Dealing With Difficult Parents as a Teacher Are you dealing more and more with difficult parents in your teaching job? Have you received an unexpected nasty email? Has a parent become angry about something in your classroom? What strategies can you use to diffuse the situation? Dealing with difficult parents, as a teacher, can be…
Planning Lab Activities for Middle School Science Class Are you struggling with planning lab activities while teaching middle school science? How do you introduce the lab, execute it, clean up and draw conclusions in one class period? I use a method that I call “backwards lesson planning” as I am planning lab activities for my…
First Day of School in Middle School Science What do you do on the first day of middle school science? What do you need to cover to be successful for the rest of the year? I have experimented with many different approaches to the first day of school in middle school science for over thirty…
20 Teacher Hacks For the Middle School Science Classroom All teachers develop classroom hacks, or tricks, to help them succeed in their classroom. Do you wish that someone had told you all of their teacher hacks before you started teaching on your first day of school? I’ve been a middle school science teacher for over…
Science Activities to Do Outside with Middle School Do you want to do science experiments, scavenger hunts and activities outside, with your middle school students, but you’re not sure about what lessons and structures to use? Even if your playground/schoolyard is limited, there are many activities that you can do outside as long as you…
6 Types of Science Bellringers to Start Your Class The first three to five minutes of your class are the most critical. Science bellringers, warm ups, or starters, are highly effective in terms of bringing the students to order. These activities help gather the student’s focus and get them organized. The first few minutes of…
20 Tips For Doing Your End of Year Science Classroom Inventory Are you overwhelmed by the task of the end of year science classroom inventory that is hanging over your head before summer break? No matter how tempted you are to just lock the door of the science classroom and “deal with it in August”,…
50 Fun End of Year Science Activities for Middle School Are you looking for meaningful, end of year science activities for your middle school students? I put together 50 end of year science activities such as STEM, critical thinking CER, worthwhile research activities, environmental exploration, crafty ideas and just messy fun projects! I have done…
Are you teaching chemistry to middle school students and you need help with the scope and sequence? How do you introduce chemistry to prepare the students for understanding more complex concepts later? This is introductory unit involves teaching chemistry to middle school students so that they completely understand the basics of atomic structure, analyzing molecules…
How to Teach Punnett Squares and Genetics Using Aliens! Do you want to teach Punnett squares and genetics(MS-LS3-2) and need fun and engaging activities? This is the sequence of activities, that I use to teach Punnett squares, that keeps the students engaged and comprehending the concepts. They love learning about how they got their own…
