Group items tagged

Free streaming video that shows the actual fossils from an ancient sea in the middle of Indiana. Put the mouse on highlighted sections of the rocks and a depiction of the fossil comes to life along with a brief summarization of what kind of fossil it is and how it lived. I really liked this program because it shows how different our world was millions of years ago, and the fact that the program animates whichever fossil you choose, brings the past to life. It would be a great resource to use when teaching biological evolution (3-LS4).

This resource contains a lesson plan for a fifth grade class. The lesson teaches about the affects people can have on water around them. It involves a five minute video, a hands-on activity, and even a song. I selected this particular resource because it fits the standard to-obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth's resources and environment (5-ESS3-1). This standard will be the focus of my lesson in this course. I really liked the way the lesson plan was written to engage students. I could possibly incorporate this resource, or parts of it, into the lesson plan that I will be writing in this course.

What I liked about this website was the fact that it has a section for teachers and parents, and also an interactive website for the young ones. It teaches the students about the importance of the environment, and how important it is to take care of it. There are games, videos, and create your own "EekoCreature". In the teacher section, it includes lesson plans for K-4. Each lesson plan includes an overview, objectives, subject area, other internet links, background, steps, several activities, and standards. I also liked the fact that it comes from a PBS website.

This is a video of a "weather rap" that reviews weather for kids by asking a question and pausing for students to come up with the answer. The answer then pops up on the screen so students know if they were correct or not. I would use this in my classroom as a review before a test for a fun way to help the students remember.

This is an episode of the Magic School Bus series that talks about the solar system. I chose this source because I like the way the information was presented, and because I think it will capture the kids' attention. I will show this video in class.

This set of 6 videos explores the science behind the "super" powers of speed, strengths, mass, immortality, flight, and invisibility. Geared for middle and high school level students, this resource could be used as the hook to introduce physics concepts.

Also includes assessment questions!

Here's a great Science lesson for students in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades. This lesson helps students learn about magnets. Storytelling, journaling and teaching from the heart all play a part to make this an effective Science lesson. _____________________________________________________________________ This lesson is taught by Mr. Rutherford. This lesson discusses magnets and allows students to participate in hands-on learning. Students create a journal allowing them to follow what they are learning as well as keep track of the data they are finding. I chose this resource because not only does it give a good idea on an effective science lesson, but it also encourages teachers to be effective as well. I think this lesson is effective because it allows students to become engaged in their own learning. Mr. Rutherford allowed his students to be in charge of their learning, which helps keep all students involved in the lesson. I would definitely teach this lesson in my class. All the students seemed to stay focused on the activity. I would use this lesson to help students learn more about magnetism and how think can effect the magnetism of an object.

This website has a great variety of lessons and activities for children in relation to astronomy. I like the Earth, Sun and Moon link under the Games section. There are also quizzes, facts, videos and much more to explore!

Gamestar Mechanic is my technology resource. This game, available for download and online, teaches kids how to create their own video games. There is a big teacher section online for the program with videos explaining how to use Gamestar Mechanic as well as a place for teachers who use the program to blog about their experiences and share lesson plans using this game. I would like to use this as a tool in problem solving where all my students could help create a "game" or for students to use during free time or inside recess. The pdf file and the ideas for lessons are very interesting and I think this can be used as a tool to open up student's to the many different sides of engineering and creating.

As you hold your phone up and point it towards the sky, Star Walk Kids follows your motions using the built-in gyroscope to match the map on your screen to the stars seen from your location. Cartoon-style interface and friendly voice of the narrator effortlessly guide you through the night sky. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The winner of 8 awards, Star Walk Kids is a great astronomy app for students! Kids can learn about planets, stars, and constellations. The app is informational and interactive and completely kid friendly with engaging graphics and colors. I love that this app speaks to the operator and helps to verbally label items, so that children will know how to pronounce a name. The most incredible part of this app, in my opinion, is that it is available in ten different languages. I know that if I had a non-English-speaking student in my class, I would be thankful to have an app that offered a comfortable language for that student. Throught the vitotechnology link, one can access the app's manual to better understand its features and how to operate it. This app does cost $2.99, but I believe that is a small price to pay for such a wonderful app. The following is a YouTube link to a review video that goes through some of the app's functions. This video might be nice to view in order to get a better feel of the app. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5d9zUbXsY6U

This website includes information on each planet, the sun, the moon, asteroids, comets, meteorites, explorations of space, telescopes, types of equipment etc... I would use this website for an activity where students learn about each planet, the universe and what is in the universe. I also like this website because it contains videos of the Mars space shuttle, telescopes, etc... I think that would be a useful tool for students who are visual, auditory and kinesthetic.

This site has a ton of neat ideas about space, the sun, earth, the complete solar system, technology used, and a site for parents and teachers. This is a site that kids could get on in the classroom during free time because it is kid friendly and would keep their attention. The different activities are labeled by "Explore" which contains facts, videos, and pictures, "Do" which has activities, books, and coloring pages, and "Play" that has a vast amount of games, puzzles, and quizzes all revolving around space. I think that students would stay engaged with this site and want to keep playing. Not only would they be playing games, but also learning about space

Look at plants & what is needed for photosynthesis. What is the chemical reaction & what does it look like? Where does it all occur within the leaf? I could see myself using this interactive learning video for a lesson in photosynthesis. The video reads out loud to students, giving them important information about photosynthesis and then stops periodically to let them drag items, match terms, etc. I would let students explore using this tool, and then bring everyone together for a whole class discussion on what they learned. This could accompany a larger unit on plants, in which we could grow plants from seeds in a windowsill.

This is a video of a song that shows the basic parts of a plant and how a plant grows to the tune of "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes." This song would be really fun for kindergartners or first graders. I selected it because I want to infuse music and movement into the curriculum whenever possible, and I think this resource does both. This would be great for musical and bodily-kinesthetic learners. I could integrate art as well by having students create little props for use during the song. All of this could happen at the same time as they are learning about plants.  

This is a great website that has tons of free lesson plans, videos, and quizzes. It covers a wide range of topics including, life science, physical science, the human body, and space. It includes content for grades K-12. It even includes interactive diagrams for students to complete. I think this resource could be used in the classroom in multiple ways. The activities could be used for instruction or reinforcement.

Very easy to search, by grade level or content area. The lessons I found were good foundations for particular content, but needed some sparking up, especially in terms of an engaging introduction.

This is a video resource that I found on Youtube. The many different types of structures and architectural pieces can help students relate more to engineering by showing them structures that they might pass by daily. However, there are also more historical pieces of architecture to allow students to explore just what engineering can create. With all of the historical background, this is also a great way to show connections between science and another area of study. I would use this as an opener to show my students all the different ways in which engineers solved problems for themselves and for society. My science standard is all about students being able to come up with their own solutions to problems and this is a great starting point for that.

This is an interactive place to learn about agriculture in a fun way. Initially it could be used for the teacher and the students together. It has videos, pictures, and shows processes of how food gets from the farm to the plate. However, there is a section that helps teachers integrate it into their classroom.

This lesson deepens students' understanding of the similarities and differences in the life cycles of organisms. The lesson begins with a reading of Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar Next, students use a video to study the developmental stages of frogs, dragonflies, and butterflies. _____________ This lesson plan grabbed my attention because it begins with a book by Eric Carle and we just discussed his books in one of my other classes at McKendree. This is a two day lesson. The lesson plan begins by gaining the students interested by reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carl. There is a corresponding video which explains the life cycles of frogs, dragonflies, and butterflies. Then, there is an activity to hand out to the class. In groups they follow the activity to explain their assigned organism, then they explain their findings to the class. I like this lesson plan because it is very detailed. I would use this in my class when studying life cycles.

This is a resource video for Middle School Science Teachers that displays simple demonstrations to help instruct on chemical or physical reactions, surface tension, life science, and waves. I would use this video to help utilize creative and engaging lesson starters. I selected this resource because it has multiple ideas to spice up the classroom for both the students and teacher.

Great lesson idea for teaching about plant and animal cells. Watch this video for an overview of this biology lesson and how you can bring it into your classroom. Lesson plan print out is also available. This lesson helps students see a cell in a way that they can understand, which involves food! I think that when students make something they are more likely to understand what they make.