Modeling Atoms and Molecules: Making Abstract Concepts Concrete
One of the challenges of teaching science at the middle and high school level is the increasingly abstract nature of the content. Students are diving into much smaller and…
Engaging In Argument With Cause and Effect
One goal of NGSS-aligned instruction is to teach in three dimensions - seamlessly incorporating Science and Engineering Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and content (Disciplinary Core Ideas). That is, admittedly, easier…
How Discovery Based Learning Transformed My Most Challenging Class
Have you ever had that class that was just stacked with the “worst” students? (I use quotation marks here because I really enjoyed these students as people. However, they really…
Incorporating Literacy In Discovery Based Learning
Let’s do a quick experiment. Raise your (digital) hand if you’ve ever seen or experienced, in some form or another, an administrator, parent, or another teacher valuing English/Language Arts class…
Engaging NGSS Assessments: Project Based Learning
This is our last post in our series on creating engaging assessments! (Don’t forget to check out those from the last two weeks on Performance Tasks and Instructionally Embedded Assessments!)…
Engaging NGSS Assessments: The Instructionally-Embedded Model
Last week, we talked about transforming traditional performance tasks to up the ante in terms of fun and engagement. This week, we’re going to look at instructional-embedded assessments as a…
Engaging NGSS Assessments: The Performance Task Model
Test days typically aren’t considered fun days. They’re typically not your most engaging tasks. For the most part, we approach assessment as a necessary (maybe a little) evil that we…
Developing AND Using Models: Modeling Organs and Organ Systems (MS-LS1-3)
Modeling is a HUGE part of the NGSS classroom. (Check out this post on NGSS modeling for more info!) I have students modeling… probably daily! Those models aren’t always big…
How To Teach Vocabulary In An NGSS Classroom: Interactions In Ecosystems
If you haven’t already, be sure to check out last week’s post - Why You Need To Stop Front-Loading Vocabulary. First of all, we need to understand exactly what we…
Why You Need To Stop Front-Loading Vocabulary
Just like our teaching strategies are changing as we shift to the discovery-centered, NGSS-style of instruction, we also need to change how we teach vocabulary. This can be a…