Organic learning

Winter Survival Strategies

Winter Survival Strategies: Adaptation, Migration, and Hibernation

As the northern hemisphere enters into the depths of winter – January, and February – we begin to embrace the reality of frigid temperatures and copious amounts of snow. We turn up the heat, throw on more blankets and layers of clothing, and bundle up in warm coats when going outside.  I often look out …

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Elementary Engineering

Engineering…It’s Everywhere!

As an elementary teacher, you might be intimidated by incorporating engineering into your classroom. Engineering feels so exotic, different, and overwhelming. But, if you know how to recognize when people are trying to solve a problem, then you are ready to start a conversation about engineering. I think that high-quality children’s literature provides great opportunities …

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Overcoming Epic Fail

Dealing With The Epic Fail

 In our Saturday webinar with Kerry Tracy from Feel Good Teaching, she touched upon the topic of failures. While teachers may have the impulse to save kids from feeling failure and disappointment, failure —especially epic failure, where everything falls apart— is a valuable teachable moment for our students. When students fail and are given …

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Elementary Science Labs

Myth Busting Labs that Demonstrate the Nature of Science

This powerpoint is from one of Yen’s workshops at ISTS this year. You can use it to create your own myth-busting labs in your classroom that reflects the same processes that scientists use in the real world! Elementary science labs can be fun and interesting, while also being realistic and inquiry-based. If you want the …

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Scientific Method Alternative

Your Alternative to the Scientific Method: The Science Metamap

I confess, I taught the scientific method when I was a high school science teacher even though I knew from my years of working in research labs that it was not how authentic science worked. In the real world, the design of experiments and the pursuit of answering or finding a solution to a scientific …

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