Communicating with parents and other caregivers is important for student success. The topic of parental involvement has been addressed in NSTA blogs and publications, with ideas for parent conferences, back-to-school nights or open houses, summer activities, and family science events. Here’s a quick look  at some of these ideas:
From the Ms. Mentor blog

• Facilitating Parental Support: My school wants to encourage more parental involvement. Any suggestions?
• Meet the Parents: I’m a new middle school science teacher, and the thought of back-to-school night is already making menervous. What should I expect? What should I do?
• Intergenerational Science Activities: My school is planning an Intergenerational Day, in which students invite grandparents or other guests to attend school for part of the day. We’re also inviting residents of a local retirement community. I’d like to participate with my fifth grade science classes, but I want our guests to be more than spectators. Do you have any suggestions for appropriate activities?
• Take-home projects: I’m thinking of requiring some “take-home” projects for students this year. (I teach at the elementary level). I think these would provide a good opportunity for students and parents to work together on science topics. Do you have any suggestions or guidelines?
• Vacation Activities for Students: How do you get families and students to participate in science in the summer? I’m looking for ideas to engage upper elementary students.

From the Early Years blog

• Involving families in early childhood science education
• Family Science: Ideas and Resources for Activities

From other NSTA publications

• Getting Families Involved: From February 2012 Science & Children
• Making a Night of Science: From February 2011 NSTA Reports 

Although many handheld technologies of Star Trek seem antiquated, or perhaps even steam punkish in todays world, there are still a few pieces of Treknata that we dream of. But that list just got one item shorter with the iGo wireless microscope. While not quite a Medical Tricorder, the iGo does capture the essence of Trekian magic with its scope in the right hand while the microscope image appearing on a tablet in the left hand (or vice-versa of course).

The iGo scope talks wirelessly to the iPad

A medical tricorder would, in theory, allow the placement of a probe upon various parts of an injured subject in order to collect the data necessary for a proper diagnosis. Of course later iterations of the Enterprise’s wanderings utilized scanning tools that completely circumvented both the need for probes, and the interpretation of data. But that is a topic for another blog-perhaps one about the Standoff Patient Triage Tool.

The SmartScope iGo wireless microscope is a substantial push forward flattening the access to the microscopic world in the classroom. iPads and other tablets are rapidly becoming the digital hubs of powerful portable science laboratories that operate independent of power outlets, the greater internet, and often wires in general. SmartSchool’s iGo microscope opens many new inquiry avenues previously barred by wired network connections, power requirements, prohibitive costs, and complex user interfaces.

The iGo scope is easy to use, and quickly generates highly magnified images on a tablet screen where they can be captured into the tablet’s photo database.

Priced about the same as one base model iPad Mini, the iGo Microscope boasts an intuitive interface complete with large focus wheel, adjustable LED lighting, and picture button all running on three rechargeable AA batteries (included). But the real thrill of iGo is found in combination with the free App named Wi-Viewer. The iOS Wi-Viewer app / Android app to shows, captures, and plays back the visual magic of the microscopic world.

The minimalist interface of Wi-Viewer includes just four buttons: one to turn on or off the real-time images from the iGo, one to capture a still image, one to start and stop video recording, and one to playback the captured content. At first launch the Wi-Viewer will ask if it can connect to the photo database on the tablet. If agreed to, then the images snapped with the iGo land in a familiar home on the tablet. And in case you didn’t know, if two iPads are connected using a sync cable and the camera connection kit USB dongle, the photos on the sync-cabled iPad will appear as importable images on the camera connection dongled iPad.

The published specifications of the iGo include a 3.5 hours of runtime per triad of AA batteries (YMMV), a maximum of 200x magnification (depending on device screen size), and a 10 meter wireless range which all seems about right in my tests.

What isn’t a promoted spec of this scope its 640×480 resolution. On the surface, the sub-megapixel number seems old school. However, the Smart Scope iGo is designed for tablet use and, in fact, has no interactivity with any device outside iPads and compatible Android tablets (equal to or greater than iOS 4.1 and Android 2.3). In other words, the apparent low resolution makes little difference since the visual output of the scope is within reasonable limits for tablet screens. Printing is another story. But three important issues must be considered beyond pure resolution numbers and they are 1) the video signal is being transmitted wirelessly from a 2) reasonably inexpensive digital microscope 3) fueled by 4.5v of rechargeable AA power. And note that an iGo with batteries masses out at not much over 200g.

Regarding the first generation iPad, (aka iPad 1, non-camera iPad), this scope works fine as long as you are running an updated version of iOS. So the iGo scope will breathe new life into an old iPad!

Where the iGo does preform off the charts is with its flexibility, simplicity, and speed of operation. For years I have professed the seeming heretical point of view that learning to use a microscope is a physics activity while the studying microscopic imagery is the actual purpose of a microscope. What I mean by this is the microscope, although necessary given the limitations of human eyesight, is actually an impediment to macroscopic inspections. The fewer barriers one places between the small object and the ability to view it, the better. The iGo makes macroscopic observations so intuitive that students will explore the world of the small with reckless abandon, and overt curiosity!

Focusing from infinity to the scope’s surface in less than one turn of the focus wheel brings the entire world into clear view through a natural motion of one opposable thumb that also points the scope.  There has been a bit of convergent evolution with handheld microscope designs with my prediction of something of stylus shape in the not-too-distant future. An interesting repository for design trajectories might be to mine an auto mechanic’s toolbox rather than a science laboratory from last century. Often, initial digital device designs are steeped in traditional morphology. One early school-based digital microscope, the Intel QX3 had more than a passing resemblance to a compound light microscope so it also inherited many of the limitations of the centuries-old design.  Therefore it is especially rewarding to have the latest digital microscope designs push function over familiar form. An FYI for those with geek leanings, the groundbreaking Intel QX3 had a resolution of 320×240 and an operation familiar to traditional microscopes.

The Intel QX3 microscope was groundbreaking in its time (discontinued in 2002), but still maintained a strong relationship to conventional microscope designs complete with stage, rotating (compound) magnification settings, lighting, and much too big to fit into a computer bag pocket.

The iGo is a 2.4GHz wireless device using the 802.11b/g/n protocols encouraging an interesting and welcome twist to multiple connections. Up to three compatible devices (iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone, Android of any flavor can simultaneously tap into the video stream from the iGo meaning that the tablet’s user can control what video (MPEG4) and images (jpeg) are captured and when; all completely independent of the other two devices!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Heuu7jwuF3w&feature=share&list=PL2yY153_kjIfWFDHAwg12ETKiSpDNEIgJ[/youtube]

The 802.11 wireless connection is a double-edged sword, however. Since a device can only log into one wireless network at a time, using the iGo with a classroom-projected image is limited to a hardwire connection through the dock port. Both Apple TV and most screen-throughput Apps running on projector-connected computers are off limits due to the single wireless channel connectivity. Since the iGo has a fairly robust 10m range (roughly line-of-sight), a projector-connected tablet can be stationary while the teacher and students use the scope to project objects of interest from anywhere in the classroom.

Anything we place between our retinas and the microscopic world can be considered a limitation. For the tablet ecosystem, the iGo Microscope just pushes those limitations down the road for later technology to solve. And some of that later tech might already be here…

Toward the end of the school year, you might be looking for a culminating activity in which students can apply what they’ve learned during the year to new situations or problems. This issue has ideas that help students investigate the big idea of the interrelationships between biodiversity and human activity–how each affects the other.
Exploring Biodiversity’s Big Ideas in Your School shows students that there’s more to studying biodiversity than reading about the rain forest or other exotic places. The activities focus on the plants, microorganisms, and invertebrates that are often overlooked in traditional activities. The authors include a simple survey, graphic organizers, and activities. [SciLinks: Biodiversity]
Testing for Toxins: Using Daphnia spp. and Table Salt integrates skills in measurement and observation with content knowledge of invertebrates and experimental design. Students use water fleas as indicators of the level of toxins in water. The authors include detailed procedures illustrated with photographs, a sample data table, a student handout, and background information. [SciLinks: Bioassay, Daphnia]

Sometimes it’s difficult in the classroom to conduct a long-term study. The authors of Ecological Investigations Within an Interactive Plant Community Simulation show how simulations can be used to “experiment” with factors that affect the growth of plants. They describe a particular simulation using screen shots and its system requirements. They also describe three experiments that reflect different student roles in inquiry activities: student as research assistants, students as co-researchers, and students as lead researchers. [SciLinks: Plant Growth]
Having pHun With Soils shows a practical application for learning about acids, bases, and pH. With the context of planning and developing a wetlands restoration project, the 5E lesson guides students through a soil analysis. [SciLinks: pH Scale]
When I taught middle school science, I worked closely with our art teachers. He would have enjoyed Science Meets the Arts. This article shows that with guidance students can go beyond the traditional diorama to create realistic wildlife art. Several photographs show the finished work, which I’m sure scored high on the included rubric.
Looking for ideas for field trips? The authors of Our Watery World: Teaching Middle School Students About Biodiversity share their experiences in planning a study of a water restoration site. The 5E lesson includes a student activity sheet. Even if you live in a different type of surroundings, the lesson is very adaptable. [SciLinks: Wetlands]
Cold Scat Creamery: Using Ice-Cream-Parlor Tricks to Create Fake Scat sounds like it would be interesting to middle school “scatologists”! Using indirect evidence (the simulate scat) students explore heribivores, carnivores, and omnivores.   [SciLinks: Food Chains and Food Webs]
The Human Impact on Biodiversity: A Case Study With Corn examines issues related to biodiversity and agriculture, including economics and health. For students who are not familiar with agricultural practices, this could be an interesting look at this important crop.[SciLinks: Corn, Sustainable Agriculture]
Studying animal behavior requires more than just watching animals. Using Mathematics to Conduct Social Analyses of Bottlenose Dolphins in Science Classrooms shows how technology and mathematics are integral parts of these behavioral studies. Students use real data in their analysis and learn that mathematics is essential to biologists. The article includes a rubric and additional resources can be found in this month’s Connections. [SciLinks: Animal Behavior, Behavior and Adaptations]
 

This is exciting news! I’ve been a fan of the Everyday Science Mysteries for a long time, but it took time to cull through each volume to get the discipline-specific activities I wanted. In response to teacher demand, NSTA recently published the books for separate content areas: Physical Science, Life Science, and Earth and Space Science.

These are great open-ended stories for your students that can lead them right into hands-on science demonstrations. In addition to the many stories included in the book are detailed explanations for how to use them and why you should. Each volume presents the following:

• Theory Behind the Book
• Using the Book and the Stories
• Using this Book in Different Ways
• Science and Literacy

But what will keep you coming back to these books time and again are the engaging stories and the science concepts they illustrate. Consider these examples:

Everyday Physical Science Mysteries

• Grandfather’s Clock (Periodic motion and experimental design)
• The Crooked Swing (Engineering application of pendulums, improving a product)
• The Magic Balloon (Gas and temperature laws)

Read the free chapter: How Cold is Cold?
Everyday Life Science Mysteries

• Flowers: More than Just Pretty (Botany)
• What Did That Owl Eat? (Zoology)
• The Trouble with Bubble Gum (Health, nutrition)

Read the free chapter: Seedlings in a Jar
Everyday Earth and Space Science Mysteries 

• What’s the Moon Like Around the World? (Astronomy)
• Where Did the Puddles Go? (Evaporation)
• Here’s the Crusher (Atmosphere)

Read the free chapter: The Little Tent That Cried
One of the primary purposes of these books is to relieve the overburdened teacher from the exhausting work of designing inquiry lessons from scratch. Another stems from the idea that the use of open-ended stories challenge students to engage in real experimentation about real science content. With those goals in mind, enjoy these activities right along with your students.

On Tuesday, April 9, the final Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), a new set of voluntary, rigorous, and internationally benchmarked standards for K—12 science education, were released. For more information on this document and the release of the NGSS, please read the press release.  Also, if you haven’t yet downloaded your copy of the NGSS, PDFs of the standards are available and can be viewed based on topic or on disciplinary core idea.
As a participant at the National Conference on Science Education which was held in San Antonio earlier this month, there was much excitement and enthusiasm around the release of the NGSS which occurred the day before the conference started.  Prior to the conference, the Council for State Science Supervisors held their annual meeting and were having ongoing discussions about the standards, the National Science Education Leadership Association had a day long Professional Development Institute dedicated to the NGSS, and other organizations and associations, as well as commercial companies were buzzing about the release of the document.
The excitement was obvious and the enthusiasm contagious.  Conversations in sessions and throughout the different venues could be overheard as science educators were discussing the release of the document, the changes made since the previous draft, and the inevitable question of “what next?”
Which brings us to the question – “what next?” Now that the standards have been released, it is only the beginning of the journey. Dare I say this is where all leaders in all schools need to look directly into the faces of the educators they work with and say “engage” (sorry needed to go there with the whole Next Generation thing)?
But even with the bad reference, it is a good question – how do we engage all science educators and other school leaders in the discussion and implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards.  Everyone in the school district, corporation, business or informal setting can find a stake in and participate in the development and dissemination of resources as well as the implementation of this document.
An example of such connections that can be made from the NGSS to the English Language Arts and Mathematics Common Core Documents is shown in a Venn Diagram developed by Tina Cheuk of Stanford and focused on Relationships and Convergences Found in NGSS and CCSS ELA and Math.  This PDF was included as one of the recommended resources in the most recent issue of the Leaders Letter.  I personally plan to utilize this document in my methods classes next fall and also share it with colleagues who teach math methods and language arts methods classes.  We work on the idea of integration of subject areas already, assign a project for all seniors that requires the development of a cross curricular unit and discuss how integration can help topics be relevant and maximize instructional time.  Therefore it is my belief that this graphic is a great way to help my college students and colleagues see the connections.
NSTA has also begun to engage science educators with resources for the NGSS and has been for several months.  They have developed a guide to help science educators lead study groups to review the draft standards. Take a look at the slides from this session and download our guide. See also the

• NSTA Reports article “NSTA Stepping Stones to Help You Prepare for New Science Standards.”
• NSTA Journal Series: Exploring the Science Framework and Preparing for NGSS
• NSTA Resources: Preparing for Next Generation Science Standards

So back to the question, posed, what will you as a science educator do to engage all of your colleagues in the implantation of the NGSS?

I am a student teacher in sixth grade earth science. My question is about makeup exams.  I have several ideas, but can you suggest other systems or procedures for allowing students to make up exams?
—Dawn, San Jose, California
Student absences are a given. It’s frustrating when students miss a class (or two or three) due to illness, field trips, or family situations. It’s hard to find time for students to make up assignments, especially tests, labs, and projects.
In your note, you listed your ideas for students to make up a test when they return to school. Two important considerations regarding make-up tests are the format and content. Will you give the same test as a make-up or an alternate version? How will you ensure the alternate version assesses the same objectives as the original test?
Based on my experiences, I have some thoughts and questions on these ideas:

1. Students must schedule an appointment with the teacher to make up the exam. I suspect this is a very common strategy with teachers. But do your students have study halls or resource time during the day when they can make up work? What about before or after school? (My school had a majority of bus students, so these were not options.) If students don’t have time during the day, you could ask the student to do the test during class time when he or she returns from the absence. If the rest of the class would be distracting, the student could go to another classroom or the library (talk to your colleague beforehand to set this up). My principal also had a conference room in the office he made available for students as a quiet place to work. One drawback is that when the student makes up the test, he or she is missing what is happening in the class.

2. Take an online test or computer-based test. This option assumes students have access to the technology and you have the appropriate resources to create, administer, and view the results of an online test. Do you typically use an online format, or will you have to create this version of the test separate from a paper-and-pencil one? Where and when will the students complete this? What if other students would prefer this alternative?

3. Do a take-home test. Would this be the same test or an alternate version? Do students who take the test in class have access to their notes, the textbook, the internet, or each other? If not, how will you regulate what happens at home when these resources are readily available? What is the time frame for completing it? What about other students who would like this option?

4. Substitute a project in place of the exam. If you do this, you’ll have to be careful that the project reflects the same learning objectives as the traditional test. For example, if your test focuses on recall of factual knowledge or written explanations but the project requires a higher level of thinking or creativity then you’re assessing different learning objectives. Decide in advance how much time to allow for the project. Would students who were not absent prefer or benefit from projects?

A strategy that worked for me was having “transition time” between units of instruction, usually a day or two. During this time, students could make up the test, revise lab reports, re-take the test (if that is an option), finish projects, or engage in extension activities.
As a student teacher, you can observe how your mentor/cooperating teacher handles this issue.
Photo:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/46632302@N06/4279477491/

The gas chromatograph, until recently, has been a founding member in the exclusive club of scientific instrumentation that lived only in the rarified air of serious scientific laboratories. Other members of the club include the electron microscope, the mass spectrometer, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and of course the cyclotron.
Below is a picture of a mass spectrometer at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Besides being wildly complex, it takes up the better part of a room, and leaves little to the engineer’s imagination given all the exposed wires, tubes, and components.



For decades, a magic box was the main thing between students and real-time data collection. The magic box went by many names including Universal Lab Interface, MultiPurpose Lab Interface, Serial Box Interface, LabPro, LabQuest, GoLink, LabQuest Mini, and LabQuest2. But in all cases, the excitement over the interfaces provided students with connectivity to instrumentation that in most cases was possible through other means albeit filled with limitations. It has been a while since truly illusive classroom measurements have become possible, and the Mini GC moves the inquiry excitement beyond the interface and into the instrumentation.

I noticed the first hints of a change in the winds of gas chromatography, or GC for short, a couple years after the terror attacks of 9/11. In discussion with a local hazardous materials team I learned that a suitcase-sized GC was onboard their truck. I just had to see it and learn about its operation. A few caveats however. First, the “suitcase” was huge and heavy, but did have a handle and hinges like a suitcase. Second, the suitcase GC cost over $100,000. Third, it was not fast or easy to use, maintain, nor inexpensive to operate. Since that time, GCs have dropped in price and size and increased in speed and number of features, but still a $55,000 13kg suitcase is out of reach of almost every high school. But drop a magnitude and the science teacher’s day just got brighter. What about a $1800 1.3kg GC that can communicate with an iPad? Now we’re talking!
The Vernier Mini GC Plus not only opens up a brave new world of high school/college-level instrumentation, but pushes the envelope of student expectations into uncharted territory; a new intellectual playspace from which there is no turning back.

I belive the Mini GC marks a conceptual change is the dedication to science teaching by a technology company. Many of us are quite happy, overwhelmed perhaps, with all the available probeware, sensors, interfaces, and output options, but the arrival of the Mini GC, whether intentional or not, has raised the bar of imagination for anyone on the delivery or receiving end of high school science.
In a nutshell, the Mini GC Plus is a real gas chromatograph that is smaller and lighter than a six-pack of pop (or soda if you live in that region of the US). The Mini GC does have some limitations in the types of samples it can process, but the mechanics and workflow are true GC.
The Vernier Mini GC Plus connects via USB to a computer running LoggerPro3, or to a LabQuest. If used with an LabQuest 2, the datastream from the Mini GC can be wirelessly collected and analyzed on an iPad running the Graphical Analysis App or viewed in a web browser.

 

 
An entire GC run can take as little as five minutes, or much longer if complex compounds are analyzed. The steps are basic since the instrument does the initial work (which is much of the magic of the elite instruments of science). When connected to Vernier software, the GC is autodetected and identified as such, and a window filled with setting choices appears. A couple microliters of a liquid are injected into the GC’s port at the same moment that the data collection run is started. As the volatiles are cooked off in the GC’s oven, a signal of concentration and duration is processed into a spike or spikes on a graph. From that point the statics features of the software can be used for further analysis.
The Mini GC, according to Vernier, “is an instrument for separating, analyzing, and identifying substances contained in a volatile liquid or gaseous sample. The Mini GC Plus can detect and distinguish between families of compounds, including alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, aromatic hydrocarbons, carboxylic acids, esters, ethers, and nitriles.”
A GC operates by heating an extremely small amount of a liquid whereby the individual compounds in the liquid separate out over time yielding both definable characteristics and percentages of the total amount of material analyzed. By cross-referencing the results with knowns, specific compounds and mixtures can be identified.
A webpage at Oregon State University describes this process well as the process being, “similar to a running race where a group of people begin at the starting line, but as the race proceeds, the runners separate based on their speed. The chemicals in the mixture separate based on their volatility. In general, small molecules travel more quickly than larger molecules.”
The workflow for analyzing acetone with the Mini GC, the LabQuest2 and an iPad is presented in the video below recorded at the Vernier exhibitor booth at the 2013 NSTA National Conference in San Antonio, TX.
Now that the Mini GC has raised the high school classroom science teaching bar to what was once an unimaginable level, we can only hope that other members of the exclusive scientific instrumentation club will be available for the cost of less than two football helmets (the Head Impact Telemetry System kind of football helmet, of course.)
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0tBIW-hV9I[/youtube]
 

A pile of sand, a sandbox or a sensory table full of sand are tools for imaginative play, sensory exploration and science investigations.  In the April 2013 issue of Science and Children, the Early Years column, I wrote about how children wondered what made a series of cone-shaped pits in a line in the sandbox. Their question came after a long period of unstructured play and it inspired an investigation into how water can move sand.
As children work with dry and wet sand, they notice and make use of the differences due to the properties of water:

• Wet sand sticks together and can be made into deep holes and tall “mountains.” Footprints and other impressions are easy to make and see in wet sand.
• Dry sand can slide off a shovel and flow into a hole or fill a bucket.

The water molecules adhering to sand grains and each other aren’t visible to the children but they can explore this property, and think about how that is the same or different from the way other materials behave.
Some teachers bury small objects, such as shells, for children to discover while digging. In nature, sand and other sediments cover and bury objects and previously laid down layers of sediment.
Using a magnifier children can see the shape of the sand grains and notice different colors.
Children may notice the temperature differences between sand in direct sunlight and sand in the shade.
Impressions made by feet or objects can be filled with wet plaster of Paris (mixed by an adult in a plastic bag) and later pulled out of the sand to reveal the cast of the shape. Some fossils are formed when the space that a dead plant or animal occupied is filled with minerals over time.
Early childhood programs that have a water source that can be used with the sandbox provide an opportunity for children to create and observe water flow. As children work, ask them to tell you what they notice is happening. Record their words, have them write or draw about their observations. This documentation, along with their recollection of the experiences, is their evidence for any statements they make about the properties of sand and the force of moving water. Talking about what they observe is an important part of learning. Sharing their ideas about why and how is part of “doing science.”
These early childhood investigations and experiences support later learning about properties of liquids, engineering design, earth science concepts such as erosion and sedimentation, energy, forces and motion, and systems. Take a look at the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for K-grade 2 and see how the performance expectations (and the practices, core ideas and crosscutting concepts they were developed from) are supported by sandbox play and investigations. The NSTA has guides to the NGSS to help us use them in teaching children from early childhood and up.

The 2013 National Science Foundation (NSF) report Women, Minorities, and Persons With Disabilities in Science and Engineering indicates that “U.S. citizens and permanent residents earned higher numbers of science and engineering (S&E) doctorates in 2009 than they did in 1999. Since 2008, they’ve earned more doctorates in S&E fields than in non-S&E fields.” In 2010, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights issued the  Encouraging Minorities to Pursue Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Careers briefing.
These efforts indicate that more and more high school science teachers are and will be teaching students with disabilities in advanced science classes. If you teach Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), or honors science courses, you are likely experienced and knowledgeable about science, but you may have little or no experience with special education. Conversely, many special education teachers have little or no experience in teaching advanced science courses.
In their newly published book, Including Students With Disabilities in Advanced Science Classes, authors Lori Howard and Elizabeth Potts explain that advanced or accelerated courses are not usually team taught with a special education teacher and that those teachers may not have ready access to special educators to share strategies for fostering success for those students with disabilities.
This book is a unique resource for teachers of advanced science courses. The authors break down the essentials as follows:

• Basic Special Education Terms and Laws
• Working with the Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) Team
• Classroom Considerations: Behavior and Instruction
• Labs
• Assistive Technology and Your Classroom

The openness and willingness of teachers to welcome students with disabilities into the classroom is often identified as a key component for student success. As I read this book, I wondered what teachers facing this situation for the first time would be most concerned about. If  you have already taught students with disabilities in your advanced science classes, how would you advise someone to prepare? What was your experience?
Note: This book is also available as an e-book.