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Practice Briefs

These very short pieces highlight ways of working on specific issues that come up during STEM teaching. You can browse them below or easily flip through and browse the entire collection online. If you would like to browse or download the entire collection of tools as eye-catching PDFs, check out: http://STEMteachingtools.org/link/PDFcollection/

We're translating our collection of tools for science education into Spanish. Click here to read the STEM Teaching Tools that have been translated.
Estamos trabajando para traducir las STEM Teaching Tools en español. Hagan click aquí para leer las STEM Teaching Tools (STT) que han sido traducidas.

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These very short pieces highlight ways of working on specific issues that come up during STEM teaching. You can browse them below or easily flip through and browse the entire collection online. If you would like to browse or download the entire collection of tools as eye-catching PDFs, check out: http://STEMteachingtools.org/link/PDFcollection/ We're translating our collection of tools for science education into Spanish.

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http://www.stemcon.net/speaker/dr-carrie-launius/

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Dr. Carrie Launius

adviser @ Science Teachers of Missouri

Carrie Launius spent over 30 years in science education starting as an elementary teacher and retiring as an assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. Her passion has always been to engage students in authentic experiences creating life-long science learners. Launius has been the president of STOM- Science Teachers of Missouri and now serves as an adviser. She currently is NSTA's district XI director. She also created and serves as chair of the NSTA - CBC Best STEM book committee.

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adviser @ Science Teachers of Missouri Carrie Launius spent over 30 years in science education starting as an elementary teacher and retiring as an assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. Her passion has always been to engage students in authentic experiences creating life-long science learners.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7-C_5rBh1Q&t=5s

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0:00 / 0:15•Watch full video

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PrimaryConnections - Linking Science with Literacy

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DADSfEu9Was

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Demonstration of Read Aloud-Think Aloud by Carrie Launius

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https://drive.google.com/file/d/17_MD62KQaZS8M_lkOc0ZrE6qd-h8K4UY/view

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Get access to files anywhere through secure cloud storage and file backup for your photos, videos, files and more with Google Drive.

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https://hourofcode.com/us/learn

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Hour of Code

This year, we're taking Hour of Code to new heights by offering coding opportunities that encompass both artificial intelligence (AI) and non-AI components.

Want to keep learning? Go beyond an hour

Teachers: Host an hour or read the How-To Guide

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Use computer science to explore and learn about AI!

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https://www.sciencealert.com/watch-a-bowling-ball-and-feather-fall-in-world-s-biggest-vacuum-chamber

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It was Galileo himself who first discovered that in a vacuum, if you were to drop two objects from the same height, they'd hit the ground at exactly the same time, regardless of their respective weights. Of course, on Earth, we rarely - if ever - get the change to see this at play, thanks to a phenomenon known as air resistance.

The combination of bowling ball and feather is the perfect way to demonstrate air resistance, also known as drag. Because the shape of the feather allows it to endure way more air resistance than the bowling ball, it takes much longer to fall to the ground.

British physicist Brian Cox wanted to see this primary-school problem play out in a vacuum, where there is zero air resistance to mess with the results. Filming for his new BBC 2 show, Human Universe, he travelled to the US and visited the NASA Space Power Facility in Ohio. The facility is the world's largest vacuum chamber, measuring 30.5 metres by 37.2 metres, and has a volume of 22,653 cubic metres.

When not in use, the chamber contains around 30 tonnes of air, but when it's turned on, all but around 2 grams of air are sucked out to create an artificial vacuum. Watch above to see what happens when a bowling ball and feather are dropped in the chamber under 'normal' conditions and then in a vacuum. If it's enough to make even the most seasoned NASA scientist grin with childlike wonder, you know it's gotta be good.
Source: io9

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WATCH: A Bowling Ball And Feather Fall in World's Biggest Vacuum Chamber

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It was Galileo himself who first discovered that in a vacuum, if you were to drop two objects from the same height, they'd hit the ground at exactly the same time, regardless of their respective weights. Of course, on Earth, we rarely - if ever - get the change to see this at play, thanks to a phenomenon known as air resistance.

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https://docs.google.com/document/d/1B6-xThMYatDybAdXVwA8TtEUwLH9hU7X1MAzcaIQpVg/edit?usp=sharing

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Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

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Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

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https://www.nextgenscience.org/

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Improving Science Education Through Three-Dimensional Learning

Quick Search Next Generation Science Standards

THE THREE DIMENSIONS OF SCIENCE LEARNING

Within the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), there are three distinct and equally important dimensions to learning science. These dimensions are combined to form each standard-or performance expectation-and each dimension works with the other two to help students build a cohesive understanding of science over time.

Crosscutting Concepts help students explore connections across the four domains of science, including Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science, and Engineering Design.

When these concepts, such as "cause and effect", are made explicit for students, they can help students develop a coherent and scientifically-based view of the world around them.

Science and Engineering Practices describe what scientists do to investigate the natural world and what engineers do to design and build systems. The practices better explain and extend what is meant by "inquiry" in science and the range of cognitive, social, and physical practices that it requires. Students engage in practices to build, deepen, and apply their knowledge of core ideas and crosscutting concepts.

Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCIs) are the key ideas in science that have broad importance within or across multiple science or engineering disciplines. These core ideas build on each other as students progress through grade levels and are grouped into the following four domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science, and Engineering.

More about 3D Learning

GET TO KNOW

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are K-12 science content standards. Standards set the expectations for what students should know and be able to do. The NGSS were developed by states to improve science education for all students.

A goal for developing the NGSS was to create a set of research-based, up-to-date K-12 science standards. These standards give local educators the flexibility to design classroom learning experiences that stimulate students' interests in science and prepares them for college, careers, and citizenship.

Get to Know the Standards

IMPLEMENT

The NGSS call for a three-dimensional approach to K-12 science instruction. This represents a significant transition from previous state standards. That's why effective implementation demands a great deal of collaboration and patience among states, districts, schools, teachers, and students.

Thoughtful and coordinated approaches to implementation will enable educators to inspire future generations of scientifically literate students. That is the vision of the NGSS. This website provides a range of high-quality resources that empower educators, administrators, parents, and the general public to help bring this vision to life.

Find Tools and Resources

WHY

Science-and therefore science education-is central to the lives of all Americans.

A high-quality science education means that students will develop an in-depth understanding of content and develop key skills-communication, collaboration, inquiry, problem solving, and flexibility-that will serve them throughout their educational and professional lives.

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Home Page | Next Generation Science Standards

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Improving Science Education Through Three-Dimensional Learning Quick Search Next Generation Science Standards Within the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), there are three distinct and equally important dimensions to learning science. These dimensions are combined to form each standard-or performance expectation-and each dimension works with the other two to help students build a cohesive understanding of science over time.

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https://www.nextgenscience.org/search-standards

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To learn more about the standards, click here. To learn more about the NGSS Appendices,click here.

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https://www.nsta.org/blog/what-makes-good-stem-trade-book-carrie-launius-christine-anne-royce

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This is a question a lot of people are asking.

Since 2016 NSTA has published the Best STEM Books a companion piece to the Outstanding Science Trade Books list.

While many groups have recommended STEM trade books for children, there has been no real consensus of the criteria necessary in a STEM trade book. Many STEM books are comprised of good science or math or engineering or technology books and are billed as "STEM." But is it really STEM?

To truly define the criteria needed for a STEM book, we need to first agree loosely on a definition of STEM. One of the most repeated definitions of STEM is "STEM education is an interdisciplinary approach to learning where rigorous academic concepts are coupled with real-world lessons as students apply science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in contexts that make connections between school, community, work, and the global enterprise enabling the development of STEM literacy and with it the ability to compete in the new economy." [1].
Generating a List of Characteristics
Determining what IS a STEM book might require us to begin with defining what a STEM book IS NOT. STEM Books do not:

simply present facts or information;

focus only on a single subject;

present topics that exist in a vacuum; and

fail to create connections to the real world.

Therefore, if we know what a STEM book is not, we can draw conclusions about what they are. STEM Books should:

engage students in thinking about and using problem solving;

integrate two or more of the STEM fields;

present relevant and interconnected topics;

make connections to the real world; and

help students connect both content and practices or habits of mind used by STEM fields.

If we begin to generate a list of habits of mind and practices, we begin to see that many books identified as STEM books ask students to engage in creating knowledge from their experiences ranging from asking questions and gathering information to analyzing data.

We also begin to see that STEM books incorporate the habits of mind that emerge when engaging in a STEM field; teach resilience, grit, and determination; and assist students in understanding that failure may be part of the real-world STEM process. (For examples of books that meet these criteria, please see the table below.)

Ruzzi and Eckhoff incorporate two focus questions to evaluate children's literature for STEM which relate to content that is technically sound and appropriate and can help to determine if the book effectively assists students in the development of both inquiry and content [2]. Recommendations and narrative descriptions of books that Ruzzi and Eckhoff use- most of which align with the science and engineering practices in the Next Generation Science Standards -include phrases such as "hypothesizing through close inspection;" "experimenting with;" "a true story about ingenuity, creativity, and persistence in the face of severe adversity;" and "design their own tools to measure height and distance;" The criteria utilized by the National Science Teaching Association Committee for Best STEM Books includes "modeling real-world innovation, illustrating teamwork, diverse skills, creativity, and cooperation, inviting divergent thinking and doing" (p. 93) among others. [3]

Ramirez asserts that "[c]reativity is the secret sauce to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). It is a STEM virtue" (para 3). [4] Therefore, one could argue that STEM trade books need to describe creativity or develop creativity in students. According to the guidelines presented by the Children's Book Council and the National Science Teaching Association, "STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) is an integrated and creative approach to discovering and applying knowledge about our world to solve problems that utilizes one or more of the content areas. Trade books that deliver background and model the practices of STEM provide context and inspiration to readers." (Science & Children, 2018, p. 93).[3]
References
[1]. Tsupros, N., Kohler, R., & Hallinen, J. (2009). STEM education: A project to identify the missing components, Intermediate Unit 1 and Carnegie Mellon, Pennsylvania.

[2]. Ruzzi,B. L., & Eckhoff, A. (2017). Growing in STEM: STEM resources and materials for engaging learning experiences. Young Children 72(1). Retrieved from https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/yc/mar2017/stem-materials-experiences.

[3]. National Science Teachers Association. (2018). Best STEM books. Science and Children, 55(7), 87-94.

[4]. Ramirez, A. (2013). Creativity is the secret sauce in STEM. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/creativity-secret-sauce-in-stem-ainissa-ramirez.
Carrie Launius Christine Anne Royce The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all. is the author of the Teaching Through Trade Books column in Science and Children which integrates children's literature and science content lessons for grades K-5. She is also the coauthor of Teaching Science Through Trade Books and the Investigate and Connect Series. She is a professor of science/STEM education at Shippensburg University (PA) where she teaches both undergrad and graduate level methods classes. She is currently the retiring president for the National Science Teaching Association. Follow her @caroyce. is Science Curriculum Specialist for St. Louis Public Schools in St. Louis, Missouri. She previously was the NSTA District XI Director and president of Science Teachers of Missouri (STOM). She believes using trade books to support science learning is essential for students. She was instrumental in developing and implementing the Best STEM Book Award for NSTA-Children's Book Council. Her passion is supporting teachers and helping them grow professionally. She resides in St. Louis near her two grown children and with her son and four dogs.

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What Makes a Good STEM Trade Book? by Carrie Launius & Christine Anne Royce

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This is a question a lot of people are asking. Since 2016 NSTA has published the Best STEM Books a companion piece to the Outstanding Science Trade Books list. While many groups have recommended STEM trade books for children, there has been no real consensus of the criteria necessary in a STEM trade book.

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https://explore.org/livecams/african-wildlife/rosies-pan

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This camera is situated at a secluded waterhole and is set on the hide. It is completely solar powered due to the remote location of the waterhole. There is a borehole which replenishes the waterhole giving much needed water to the animals that frequent this area.