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Read, watch, play, and learn in or out of the classroom.

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Read, watch, play, and learn in or out of the classroom.

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NASA K-2 Design Challenges (also appropriate for other grade levels)

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NASA K-2 Design Challenges (also appropriate for other grade levels)

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The NASA BEST Activities Guide has been developed by a team from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Office of Education in support of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD). ESMD develops capabilities and supporting research and technology that will make human and robotic exploration possible. It also makes sure that our astronaut explorers are safe, healthy, and can perform their work during long-duration space exploration. ESMD does this by developing robotic precursor missions, human transportation elements, and life support systems. Ultimately, this Directorate of NASA serves as a stepping stone for the future exploration of Mars and other destinations

The NASA BEST Activities Guides were designed to teach students the Engineering Design Process. Our team created three guides to accommodate three grade groups: K-2, 3-5 and 6-8. All follow the same set of activities and teach students about humans' endeavor to return to the Moon. Specifically, how we investigate the Moon remotely, the modes of transportation to and on the Moon, and how humans will live and work on the Moon.

The Engineering Design Process is a series of steps engineers use to guide them in problem solving. Engineers must ask a question, imagine a solution, plan a design, create that model, experiment and test that model, then take time to improve the original - all steps that are crucial to mission success at NASA. What makes this guide different from others is: (1) there are no specific instructions or "recipes" for building the items; and (2) there are no given drawings. The emphasis is for students to understand that engineers must "imagine and plan" before they begin to build and experiment. To successfully complete the NASA BEST Activities, students must draw their ideas first before constructing.

Many of the activities have been adapted from others, and then aligned with the theme of efforts to return to the Moon with a focus on using the Engineering Design Process. Each activity features objectives, a list of materials, educator information, procedures, and student worksheets. When appropriate, the guide provides images, charts, and graphics for the activities. All activities are intended for students to work in teams. It is recommended that each team consist of 3 or 4 students. The activities can be used to supplement curricula during the school day or as activities in after-school clubs; as a set or individually. This guide of activities was also designed to keep material costs to a reasonable limit, using items often already found in the classroom or from home. Furthermore, all activities correlate to national science, mathematics, technology, and engineering standard(s). A list of national standards is included at the end of this guide.

Remember, let the students have fun!

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NASA's BEST Students: K - Grade 2 - Annenberg Learner

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The NASA BEST Activities Guide has been developed by a team from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Office of Education in support of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD). ESMD develops capabilities and supporting research and technology that will make human and robotic exploration possible.

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What problems are there to solve?

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Grand Challenges - Grand Challenges for Engineering

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Check out the guidance for the steps to designing a coherent NGSS aligned storyline. Explore unpacking, identifying phenomena, and sequencing investigations to help students build science ideas, step by step.

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NASA.gov brings you the latest images, videos and news from America's space agency. Get the latest updates on NASA missions, watch NASA TV live, and learn about our quest to reveal the unknown and benefit all humankind.

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Weekday Wonders is a series designed for parents and other adults who are interested in engaging children in science at home.

Explore our archive of carefully curated educational content meant to provide additional support to caregivers who have found themselves with a virtual learner this school year. Weekday Wonders provides fun, educational activities and resources to supplement virtual (or in-person!) learning. These resources are written in a way that is easy for caregivers to facilitate, even while working.

Designed for young scientists in pre-kindergarten through 5th grade, Weekday Wonders provides activities and journal prompts for each day of the school week. You will find 18 weeks of resources linked down below that can be done in any order that works best for your scientist. Many of the activities include support on how to adjust the activities to be easier for the youngest scientists or more challenging for scientists in grades 4, 5, and beyond.

The activities require minimal preparation and materials. Many young scientists will be able to complete the activities with instructions from an adult followed by time on their own.
Nature on the Page:
Day 1: What are the traits and features of a character? PDF

Day 2: How do you develop a setting for a story? PDF

Day 3: What is the plot for a story, and how does it develop? PDF

Day 4: How can a story show action? PDF

Day 5: How do you end a story? PDF
Weird and Wacky Nature:
Day 1: How do animals hide from predators? PDF

Day 2: How do animals eat their food? PDF

Day 3: How do animals care for their young? PDF

Day 4: What are some of weird and wacky ways that animals use their sense of taste? PDF

Day 5: What are some of the weird and wacky ways that animals use their eyes to see? PDF
Nature Detectives:
Day 1: Can you spy living things outside your window? PDF

Day 2: Can you find evidence of residence? Or, how can you tell where animals live? PDF

Day 3: Who left that trail? PDF

Day 4: What has been eating outside my window? PDF

Day 5: Why do plants come in so many different shapes and sizes? PDF
Mad Scientists:
Day 1: Why do plants look wilted or die if they do not get water? PDF

Day 2: How do boats float on the water? PDF

Day 3: What happened to the ice pop on a hot day? PDF

Day 4: Why is the sun important? PDF

Day 5: How can you discover preferences of wild animals that share your outdoor space? PDF
Water Warriors:
Day 1: How much water do you use in a day? PDF

Day 2: Could your water usage affect others? PDF

Day 3: How do everyday activities affect water quality? PDF

Day 4: How does water quality affect wild animals? PDF

Day 5: What are some ways you have fun with water? PDF
Wild World of Art:
Day 1 - What kind of art can you make with rocks? PDF

Day 2 - What kind of art can you make with dirt? PDF

Day 3 - What kind of art can you make with water? PDF

Day 4 - What kind of art can you make with sticks? PDF

Day 5 - What kind of art can you make with leaves? PDF
Wonders of Nature:
Day 1 - Have you ever wondered about the power of the sun? PDF

Day 2 - Have you ever wondered why the moon changes shape in the sky? PDF

Day 3 - Have you ever wondered how plants can live in such interesting places? PDF

Day 4 - Have you ever wondered why insects' wings come in so many shapes? PDF

Day 5 - Have you ever wondered how insects can have such different lifestyles? PDF
STEM Around Us:
Day 1 - How does a bird's wing help it fly? PDF

Day 2 - How does STEM help animals? PDF

Day 3 - How do man-made buildings mimic nature? PDF

Day 4 - How can we explore color in the world around us? PDF

Day 5 - How can I build a machine to move objects? PDF
Animal Olympics:
Day 1 - Do you have the speed of an animal champion? PDF

Day 2 - Can you compete in the jumping events? PDF

Day 3 - Can you hit the mark? PDF

Day 4 - Do animals work out or exercise? PDF

Day 5 - Are there animals that would be good at several Olympic events? PDF

Looking for more fun? Check out our previous weeks of Weekday Wonders!
Living Things:
Day 1 - What are living things? PDF

Day 2 - What do animals need to live? PDF

Day 3 - What do plants need to live? PDF

Day 4 - How do living things rely on each other to live? PDF

Day 5 - How do plants and animals share resources where they live? PDF
Diversity in Ecosystems:
Day 1 - Where do animals live in the ocean? PDF

Day 2 - Where do animals live in rivers and streams? PDF

Day 3 - Where do animals live in the forest? PDF

Day 4 - Where do animals live in your backyard? PDF

Day 5 - What's the difference between and ecosystem and a habitat? PDF
Changing Ecosystems:
Day 1 - What things change in your neighborhood? PDF

Day 2 - How do the places where animals live change? PDF

Day 3 - How do places where other animals live change? PDF

Day 4 - How often do ecosystems change? PDF

Day 5 - Why is a diverse ecosystem healthier than one that has only a few living things? PDF
Watershed Wisdom:
Day 1 - Where does water come from? PDF

Day 2 - Where does water go? PDF

Day 3 - What watershed do I live in? PDF

Day 4 - What else lives in your watershed? PDF

Day 5 - How can you protect your watershed? PDF
Diversity of Living Things:
Day 1 - What physical characteristics do animals have? PDF

Day 2 - How are all animals similar and different from each other? PDF

Day 3 - How can knowing the characteristics of animals help sort them and know what they are? PDF

Day 4 - How are the characteristics of animals of the same kind similar and different? PDF

Day 5 - Why is it important for animals of the same kind to have different characteristics? PDF
Inherited Characteristics:
Day 1 - What characteristics do animals have? PDF

Day 2 - How are parents and offspring the same, and how are they different? PDF

Day 3 - What characteristics can be passed on from parents to offspring? PDF

Day 4 - Why are only some characteristics of offspring the same as their parents'? PDF

Day 5 - How does the environment affect characteristics? PDF
Adaptations:
Day 1 - What characteristics or adaptations do animals have? PDF

Day 2 - What characteristics help an animal to survive? PDF

Day 3 - What characteristics help and animal to survive where they live? PDF

Day 4 - Why do different animals have different adaptations for the same environment? PDF

Day 5 - Why are there differences among animals of the same species? PDF
Growth and Development:
Day 1 - How do animals grow and develop? PDF

Day 2 - What is a life cycle? PDF

Day 3 - Are there different kinds of life cycles? PDF

Day 4 - Do plants have life cycles? PDF

Day 5 - How does the environment affect living things' life cycles? PDF
Biodiversity and Me:
Day 1 - What resources do humans and wild animals share? PDF

Day 2 - How do humans and animals rely on each other to survive? PDF

Day 3 - Why is it important for humans to share resources with other living things? PDF

Day 4 - How do humans take care of the animals at the Tennessee Aquarium? PDF

Day 5 - How can humans help animals where we live? PDF

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Weekday Wonders is a series designed for parents and other adults who are interested in engaging children in science at home. Explore our archive of carefully curated educational content meant to provide additional support to caregivers who have found themselves with a virtual learner this school year.

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Lesson plans, animal cams, etc.

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2019 Summer Science Club Workbook

Try some of the activities from our 2019 Summer Science Club. Each week science-related activities to spark kids' curiosity. Download the 2019 Summer Science Club Workbook

Coloring Page: PacSci's Arches

Be an artist and color in our Arches! Make sure to share your creations using #pacsci.

Grow Your Own Pollinator Garden

Pollinators have a very important job in sustaining ecosystems: they fertilize plants as they travel ensuring that we and other animals and food and flowers. Support pollinators and Grow Your Own Pollinator Garden.

Make a Lava Lamp

Learn about fluid dynamics by making a lava lamp

Handwashing Challenge

How does handwashing prevent the spreading of viruses? Watch this video to find out.

Hand Hygiene Science

Try your hand at this germ-busting hygiene activity.

Experiment in the Illusion of Forced Perspective activity and make a small object look bigger than you are in a photograph.

Make a Spirograph

Create mathematical art with a homemade Spirograph.

Making Oobleck

Discover with the PacSci team! Become a material scientist and make Oobleck and investigate its weird properties.

Naked Mole Rat Observations

Observe and scan sample our Naked Mole Rat colony, then record your findings in the Naked Mole Rats Observation activity.

Oil Spill Clean Up

Become an environmental engineer research, design, and test ways to clean up polluted bodies of water in Oil Spill Clean Up.

PacSci Now: Interview with the Laser Dome Team

Watch this behind-the-scenes look at PacSci's Laser Dome, learn about its history and how the lasers work.

PacSci Now: Laser Dome Performance 360

Watch this special 360° video of a laser performance by our Laser Dome artist, MoTown.

PacSci Now: Making Slime

Yucky, gooey slime! Make slime using everyday materials with the PacSci team.

Rock Candy

Become a crystallographer by making sugar rock crystals and seeing how they form.

Stop Edits

Create a movie with fantastical illusions using special effects in Stop Edits.

Tinker Tank at Home: Build a 3D Hologram Projector

Build 3D hologram projector using a smart phone with Tinker Tank at Home.

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Curiosity at Home | Pacific Science Center

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2019 Summer Science Club Workbook Try some of the activities from our 2019 Summer Science Club. Each week science-related activities to spark kids' curiosity. Download the 2019 Summer Science Club Workbook Coloring Page: PacSci's Arches Be an artist and color in our Arches! Make sure to share your creations using #pacsci.

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Check out Zoo Atlanta's Conservation Resources

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Check out Zoo Atlanta's Conservation Resources

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Check out the projects and what you can do to help

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Zoo Atlanta's grounds are home to more than 1,000 animals representing more than 200 species who require daily expert attention. The animals here at the Zoo are healthy and well, thanks to the amazing team of humans who are with them every day, providing the same superior care and enrichment the animals always receive - an unwavering standard that is never compromised, regardless of whether or not the Zoo is open.

With the Zoo being closed as we enter our peak attendance season, we are facing a crucial hit to our revenue and operating budget. Please consider a gift today - no matter what size - to help us sustain our mission.

The COVID-19 pandemic has touched all our lives - personally, professionally and societally - in so many ways. By supporting Zoo Atlanta, you are leaving a vital legacy on the success of our organization and the living things who call us home. We deeply appreciate your dedication to Zoo Atlanta - in thick and thin.

Zoo Atlanta is directly involved in field conservation programs for wildlife and wild places around the globe, including work in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, and right here in Georgia. Our contributions range from funding for other established conservation organizations who share our mission, enabling a greater total impact in the field than might be achievable by a single organization, to projects in which our own staff are personally engaged in field work, community outreach programs, research and education programs on continents around the globe.

Learn more about what we do and the programs you help support by supporting Zoo Atlanta.

Learn more about Zoo Atlanta's commitment to saving species.

The global decline of species and their habitats makes it clear that we need a multifaceted approach to conservation. Zoos are a critical component of this approach, with a responsibility to be a force that drives action.

Learn how you can take personal action and motivate others to inspire change for wildlife.

Zoo Atlanta offers many unique and diverse ways to take action in helping our local community and worldwide community. One person can make a difference.

Take Action

Helping species around the world.

Our mission to preserve wildlife takes us all over the world, where Zoo Atlanta staff and partners are active in field conservation programs and partnerships. Projects include work in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, and our own backyards here in Georgia.

Be a conservationist - from your own living room!

Zoo Atlanta is proud to be the U.S. partner of the international launch of Wildeverse, a NEW free mobile game that transforms your home into the jungle with Augmented Reality. Find out what it takes to be a wildlife scientist as you track real apes living in the wild in the rainforests of Borneo and the Congo.

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Zoo Atlanta's grounds are home to more than 1,000 animals representing more than 200 species who require daily expert attention. The animals here at the Zoo are healthy and well, thanks to the amazing team of humans who are with them every day, providing the same superior care and enrichment the animals always receive - an unwavering standard that is never compromised, regardless of whether or not the Zoo is open.

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Institute (many are free)

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our expanding library of project ideas that are standards-aligned, and cover a range of grade levels and subject areas.

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Elementary example

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Design Thinking: Solving Life's Problems

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Design Thinking: Solving Life's Problems

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Ted Talk Video

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Design Thinking: Solving Life’s Problems | Suresh Jayakar | TEDxCrenshaw

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Must register with the Buck Institute

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Main Course Not Dessert (by BIE)

The purpose in this article is twofold: 1) distinguish "main course" Project Based Learning (PBL) from the short duration and intellectually lightweight activities and projects common to many classrooms; and 2) argue that PBL is an essential tool for preparing students to reach 21st century educational goals and succeed in the 21st century.

Log in to get this resource...

To view or download this resource, log in here. (Don't have an account yet? Register for free - it just takes a minute!)

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Main Course Not Dessert (by BIE) The purpose in this article is twofold: 1) distinguish "main course" Project Based Learning (PBL) from the short duration and intellectually lightweight activities and projects common to many classrooms; and 2) argue that PBL is an essential tool for preparing students to reach 21st century educational goals and succeed in the 21st century.

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Studies have proven that when implemented well, project-based learning (PBL) can increase retention of content and improve students' attitudes towards learning, among other benefits. Edutopia's PBL research review explores the vast body of research on the topic and helps make sense of the results. In this series of five articles, learn how researchers define project-based learning, review some of the possible learning outcomes, get our recommendations of evidence-based components for successful PBL, learn about best practices across disciplines, find tips for avoiding pitfalls when implementing PBL programs, and dig in to a comprehensive annotated bibliography with links to all the studies and reports cited in these pages.

What is Project-Based Learning?

Project-based learning hails from a tradition of pedagogy which asserts that students learn best by experiencing and solving real-world problems. According to researchers ( Barron & Darling-Hammond, 2008; Thomas, 2000), project-based learning essentially involves the following:

students learning knowledge to tackle realistic problems as they would be solved in the real world

increased student control over his or her learning

teachers serving as coaches and facilitators of inquiry and reflection

students (usually, but not always) working in pairs or groups

Teachers can create real-world problem-solving situations by designing questions and tasks that correspond to two different frameworks of inquiry-based teaching: Problem-based learning, which tackles a problem but doesn't necessarily include a student project, and project-based learning, which involves a complex task and some form of student presentation, and/or creating an actual product or artifact.

These inquiry-based teaching methods engage students in creating, questioning, and revising knowledge, while developing their skills in critical thinking, collaboration, communication, reasoning, synthesis, and resilience (Barron & Darling-Hammond, 2008). Although these methods of inquiry-based teaching differ slightly, for simplicity they're combined in these pages and referred to as project-based learning or PBL.

Learning Outcomes

Studies comparing learning outcomes for students taught via project-based learning versus traditional instruction show that when implemented well, PBL increases long-term retention of content, helps students perform as well as or better than traditional learners in high-stakes tests, improves problem-solving and collaboration skills, and improves students' attitudes towards learning ( Strobel & van Barneveld, 2009; Walker & Leary, 2009). PBL can also provide an effective model for whole-school reform ( National Clearinghouse for Comprehensive School Reform, 2004; Newmann & Wehlage, 1995).

A 2016 MDRC/Lucas Education Research literature review found that the design principles most commonly used in PBL align well with the goals of preparing students for deeper learning, higher-level thinking skills, and intra/interpersonal skills ( Condliffe et al., 2016).

Keys to Project-Based Learning Success

Researchers have identified several components that are critical to successful PBL (Barron & Darling-Hammond, 2008; Ertmer & Simons, 2005; Mergendoller & Thomas, 2005; Hung, 2008). While project-based learning has been criticized in the past for not being rigorous enough, the following features will greatly improve the chances of a project's success:

1. A realistic problem or project

aligns with students' skills and interests

requires learning clearly defined content and skills (e.g. using rubrics, or exemplars from local professionals and students)

2. Structured group work

groups of three to four students, with diverse skill levels and interdependent roles

team rewards

individual accountability, based on student growth

3. Multi-faceted assessment

multiple opportunities for students to receive feedback and revise their work (e.g., benchmarks, reflective activities)

multiple learning outcomes (e.g., problem-solving, content, collaboration)

presentations that encourage participation and signal social value (e.g. exhibitions, portfolios, performances, reports)

4. Participation in a professional learning network

collaborating and reflecting upon PBL experiences in the classroom with colleagues

courses in inquiry-based teaching methods

You will find much greater detail on these four key components, along with step-by-step instructions on how to put them into place, in the next section.
Continue to the next section of the PBL research review, Evidence-Based Components of Success.

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Studies have proven that when implemented well, project-based learning (PBL) can increase retention of content and improve students' attitudes towards learning, among other benefits. Edutopia's PBL research review explores the vast body of research on the topic and helps make sense of the results.

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Article

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5 Keys to Rigorous Project-Based Learning

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Well-designed project-based learning (PBL) has been shown to result in deeper learning and engaged, self-directed learners. Learn more about the five core elements of successful PBL.

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Website

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PBL leads to deeper understanding and greater retention of content knowledge

PBLWorks offers online and in-person Project Based Learning workshops and courses for educators seeking to give their students more. Whether you are new to Project Based Learning, advancing your practice, teaching in-person, or facilitating PBL curricula online, we have a path just for you. Pick your pathway and explore how to get started today...

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Project Based Learning for all. We build the capacity of teachers and school leaders to design and facilitate quality Project Based Learning.

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Article

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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Article

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Problem-based learning is introducing new ways to teach STEM-based subjects to students. With a new surge in educational initiatives and developments, this learning trend is becoming more popular within the classroom. To remain competitive with other countries' STEM growth - such as India and China - it's crucial to provide students with the fundamental understanding and tools of problem-based learning with the purpose (and optimism) of more skilled workers in STEM fields. In order to continue this momentum, educators and institutions are encouraged to try new tactics to ignite critical thinking, teamwork, and enrich the learning process by blending standard curriculums together. This is especially crucial for the U.S. as it faces considerable STEM labor shortages. Problem-based learning is an effective and valuable method that can guide students towards a better understanding of STEM programs.

Here are three ways problem-based learning can help motivate students to pursue important STEM careers.

More Hands-On Experience

Getting students motivated and excited to pick a STEM major in college can be tricky these days. Students are starting to have less interests in these fields. Even more concerning, there has been an increase of STEM graduates (particularly women) leaving or not entering the STEM workforce once they earn their degrees. This is worrisome because, as the New Jersey Institute of Technology points out, STEM fields - such as computer science - are experiencing massive employee shortages despite computer science being the current highest-paid college degree. Moreover, the U.S.'s global economic output has reduced from 25 percent to 19 percent. So, how can the U.S. start creating higher interest and participation in STEM programs? By integrating problem-based learning into classrooms more, there is the potential to fill in these missing gaps by teaching students the methods needed to be successful in STEM. Problem-based learning emphasizes the hands-on approach when it comes to projects and assignments. Students learn by drawing on their own life experiences as well as working together with their peers to find a solution. Much like a scientists performing experiments in their labs, students are able to create a valuable learning experience through mistakes and successes. If students are exposed to problem-based learning from an early age, they'll feel more inclined (and prepared) to pursue vital STEM careers during and after college.

Increase in Equality

Women now make up of the U.S. workforce, and they also outnumber the amount of men on college campuses. Gender equality is improving in the workforce, but STEM careers are still struggling to find equality. For example, within engineering careers, only 14 percent of employees are female. With that in mind, how might problem-based learning help encourage women to enter the STEM field? Experts at University of California Riverside explain that, "By making STEM subjects come alive for students earlier in their academic career and then following up with appropriate resources at the collegiate level, women are more likely to pursue a career in engineering." Not only that, but women are more likely to join engineering, or another STEM field, if they have female mentors and peers to look up to and team up with. Problem-based learning encourages students to develop skills for group collaboration, critical appraisal, and the ability to transfer skills and knowledge from the classroom to work. If women are encouraged at a young age to use problem-based learning, they'll enter college with a better base of skills and the confidence to enter the fields of STEM.

A Change in Curriculum

With STEM's hands-on approach, problem-based learning is a fundamental tool to introduce to children early in their education. Encouraging students to self-direct when faced with a problem usually leads to a deep understanding, which in turn leads to better a retention of resources and information. So how do we use this approach more often in the classroom? Cross-curriculum seems to be a key factor. By breaking down the segregation of common curriculum (think English, Math, History), students are receiving a more well-rounded educational experience. This is cultivating students to better understand the approaches often found within the STEM field, learning real world insight within their classrooms.

Problem-based learning has the ability to teach students the importance of opportunities and possibilities. Within STEM, the possibilities can seem endless. By encouraging student to pursue STEM careers, and preparing them accordingly, the U.S. can look forward to better future growth and success.
Avery Taylor Phillips is a writer with a focus in early childhood education. She is a community activist passionate about equity in access to educational resources and has developed a deep understanding of the way children learn in the face of challenges due to their family circumstance through her work. In her spare time, she works to advance the progress towards equitable education opportunities.

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STEM & Problem-Based Learning in the Classroom - ASCD Inservice

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Problem-based learning is introducing new ways to teach STEM-based subjects to students. With a new surge in educational initiatives and developments, this learning trend is becoming more popular within the classroom. To remain competitive with other countries' STEM growth - such as India and China - it's crucial to provide students with the fundamental understanding and [...]

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New Research Makes a Powerful Case for PBL

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New Research Makes a Powerful Case for PBL

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Article

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When Gil Leal took AP Environmental Science in his junior year of high school, he was surprised by how different it was from his other AP classes. Instead of spending the bulk of the time sitting through lectures, taking notes, and studying abstract texts, his class visited a strawberry farm in the valley nearby.

It wasn't just for a tour. Leal and his peers were tasked with thinking about the many challenges that modern farms confront, from water shortages to pest infestations and erosion. More surprising to Leal: Students were asked to design their own solutions, incorporating what they had learned about things like soil composition, ecosystem dynamics, and irrigation systems.

Now an environmental science major at UCLA-and a first-generation college student-Leal sees the visit as a pivotal moment that led to his decision to pursue science in college. He had never visited a farm before, and was used to a traditional sit-and-listen learning model.

"In other classes, it was lecture, readings, test," said Leal, "but in AP Environmental Science we worked on projects with other students, discussed our ideas, considered different perspectives-and I learned so much more this way."

Leal's AP class, taught by Brandie Borges, is part of a new generation of classes that transform traditional teacher-led instruction into a more student-centered, project-based approach-requiring students to work together as they tackle complex, real-world problems that emphasize uncertainty, iterative thinking, and innovation. Proponents of project-based learning (PBL) argue that it fosters a sense of purpose in young learners, pushes them to think critically, and prepares them for modern careers that prize skills like collaboration, problem-solving, and creativity.

Critics say that the pedagogy places too much responsibility on novice learners, and ignores the evidence about the effectiveness of direct instruction by teachers. By de-emphasizing knowledge transfer from experts to beginners, the critics suggest, PBL undermines content knowledge and subject fluency.

While project-based learning and direct instruction aren't incompatible, evidence that might settle the deeper controversy over PBL's effectiveness has been sparse. Only a handful of studies over the last decades have established a causal relationship between structured project-based learning and student outcomes-in either direction.

But two major new gold-standard studies-both funded by Lucas Education Research, a sister division of Edutopia-conducted by researchers from the University of Southern California and Michigan State University, provide compelling evidence that project-based learning is an effective strategy for all students, outperforming traditional curricula not only for high achieving students, but across grade levels and racial and socioeconomic groups.

Reimagining Advanced Placement Courses

The two studies involved over 6,000 students in 114 schools across the nation, with more than 50 percent of students coming from low-income households.

In the AP study, which included Gil Leal's class along with over 3,600 students in both AP Environmental Science and AP U.S. Government and Politics courses from five districts serving a diverse student body, researchers looked at a broad range of project-based activities in the sciences and humanities.

In one example, students in Amber Graeber's AP Government class took part in a simulation of an electoral caucus. Meanwhile, instead of simply reading about Supreme Court cases, students in Erin Fisher's class studied historic cases and then took on real-world roles, arguing the cases in mock court, acting as reporters, and designing campaign ads and stump speeches to make their case.

Researchers found that nearly half of students in project-based classrooms passed their AP tests, outperforming students in traditional classrooms by 8 percentage points. Students from low-income households saw similar gains compared to their wealthier peers, making a strong case that well-structured PBL can be a more equitable approach than teacher-centered ones. Importantly, the improvements in teaching efficacy were both significant and durable: When teachers in the study taught the same curriculum for a second year, PBL students outperformed students in traditional classrooms by 10 percentage points.

The study results nudged at entrenched ideas about how to best teach students from different backgrounds. "There's a belief among some educators and some policymakers that students from underserved backgrounds... aren't ready to have student-centered instruction where they're driving their own learning," said USC researcher Anna Saavedra, the lead researcher on the AP study. "And so there's this idea, and the results of this study really challenged that notion."

Nationally, the researchers concluded, 30 percent of students from low-income households take AP tests, but that number jumped to 38 percent for students in PBL classrooms-there are more low-income students taking AP tests using project-based learning, and more are passing as well.

It may seem counterintuitive that a student-centered approach is effective in an environment that's so focused on high-stakes testing, but the results suggest otherwise.

"Students felt like the work was more authentic," said Saavedra, suggesting a possible explanation for the improvements. "There were more connections to their real lives. For example, in the AP Environmental Science course, they were learning about their ecological footprint and thinking: How do my behaviors affect the health of my community and of the larger world?"

Authentic Learning

But project-based learning isn't just for high school kids. In Billie Freeland's third-grade class, PBL not only builds students' interest in science but also helps them make more connections with the world around them, generating a deep understanding of-and appreciation for-science, she says.

"Third-grade students work on the 'Toy Unit,'" said Freeland. "But don't let the name fool you.... Third graders learn the concepts of gravity, friction, force, and direction by designing toys from simple objects such as water bottles, straws, and recycled milk cartons. The unit ends with them designing their own toys that use magnetic or electrical force," she told researchers, while emphasizing that the projects are aligned with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).

Freeland's class was one of dozens involved in the large-scale study examining the effectiveness of PBL in elementary science classes. In the study, researchers from Michigan State University and the University of Michigan studied 2,371 third-grade students in 46 schools who were randomly assigned to a business-as-usual control group or a treatment group. The schools selected for the study were diverse: 62 percent of the schools' student bodies qualified for free or reduced-price lunch, and 58 percent were students of color.

Like the high school students in the AP study, elementary students in PBL classrooms outperformed their peers, this time by 8 percentage points on a test of science learning. The pattern held across socioeconomic class and across all reading ability levels: In the project-based learning group, all boats rose on the tide-and both struggling readers and highly proficient readers outperformed their counterparts in traditional classrooms.

"The beauty of all of this, which is really quite lovely, is that we have PBL in science, a progression of it, from elementary through high school," said Barbara Schneider, a professor of education at Michigan State University who worked on the study. "Our findings are consistent all across elementary and secondary school, which is really quite remarkable. And in both cases, we're looking at substantial increases in science achievement."

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New Research Makes a Powerful Case for PBL

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Two new gold-standard studies provide compelling evidence that project-based learning is an effective strategy for all students-including historically marginalized ones.