This book isn't just for new teachers! Even after years as a science teacher, this book gave me suggestions to use right away in my classroom.”

—Regina Brinker, Science Teacher

Christensen Middle School, Livermore, CA

Create a science classroom that fosters a creative learning community and leads to success!

From successfully setting up a classroom to achieving meaningful instruction, science teachers face a variety of challenges unique to their practice every day. This easy-to-read guide provides new and seasoned teachers with practical ideas, strategies, and insights to help address essential topics in effective science teaching, including emphasizing inquiry, building literacy, implementing technology, using a wide variety of science resources, and maintaining student safety.

Aligned with current science standards, this guide helps teachers streamline their efforts, organize their work, and set the stage for outstanding instruction and enthusiastic student participation. Other features include:

Practical examples, snapshots of moments in the history of science, and Web references; A compilation of professional development activities; Checklists to rate curricula and textbooks; Guidance on networking with colleagues and establishing relationships with families

By leveraging this book's rich resources, science teachers will discover how to turn their classrooms into thriving environments for learning.

Emphasize Inquiry Science to Deepen Understanding

Emphasize inquiry science to deepen understanding

Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing—absolutely nothing—half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. Simply messing.

—Spoken by Ratty to Mole in Wind in the Willows (1992 [1913]), a children's book by Kenneth Grahame (1859–1932)

In 1974, David Hawkins wrote an essay, “Messing About in Science,” in which he maintained that students needed unstructured time to explore their natural world (Hawkins, 1974). This phrase has since been used to describe the early phases of inquiry. Hawkins felt strongly that a significant amount of time involved in learning science should be spent in free and unguided exploratory work.

The idea of allowing your students time to “mess about in science” is a powerful ...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles