The author proposes a design for science instruction in the middle school years, ages 9-13. (SJL)

A middle school science teacher describes approaches for teaching mildly handicapped mainstreamed students. Suggestions are made for content (beginning with a study of the human body), methods and materials, and the importance of good discipline. (CL)

According to 1995 National Science Education Standards, "inquiry into authentic questions generated from student experiences is the central strategy for teaching science." Effective classroom questions promote relevance, encourage ownership, help students interpret their observations, and link new learning to what students already know. Two…

Examines and categorizes multicultural teaching information found in middle school science teacher resource manuals to determine how multicultural information relates to guidelines for teaching in multicultural classrooms. A content analysis of 21 teacher editions provided the data. Contains 37 references. (DDR)

This 23-minute videotape for grades 5-8, presents the myriad of animal life that exists on the planet. Students can view and perform experiments and investigations that help explain animal traits and habits. As animals adapt to new environments, their bodies and life cycles may change over thousands of years. In this video, students find out about…

Presents ideas for spring flower displays. Has students constructing their own interactive flower displays as extra-credit assignments to reinforce vocabulary and scientific concepts, and modeling flowers with household items. (JRH)

To avoid underuse, inaccessibility, and obsolescence when choosing, purchasing, and using technology, educators should maximize the number of students sharing machines, build technology into the curriculum, ensure continuous accessibility, network computers, and build physical plant considerations into their purchase plans. A single high-end…

Presents an activity in which water temperature is investigated in relation to water depth, weather patterns, land use, time of year, and other factors students choose to investigate with data collected from the Internet. Uses the Great Lakes as the setting for this investigation and examines how and why the temperature of a body of water changes…

Describes an experimental Science-English class for at-risk students which was team taught and used technology--particularly a Video Toaster (a videotape editing machine)--as a motivator. Discusses procedures for turning videotape taken on field trips into three- to five-minute student productions on California's water crisis. (SR)

Recent classroom environment research has investigated the association between students' cognitive and affective learning outcomes and their perceptions of psychosocial characteristics of their classrooms. The findings of these studies suggest that student outcomes can be improved by creating environments that are conducive to learning. This study…

Many teachers and educators faced with the task of teaching in a multicultural classroom and subsequently the responsibility of creating an environment that is conducive for all students' learning, are seeking advice from a variety of reliable sources. One such source that may be looked upon in the future to share their insights regarding this…

Describes the Science Alliance project, a teacher-scientist collaboration where each teacher is given five non-consecutive days of professional development time to meet with a participating scientist, technician, engineer, mathematician, or environmentalist to develop a module of lesson plans that introduce the real world of industry into the…

Describes the PowerTools Project, a partnership program between schools and research scientists at the University of Texas Health Center. Discusses the beginnings and the scaling up of the project. (JRH)

Presents a lesson plan for teaching abstract science concepts to gifted middle school students. The lesson integrates a physical education component into science instruction to reinforce the abstract notion that electrons emit energy in the form of visible light. (CR)

Discusses watersheds and floods. Includes an insert that provides a visual example of many different watersheds, illustrates a flood and different ways that flood plains are developed, and contains activities designed to assist students in learning about watersheds and floods. Lists water resources available on the World Wide Web. (JRH)