Science Education Idea Exchange

I have a few atoms and physical science based products that are new to my store. 1.  MS-PS1-1: Atomic Structure Activity- Building Molecules This activity would serve best as an introduction to atoms and matter. Day one consists of students learning how atoms bond to form molecules using the premade model. On day two, students create their model to make an assigned molecule. In a pinch, day one could be a print-and-go activity. Students could cut apart their atoms in class to save prep time. Standards/Objectives: ✅NGSS: MS-PS1-1 This product includes the following activities: ⚪Looking at patterns ⚪Creating molecules ⚪Creating molecule models 2.  MS-PS1-2 Poisonous Pee Chemical Reaction Lab Students examine whether chemicals are safe to use as a cleaner on toilets to learn about chemical reactions. Their task is to help OSHA determine what cleaners are safe for a fictitious school to use and what should be investigated further. Background knowledge of chemical reactions is best...

I learned about Pocket as another tool for saving ideas, like Pinterest. I signed up for a free account to try it out.  It is an app and website that allows you to browse news articles and save them for future reference. The articles are selected from news sources around the globe, which I appreciated, as I sometimes have a hard time searching for articles. As a teacher, I would look for engaging news stories to share with my students to spark their curiosity. There were many to choose from with eye-catching titles. You can see a preview of what I saw when I chose the topic of "education". The one downside is it is not easy to search the site for specific articles. You can only search what you have saved. This could mean a lot of sifting for a busy teacher.

  No-Frills Science is a new TPT store created by a teacher with many years of experience. Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash I found their freebie scavenger hunt on the periodic table of elements in a recent search. It offers a lot for a free resource! What I like: print-and-go lesson plans and answer keys included could be utilized with a sub bad puns

  I have two new ecology that I posted last month! https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/MS-LS2-Ecology-Unit-Lesson-Plans-12001210 This MS-LS 2 ecology package is all the lesson plans for ecosystems and populations at a discounted rate! The bundle includes a student packet ready for printing (color and black-and-white), answer keys, teacher printouts for activities, lesson assessments, unit assessments, phenomena, labs, materials lists, extended projects, and more! The topics covered (click for individual lesson plans): Resource Availability & Carrying Capacity Symbiotic Relationships: Competition, Predator/Prey, Mutualism Cycling Matter & Energy Abiotic and Biotic Influences Conservation and Methods to Maintain Biodiversity The lesson plans for approximately 32 days are detailed and could be copy and pasted to share with your administration. ***Most lessons can easily be adapted to distance learning and homeschooling. Standards/Objectives: ✅NGSS: MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-2, ...

I am currently taking a course on accommodations, modifications, and assistive technology for my license and thought this resource was too cool not to share. I got it from the Teaching Channel and will share a couple of tools you can implement in the classroom for diverse learners: Photo by Daniel Ali on Unsplash YouTube - closed captioned feature can be turned on by clicking the "CC" button at the bottom. I use this even if I don't have a student who requires it. This is useful for ELL students as well as hearing impaired. Read-and-Write - students can highlight text and have it read to them through the Chrome Extension. Google Translate - Chrome Extension with many different languages so students can read in their first language.

  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/the-inquisitive-tortoise

This free resource comes from a new content creator titled We Teach Stuff . It's a single note sheet on biomolecules and contains three columns for the student to fill in. We Teach Stuff has students draw a picture, write the function, and list examples. What I like about it: simple layout answer keys included- one handwritten and one typed includes lines for students to write their notes neatly You can find the Molecules of Life Note Sheet here . Photo by Photoholgic on Unsplash

Over 8 class periods, students learn about agencies and methods to protect biodiversity to meet NGSS MS-LS2-5. Throughout the plans are opportunities for students to conclude on best conservation practices. The lesson plans can be found here . The simulation is run by checking restocking, catch, and release, and limiting licenses against a control. Students share data as a class to get averages to look at the success of all three methods. Finally, after creating a graph, students complete a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) over their findings. The project will have students conducting research, engineering a design, and evaluating competing designs over six or more 45-minute class periods. The objective is to evaluate competing designs for maintaining biodiversity. There are colored and blackline copies of the student packet as a secured PDF. There is also a secured PDF with the teacher's guide with answer keys and lesson plans. Standards/Objectives: ✅NGSS: MS-LS2-5 This product inc...

This is another one of those posts that I'm not sure why I have not written about it before! As a new teacher, I did not have a PLC for the first few years. There were some ideas I was able to borrow from teachers in my building, but I had to create my curriculum. That's where Pinterest became a huge time saver! How it works: Add the Chrome extension - as long as a picture is on the website you would like to save, you can create a brand-new pin. Download the app to your phone- sift through already created pins when you have downtime to get inspired. Use the website - You can create new pins like you would with a browser extension and find existing pins. It's easier to organize your pins, send pins, and add collaborators on the website (in my opinion). You can check out my science board here for some ideas I love and have been inspired by. You will also notice some of my creations as well.