Helping Students Design 3D Models in STEM
Models are one of my favorite learning tools for exploring STEM concepts. Whether it's a leaf cross-section made with construction paper or a city built with Legos, models can be used to convey all sorts of information. That's why one of the first steps to implementing project-based learning in your...
Lego Activities for Teaching Urban Sustainability
Legos are a must-have for your science classroom! The plastic building blocks are perfect for modeling or building all sorts of constructs, from sundials to cars to landscapes. So when it comes to teaching about urban sustainability, Legos are one of my go-to teaching tools, even for high school and...
10 Free Resources for Project Based Learning Activities
I love the PBL model of education, but it sure is hard on teachers! Coming up with new ideas for project based learning activities is taxing. The good news is that there are plenty of project ideas floating around, many of which will work for both in-person and online classes....
3 Methods to Report Uncertainty in Measurements
When teaching science, it is important to instill in students a culture of transparency. Whether we are collecting data from experiments or simply making observations, measurements are the basis of our analysis and conclusions. It may be tempting to simply record measurements and call it good, but only the researcher...
Making a Choropleth Map to Visualize Data
Have you ever looked at a presidential election outcome map of the United States that is colored red and blue to show which states voted Republican or Democratic? You were looking at a choropleth map! A choropleth map is one of the best ways to visualize data related to a...
How to Use Shared Slides for Graphing Projects
When I assign class graphing projects, I like my students to be able to see each other’s graphs. Why? Because the same dataset can be graphed multiple ways. When students can share their work with each other, it helps them understand that preference and perspective impact the way we see...
Data Visualization Activities Using 5 Creative Illustrations
Data analysis can be tedious, especially when every graph starts to look the same. One way to keep your students engaged is to use data visualization activities with creative data illustrations, instead of sticking to traditional graphs types. Good data visualizations portray data in a way that is interesting and...
Team Building Challenges vs. Competitions
Team building challenges and competitions are two popular forms of classroom activities that hit Next Generation Science Standards and practices. They both motivate class participation and engage critical thinking. Competitions and team building challenges require students to work together to reach a solution for a problem or activity. For this...
Using California Wildfires to Teach Climate Change and Graphing
One of the reasons students get bored with science or math is because they fail to see how it connects with reality. How are math and science important in day-to-day life? Well, one of the best ways to connect math and science to real-world events is through natural disasters. Hurricanes,...
Exercises for Teaching Pattern Recognition
Pattern recognition is a critical thinking skill that crosses every subject area. It is essential for the development of higher-order actions such as analyzing, creating, and evaluating. It is also an important step in puzzle solving.How are you exposing students to patterns, pointing out trends, asking them to identify relationships,...
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