Resources for Teaching Science

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.

"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 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.

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.

This video is SO COOL! This would be a great start into a lesson on gravity. It starts with some prior knowledge that students should have. Then it goes into teaching about gravity with the example of an apple falling from the tree. To keep students accountable, I would have them write down words that they may not understand or have them write a short paragraph on what they learned about gravity after this video. If they write down words they don't know, we could go through them as a class before getting in depth to our gravity lesson which could include more videos or an activity later on.

This link takes you into the formation of crystals. It gives you an introduction for your students and gives you guiding questions. This lesson also explains how crystals form, what they are, and ask students where you might find them. Crystals are cool, so I have no doubt that students will love this lesson. Also, at the end there are some hands on activities. I would scroll and click on make bath crystals for the activity because looking into that one, it seems like something the students can do and enjoy in class. After this lesson, I believe students will know more about crystals, where to find them in their everyday objects, and enjoy learning how to make them.

On 27 August 1883, the Earth let out a noise louder than any it has made since. It was 10:02 AM local time when the sound emerged from the island of Krakatoa, which sits between Java and Sumatra in Indonesia. Wow! This video is crazy awesome! On the website there is a video posted of a volcano in Indonesia erupting. It shows the volcano erupting and then you hear this unexpected BOOM (they call it a shock in the video)! After that all you see is thick gray smoke covering the volcano. This video would be a great resource to incorporate into any lesson over volcanoes erupting, it is a great realistic feature. Before showing the video to students you could make them record what predictions about what they think will happen when the volcano erupts, and then show them the video and discuss what actually happens. Another great feature about this website is that it gives information about the volcano erupting and what were some of the effects from the eruption. It also explains what happened when the volcano made that BOOM noise. Overall I thinks students will love watching a real life volcano erupt, they will most likely think its pretty awesome!

This interactive map of the world allows for so much exploration! Click anywhere on the map and it will give you the climate, landforms, rock types, and even land cover for the particular area. I find this resource to be very helpful especially when comparing biomes. Teachers could easily come up with activities to use the map. For example you could have students compare and contrast 5 different countries based on their climate, landforms, rock type, and land cover. Then have students make predictions about what would live in that area or what would even grow there. Overall I think that teachers could use this map many ways in the classroom and I think students would find it very interesting.

You've now reached the outer edges of our own solar system It would take you about 23 million years of continuous scrolling on this scale to get to the farthest regions of the observable universe, another 435,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kmor 46 billion light years away. We think we'll stop here. Hands down this is one of the most engaging sites I've ever visited. It is jam packed with fun facts, information, and references about outer space! I find it totally awesome how they created the site to be like a virtual rocket ride through space. You literally scroll the rocket down to get to different regions of space, along the way you get facts about the atmosphere, planets, meteors, and so much more! This site is so engaging that I thinks students will fall in love with it! It is whimsical and very colorful! Teachers could easily incorporate this site when teaching about the solar system. You could have students go on the site and find 5 facts that they found most interesting and have them share with the class. Or as a class you could scroll through space and learn about so many things! I think this site is just fascinating and could be very valuable, especially since there is so much information on space it makes for a great timeline/distance line since it can get confusing! I think every teacher should use this website because its awesome and very engaging and I think students will find it captivating.

Giant deadly hornets, gorgeous fluttering butterflies and stealthy crawling stink bugs: readers cannot tear their eyes away from these fascinating creatures. They can discover these and more mesmerizing world insects in Expedition: Insects, an e-book written, illustrated and animated by the Smithsonian Science Education Center. Read now! This app is so cool! The weather lab allows for students to come up with possible outcomes for weather in North America. It is a very interactive, fun, and realistic app. First students pick a an ocean current, air mass 1, and then air mass 2. After, the students are asked what they should wear or what they should be preparing for with the weather situation they just created. Ex. would be, If I live along the East Coast of the US I should... and then they would pick from the options given. This app would be awesome to incorporate when learning about weather. It allows for students to create different weather situations and then also they have to predict what will happen with the situation. I think it would be a great opportunity to have student collaborate with peers and come up with 3-5 weather situations and they should record the weather they created, what they predict will happen, and what actually happened with the weather. I think students would really enjoy this app in the classroom considering its not your typical weather game or activity.

The water cycle describes how Earth's water is not only always changing forms, between liquid (rain), solid (ice), and gas (vapor), but also moving on, above, and in the Earth. This process is always happening everywhere. Back to the water cycle diagram for students. This website can be very functional when teaching about the water cycle. It has a great diagram with clear illustration, words, and even descriptions for a beginner, intermediate, and advance levels. The diagram itself is kind of whimsical and I think the young grades will really be engaged. It also offers detailed descriptions of the different parts of the water cycle in the side bar. This resource would be very valuable when explaining the water cycle. I think teachers could incorporate the diagram during a lesson. Also, they could do informal assessments on the students by having students come up to the smart board and pointing out certain parts of the cycle. Or it could even be a guide for students when they draw their own water cycle for their notes or for a project. Overall, the diagram and the extra explanations over the water cycle can really be helpful in the classroom.

Move objects with your mind, become invisible, play games with a robot and experience augmented reality! Science Fiction, Science Future brings the science of the future into the present, sending visitors on a unique journey filled with science exploration, curiosity and discovery. I hope that one day I would be able to take my class to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center. Currently they are hosting the event Science Fiction, Science Fun. This event looks awesome! From hands-on experiments and activities, to mind control, and even robots, the students will have an unforgettable experience. The field trip would tap into the students curiosities and would leave them amazed! The main reason for the field trip would be for the students to be introduced to new things that we couldn't teach in the classroom, such as holographs and invisibility. Hopefully after the trip more students would be engaged in science class!!

For this activity, I would have my students predict how many pennies they think they can put in a full glass of water without letting any leak over the edges. You can also use other liquids, such as: oil, syrup or juice. I would have my students record their predictions and their results as they are putting the pennies in the clear, glass cups. This allows critical thinking, and allows every student to participate in the activity, because I would put them intro groups of four and give them each a job. This is a great way for them to learn how to work together, and record data.