Science Education Idea Exchange

I don't remember if I learned about this strategy independently or in professional development, but I love "My Favorite No" from the Teaching Channel. Here's how it works: Ask students to write responses to a quick check-for-understanding question on index cards. Sort through the answers to select a common mistake. Share it with the students, reminding them it's your favorite no. Ask students to identify what the mystery student did right. Finally, ask what errors students notice and explain why the answer is incorrect. At first, my students found it uncomfortable. No one likes to feel like they are being called out. I made sure not to name anyone. In hindsight, I could have asked them to leave the cards without names. Eventually, students found it a great learning tool and a way to self-check. Click here to read the original article and see the video. Photo by Brandi Redd on Unsplash

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.