Tired of discussing projectile motion in terms of bullets and cannonballs? Launch into the Science of NHL Hockey, where hockey pucks follow the same parabolic path as they shoot through the air and fall into the back corner of the goal, just out of the goalie’s reach. A phantom-cam captures the spinning puck at 10,000 frames per second, or about 160 times faster than the human eye can see. Don’t blink or you’ll miss it!

Projectile Motion is one of ten lesson packages developed by NBC Learn, in partnership with NSF and NSTA. Show the Science of NHL Hockey video Newton’s Three Laws of Motion as a “bell-ringer” to remind students of why objects move as they do. Then scoot them right into Projectile Motion. THEN, let us know what you think!

—Judy Elgin Jensen

Sledge hockey player preparing for a wrist shot by Mariska Richters

Video:
“Projectile Motion” shows how a wrist shot is a perfect example of the phenomenon, as well as describing angular and linear motion.

Middle school lesson: In this lesson, students explore two dimensional motion, linear and angular velocity, and a projectile’s path.

High school lesson: In this lesson, students design and carry out investigations about two dimensional motion, linear and angular velocity, and projectile motion.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:

[contact-form 2 “ChemNow]

The Sylvia Shugrue Award for Elementary school teachers honors one elementary school teacher who creates and makes use of interdisciplinary, inquiry-based lesson plans. To qualify, teachers submit a lesson plan with fully referenced sources of information and any relevant National Science Education Standards and benchmarks found in The Atlas of Science Literacy. Since the award’s debut in 2007, NSTA has recognized six teachers (we made two awards the first year… the submissions were THAT good). We haven’t posted the lesson plans, however, so this post is an effort to rectify that shortcoming. Please click through and have a look at the winning entries, and let us know what you think in the comments area below.

2007 Winners

Jennifer Sinsel
Fifth-Grade Science Teacher
Wichita Collegiate School
Wichita, Kansas

In Sinsel’s Smart Consumers unit, students investigate the quality of household products through hands-on activities and inquiry projects that allow them to apply the concepts and skills about which they are learning. Sinsel then works with her colleagues to create interdisciplinary connections that fulfill standards in other subjects. Her students write a Consumer Reports-style article in language arts class, for example, and create spreadsheets in math class. Her principal writes, “Jennifer does all the extra projects and discovery activities that students crave…As soon as she gets one project perfected, it becomes part of the curriculum, and she immediately begins to create the next unit.”

Have a look at Sinsel’s winning lesson plan, which looks at examples of the marketing messages kids see when they watch television, and how teachers can use the tube to spark scientific inquiry in the classroom.

Peggy Carlisle
Open Doors Teacher
Pecan Park Elementary School
Jackson, Mississippi

In her Open Doors program, Carlisle brings science to life for her inner-city students through hands-on, inquiry-based activities and with funding from the many grants she has received. She uses her classroom as a haven for many fascinating creatures housed in aquariums and terrariums; students are able to observe snails, chameleons, and other wonders of nature that also motivate them to read and write about the science they are learning. Interwoven in their studies have been poems to recite and create, figurines to mold, books to publish, and amazing facts and trivia to impress parents with. “There is not a child who leaves her classroom without a love of science,” says a colleague. “It is no surprise that some of her fourth-grade students’ writing scores are among the highest in the district.”

Carlisle’s winning lesson plan looks at the structures of aquatic creatures.

2008

Jennifer Thompson
K-1 Science Teacher
Gastineau Elementary School
Juneau, Alaska

Thompson created Ramps and Marbles: An Inquiry Into the Physics of Motion for Young Children, an interdisciplinary unit that introduces science process skills to young students. Students construct ramps on which they roll marbles; they make predictions, discussion them with other students, write about and draw pictures of their observations, and count marble rolls. This unit succeeds in exciting students about learning physical science because Thompson “puts the best into practice in her classroom,” observes her principal.

Thompson’s winning lesson explores the physics of motion with an inquiry activity using ramps and marbles. It includes examples of student work.

2009

Richard Tabor
Amerman Elementary School
Northville, Michigan

Tabor encourages young scientists to apply process skills to learn through discovery and experimentation. He designed a Solar Sprint activity to challenge them to consider multiple variables, integrate math, and develop technological applications. He has presented workshops to colleagues at his school and to teachers from several educational organizations and shared his ideas through state and national publications.

In Tabor’s winning lesson, students design and build their own solar powered LEGO cars, the goal being to design the most efficient car.

2010

Cathy Kindem
Cedar Park STEM Elementary School
Apple Valley, Minnesota

Kindem’s leadership has not only inspired the students to be engaged in science learning, but the work classroom teachers do with science has been transformed.  Her work has provided the staff with the content, teaching strategies and most importantly the willingness to be innovative.  Kindem has convinced classroom teachers that it is beneficial to go beyond the “boxed” curriculum and to move students’ understanding to important science concepts. She is leading the way for successful implementation of the new standards for not only her school, but for the district and the state.

Here is Kindem’s winning lesson, which examines the types of plants living in the gardens and how they are alike and differ.

2011

Melissa Collins
John P. Freeman Optional School
Memphis,Tennessee
Elementary teacher

A Presidential Awardee and National Board-certified teacher, Collins has served on or spearheaded committees to engage parents and community members, so they can learn from and assist with experiments, evaluate students’ work, and share their expertise. She helped develop a “night out with science and math” and hosted a health fair at her school. She also created a Physics Carnival that has helped many disadvantaged students understand the physics of carnival rides.

She provides her students with field experiences; for example, when learning about sound, she arranged for her students to interview a musician. She encourages her students to think of themselves as scientists and ensures that they understand safety regulations.

Her principal says she “motivates K-8 students to participate in science fairs, plant gardens, and take nature walks to observe living and nonliving things. She takes the initiative to ensure students’ success.”

Have a look at Collins’ winning lesson and some examples of student work. In the course of the lesson, students are expected to create an instrument that produces a sound. The instruments will be: a tambourine, sand blocks, maracas, a drum, and a guitar. To motivate students, they can bring items from home.

2012

Sergio de Alba
RM Miano Elementary School
Los Banos, California
Elementary teacher

De Alba has received many awards, including the Amgen Award for Science Teaching Excellence and the Entomological Society of America Foundation President’s Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Primary Education. His love for science has inspired him to create schoolwide programs that help students succeed in school and in life. For example, his inquiry-based Arachnid Mania research program has enabled thousands of students to learn the science behind arachnids. His Outdoor Science Lab Gardens provide students of all grade levels with hands-on lessons on plant science, history, math, and language arts. And his “Doctor Is In” club affords the school’s top science students a vision of a future in medicine.

“His extraordinary drive and dedication to the success of the youth of Los Banos is unparalleled,” declares his principal. By the end of his first year at his school, “he was able to raise the $35,000 required to create the first of his 12 outdoor science labs and had singlehandedly developed a research program that inspired 15 teachers to adopt…Though our district does not have the budget to pay him for his extra efforts, he has maintained and continues his programs because he believes in what he is doing. Throughout the years, he has found great success with getting local businesses to help his causes. He has won many grants that have helped to create the infrastructure of his programs, and when other funds are needed, he pays for many things out of his own pocket.”

Give de Alba’s lesson a try. It also includes some samples of student work, through which students show a basic foundation of how plants change (adapt) to increase their chances of survival and continued success.

One of my favorite benefits of being an NSTA member is being able to view all of the journals electronically, although I’m somewhat of a dinosaur in that I still like the feel of holding an actual book or magazine. On the NSTA home page, use the links in the “Choose Your Classroom” list to get to the current and archived issues of NSTA journals for elementary, middle school, high school, and college.
I subscribe to the hard copies of The Science Teacher and Science Scope, being a veteran secondary teacher. I toss the latest issues into a bag to read articles in between meetings, with my morning coffee or late night cocoa, or in the car (not while I’m driving, of course!). I also enjoy and learn a lot from reading Science and Children online for ideas and insights, and I’m now reading these articles on my iPad, which fits into my bag too.
Sometimes I wonder about the artificial boundaries we create as teachers: elementary vs. secondary, K-12 vs. higher education, middle school vs. high school. Having been an educator at all of these levels, I’ve found that there are as many similarities as differences. If you take a few minutes to browse the table of contents for the journals that are outside your own teaching assignments (or read the related SciLinks blogs or the highlights on Facebook and Twitter @NSTA or the summaries on the Social Networking Dashboard) you might identify a few articles of interest to download and read. For example, if you’re not up to date on content, the secondary journals may help you. Or you may have students who could benefit from more advanced activities, or those who need some fundamental experiences.
I suspect that many K-12 teachers don’t look at the Journal of College Science Teaching, but this is another excellent resource. It’s interesting that some of the articles in this higher education publication are about topics and issues with which all of us in K-12 can identify. For example, there have been articles about team dynamics in cooperative learning, the use of learning contracts, using “clicker” response systems in class, and a comparison of cookbook labs and authentic research activities. Even though the students described in these articles are older, there are a lot of commonalities with science education at all levels. Best of all, unlike some higher education publications, the articles in JCST are very readable, not written in “journalese.”
You can download journal articles as PDFs directly to your desktop or iPad. Or you can take advantage of NSTA’s Learning Center to save relevant articles in your own online library or organized them into a resource collection.

Potentially your students will go kinetic over this installment of the Science of NHL Hockey video series! OK, really bad play on words. But luckily the energy of the video will make up for it. Ha! Really, though, students will learn how potential and kinetic energy cause a player’s slapshot to project a puck at speeds that could pass you up on the interstate!

One of ten lesson packages created by NBC Learn in partnership with NSF and NSTA, this video uses high-speed, slow motion camera work to show students the science of the slapper. Once you view the video and try the lesson plans, let us know how they work for you! And if you made significant changes to a lesson, we’d love to see what you did differently, as well as why you made the changes. Leave a comment, and we’ll get in touch with you with submission information.

—Judy Elgin Jensen

Photo of flexed hockey stick by Colin Busby.

Video: “Work, Energy & Power,” explores how NHL players depend on these important physics concepts as well as the roles of potential and kinetic energy and energy conservation.

Middle school lesson: In this lesson, students design ways to measure power output and demonstrate the conservation of energy.

High school lesson: In this lesson, students explore examples of work, potential and kinetic energy, and power, and demonstrate the conservation of energy.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:

[contact-form 2 “ChemNow]

What do diamond and graphite have in common? Wait … that’s too easy. What do diamond, graphite, soccer balls, and the state of Texas have in common? Find out in this video, part of the Chemistry Now series from the partnership of NBC Learn, NSF, and NSTA. Expose students to some of the wonders of carbon allotropes—ranging from nano-scale applications such as chemotherapies and molecule-sized computer chips to space elevators.

The NBC Learn collection (linked below) also includes an NBC News profile of Herbert Haupman, the 1985 winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, one of the Chance Discoveries video series on the development of graphene, and other resources related to carbon chemistry. As always, view the videos, try the lessons, and let us know what you think.

—Judy Elgin Jensen

Photo of dog with buckyball shaped object by  Stuart Dootson.

Video:  “Diamonds, Pencils and Buckyballs: A Look at Buckminsterfullerene,” examines the structure and properties of buckminsterfullerene molecules and carbon allotropes, along with diamonds and graphite. And in “Chance Discoveries: Graphene” researchers from the University of Manchester stumble onto a technique that enables them to reduce graphite to a thin layer one atom thick, and they end up with a pure material of unprecedented strength with highly conductive properties.

Middle school lesson: This lesson guides students in developing a presentation about Nobel Prize-winning chemists.

High school lesson: In this lesson, students explore Nobel Prize-winning chemists and develop presentations about them and their discoveries.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:

[contact-form 2 “ChemNow]

My first year of teaching had its ups and downs, but I’m looking forward to next year. As the school year ends, do you have any suggestions for how I can prepare for next year? I’ll be teaching the same subjects in the same lab.
—Monica, South Carolina.
Congratulations for completing your first year, and for having a job next year! You’ll find the end of the year is as hectic as the beginning, with final exams, grades and other reports, inventory updates, and clean-up. You also may be looking forward to graduate courses, home improvements, a summer job, family time, or some much-needed R&R. But the end of the school year is a good time to review, reflect on, and learn from your experiences while your memory is fresh and plan for next year
You probably had some great lessons, as well as a few that went over like a lead balloon, and you can learn from both kinds. What made them successful? What did you do when things didn’t go as planned? How effective were your classroom management routines and procedures? Did your students seem to enjoy learning science? Did you enjoy teaching and learning with them? How did you deal with disruptive students? What were your interactions with parents like? Are there any strategies you would like to add to your repertoire, in terms of instruction, classroom management, or communications?

Consider your course curriculum. Were you surprised by any misconceptions or lack of experience your students had? Should you change the amount of time or emphasis you put on some units? Did you have an effective combination of science content, skills, and processes? Do you have any gaps in your own knowledge base that could be supplemented this summer with online courses, readings, websites, or visits to local informal science institutions (museums, zoos, planetariums, etc.)? How well were you able to access and use the technologies available in your school? What kinds of interdisciplinary connections did you make?
As you complete final evaluations/grades for students, ask yourself how well the grades reflect student learning. How well did your assessments align with the unit goals and lesson objectives? Did you provide opportunities for students to reflect on their own learning (e.g., through a science notebook, rubrics)?
Although some schools do not require detailed written lesson plans, there are advantages of having plans that can be revisited and adapted the following year. Were your lesson plans detailed enough, or will you have to recreate them? Based on your assessment data, what instructional strategies should you change (or keep)? How well were your assignments and projects aligned to the unit goals and lesson objectives? Did your lab activities help students to develop their inquiry skills?
On a practical note, check with your principal or department chair for any end-of-year checkout procedures. Your classroom may not be secure during the summer months, so keep your lab equipment and technology in locked cabinets or store rooms. Take valuable or irreplaceable personal belongings home or lock them in a cabinet. Label any large personal items you brought in, such as a desk chair or stool, with your name in case they wander off over the break. If you have personal documents, tests, grades, or other sensitive information on an unsecured hard drive, transfer them to a network drive or to a flash drive. Some schools allow teachers to take their school-assigned computer home for the summer, but don’t take any school equipment home without permission.
Update equipment inventories and note if anything needs to be repaired or replaced. Keep your requisition list for next year handy so you can check in the new materials. If any textbooks are in need of repair, take care of them now. Make sure items such as glassware, cages, aquariums, sinks, or tabletops are clean and ready for next year.
Based on your reflections, this might also be a good time to formulate your goals for next year. It’s tempting to say, “I’ll think about this in August,” but if you take some time now for thinking, reflecting, organizing, and planning, you’ll have more time in the fall to get your second year off to a good start.

Vectors. The key to passing a puck, throwing a football, shooting pool, coordinating fireworks, or finding buried treasure. Knowing which way to go is one thing. Knowing how fast to move is another. Put them both together and you’ll be in the right place at the right time!

Find out more in this lesson package, one of 10, created by NBC Learn, in partnership with NSF and NSTA. It focuses on the ability of NHL players to pass the puck quickly and accurately as play moves from one end of the ice to the other.

Although vectors might not be in your middle school standards, show this video to students as an extension or enrichment. From this real-world application of the concept, students will start to build a basis for later learning. Give this one a try and let us know how we can improve it for middle schoolers!

—Judy Elgin Jensen

Photo of hockey player by Jason Kessenich 

Video: “Vectors,” examines velocity vectors through the pinpoint passes of NHL players.

Middle school lesson: In this lesson, students will define a vector as a quantity that has magnitude and direction and make generalizations about the basic properties of vectors and how to add them.

High school lesson: In this lesson, students explore the basic properties of vectors and their components and how to add vectors.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:

[contact-form 2 “ChemNow]

Although science and math seem to go hand-in-hand, many of us have trouble incorporating math concepts in our science instruction. Hockey Geometry, produced by NBC Learn in partnership with NSF will give you a hand! From the passes NHL players make to their teammates, to the shots they take to score, players in every position are constantly using geometry when playing the game.

This lesson package will cause students to look at playing fields in a whole new way. Use it as a springboard for students to analyze surfaces, packages, and other objects for geometry principles. Or use it to engage students in angles and reflection as you begin studying optics.

Now it’s possible that your BFF is a math teacher or you need to repay a favor to your math teammate. If so, share this link and you’ll get a VBG in return! And once you (or they) view the video and try the lessons, be sure to let us know what you think.

—Judy Elgin Jensen

Photo of world’s largest real hockey stick by Jenni Konrad

Video:

“Hockey Geometry,” examines the lines, angles and curves on the ice as well as the geometry involved in playing shots.

Middle school lesson: In this lesson, students use manipulatives to explore the geometry of hockey and make connections to optics.

High school lesson: In this lesson, students begin by exploring geometry concepts and move into basic trigonometry applications.

You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:

[contact-form 2 “ChemNow]

We are featuring a post from guest blogger, Kelly Price.  Kelly is the GSTA Director for the 2012-13 year. She has been a member of the GSTA board for many years serving in the roles of District II Director, Secretary, and President. Kelly  has also served a three year term on the NSTA Council as the District V Director. 
Membership management can be a huge task for any club or group.  For the Georgia Science Teachers Association, we had passed on the task of “spreadsheet monitor” of the membership lists for many years before we found a transformational resource to help us.
The transformation began with a hard look at the core tasks of the organization in May 2011.  We decided to simplify our target activities instead of expending time in so many different traditional committees and chores.  Our focus became the electronic newsletter, the GSTA website and the annual GSTA conference.
A task force did a formal review of the GSTA website and determined that a complete redesign was in order. GSTA was paying at least $2000 per year for a webmaster to update the website in a timely manner as directed by the GSTA board.  The new redesign was not part of the original contract with the webmaster and would result in an additional cost of at least $5000.  With that news we started to brainstorm a different solution.
At the 2011 National Congress for Science Education in Baltimore, I remembered a session about membership management where different solutions were shared.  I found my notes from the session and started researching to see if one of them might suit our needs.  From that point forward, I have been a raving fan of Wild Apricot (www.wildapricot.com).  This was one of the membership management systems included in the presentation and it is amazing.  Not only does it serve as our membership management system, but our website too!  We can go in and update our site on the spot and it also does event registration.  We found an all-in-one solution to meet our needs! Within a 48 hour period, the leader of our website task force had created a brand new website for GSTA.  We already owned our URL address — it took a few more days to transfer to our new website using our recognizable URL.  Check it out,  www.georgiascienceteacher.org.
This new membership management system allowed us to import our old-style spreadsheet to populate our membership list.  You can easily create a “members only“ section. It automatically generates invoices, reminders about membership renewal and so much more.  We are certainly still learning about all of the attributes the system offers.  The webpage building process is extremely easy and there are lots of themes and formats to choose from.
Credit card processing for the GSTA annual conference has been another opportunity for growth and we are researching the different credit card processing options available.  Even with the credit card processing learning curve, we are now using a membership management system that also serves as our GSTA website platform and manages conference registrations.
All that for just over $1000 in subscription cost per year.  We really got a bargain!
Kelly Price, GSTA Director 2012-2013

The USA Science and Engineering Festival had something for everyone this weekend—information, experiences, fun and challenges for scientists young and old.
I learned about the senses through the “Science of Our Senses” exhibit activities by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. By smelling, people can have different perceptions of the same compound, that is, things may not smell the same to different people. Data was collected by age and intensity of the perceived smell on the Smell Board to see if any trends developed. Listening to a “Shepard Tone” sounds like it’s rising endlessly because our brain doesn’t notice that other rising tones come up from the depths to take our focus away from the tone that rose out of our hearing range. The sense of touch activity involved identifying shapes by touch. The sense of sight was illustrated by optical illusions. 
The National Science Teachers Association tables had a steady stream of visitors making soda straw rockets, a sense of touch materials science challenge, a center-of-gravity activity to balance a butterfly, a loop plane (see page 48), as well as an activity involving a hairdryer blowing toilet paper and one with a big jar of cheese balls (your guess is as good as mine, I wish I had participated!).
The volunteers staffing a National Institute of Health booth were using models to teach about the structure of the human brain. Visitors lined up to look through a window into the Crew Module of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle. And Ms Frizzle brought the Magic School Bus to the Festival.
It was wonderful to see so many families spending time together learning, and to meet teachers who came from places like NYC and California just for the Festival.
Next year I hope to go both days.
Peggy