Every teacher has that one unit they don’t like to teach. For me, it was cells. Having taught every grade from 6th to 12th, it seemed like no matter how hard I tried, the same thing happened every year. I taught organelles, students memorized them for a test, and then
Lately there is a big push for STEM in the classroom. Data has projected that STEM related jobs will increase to 9 million by the year 2022 (www.bls.gov). As teachers we need to not just teach science, but let students truly experience it first hand. Every year when I teach
This lab is one of my top sellers in my Teachers Pay Teachers store. It is easy to set up and doesn’t require a lot of materials. However, I frequently get questions about the lab so I’m hoping this blog post will be useful to those teachers out there who
Need a great inquiry lab? This soda lab is FUN! And I know what you are thinking…. “what a mess it must be!” But I’ve done this lab multiple times, and never had a spill. Students will get 3 types of soda, and will measure which brand has the greatest
pH…. one of those chemistry topics that us biology teachers get to teach. In biology I don’t make my students calculate pH and pOH values, but they need to understand what pH is and why maintaining a healthy pH in your body is so important. You may love biochemistry, or
Is food chains up next in your curriculum? Most students learn food chains in the elementary grades, so how do you make it interesting and rigorous at the secondary level? Here are some great options: 1. In this interactive from the BBC, students go through 3 levels and identify food chains
I like to use a lot of video clips in my lessons. Video clips keep students engaged and it breaks up the monotony of the notes. After lots of searching on the internet for good videos for my symbiosis lesson, I’ve found some real winners! Your students will love these
You’re giving a big unit test in a few days so you hand the students a study guide. A handful of the students dive in and get it done, while the rest answer about 3 questions and quit. You remind them that it is worth points, so the not-so-interested students
It’s the beginning of the year, and chances are you are starting off teaching or reviewing the scientific method. If you’ve looked around on the internet for scientific method labs, you will notice that the majority are not biology related. Don’t get me wrong- building paper airplanes, measuring bubbles, and
How often do you communicate with the parents of your students? It can seem overwhelming to make contact with parents all the time, especially as secondary teachers. We have 5 times the amount of students as elementary, and we can’t stick a newsletter in their backpacks in the hopes that
As teachers, we are always on a budget. Decorating classrooms can get pricey. When I first started teaching I was spending a fortune online and at teaching supply stores to buy science posters so my walls weren’t so drab. Since then, I’ve been creating my own science posters that the
Natural selection is one of my favorite topics to teach. Students enter the classroom with prior misconceptions and it’s fun to have students figure out what natural selection and evolution really mean. Here is a list of my favorite natural selection and evolution activities: 1. Battle of the Beaks– This
