different patterns would occur if you pull it back further. The results are very interesting!