Teaching ScienceHelp for trainee Science teachers

Heres a link to a great lesson starter/plenary idea from the ICT Games website. Science Bingo. It uses the Primary Science vocab words from the Kent Scheme of work, which will suit most Primary Science classes.

Download a pack of Bingo cards to photocopy for the children – then use the Word generator to select words to cross off the bingo grid.

It’s a simple, fun idea  to help with keyword recognition.

Thanks to Jason Dilling (@jasondilling) and James (@Wigglemyears) on Twitter for coming up with the resource!

Just a quick post to flag up this fun little resource site for Science called Science Storybooks.

It contains a stack of Flash animations that can be used to introduce many different science concepts, some include songs that would provide a fun way to start a lesson.

The resources are completely free, and also contain links to lesson notes and other information. Well worth taking a look at.

Thanks to the iLearn Technology Blog for the heads-up on this resource.

Thanks to fellow twitterer Sophie Bessemer for tipping me off about these science resources from BP Educational Services, the education department of the energy company.

For Primary Science, there are some very useful resources in the Young Science Investigators series aimed at KS2 pupils. These resources include the following modules:

• Energy
• Our Environment
• Online Experiments

All these resources are free, but you do need to register with the site to get them although registration is also free.

It’s also worth taking a look at the free resources that you can order and have sent to your school such as posters and CD-ROM materials.

Take a look at these resources and see what you think. Could they be used to support science on your Interactive Whiteboard?

Here are 10 websites that will prove useful to any teacher of Primary Science looking for things to use on their interactive whiteboard:

The Children’s University of Manchester. Several excellent interactive resources for Primary Science.

NGFL Cymru : Early years, KS1 and KS2 Science resources from the Welsh Grid for Learning.

Simple Science : I love these excellent science song videos. Great for lesson starters or reinforcement of key facts.

IWB.org.uk: KS1 and KS2 interactive science resources (and other subjects)

BBC Bitesize. Always worth a visit, some excellent resources here for Ks2.

BBC Learning Zone - lots of videos to use in Science and other lessons.

Birmingham Grid for Learning – some excellent resources here, and links to other sites.

Crickweb – great flash-based games for KS1 and Ks2 Science.

Fossweb - US site with some interesting interactive science activities.

Primary Resources – Home to some great resources – IWB files, powerpoints, links and more! Also worth checking out is Teaching Ideas, which is on very similar lines.

Don’t forget, if your school subscribes to Espresso, there are some excellent resources for EYFS, KS1 and KS2 in there. (OK, so that makes 11, but Espresso is well worth a look)

Image Credit : Kevin Dooley

To mark the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, commissioned and funded by the Wellcome Trust, has created The Great Plant Hunt. This project will encourage Primary school children to explore the natural world around them and join other schools in the biggest ever school science project.

The Great Plant Hunt invites primary school children to follow in the footsteps of Darwin by going on nature walks in and around their school grounds. They’ll find out more about plants and in the process learn key scientific skills. There is a lot more information, and links to resources in the Teacher Area of the site.

In addition to the activity ideas, there are also interactive resources to use on an IWB such as Plant or Not?, Herby Havoc and Sunflower Survival.

All teaching materials and resources are available to download – so you can make your own Treasure Chest of resources to run The Great Plant Hunt completely free.

I wrote this in case it was a Snow Day today and the Science lecture gets cancelled. But seeing as it wasn’t but the Internet connection was very dodgy, it might be worth sharing anyway so you can try out some of the links again.

Here are a few things I’d like you to try.

1. Investigate Build Your Wild Self. http://www.buildyourwildself.com/

Create an animal version of yourself.

Then take a screenshot into Word (print screen button and paste) and write about how this creature might live. What would it eat, how would it hunt? Where would it live etc etc…

2. Investigate Simple Science Songs : http://www.simplescience.net/

How could you use some of these songs to introduce different science lessons? or as a plenary. Could you write your own songs based on these?

3. Take a look at the interactive science websites on my delicious list at: http://delicious.com/dannynic/pgce+science+interactive

Pick two sites that are your favourite.

Then. Go to the Wallwisher page that has been set up at: http://wallwisher.com/wall/scittscienceict

Double click on the page to add a note. Create a note about each of your favourite science/ict sites from the list (or that you have found elsewhere)

Remember to add the address of the site, and a quick note about what it is and why you like it.

4. Take a look at this slideshow on Photopeach. This is an easy way of making a slideshow from images taken with a digital camera, digital microscope or webcam.

The slideshow – What is it??

If you want the answers, they can be found here.

Think about how you could use this to create a slideshow of images on a topic or to showcase pupil work.

And finally

Also : take a look at how other teachers have used technology to provide activities for the children to do from home:

Radstock Primary School

Heathfield Primary School

Thanks to Sciencebase for posting this : Great party tricks for Scientists.

Would also make good lesson starters (esp the vineger/bicarb one)

Be careful with those matches

A few photos from the day.

There are two very useful 15 minute clips on Teachers TV, exploring how more creative learning contexts can be used in primary science lessons. They also seek to show how collaborative work between teachers in school can lead to useful continuing professional development.

The resource aims to demonstrate:

1. The benefits of creative learning contexts
2. How cross-curricular contexts can improve learning
3. How collaborative work between teachers can aid their professional development

To access the videos, click on these links:

KS1/2 Science – As Easy As CPD 1

KS1/2 Science – As Easy As CPD 2

There are many more science resources on Teachers TV. Take a look!

Science by Email looks like it could be a handy resource to keep an eye on:

“In recent years, Science by Email has produced a diverse range of science activities for subscribers to try at home or in the classroom. You can access them via this archive.”

You can also subscribe and have science ideas emailed direct to your inbox. The list is aimed at teachers in Australia, but anyone can join the mailing list.

Another service worth joining is Ictopus, which provides a weekly email of useful lesson ideas for Primary Teachers, for all subjects. It’s free to register, and you get access to the entire archive of past resources.