JoinAll Blog Posts
Blog Post
What's new with NSTA's members?
NSTA members are in conversation in all kinds of places—on these blogs, in NSTA’s Listservs, on our new online communities, and throughout our external social media outposts, such as Facebook and LinkedIn. Recent conversations include col...
By Howard Wahlberg
Blog Post
My colleagues and I would like to try some collaborative projects between elementary and secondary students. Our buildings are not close, so in-person events are impossible during the school day. Do you have any suggestions for projects involving stu...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
If you were a dinosaur …
Some children love pandas, some love dogs, but many more love dinosaurs. At times it seems young children feel dinosaurs are “more real”—more interesting, more important, more present in their minds—than modern animals. “More real” might ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
A few years ago, I found some interesting background data for a professional development project I was working on–when elementary teachers were asked to name a specific science area that they would find difficult to teach, more than 60% mention...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
The snow was lovely for me, arriving on a Friday night after my children were home and enough neighbors were in town to make the shoveling more of a community gathering than a huge chore. I did wish that school was in session so I could le...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Here in the Northeast, we had to dig our way through the recent storm, the most snow we’ve had in my neck of the woods for two years! I once hosted an exchange teacher from Australia in January (their summer break), who had never seen snow. Sno...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Ask a question … none of us has all the answers but we might have some
Wondering if teaching about magnetism is appropriate for preschoolers, which chemistry activities can be safe for young children, what materials to provide for exploration of gravity, or how to raise butterflies? This is a place to ask a question fo...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Encouraging class participation
http://www.flickr.com/photos/34053291@N05/3948369923/...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
I’m a new middle school teacher, and last week I had to miss two days due to illness. When I came back, my classroom was in shambles and it appeared that the students did not do any work. What can I do, short of never missing another day, to ma...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Many of the concepts we teach in science relate to the concept of “scale” – things that are at the extremes of small (as in atoms, nanotechnology, or microbes), large (as in galaxies or blue whales), long (geologic time scale), short (h...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Making a dough for classroom play is also a time to teach vocabulary and math skills, and social skills such as cleaning up after oneself. Write the recipe on a page or easel paper to refer to even if your students are not yet reading. Illustrate wit...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Creative Commons handwritten recipe photo posted to flickr by Deb Roby....
By admin
Blog Post
Young children love using a periscope. Maybe because when you look through one, the view is not what your brain expects, somewhat like using someone else’s glasses. (My sisters and I used to take turns running down a hallway wearing my mother’s g...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
How many of use chose careers in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics because of our experiences in school? Some topics or activities must have stimulated our interest and curiosity, and the authors in this month’s edition share som...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Whenever I start a new unit, some students consistently ask, “Why do we have to learn this?” How should I respond? —Kevin, District of Columbia...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Have you seen NASA eClips? This is a collection of video clips on a variety of topics (such as the earth, sun, universe, STEM, aeronautics, and living in space), organized by grade level (K-5, 6-8, 9-12). Some of the notes for the clips include link...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
What's good for the girls in STEM?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimmiehomeschoolmom/ / CC BY 2.0...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
ESP symposium: superpowers not required
Divining the keys to better science education doesn’t require extrasensory perception—just check out the ESP Symposium at the Phoenix Area Conference. Coordinated by Robert Yager, 1982-1983 NSTA president, NSTA’s Exemplary Science Program (ESP)...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
Our students may be used to using evidence to answer questions, but in Elk Habitat: A Case Study of Scientific Inquiry, the authors describe an activity in which students ask questions, examine evidence, ask new questions, and design potential resea...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
I love books. Not only do they overflow the various bookshelves in my house, but they also fill boxes (and boxes!) tucked away in many of my closets. So naturally I spend most of my conference time in the Science Store....
By Jennifer Horak, NGSS@NSTA Project Manager
Blog Post
I’m trying to use more projects and open-ended assessments this year, but I’m getting bogged down with grading. I know I should use rubrics, but it’s hard to create them for every assignment. Any suggestions on how to streamline thi...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
NAEYC–early childhood and science!
Will I see you at the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s national conference in Washington, D.C., this week? Come say “Hi” and tell me what great sessions you’ve attended. I’ll be in the Learning Galleria, Table 12, ...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Did I tell you how happy I was to see the returning three-year old students use magnifiers appropriately? Because this half-day preschool for 2-5-year-olds had moved to a new space over the summer, the “usual place” for everything had to be deter...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Subtle differences in words can make a big difference: for example “arguing” and “argumentation.” Our students see TV shows where arguing is the most common activity. People shout at and interrupt each other, spout ideas that ...
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Astronomy resources (mostly free)
Judging by the large audience, teachers love teaching astronomy, and of course they love free resources, too....
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Looking for a little outdoors time in between sessions? If the beach doesn’t do it for you, a short trip up the coast to Hugh Taylor Birch State Park will. Smack dab in the city, this “oasis of tropical hammocks” features native and...
By ManagingEditorSC
Blog Post
Learning about science curriculum and meeting more early childhood teachers than I expected were the happy outcomes of the two days I spent at the really well-run Virginia Association of Science Teachers 2009 Professional Development Institute....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
With water play students gain experience they can record in writing and drawing
Children observe objects in water....
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Interdisciplinary/integrated science
I always look forward to the NSTA journal issues that have a theme with the words integrated or interdisciplinary in them....
By Mary Bigelow
Blog Post
Physics teachers have a chance to get physical—and biological—on Thursday at the NSTA Conference in Fort Lauderdale with a session called Muscular Physics. The hands-on workshop by Umadevi I....
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
Science everywhere, for all students
Your challenge: Show all of the students in your classroom how science affects every aspect of their lives. Need help? Randolf Tobias, an award-winning author, educator, and curriculum specialist, is going to provide it during his presentation at the...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
I’ve heard about “interactive” science notebooks. I would like to use them with my classes, but I think I need to learn more about them before I start. —Randall, Columbus, Ohio...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
Tying your conference experience together
Strands of silk woven into a tapestry. Single strands of thread twined into rope. Strands can be a simple foundation for something greater—more beautiful, stronger, or useful. Following a strand at an NSTA regional conference can have a similar res...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
I’m going to have a student teacher in my biology classes next semester. I’ve never done this before, and I’d like to provide her with feedback on effective science teaching practices. Do you have any suggestions for resources on th...
By MsMentorAdmin
Blog Post
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ cambodia4kidsorg // CC BY 2.0...
By Debra Shapiro
Blog Post
What does SciGirls, Bonsais, wind turbines, pasta bridges have in common? They all are aspects of the science rich community of Minneapolis, MN. The first Science Matters community event was held on Saturday morning for elementary science teachers an...
By admin
Blog Post
Urban science educators share strategies
October 30—It is Friday but I must tell you about the Urban Science Education Leaders (USEL) event. It was very exciting! Why? The participants were so engaging and really were looking for information and answers and just wanted to learn an...
By admin
Blog Post
Seeing might be believing, but sometimes it’s what can’t be seen that’s most interesting. Since the 1930s, researchers have theorized that dark matter—which can’t be perceived by our eyes—is responsible for anomalies in the rotation of ga...
By Lynn Petrinjak
Blog Post
What’s happening in the early childhood world of Pumpkin Science? Have you planted and harvested pumpkins? Have you weighed, floated, cut-open, counted seeds, printed, or rolled pumpkins?...
By Peggy Ashbrook
Blog Post
Great science in urban middle schools
If you’re an administrator in an urban middle school, come to the NSTA Conference in Minneapolis. You can spend a day with a group of dedicated urban science educators—the Urban Science Education Leaders (USEL)—who are working to change the way...
By Debra Shapiro