MiddleSchoolScience.com

I just got an email from my friend, Liz, over at MiddleSchoolScience.com. She's taken a few years off from teaching to raise her kids. She kept her website up and going while she was away. Now I'm happy to report she's back! And her site has been upgraded!

Glad to see you back, Liz! Your new and improved website is fun to visit! It gave me inspiration during my own teaching years and I know will continue to give encouragement to anyone who visits your site.

Liz emailed me about my posts about puzzles and BONUS work for kids. She has signed up for the Highlights Magazine Picture Find service and wanted to share the link with me.

Do you remember Highlights? I do! It's been around for 60 years so most of us have seen this wonderful magazine. Check out the Highlights website. Obviously, they have kept up with the times. Great website! Even has a Science Corner.

Back to the hidden picture link. Click here for the parents' email link. Click on and off what you would like to receive.

To quote Liz:

"You get a pdf and it's two pages, so great to make copies front and back, picture takes up most of the front page."

"I have challenge puzzles, and my 5th graders LOVE the Highlights Magazine picture finds. I get one emailed to me each month and I have been saving them, and I put out new ones as the old ones are snatched up! I think it's GREAT for making observations and using both sides of their brains. Both boys and girls love them. They can work on them when they are done with their labs/activities."

Be sure to visit Liz' site. I have had a link on my website for years. She's the teacher website on the Internet that originally inspired me to start my own. Be sure to visit her planbook and lab journal pages.

Thank you, Liz! And welcome back! You are one of those special teachers who I wish had been just down the hall from me!

Building Polyhedrons

I loved to put out polyhedrons for BONUS points.

I tried to keep kids busy at all times, right up to the bell. If kids were done with their homework, I would let them get out homework from another class. Or I would encourage them to get a BONUS PAGE from my class to do.

I've already talked about putting out Coloring Sheets for BONUS points.

Now here's another idea! Run some patterns off on colored paper! Put out one or two sheets per week and watch them get snatched up! Especially if you make a couple yourself and hang them from the ceiling over the Pick-Up Table.

Pick-Up Table: I always had a table set up by my door with all the work for the day ready to be picked up by the students as they walked in the room. This saved lots of class time for me. More on the Pick-Up Table another day!

I always had a couple of new BONUS pages on the top of the table EVERY DAY! They are easy to do. Make a new crisscross puzzle on Discovery.com's Puzzlemaker site. Find fun pages in some of the old workbooks sitting on your shelf. Surf the net for fun ideas.

CONSIDER THIS: In Science class, anything that exercises the mind of your students is good for BONUS!

KEWL IDEA: Before you run off, add some words for direction. Check out this example!

FUN LINKS: Several Patterns from Duke University.
Lotsa Paper Models of Polyhedrons!

We have a WINNER!

A FREE beta copy of my Teaching Plate Tectonics Packet goes to Cadena of South Dakota.

CONGRATULATIONS, CADENA!

I will be mailing a beta copy of the new Teaching Plate Tectonics Packet to you ASAP. I have just a couple more things I want to add to the Packet and then I will mail it off to you!

For everyone one else, be sure to keep checking my store page for the inaguration of the Plate Tectonics Packet. I also have three Mini-Packets just about ready to go, including Goodies for Teachers.

FUN LINK: Marcia's Science Teaching Ideas Store.

What Causes the Seasons?

From an Astronomy point-of-view, teaching what causes the seasons is an important teacher goal.

I always found at least half of each class still held on to the thought that we are closer to the sun in the summer and farther away in the winter. Once they understand it's the angle of sunlight and that we are closer in the winter, kick it up a notch by having them go home and check out what their parents think!

My most favorite unit I've always called the "Skittles Lesson" because Skittles candies are used as units of heat. My students seemed to stay focused for the most part, especially since they knew they got to eat the candy when they had completed the worksheet!

Since it's such a complicated lesson (the first time), I've written a "How to Teach" handout so you can see what worked for me in getting across this concept.

CONSIDER THIS: Teach the Seasons using Skittles!
Click here for the Skittles Activity, the directions, and also a couple of other active learning activities for teaching "Reasons for the Seasons."

FUN LINKS: Tons of other kewl ideas!

The Perfect Animation for the Skittles Activity: Click here!

Vocab Matching Team Game

You're never too old to play games that help you learn.

My 92 year old father moved down here from Minnesota this summer to be near his family. We are loving having him just down the street. It's a real joy.

The Independent Living place he's moved into has already tapped him to help teach a computer class. They've figured out he's a real computer expert and has a lot to share with his neighbors.

So along with the Activity Director, he's teaching a beginning computer course to a couple dozen eager students.

Last week, I gave him a Matching Game for his course based on my old stand-by, the Vocab Matching Team Game. I made brightly colored sets of vocab and definitions from his beginning lesson.

He and the Activity Director decided to divide the class into two teams and away they went! And they LOVED the game!

So if you can substitute the kids in the above photo with 70-80-90-year olds, you've got the picture of that day in the computer classroom.

Dad said they started out slowly, but once they caught on to what the object of the game was, away they went!

And those that came to the class too late to participate, according to my Dad, will be on time next class just to see what tricks he has up his sleeve.

Stick with me, Dad. I've got lots more great ideas, that literally will work for students from 9 to 90!

CONSIDER THIS: Even if you teach high schoolers, a simple team game will add lots of punch and learning to your classroom.

FUN LINK: Check out my Active Games page.