Would you like to inspire students to be better writers while you incorporate new strategies into your teaching to assess their scientific understanding? Katie Coppens’ new NSTA Press book, Creative Writing in Science, provides engaging literary exercises that use the world around us to inspire. Designed for grades 3–12, the book offers fiction, poetry, and playwriting prompts that help students increase both their writing skills and their science knowledge.

Each writing lesson outlines foundational science knowledge and vocabulary and connects to the Next Generation Science Standards. The lessons also introduce language arts skills such as developing characters; writing conflict; and using personification, narrative voice, and other literary devices.

In the lesson “Travel Blog About the Digestive System,” students must apply their knowledge and vocabulary related to the human digestive system to compose a blog post from the perspective of a bit of food on a journey through the human body. Students will capture all of the twists and turns and use personification to convey this trip of a lifetime.

In another unique lesson, students are asked to imagine what life would be like if the KT asteroid had never hit. How would our landscape look and what organisms would be thriving today? Students must consider what role evolution would have played, and what animals might have become extinct. Would dinosaurs be here? Would humans still be roaming Earth?

Additional ideas to get students thinking creatively include writing comics, diary entries, songs, and letters from the point of view of the Moon, rocks, atoms, and more! The 15 lessons cover life science, physical science, Earth, space, and engineering. 

This book is humorous and engaging, and your students will love approaching science from a new direction.

Want to get your creative juices flowing? Try the free chapter “Group Poem: Earth’s History.”

Check out Creative Writing in Science in the NSTA Press Store. 

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Questions and discussions about safety are often seen in the NSTA e-mail listserves and discussion forums. Each month, columns on safety in the science classroom/lab are featured in NSTA’s Science Scope (Scope on Safety) and The Science Teacher (Safer Science), with occasional articles in Science and Children (Safety First). These columns are written by Ken Roy, Director of Environmental Health and Safety for Glastonbury Public Schools in Glastonbury, CT, and NSTA’s Science Safety Compliance Consultant.

These are must-reads for K-12 science teachers and school administrators, regardless of what grade level or science course you teach. And NSTA members have online access to them, regardless of which print journal you receive.

The 2015-16 columns speak to a variety of safety concerns:

• Safety in Science Instruction –  A discussion of NSTA’s position paper on “Safety and School Science Instruction”  (TST 2/16)
• Safety Acknowledgment Form for Earth and Space Science – Customize the acknowledgment form for different subjects
• Making the Grade on Safety – The value of lab safety assessments for students at the beginning of (and during) the year (SS 3/16)
• Preventing Allergic Reactions – Preventing and dealing with allergies in the classroom (S&C 12/15)
• Creating Latex-Safe Classrooms – Allergic reaction to latex materials (SS 4/16)
• Safety Picks Up “STEAM” – Considerations for engineering activities (S&C 2/16)
• Wired for Safety – Using electricity in science classrooms (SS 12/15) 
• Don’t Bench Lab Safety – Suggestions for purchasing lab furniture (SS 11/15)
• Detoxing the Lab – Reduce risks of toxic substances in the classroom/lab (SS 9/15)
• Safer Science Kits – What to consider when adopting/using science kits (SS 10/15) 
• Safety: Food for Thought – Food in the lab and other issues of cross-contamination (SS 7/15)
• Eyeing Safety  (SS 2/16)
• Safer Science Outside the Classroom – What to consider when planning field trips or outdoor classes (SS 1/16)
• Safety in the Field – What to consider when planning field trips (TST 10/15)
• A Healthier Science Class – Preventing chemical hazards (TST 12/15) 
• Handling Hazardous Waste (TST 9/15)
• Heightened Risks – Hazards when conducting activities on ladders, platforms, rooftops (TST 7/15)
• Preventing Alcohol-Based Laboratory Fires (TST 4/16)
• Safer Use of Toxic Chemicals (TST 3/16)
• Safer Reproductive Health in Science Labs – Protecting the health of students (and teachers). (TST 1/16)

Each month, Scope on Safety also includes a Q&A on a safety-related issue. If you’re looking for a science department discussion topic, choose an article relevant to your situation. For more on safety topics, go to NSTA’s SciLinks and use “safety” as the keyword.

Membership in NSTA comes with a wealth of benefits. Although the most obvious benefit may be the regular appearance of Science Scope in your mailbox and NSTA Reports in your Inbox, membership encompasses far more. The ability to connect through list serves, interact with other middle school science teachers via the Learning Center forums, serve on a variety of NSTA committees and advisory boards, and apply for prestigious awards are some examples of additional NSTA member benefits. There is, however, one hidden member benefit that we consider to be priceless; it is the ability to carve deep and lasting friendships through the personal connections afforded by involvement with NSTA.

As veteran middle school science teachers, we began our individual professional relationships with NSTA many years ago while serving on the Toyota Tapestry Grant Judging Panel. Although the panel no longer exists, the friendship that evolved through our common experience has stood the test of time and serves as an example of NSTA’s unique ability to connect science educators with each other. We have overcome the physical distance that separates us and have strengthened our friendship through presentations made at NSTA conferences, by teaching short courses together, and by recently authoring a book for NSTA Press.

NSTA offers numerous venues for personal and professional growth that will afford you the ability to connect with like-minded peers. We know from experience that attending a NSTA conference will leave you recharged as a result of your contact with other science educators. You can maintain that conference energy through activity in one or more of NSTA’s social media platforms, which include Twitter, Facebook, and the middle school list serve (middleschool@list.nsta.org). If you have taught for less than five years, we recommend that you to apply for the Maitland P. Simmons Memorial Award (https://www.nsta.org/docs/awards/NewTeacher.pdf). This outstanding program provides a year of professional development that includes attendance at the NSTA national conference.

Get Involved and Grow as a Leader

Involvement in NSTA will also allow you to grow as a leader in your educational community. We encourage you to expand your relationship with NSTA by volunteering to serve on a NSTA committee or advisory board. Consider lending your expertise to the Committee on Middle Level Science Teaching or to the Science Scope Advisory Board. This is a great way to meet colleagues from across the nation while helping to drive decisions that will impact the organization. 

If you are planning on attending an upcoming NSTA national or regional conference, submit a proposal for a session. Keep in mind, however, that proposals need to be submitted nearly a year in advance (http://www.nsta.org/conferences/sessions.aspx). Presenting in front of your peers will help you grow both professionally and personally. If your strengths lie in written communication, you may want to consider authoring an article for Science Scope. A great way to build your confidence and knowledge prior to submitting a manuscript is to offer to review for Science Scope. In the process, you will be providing a valuable service to NSTA while gaining an insider’s viewpoint regarding the publication process.

The path to greater involvement in NSTA is as varied as the numerous member opportunities available to you. Whether you choose to become more active at the conference level, develop your reviewing or writing skills, or to serve in a leadership capacity, your growth as a science educator will be profound and may lead to the greatest benefit of all: friendship.

Patty McGinnis teaches at Arcola Intermediate School in Eagleville, PA and is editor of Science Scope. Kitchka Petrova is currently a doctoral student at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. Their book Be a Winner: A Science Teacher’s Guide to Writing Successful Grant Proposals allows readers to learn from veteran science teachers about the secrets to successful grant writing. Formatted as a handy workbook, this practical book takes you step by step through the writing process.

Get more involved with NSTA!

Join today and receive Science Scope, the peer-reviewed journal just for middle school teachers; connect on the middle level science teaching list (members can sign up on the list server); or consider joining your peers for Meet Me in the Middle Day (MMITM) at the National Conference on Science Education in Los Angeles in the spring of 2017.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Future NSTA Conferences

NGSS Workshops

• Discover the NGSS, San Diego, June 29–30
• NGSS Summer Institute, Reno, July 15
• NGSS Summer Institute, Detroit, Aug. 8
• Discover the NGSS, Fall 2016 & Spring 2017

2016 STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA

• Denver, July 27–29

2016 Area Conferences

• Minneapolis, October 27–29
• Portland, November 10–12
• Columbus, December 1–3

2017 National Conference

• Los Angeles, March 30–April 2

 

 

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