Engage your Forensics students with the pickle autopsy! Check out how I prep and implement this fun activity into my Forensic Science class.
Starting the year off by focusing on these 5 science topics, will almost guarantee smoother labs and more engaged science learners.
Teaching Habitats to your primary students will be a breeze with my collection of resources to help make your life easier. There's even a freebie!
Discover hands-on beginning of the year science activities that will excite your students and build the foundation for future science lessons!
See our plant life cycle activities and why my students are so excited to write about science! Includes FREE lesson visuals for teaching about plants.
Scripted SCIENCE lessons for kindergarten - Engaging, easy to prep, and includes everything you need! Nonfiction read-aloud books, PowerPoints for every lesson, student activities and workbooks... Kids LOVE this program! NGSS and TEKS aligned.
Find hands-on butterfly life cycle activities, butterfly science labs, and free printables to incorporate reading skills and get kids writing about science!
Animals are an obsession for many children.
My students love to look at the interesting specimens I have scattered about my classroom and what better way to let them do that than by learning the characteristics of life? This lab is a great introduction to the characteristics of life and is also a great beginning of the year activity for a life science or biology class. It gives students the opportunity to get to know other students in the class while simultaneously observing all of the weird and interesting specimens around the classroom. For this lab activity, have your students brainstorm 8 characteristics of life. It’s okay if they come up with incorrect characteristics. Students then travel around the room to look at 20 different specimens (you must provide the specimens). At each specimen, students try to determine what characteristics of life each one has and what the specimen is. After they observe all 20 specimens, there are a few post lab questions for them to answer. The Google Doc lab activity includes a full description of how to use the activity in your classroom and what types of specimens you could put out for your students. It also includes a link to a Google Slide that lists the 8 scientist approved characteristics of life. Check out the preview for more! Time to Complete: 40 - 60 minutes Topics Covered: Characteristics of Life What's Included: 2 Pages Data Table for Activity 8 Post-Lab Questions Google Slide of All 8 Characteristics of Life Answer Key Need to Teach Macromolecules Next? Making and Breaking Polymers WS Dehydration Synthesis and Hydrolysis WS Building and Breaking Carbohydrates Virtual Activity Forming Fats Virtual Activity Piecing Together Proteins Virtual Activity Assembling Nucleic Acids Virtual Activity Macromolecules Review Activity Looking for a Deal? Macromolecules Virtual Activities Bundle Like what you see? Head over to Beautiful Biology for more or follow me for updates! © Beautiful Biology
Living? Nonliving? Dormant? Dead? Even though teaching living vs. nonliving seems very elementary, you’d be surprised by how often high school students get confused when you throw examples at them. It makes me think of this 90’s “J-E-L-L-O it’s alive!” commercial: But in all seriousness….Teaching characteristics of life is a great way to start off ... Read more
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Learn about plants with this 80 page botany lesson for kids! Information, worksheets, experiments, and more for elementary age!
Check out these 6 ideas to use as science time fillers in your grade 5 6 7 class to keep students engaged.
I recently developed a slight obsession with Shrinky Dinks. It was one of my favorite crafting activities as a child, and now as a mom, my daughter is having fun with it too. If you’ve never used it, it’s basically thin sheets of plastic that you can cut and color and then bake in the oven, […]
See unique and creative plant life cycle activities and teaching ideas with hands-on plant needs experiments for kids.
Learn about science curriculum created for self-contained special education classrooms by a real special education teacher!
I’ve rounded up some of the best science movies for middle school here on my site Tina’s Dynamic Homeschool Plus.
ALL ABOUT APPLES September is here! We love learning all about apples! Who knew one fruit could bring so many fun books, activities, songs and videos to our classroom? I do an thematic unit every month . These activities are based around the read alouds I choose. This month it is All
Are you looking to elevate your Ecosystems and Biomes unit? This 4th or 5th grade project based learning unit for ecosystems incorporates science, nonfiction reading, research, writing, and the arts! Read to find out how I organized the research project, what our launch activity was, the driving que
Interactive lapbooks are one of my favorite activities to do during my science block! They are a great supplement to your thematic units, and your students will have a blast putting them together all while learning! My interactive plant lapbook is by far a favorite during our spring units! Entire Unit in One Place After
Creative and hands-on habitats activities for second grade science. Find teaching ideas, ready to use lessons, videos, and science experiments for kids, ideal for teaching 2nd grade habitats and ecosystems.
Are you ready for Johnny Appleseed Day next week??? I am excited to celebrated apples. I wanted to share some of my favorites from last year with you all. We read some great books, did some apple research and crafts, and played lots of fun apple themed math and literacy games, I even have a ... Read More about All About Apples
I love doing plant experiments and sprouting seeds with young children in the spring. Not only do they get excited to see how plants grow but planting seeds also teaches them patience and how to wait for gratification which is very important in this fast-paced, instant gratification world in which we now live. In this […]
First sciences experiments! Find an easy activity with free printables to learn everything about the life cycle of plants!
These free science unit studies, lesson plans, and experiments are perfect for teaching science in your homeschool or classroom.
Save time using these ready-made forest school lesson plans, including outdoor learning lessons in math, science, literacy, wellbeing & more
As a middle school science teacher, I always love teaching the scientific method to my students. There are so many routes you can take with teaching it, and I’ve tried many of them. If you’re gearing up to teach the scientific method, then you might benefit from reading this post. (See what I did there?) You probably have many questions. When should I teach the scientific method? What all should I include in my unit? What order should I teach the topics of the scientific method? How do I go about teaching the scientific method? In this post I’ll share what’s worked for me. Plus, you’ll find some links to FREE resources to help get you started. When Should I Teach the Scientific Method? I want my students to have a good handle on lab safety before getting started with the scientific method because it involves labs, tools, and sometimes harmful chemicals. The scientific method is important for studying science in general, so I teach it as early in the year as possible. It is my second unit (right after lab safety). I bring the scientific method up throughout the year, whenever we have labs. After winter break I have a week-long review to brush up on the more difficult aspects of the scientific method. What Should I Include in My Scientific Method Unit? In What Order Should I Teach the Topics? Obviously, all groups of students are different. My seventh graders always come in with very, very little experience with the scientific method. Knowing that, I start with the basics and go over everything I think they need to know to successfully use the scientific method. I recommend giving your students a preassessment before the unit to gauge what topics you can skip and which you need to hammer into your students’ skulls. Here are the topics I always include in my scientific method unit and the general order in which I teach them: The Steps of the Scientific Method Independent and Dependent Variables Scientific Questions Hypotheses Observations and Inferences Research and Procedures Constants/Controlled Variables Analyzing Data/Graphs Scientific Conclusions How Do I Go About Teaching the Scientific Method? In my class, each of the nine topics listed above starts with interactive notebook notes in combination with a PowerPoint. (See the video below of the interactive science notebook pages I use. They're all available in my store and you can get the INB pages in my Scientific Method Interactive Notebook Pages Bundle.) After introducing the topic via notes and a PowerPoint, the students get practice in the form of stations, activities, and/or worksheets. Lastly, I assess each topic with an exit ticket to determine if we need to keep working on the current topic or if we’re ready to move on to the next. The single most important scientific method resource I have is my Scientific Method Stations. I use them at least three times in the unit because they’re so versatile. They give students practice identifying variables, writing good hypotheses, designing procedures etc. I just post them around the room at the beginning of the unit and they stay there until the day of the unit test. I truly believe they are a great resource for the middle school science classroom. They are one of my most loved and best selling resources, so I decided to make a second set. I added my Scientific Method Stations V2 to my store in September 2023! But Really, What Do You Do for Each Topic? The Steps of the Scientific Method: I go over what the scientific method is, what it’s used for, the order of the steps, and what each step might look like. Independent and Dependent Variables: I go over the definitions of independent and dependent variables and how to identify them in an experiment. Then we practice. And practice. And practice some more. Eventually it clicks and then my students HAVE GOT IT DOWN. Scientific Questions: Students learn about what a good scientific question needs to have. We review variables again while examining good and bad scientific questions. Group work and games can be fun with this. Hypotheses: Students learn what a hypothesis is and how to write a good hypothesis. Even my best students need to learn the If/then version of writing a hypothesis because they have only been taught the “I think blah blah blah will happen” version. Hypotheses typically need a lot of practice. Here is a free coloring worksheet to help your students write good hypotheses and identify independent and dependent variables. Observations and Inferences: Students learn the definitions of qualitative and quantitative observations and how to use those to make inferences. Here is a free observation activity you can use in your class. Research and Procedures: Research is straightforward so we briefly discuss where to find accurate information. For procedure, we learn what it is, why it’s important, and what happens if a procedure is poorly written. Constants/Controlled Variables: This is hands down the hardest part of the scientific method for my students. We go over what constants are, why they are important, and how to identify them in experiments. Students need TONS of practice with this. Here is a free exit ticket to check if your students have mastered constants. Analyzing Data/Graphs: I go over where independent and dependent variables go on graphs, what good graphs include, and types of graphs. Then we practice interpreting graphs. I try to include as much data analysis throughout the year as possible because my students always need practice with this. Here is a free data analysis worksheet and a free data analysis Boom Deck. Scientific Conclusions: Students learn what should be included in a good conclusion and practice writing a good conclusion using a data table and graph from an experiment. I hope this post gives you a good starting point for planning your scientific method unit. I love teaching the scientific method and have created many resources for my students. You can find my scientific method resources here, including interactive notebook pages, activities, worksheets, and assessments. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to post a question below or message me. Thanks for reading and have a great school year! You can get another free scientific method resource just for signing up for my newsletter. Sign up for my newsletter here. I added an option in my store to get all of my scientific method resources in one discounted bundle: Scientific Method HUGE Bundle.
This free pack of frog life cycle printables helps you easily boost learning fun with a 3D paper diorama for simple science activities.
This character building object lesson about forgiveness takes a fun science experience and relates it to the risks of choosing not to forgive. This is one more activity in my character building series. Object lessons helps connect a hands-on and visual experience with the heart. A picture like the one presented today is more likely...Read More
Are you studying apples in 2nd or 3rd grade? Dive deeper into the life cycle of an apple tree, the anatomy of an apple, and farming processes with these videos, activities, crafts, and worksheets for kids all about apples.
Kids will be WOWED with this hands-on, fall science experiment where they will explore Why do Leaves Change Color for kids! Fun Leaf Activity!
Pinay Homeschooler is a blog that shares homeschool and afterschool activity of kids from babies to elementary level.
I love using interactive lapbooks in the classroom. They are fun to create, engaging and can be used throughout the year to review skills taught. I finally completely my Lapbook Bundle and I am happy to share the lapbooks included with you. Whether you think your learners will enjoy creating all of the lapbooks, if you
Anatomy can be overwhelming at times, even for older children, but it doesn't have to be! Plunk down a box of crayons and these free, printable Anatomy Coloring Pages then watch your student naturally take an interest in terms like "foramina" and "sigmoid."
Looking for an easy science activity? Today I'm excited to share this sink or float free printable. It's fun one that is great for all ages. It can be a quick activity or if you're looking for something to keep them busy this summer, you can add lots of items to "test". There are 2 versions you can download and print for free. One has some suggested items to try out and one is blank. For the blank one you can have the kids gather a bunch of items they want to test out and write them down themselves. For little ones that can't write yet, have them draw the object.
Science units are wonderful for teaching science concepts in a special education classroom… especially those with multiple grades. The science units help me differentiate and teach and reteach the science concepts year after year. Focus On Vocabulary Many students struggle with all of the vocabulary and language that come with science concepts. From scientific tools […]
It seems like most kids go through a phase when they are interested in maps and globes and where things are in the world (though my daughter hilariously protests every time I pull out an atlas; no …
