Teaching with Task Cards

Do you use task cards for teaching activities?  You may want to consider doing so when you observe all their benefits.

Task cards are pretty self-explanatory:  they are cards which contain tasks, or activities for students to complete.  Teachers usually create a deck of these task cards for students to practice skills.  They are good worksheet alternatives, can be adapted in to games, easy to make and readily accessible since so many teachers make and share them.

Here are some resources about task cards, if you're thinking about utilizing them:

• Task-Cards.com, which gives a thorough explanation for various ways to use task cards, including for individual, small group and whole class activities.  The site also provides details on several types of task cards and gives examples of each.  There are also four sets of free task cards as a sample of the type of material sold on the site.  Visit here for a one-stop shop for info on task cards! 
• Talbott's Teaching Trove contains a few sets of free task cards, including working with antonyms and rounding numbers.  My favorite are the "7-Up" cards, which encourage students to turn short, lifeless sentences into descriptive ones.
• The Third Wheel posted free math task cards to sharpen students' problem solving skills.
• Pro-Teacher.net forums have many awesome members who create and share task cards for all subjects and grade levels.  Sign up and join to share and contribute.

Soap and Milk Can Make a Cool, Colorful Science Activity

I saw a video of a science experiment I thought I'd share.  This is a simple activity requiring few resources (milk, plates, food coloring, soap and cotton swabs) that you can perform with your students.  

If you place a bit of milk in a plate with a few drops of food coloring in different hues, adding a bit of soap ignites a spectacle of swirls and spinning colors.  Kids would love to see the colors mixing together in a really surprising visual effect.  Explain the science behind it (involving the molecules in the soap "chasing" the molecules in the milk).  The video below explains the concept and shows you how the colors look once the soap is introduced.  You can also turn it into an experiment for students to record how the colors react in different types of milk and other liquids.  I've included a printable sheet for students to record their data during the activity.

Video: Students Creating Video Games

Check out this post from Education Week's site.  They show a teacher discussing the benefits of teaching students to design their own video games, an activity that is engaging, helps them practice material, and familiarizes them with skills that may help them in their career.

Check out GameStar Mechanic if you're interested in showing kids how to design their own video games.

Use Old Magazines for A Science Activity About Animals

Head over to TheFifthGradeDugout to see how one teacher came up with an innovative way to use old pages full of information on animals.  Instead of tossing the decades-old sheets, she saw a valuable resource for her students.

The "Animal Fact Files" she enjoyed as a kid are full of info about different species around the world.  They include vivid pictures as well as text features to help kids learn all about each creature.

She decided to compile these pages for the class and use them when they finish their work early.  She posts one sheet a week for students to read when they get a chance, and they fill out a pre-made questionnaire to show their newfound knowledge.  The student who does the best job gets their picture posted as "Zoologist of the Week."

I thought this was an inventive way to both make use of discarded magazines and give curious readers something to do when they finish their work early.  Even if you don't have the "Animal Fact File" sheets she used, you can still mimic this same idea with any magazines with animal features, like Ranger Rick or Ask (click here for a full list of recommended classroom magazines).  Ask the school and public libraries for any old copies of magazines you can use.  Click on TheDugout's link to use her questionnaire in your version of this activity.

You can likely even adapt this to fit whatever kind of magazine features you want.  Students could become "Scientist of the Week" for science articles, "Historian of the Week" for articles on historical figures, etc.

Using Discovery Bottles

Have you made use of discovery bottles in your classroom?  Consider doing so if you want to add some simple manipulatives for centers or a science station.  Earlier, I posted about how teachers use empty water bottles for activities, and discovery bottles accomplish the same thing by adding different types of materials for students to shake around and observe.  They can do work with these at their desks or in small groups.  Just add a printable to the center where they can record what they see, and you can turn plastic bottles into a world of discovery for your students.


Some examples found on TurnstallTimes' post:

• "Word bottles" are filled with pasta, sand or other materials, with words hidden inside.  Students shake the bottle around and read/record the sight words that are revealed.  She even included a sheet for students to record the words they find!
• The "magnetic" bottle is full of tiny metal objects along with tons of confetti.  Students move a magnet along the outside of the bottle and watch the metal objects react.
• The "ocean bottle" makes waves when the oil, water, and blue food coloring inside are shaken.

Familylicious also has several nice discovery bottle examples posted, like:

• Vegetable oil mixed with powdered color and water mixed with food coloring can be shaken up to  create secondary colors, and then separate into two different colors when left still.
• "Density bottles" are filled with different types of liquid, such as water in one and clear shampoo in another.  A marble is placed inside each and students shake the bottles to see how the marbles move differently.  This would be a great way to introduce the concept of density to the whole class.
• A 'hidden objects" bottle is one of my favorites.  This would be great as a free-time activity!  Fill a bottle with material, such as sand or tissue paper.  Add 5-10 small objects and shake it so that they are hidden.  Include a sheet with pictures of the small objects so students can know what each item looks like, then challenge them to find them all.  

What other concepts can you showcase inside a discovery bottle?

Tree Journal Classroom Craft

The Crafty Classroom has a great craft activity that helps students understand many aspects of trees.


Using a brown paper bag, students create a small book that serve as a "tree journal."  On one page, they use construction paper and cut-out designs to illustrate the roots; other pages reveal leaves, tree rings, etc.  Alternating pages include info students have researched about trees.  Check out the link for examples and step-by-step instructions.


This is a first-rate project or fall, and a way to combine research with a cool craft.  Try it!

Hands-On Science Activity: Bird Adaptations

Here is a great hands-on science activity to teach students about animal adaptations.  I was able to witness this activity firsthand when I subbed for a class who did pretty much the exact same activity.  It was a big hit with students!


Ashleigh-EducationJourney supplies photos of her classroom experience with the project.  She also provides the printable sheets students used to record data.  To learn about how birds have adaptations to help them survive in various environments, students use tools like tweezers, eye droppers and tongs to mimic different kinds of beaks.  They use the "beaks" to try to gather items that represent food (staples, rice and other items stand in for seeds, bugs, etc).  


Which type of beak is best suited for picking up specific kinds of food?  Students get a chance to make a prediction, choose their "beaks," and are timed to collect the food and record their data.  Check out her blog for more info and the data sheet that you can use to do the activity with your own students.

image:  microsoft

Oreo Cookies for Moon Phases

Assess students' understanding of moon phases and enjoy a sugary treat with this post I saw on 4thGradeFrolics.  She concluded her unit on the moon with this activity.  Students illustrated the earth in the center of a paper plate, and labeled the edges with different moon phases.  


Next, they used four Oreo cookies and a spoon to represent the respective phases, the remaining frosting on the cookies showing the waxing and waning moon.  These little projects were cute and edible, plus they showed her class' understanding of their unit.  Try it!

image: microsoft

Free Nature Science Lessons and Activities

I stumbled upon an excellent website for resources related to forests and biodiversity.  This would be a good tool to use for science lessons on ecosystems and the environment.  America's Rain Forests gathered tons of useful information and classroom activities for teacher use.


The site includes printable, complete lesson plans, worksheets and activity forms, experiments, and ideas for extensions and assessment.  A few games and cooperative learning activities are also included.  


A few highlights:

• an experiment about plant growth
• an activity about food webs
• a lesson on making paper
• an investigation of animals typically found in soil
• a forest scavenger hunt
• a research project on national forests

Several of these activities are perfect for Earth Day or any good weather day when you'd enjoy a lesson outside.  Visit this page for even more outdoor learning activities.

image:  microsoft

Play "Password" to Review Vocabulary Words

I found this idea on Pinterest.


Education.com provides easy instructions for science review using the popular game known as Password.  If you've never seen it, Password is a game where one person gives their partner clues about a certain word, but they can't say specific things about that word that would make it easy for their partner to guess.


The site suggests using it to review science vocabulary (and, if you sign up for the site, you can download the activity to share with your class), but you can really use it for any type of vocabulary practice.  In fact, you can adapt this activity for review of social studies/history facts, characters and events in a novel, math terms, etc.  Just have the students create their words on index cards, being sure to include words they "can't say" when they provide clues for their partners.


It's a great game for review and practice with words.  The partner has to provide the word, but it's also beneficial for the clue-giver, who has to make other associations with the word than just the "book definition."  See examples and instructions here.  

image:  education.com

Moon-Gazing Flip Book (Free and Printable!)

You guys seem to like "free, printable activities," and I have another one for you:


Remember that moon-gazing activity for young students I posted a few months back?  Here is another version of the same activity.  Ology provides a printable flip book for students to record and illustrate their observations about moon phases for one month.  It's a pretty simple activity, and attention to detail will result in a nice, handy depiction of how the moon changes over the course of one month.  There is also room in the flip book for make comments and notes about what they see.  

image: microsoft

Create an Origami DNA Helix

This is a craft project that utilizes students' paper-folding affinity to help them learn about DNA.  DNA Center features a downloadable origami activity, complete with full instructions, that students can color and fold to create a DNA helix model.  This is ideal for a middle-grade biology lesson or craft project.  the final creation should spring and provide a nice visual for the complex, interesting nature of DNA.  Be sure to check out the sites' list of resources on DNA information.

Cheerios for Science

Ever notice how snacks form the basis for great classroom activities?  We've already discussed how candy can be used in science experiments, and even cereal can be used for science lessons.  Just check out how A Series of Third Grade Events used Cheerios to represent molecules.


The third-grade class created mobiles to show how molecules behave in different forms of matter.  Check out all the pictures of the awesome examples they made.  Solids show the Cheerios packed tightly together, while liquids and gases show the Cheerios spaced apart.  Perfect illustration of the molecular makeup of matter.


Now only are Cheerios involved in the project, but the teacher also assigned that students describe characteristics of each form of matter.  Nice touch to showcase understanding of many concepts in one hands-on activity.  And, at the conclusion, you get a neat classroom decoration to hang from the ceiling.  Check it out!

photo: microsoft

Moon-Gazing Activity for Elementary Students

What better way to study a major element in spooky stories than to assign a moon-gazing activity?  The First Grade Parade created this activity that is apropos of Halloween or any space unit.  It highlights the phases of the moon while giving students the opportunity to work on their observational skills.


Students take home a cute little notebook in which they draw the moon they see at night, bring the notebook back to class and send it home with the next student to observe and draw.  Soon the moon notebook will be full of students' rendering of transitional moon phases.


The moon notebook is stored in a "moon bag" which also includes a moon book selected from the library, chalk to draw the moon pictures on the black notebook paper, hairspray to seal the chalk on the drawings, white crayons, and a moon log.


First Grade Parade provided all of the instructions and the downloadable moon log so you can try this activity with your students as well.

CandyExperiments.com

Halloween is the perfect time of year to make candy the focal point of fun science experiments.


The creative people at CandyExperiments.com have been working to bringing the science out of some of our favorite candies.  Why not try some of their experiments in your classroom as we approach one of the year's biggest candy holidays?


The site lists some great activities such as testing candy for acid by mixing it with water and baking soda (ask students to predict which candies are more acidic, and then test their theories by seeing which candies produce the most bubbles), testing for oil by mixing the candy in hot water (ask students why the oil that forms when the water cools is able to float at the top), and separating colors from candy by dissolving the candies in water.


M&Ms, Skittles, Warheads, Lemonheads, chocolate candies, PopRocks and all sorts of candy can be the basis of cool, thought-provoking experiments for kids.  


Students can learn about density and how to make a rainbow of colors by layering the dyes by pouring melted Skittles in a cup.  They can also witness the edible ink on candies like M&Ms float in water.


Remember to check out their Youtube channel for some video examples of their experiments.

Dragonfly TV: Science Videos

Dragonfly TV can show you how videos can enhance your science units, and help students discover how science is an integral part of their areas of interest.  The site is full of short, informative videos hosted by kids investigating scientific principles.


Your students can spend a few minutes watching the kid hosts perform scientific discoveries in a wide range of exciting topics such as sports, kites, water slides, rollercoasters, weather, animals, motorcross racing, tug-of-war, etc.  The kid hosts ask questions about these topics, and work to find the answers.  Where can you find the best ocean waves for surfing?  Which is a better navigation tool:  GPS or a map and compass?  How can you make your own lip gloss and lotion?  These are the sorts of questions tackled in each video.


If you have a weather unit, or one on force and motion, ecology, biology, and others, consider adding a few of these videos to a computer center, or display them for a whole-class viewing.  Each video helpfully provides a springboard of other areas of study related to the topic, areas worth further investigation by your students.


There are also tons of experiments performed on Dragonfly TV, all of which could be integrated into your lessons or used as inspiration for a science project.


There are even interviews with actual scientists, people who do everything from design space suits, research chimpanzees, design Nascar vehicles, and tons of other things.  


Several games are on the site, like one that allows children to breed dogs for specific genetic traits.


Don't forget to check out the printable 'zines, which are filled with activities and fun experiments.


Dragonfly TV is part of PBSKids, which is always a good thing in my book.  Visit the site and tell me what you think!

Free, Downloadable Science Activities

Topscience.org has a ton of downloadable science activities you can use for all sorts of subjects and skills.  The activities are hands-on and would make great science centers, projects or whole-class activities to augment your lesson plans.


The best part is that they are free!  They have several free activities available as samples of their purchasable material, which you should also check out.  Each activity provides printable material, instructions, discussion questions, extensions and more.


The activities explore several science topics, and are appropriate for varying age groups.  Included are activities about:

• Estimating the size of objects in the universe.  This is very appropriate for any space unit.  Cut out the slips of paper and have students arrange themselves based on what they think are the sizes of objects, ranging from subatomic material to objects in the vast expanse of space.
• Investigating magnetism.  How can you make a paper clip float in the air?
• Building a model landscape.  Students will then bury a penny in their landscape, create a treasure map, and then challenge other students to find the buried treasure.
• Creating petrified paper.  Students will use salt to turn paper into a petrified log.  They then compare this process to that of wood petrifying.

Explore all of their free activities and see if any will fit your classroom's needs.

image:  microsoft

Activities and Resources for Learning Outdoors

I've compiled a list of activities that you can do with your class on great weather days.  Inspired by the sunny, cloudless skies and idyllic temperatures I've been experiencing lately, I thought it would be a good idea to think of some ways to take learning outside the classroom.


These activities take advantage of great weather in any season, but are especially useful for end-of-year lessons.  After exams are taken and students begin to get restless, it may be just what you need to get outside in the sun and do some of that active learning that's beneficial for the brain.


Try these on for size:

• *BUILD AND FLY KITES*

This is a really awesome activity shown in detail on Mr. Salsich's classroom blog.  He has two videos describing the kite-making activity.  You can really see all the time and effort placed into this project, which encouraged kids to use their math skills to design, test and perfect their kites.

In the first video, you can see them working together on the kites.  In the second, you can see all their hard work pay off in their fun kite-flying session.  They had a ball and applied their math skills.  Love it!

• *DESIGN BUBBLE PRINTS*

This cool craft activity can be done inside, but playing with bubbles and paint could be a great opportunity to take kids outdoors.  The video shows how simple the process is, and recommends using the finished products for things like book designs.  The colorful prints would make nice book covers for some of the students' creative writing, which could also be done outside.

• *CREATE SOLAR OVENS*

This is an activity I found on Scholastic's Classroom Solutions Blog.  Stacey's class used pizza boxes to construct solar ovens and cook s'mores.  A lesson on solar energy and a tasty treat!  Her blog contains some information about her activity, as well as links she used.

Another Scholastic link gives Beth Newingham's ideas for going green at school and references a similar activity with solar ovens.  She used a great resource at FamilyFun for Solar S'mores.

• *SCHOLASTIC'S SUN ACTIVITIES*

Speaking of the sun, Scholastic also has a great list of activities to do outside using the sun's energy.  They suggest taking a "solar stroll," complete with a reproducible, making a shadow play, using solar kilns, and more.

• *IDENTIFY LINES, ANGLES AND GEOMETRIC FIGURES AROUND THE SCHOOL*

Ms. Jessica White's classroom blog has a great video that shows her class embarking on a journey around campus during a math lesson.  Check out some of the places where they found parallel and perpendicular lines, plus a lot more! 

• *CREATE NATURE COLLAGES*

Have the class walk around outside to collect some of nature to add to an Alphabet Collage.  This blogger added beans, couscous and a few other items to her kids' leaves, pebbles, flowers and other findings so that they could create letters of the alphabet.  You can also turn this artistic activity into poetry practice by making the letters smaller so that students can make acrostic poems.

• *ORGANIZE ACTIVITIES WITHIN A CAMPING THEME*

This idea comes from Victoria's Scholastic Blog.  She came up with a camping-themed event at her school where students could go outside and participate in several math and science activities.  Check out her blog and see pics and explanations of the event, where kids did fun things that helped them practice measurement.

• *PLAN A VOCABULARY PARADE*

Another great idea from Scholastic classroom blogs:  Angela Bunyi wanted her class to demonstrate their understanding of vocabulary words by creating costumes representations.  Next, they went outside and held a parade to show off their cool creations.  Visit her blog to see pictures of the event.  She planned this parade in lieu of a Halloween activity, but dressing up for vocabulary would be a neat activity any time of year.

Angela adapted this activity from Debra Frasier's books and ideas.  Visit her site for more ideas on how to plan a vocabulary parade.

• *READ OR WRITE OUTSIDE*

Keep it simple and take your students outside to read, write prose or poetry, or observe nature and the action outside.

• *TRACE AND MEASURE SHADOWS*

Here is a activity that gives students a chance to explore the relationship between the sun and shadows.  Try this as a guide to the activity.

In fact, using sidewalk chalk and concrete is a good basis for many outdoors activities.  You can design a lot of review games based around hopscotch or drawing with sidewalk chalk.

Creating a sun dial may also be a good way to examine the sun and shadows.

• *MAKE A VOLCANO ERUPT*

That's just what Mitch Squires' class did on a nice day for a science lesson.  They went outside and used their play dough and plastic bottle creations to simulate volcanic eruptions.   Watch the video and go to his blog for details.

• *CREATE A GAME, OR DEVISE A TREASURE HUNT*

These activities are listed on Scholastic and even include printables.  Students will love coming up with their own outdoor games and creating all the rules, or going on a treasure hunt as a fun challenge.

I hope you're enjoying the glorious weather!  Use it as an opportunity to teach and enjoy learning!

images:  microsoft

Online Game: Science and Extreme Sports

Demonstrate the application of scientific principles with TryScience's Extreme Challenge, which combines students' interest in extreme sports with science.  By exploring the site, they can learn why traveling on a snowboard in a crouched position is more aerodynamic for faster movement, or how fiber typing different muscles is important for athletes.  Students then apply their science knowledge to compete in the online games!  Try the Quick Play to practice the challenges without registering.

Ivy + Bean in the Classroom

I was going to describe all the ways that Ivy + Bean, the series by Annie Barrows, is useful in the classroom, but the video posted below explains it all for me.  Real teachers describe the series and attest to the books' ability to captivate young readers:

This is a popular series I often see in girls' hands during independent reading time, and the teacher in the video shows that it is also good for read-alouds to the whole class.

Having perused the books myself, I would say they are good transitional chapter books for students who have graduated from Junie B. Jones, but who aren't quite ready yet for the tween/teen female protagonists in children's literature. I think Ivy & Bean is ideal for 2nd-4th graders. There are many illustrations in the book , which may encourage struggling readers. Some of the major themes of the series involve friendship, as the two main characters build a strong bond despite their many differences.

Ivy + Bean also has potential for several extension activities in the classroom. Here are a few highlights from the teacher's guides provided by Chronicle Books:

• What's the Big Idea? would be apropos of any units on nature, science, or the environment because the characters decide to take on global warming.
• The activity guide for this particular book has tons of suggestions for quick science lessons and projects. These will have students thinking about natural resources and ways to produce clean energy.
• Here are several discussion questions for the first three books in the series, including journal prompts. Students can practice finding meaning through context, problem and solution as well as other skills. Perfect for a small group activity!
• Teachers have made printable worksheets based on the series, including this one which asks students to design a bedroom based on one they read in the book, as well as this math worksheet that helps students learn to budget.
• There's even a reader's theater play based on the series.

There are lots of other ideas on the site, too. If you like the series, how do you use it in the classroom?

Whether you're searching for read-aloud material, a new addition to your classroom library, or something that offers extension activities, Ivy + Bean may be exactly what you need.