Suddenly, the holidays are over, and I'm gearing up for presentations again. Let me know if you'd like me to add staff development or an author visit for your school or district! January 11: Blue Springs School District, MO; Lab Class Day January 26: Jefferson City Schools, TN; Claims, Evidence, and Reasoning Workshop January 27: … Continue reading Where to Find Me This Winter
I just learned that Once Upon an Earth Science Book is included in NSTA's 20-20-20 sale (that's 20% off their top 20 books for 20 days). You can see the entire list here. Just use promo code DEC20 by (wait for it...) December 20th. Once Upon an Earth Science Book contains 12 lessons with a … Continue reading Once Upon an Earth Science Book-Sale!
I've posted about summer adventures before, and this is high time for making your selection and getting applications in. I am particularly intrigued by the Maury Project Workshop. You get to spend 2 weeks at the United States Naval Academy working with NOAA and AMS scientists to learn about physical oceanography. And do research cruises. … Continue reading ‘Tis the season to plan for summer
Ever wanted to be a park ranger? Spend a portion of your summer in a National Park as a Teacher-Ranger-Teacher (really not sure how they decided to cobble that name together). You will get a stipend for travel and living expenses and a chance to get to know one of our national treasures. Details of … Continue reading Another Summer Adventure
A whole cadre of children's authors will be signing books this Saturday night at the Georgia World Congress Center. They are all in town for NCTE (a national gathering of English teachers),but the signing is open to the public. All the details and a preliminary list of authors (25 so far) can be found here. … Continue reading Oodles of Authors
You want to have a classroom pet. You know how good they are for kids. But they are expensive. Pets in the Classroom grants to the rescue! If you are a preK-8 teacher, you can apply for a grant to purchase a classroom pet and supplies, and reapply annually to keep your pet's food bowl … Continue reading Classroom Pets and Supplies–Free!
Just a few weeks ago, I was discussing with another teacher recently about how powerful it can be to use local geologic examples with students, but regretting how much time it takes to research. Then Lo and Behold, the NSTA newsletter highlights this resource: Teacher Friendly Guides to the Earth Science of the United States. … Continue reading Local Geology Guides
At the Alabama School Library Association (ASLA) conference this summer, I sat in on a great presentation by Lisa Hathcock at Saks Elementary. She described how she uses tri-fold boards to set up centers in her MakerSpace. They feature specific science information, "Making" challenges, and highlight books from her library's collection. I thought they were … Continue reading Classroom/ MakerSpace Center (Free)
I have video from one more activity in Amazing Cardboard Tube Science. This shows one of my first attempts at the car for On a Roll on page 20. https://youtu.be/Ac-Dyl8ZkiY The force of the air coming from the balloon is almost too weak to get the car moving. So weak, in fact, that when I … Continue reading On a Roll
I usually post about science education, but I know some of my readers teach multiple subjects. I took one of these free, online courses with Waynesburg University several years ago in order to improve my ability to help all subject areas with content-area literacy. These courses help teachers locate primary sources from the online holdings … Continue reading Teaching with Primary Sources
Once Upon a Science Book 