Science Education Idea Exchange

I heard another educator say we are teaching the YouTube generation, so why not embrace it? Videos are truly powerful resources for teachers. Early in teaching middle school, I had a mentor who used Eureka! videos to teach concepts. They are a little bit dated, but they are short, easy to follow, and provide silly examples to walk students through scientific principles. The only way I have found them is on YouTube, but I am sure there are better ways that don't infringe on the rights of the creator.

A few years ago, I heard a speaker talk about the importance of class culture by using humor. I implemented brain breaks that year and it was a hit! There are a couple options: 1. GoNoodle 2. YouTube Videos GoNoodle is a fun website that offers free videos to get students up and moving or calm and relaxed. My students did not get into it too much because I think they felt they were too cool to dance around. But, maybe you can get it to work for your classroom. My brain breaks evolved into silly YouTube videos. I started off the year with a few that I found and eventually, my students were submitting videos. It was a moment of pride when their video was viewed in class. Students talked about our brain breaks on evaluation forms, with their parents, and with their peers. It was a big hit! By having students submit videos, I was able to preview them and create a list for later use. I would remind students that videos could not contain anything with foul language, racist, religio...

My cohort and I realized that our students were scoring low on a question about the relationship between density and temperature on our check point. I created something similar for the students to draw in their notebooks and we viewed a couple things as we discussed, like this amazing convection current video  and this animation of molecules and temperature from Middle School Chemistry. I think it helped clear up a few cobwebs. We'll find out more over the next week! I added a free graphic organizer that can be downloaded on my Teachers Pay Teachers account. Please check it out and leave feedback!

When I first started teaching, a co-worker introduced me to a fantastic show call "The Principal's Office". If you need a laugh, especially with the end of the school year. Enjoy! 

I have created a YouTube channel so my students can revisit videos we have seen in class.  They are sorted by life science, physical science, and earth science.  The target audience is middle schoolers.  Check it out!