JoinAll Blog Posts
Blog Post
It’s one thing to get students to recite definitions for the states of matter. But what do they really understand? For instance, the word “gas” is confusing. My students had to stop and think whether the word was referring to a state of...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Setup day for NSTA staff here in Cincinnati and all is going smoothly. We’re looking forward to thousands of attendees engaging in outstanding professional development and returning to their classrooms full of ideas and energy! Not-to-miss eve...
By Howard Wahlberg
Blog Post
One of the many rich workshops I attended at the NSTA Portland Area Conference was the Family Science Day Session presented by the Foundation for Family Science. The specific goals of Family Science include: To get parents more involved in their chil...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
With the emphasis on literacy since the onset of No Child Left Behind, there seems to be two schools of thought. One emphasizes instruction in reading and math to the point that instruction in science, social studies, and the arts, especially in the ...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
I am a new teacher, and my supervisor asked me to write a letter recommending a student for an award. I don’t think he is qualified. What should I do? Nancy, No City Please...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
Visiting the city of Portland, Oregon and the waterfalls of the Columbia River Gorge invigorated my thinking about taking classes outside....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
At the NSTA conference in Portland
It was exciting to be in the midst of so many people who care about teaching and learning science, and a pleasure to anticipate being on the receiving end of lesson planning. I’m looking forward to using what other educators thought was import...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Collaboration in science teaching
Collaboration is key for many scientific endeavors, and an opportunity for growth for teachers. Here’s how two preschool teachers, both with a science outlook but from opposite coasts, came to present a workshop together. A writer of The ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Diverse reading matter converges around "preconceptions"
My reading matter for the trip to the NSTA Portland conference is How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School, Expanded Edition, (National Academy Press, 2000) and a fantasy novel, Dragonsbane by by Barbara Hambly (Del Rey, 1987)....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
WOW, the universe is REALLY big
More than 60 educators crowded into room C124 at the Convention Center this afternoon to ponder the imponderable: the size and scale of the universe?...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Have you ever thought about writing for an NSTA journal?...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Overly political, endlessly complicated…and standing-room only, featured speaker Dr. Philip Mote had a receptive audience for his climate change talk. Coauthor (with 100+ participating scientists) of the 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Need a pick me up after a full day of NSTA conference sessions? Head to Cacao, a chocolate shop with the feel of an asian tea house. A shot of “drinking chocolate”–think a liquid chocolate bar, not a powdered mix—only costs...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Portland has a lot to offer, but if you only have time for one thing, make it Powell’s. The largest independent bookstore in the world fills a city block and features used gems tucked among the enormous selection–including a science and ...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Check out this digital resource
One of my roles on the SciLinks team is to find resources for a specific topic. Using several search engines, I browse through the lists and select sites for a more intense review and approval process. You as a SciLinks user then have a list of we...
By Mary Bigelow