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Earth Science Week is October 13-19, and it is the perfect time to show our appreciation for our home planet! With our Activities for Earth Science WEek, each day of the week focuses on specific geoscience-themed celebrations. To help you and your students partake in this year’s events, we have put together a list of activities for each day of Earth Science Week.

Activities for Earth Science Week

Contests

STEM contests and competitions are a fun way to engage students in learning. The American Geosciences Institute offers several contests as part of Earth Science Week. Students in kindergarten through fifth grade may enter a visual arts contest, while an essay contest is open to students in sixth through ninth grade, and a photography contest and a video contest are open to all ages.

International EarthCache Day – Sunday

What better way to kick of Earth Science Week than with a scavenger hunt? EarthCaching is geocaching with a geoscience twist. Gather the kids, their phones or any portable devise with GPS technology, and head outdoors to find some educational treasures.

EarthCaching – An Educator’s Guide
The EarthCaching Educator’s Guide, put out by the Geological Society of America, provides all the background information, tips, and lesson plans required for parents and teachers to get their students started with earthcaching.

EarthCache Listings
Ready to find an earthcache? Visit geocaching.com to locate a nearby earthcache.

Earth Science Literacy Day – Monday

Earth Science Literacy Day focuses on the “Big Ideas” that we should all understand about earth science. Start by watching the Big Idea videos by the American Geosciences Institute. Then, why not take the opportunity to hook children on learning about our planet through reading? Below are a few of our favorite fiction books that feature geoscience themes. Most of these books complement Big Idea 6: Life Evolves on Earth and Big Idea 8: Natural Hazards Affect Humans!

Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp by Carol Diggory Shields
Young children will enjoy the creative rhyming and variety of dinosaurs dancing it up at the dinosaur stomp. Adults will enjoy the way geologic time is interwoven throughout this rollicking story.

Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne
The beloved Magic Tree House series begins in the prehistoric past with Dinosaurs Before Dark. Early readers that have already started the series can skip the later geo-themed books, Vacation Under the Volcano or Earthquake in the Early Morning.

I Survived the Destruction of Pompeii, AD 79 by Lauren Tarshis
Older elementary students who are fans of adventure and historical fiction will flip through the pages of this story about the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Related books in this series include, I Survived the San Francisco Earthquake, 1906 and I Survived the Joplin Tornado, 2011.

The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
What better way to appreciate what the earth’s surface offers us than to take it away? Middle school readers will want to keep the lights on and find out what happens when the power goes out in the underground city of Ember.

Ashfall by Mike Mullin
High school students who enjoy disaster fiction will be drawn into the post-apocalyptic world of Ashfall. However, in this novel, the force that destroys the earth as we know isn’t aliens or governments, it’s our very own Yellowstone supervolcano.

No Child Left Inside Day – Tuesday

Time to go outside! Geoscience happens outdoors, so take advantage of this day and get your students and children outside with these activities.

Outdoor Education Stations
Coordinate an outdoor geoscience activity with a local earth science organization or setup education stations in your own backyard or school grounds.

Every Kid in a Park
If you teach or know any fourth grade students, take this day to get them signed up for the Every Kid in a Park program. The pass allows all U.S. fourth grade and home-school equivalent students and their families to visit hundreds of national parks, forests, and wildlife refuges for free. Bonus, the pass is good through the end of August, making it the perfect motivational tool for getting outside all year long!

Earth Observation Day – Tuesday

Take advantage of Earth Observation Day by engaging your students in practical applications of Earth Science data. Introduce your students to remote sensing with one of these lessons or activities or connect with a remote sensing scientist. Visit the Earth Observation Day website to get started!

National Fossil Day – Wednesday

If you are fortunate enough to have fossils on hand for students to examine, then today is the day to do so! If not, don’t worry, students can still participate in National Fossil Day with these activities.

Online Fossil Activities
Take students on an interactive adventure to the past without leaving the classroom with the Fossil Mysteries interactive. View fossils on exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History with the NMNH virtual tour. Explore online paleontology games and activities from the American Museum of Natural History. Try our free Fossils online lesson too.

Art and Photography Contest
Get creative by entering the National Fossil Day Art Content. The winning submission for each age group will be featured on the official National Fossil Day website.

Geoscience for Everyone Day – Thursday

How do we manage our mineral resources? Can we predict natural hazards? Could we survive on Mars? These are all issues geoscientists grapple with on a daily basis. Geoscience for Everyone Day is set aside for students to learn about geoscience careers.

Career Exploration
Allow your student to explore future career paths today. Science Buddies offers a great collection of job overviews and education and training information for those interested in Earth and Environmental Science careers.  PBS’ Dragonfly TV features videos about Real Scientists, including an ocean scientist, meteorologist, marine geologist, and paleontologist.

Geologic Map Day – Friday

Geologic Map Day is dedicated to the important role geologic mapping plays in society. Geologic maps tell us much more than the location of roads and landmarks. Instead, they tell us about the history of the earth below our feet – the types of rocks and their ages, fault lines, and folds, all essential information for land-use planning.

Learn About Geologic Maps
For those unfamiliar with geologic maps, a primer is in order. Start by reading the Geologic Maps site by the US Geological Survey and the National Parks Service, then, explore the One Geology Portal.

Interpret a Geologic Map
Get hands-on and try interpreting a geologic map. Okay, it’s not quite that simple, but there are some excellent tools and lessons available. Start with the Visible Geology interactive, What’s Under My Feet, Geologic Maps and Groundwater, or Geologic Maps & Earthquakes.

International Archaeology Day – Saturday

Earth Science Week wraps up with International Archaeology Day, the perfect opportunity for families to experience the real-world intersection of geoscience and history.

Attend an Archaeology Day Event
The Archaeological Institute of America’s website has an interactive map and searchable database of Archaeology Day events happening around the world. Chances are there is a family-friendly tour, open house, fair, or exhibit near you.

Join a Dig!
Some archaeological sites allow volunteers to join in the dig free of charge. Search for potential volunteer opportunities here. If you and your students can’t participate in a dig, then go virtual with InteractiveDigs.com.

Looking for more ways to learn about planet Earth? Visit HelpTeaching.com and try our free Earth Science printables and lessons.

Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) subjects are incredibly important for students to be involved in for a number of reasons beyond that of career opportunities and driving innovation. In a digital and rapidly advancing technological world, having a strong foundation in STEM subjects can help students go on to be critical thinkers and effective problem-solvers of real-world challenges.

So contests and competitions are a great way to not only benefit but also encourage students in STEM subjects. They can inspire students to pursue careers in STEM-related fields and challenge teachers and homeschool parents to take STEM education to the next level. Quality competitions provide students with hands-on practice and application of core STEM concepts they are studying and support project-based learning initiatives. Updated for the 2023 – 2024 school year, we’ve gathered a list of the top STEM competitions by age group to help you find the perfect opportunity for your students.

Before committing to entering any STEM competitions, consider the following criteria:

Curriculum Alignment – Does the competition directly support your curriculum and education standards? Do you have the classroom time to devote to working with students on their entries? If not, consider starting a school club dedicated to the project.

Cost – Many competitions cost nothing other than time, others require the purchase or donation of materials, and still others require travel and associated expenses. Determine your budget prior to selecting a competition to avoid student disappointment if funding is not available.

Timeline – Each competition will have a set competition timeline. In addition, some will require registration well before the submission deadline. Make sure the timeline works with your teaching schedule so students have ample time to complete quality projects.

Individual vs. Team – Science is collaborative and so are many STEM competitions. Decide if it is best for your students to compete individually, in small teams, or as a class, and then select a competition that fits those needs.

STEM Competitions for Multiple Age Groups

American Computer Science League

America Computer Science League – The ACSL challenges students in grades K – 12 to solve computer science and programming problems in this international competition divided into divisions by age group and computing experience. Now in its 46th year, over 8,000 students from the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia participate in multiple divisions to test fundamental concepts like Number Systems, Boolean Algebra, Digital Electronics, and more, using Python, C++, or Java, which makes it ideal for students of varying ages and abilities. The competition is also online.

Vex Robotics

VEX Robotics Competition get student teams designing and building robots in this popular game-based engineering competition. It’s split into Full Volume for students in grades 4-8, and Over Under for grades 6-12, with thousands of students participating in hundreds of competitions across local, regional, national, and world competition levels.

The competition is an ideal environment for honing skills through the Teamwork Challenge to maximize scores, Robot Skills Challenge where you race against the clock, and STEM Research Project where students use the scientific method to research and solve a challenge.

Exploravision

ExploraVision – The National Science Teachers Association and Toshiba ask small teams of K-12 students to envision what a current technology will look like in the future. The ExploraVision competition has refocused over the past several years to align with Next Generation Science Standards.

The format of the competition is great, because it teaches students academic methods for presenting information. For example, students are required to submit an Abstract, detailed description meeting the requirements of sub-categories, a Bibliography, and Sample Web Pages.

FIRST Robotics

FIRST is the perfect competition if your students have an interest in robotics. With school teams and clubs worldwide, hundreds of thousands of students grades K-12 from countries all over the world participate annually in hands-on mentor-based robotics programs and competitions.

It’s split into different age groups, with grades Pre-K to 8th taking part in the LEGO league, grades 7-12 taking part in the Tech Challenge, while older students in grades 9-12 can participate in the Robotics Competition.

Science Olympiad

Founded in 1984, this time-tested competition remains as popular as ever. Science Olympiad competitions take place in all fifty states of the US and are open to students in grades 6 – 12. Tournaments focus on teamwork and consist of standards-based challenges. Become part of the 6,000 teams today by checking out the 2024 rules.

American Rocketry Challenge

What won’t students love about building rockets? Packet with a host of STEM skills, this competition is the perfect opportunity to get students excited to improve their designs and excel. The America Rocketry Challenge is open to middle and high school students, who take part in designing, building, and flying rockets complete with “astronaut” eggs. What’s great about this competition is that categories extend beyond just building a rocket, with Marketing Competitions and Presentation Competitions also honing valuable skills needed in STEM fields. With over 5,000 students participating in previous years, it’s proof that this competition is wildly fun and rewarding ($100,000 in prizes doesn’t hurt either!).

Technology Student Association

The TSA is all about developing leadership and career opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), and one of the mechanisms they achieve this is through competitions. They have a whole host to browse, depending on age and grade and the format varies to span hands-on design challenges, multiple choice questions, and an essay based around an annual theme. For example this year’s high school division offers Engineering Design, Technology Problem-solving, and Video Game Design. Check out the TSA website for more information.

EngineerGirl Essay

EngineerGirl Essay Content – Each fall the site posts an engineering-related prompt for students grades 3 – 12 to write about. Despite the name, the content is open to all students in grades 3 – 12, not just girls! This year, the prompt is to write about the lifecycle of an object that you use in your daily life. Submissions close in Feb 2024, so best get your pen to paper if you want to enter this one!

THINK Challenges

The THINK Challenges, organized by a group of undergraduates from MIT, offer an exciting platform for high school students engaged in the early stages of original research projects. The competition, unfortunately, had closed its registration for 2023, but anticipation builds for the 2024 details, which are yet to be announced and are expected to open in November 2023. The application process is conveniently conducted online. Typically, selected finalists are granted a remarkable opportunity—a 4-day, all-expenses-paid trip to MIT’s campus. During this immersive experience, finalists engage with professors in their respective research fields, tour cutting-edge labs, and network with members of the THINK team. Moreover, finalists benefit from weekly mentorship meetings and receive a $1000 grant to support their ongoing research projects.

Future City

Future City is a competition aimed at encouraging students to think about and solve real-world problems using cross-curricular skills to bring STEM to life! With climate change and sustainability being at the center of attention, and a point of anxiety for many youth, the competition hinges on a single question: “How can we make the world a better place?” This year’s theme is to conceptualise and design a 100% electrically powered city with energy generated from green sources.

Students participate from all over the world and barriers to entry are low, with the entire program able to be completed for less than $100.

Game-a-thon

Kids love games, so why not put them in the driver’s seat and have them create a card or board game? With Game-a-thon, cards, dice, and board games make for creative, hands-on learning. In this competition, students create games based on math concepts and submit videos of their games in action. The website was loads of examples from previous years for inspiration.

Regeneron Science Talent Search (STS)

The Regeneron Science Talent Search, the nation’s oldest and most esteemed science competition, invites high school seniors to participate in a unique and prestigious opportunity. To enter, students must undertake an original independent research project, supplementing their applications with recommendation letters and transcripts. Notably, 13 alumni of this competition have gone on to win the Nobel Prize—an impressive testament to its caliber. Open to any senior-year high school student, the application period for the 2024 competition spans from June 1 to November 8, 2023. The Top 40 finalists, announced in January 2024, earn an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., for in-depth judging during Regeneron STS Finals Week, taking place from March 6 to 13, 2024. With over $2 million in awards, including a first-place prize of $250,000, this competition not only recognizes exceptional talent but also provides a platform for young scientists to showcase their groundbreaking work.

Other Competitions of Interest

American Geosciences Institute Contests – In honor of October’s Earth Science Week, the AGI offers several annual contests for kids that celebrate Earth through visual arts, a nice option to support STEAM curriculums.

MOEMS – This Math Olympiad for students in grades 4 – 8, allows students to compete in teams of up to 35 via an online monthly math test.

STEM Competitions for Middle School Students

Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge – In this competition, students in grades 5 – 8 create videos on unique solutions to everyday problems. Multiple levels of prizes are given, including a $25,000 grand prize.

MATHCOUNTS – Each four-student middle school team creates a video that teaches the solution to and a real-world application of a math problem selected from the MATHCOUNT’s handbook. MATHCOUNTS also offers “bee” style competitions and club programs.

eCYBERMISSION – This web-based competition, sponsored by the U.S. Army, is for teams of students in grades 6 – 9 and focuses on real-life applications of STEM.

STEM Competitions for High School Students

SourceAmerica Design Challenge – High school students innovate workplace technologies that diminish obstacles standing between people with disabilities and employment opportunities.

Google Science Fair – Students 13-18 perform in-depth investigations of real-world problems in this competition that awards many prizes in different age categories.

Imagine Cup – Microsoft’s Imagine Cup challenges high school students worldwide to create software applications that help resolve some of the world’s most challenging problems.

Mathworks Math Modeling (M3) Challenge – A free, internet-based math challenge for juniors and seniors that addresses a real-world problem. The competition offers numerous scholarships to top-placing teams.

Clean Tech Competition – Individuals and small student groups research, design, and produce papers around a real-world environmental theme that integrates eco-friendly energy sources.

Regeneron Science Talent Search – Billed as the oldest U.S. science and math competition, this one is limited to high school seniors who submit original science research. The top 300 entries earn cash prizes and finalists will go on to compete for $250,000.

Math Prize for Girls – This is a competitive math prize for high school girls, held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology each fall. Only 300 students will be selected to compete and applicants must take an American Mathematics Competition exam prior to applying for this competition.

This is just a sampling of the many STEM competitions available. Many students also participate in local and regional science fairs that allow students to conduct and present authentic research and potentially compete at the national level in competitions like the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and Broadcom MASTERS. However, most students will not win a national competition, so before entering students in a competition, consider the intrinsic value of participation. Look for well-organized competitions that offer clearly defined rules and judging criteria, as well as constructive feedback for all participants.

Remember to check out Help Teaching’s collection of science worksheets and online lessons to support your science teaching needs. If you enjoyed reading this article, try our Ultimate Guide to Teaching Science.

Science surrounds us and summer offers the perfect time for families to explore science in action. Avoid the summer slump and try some of these suggestions for summer science adventures with your child. Most of these activities are low-cost or free, but be sure to check with your local library before heading out to learn about free and discount passes to museums and other local attractions.

Our List of Summer Science Ideas

1. Participate in a Citizen Science Project

Science is collaborate by nature, so join in and lend a hand by participating in a citizen science project. Project participants support scientific research by:

• Classifying the shapes of galaxies (see Galaxy Zoo),
• Extracting weather data from old whaling logbooks (see Old Weather – Whaling),
• Collecting ants (see School of Ants),
• Monitoring monarch larva populations (see Monarch Larva Monitoring Project).

These are just a few of citizen science projects looking for volunteers and many welcome help from children working with the guidance of an adult. Search for other citizen science projects at Zooniverse and SciStarter.

2. Become a National Park Service Junior Ranger

With parks from Maine to California and everywhere in-between, the National Park Service offers an affordable option for hands-on summer science fun. Fourth grade students qualify for free annual park passes through the Every Kid Outdoors program. The Junior Rangers Program gives kids the opportunity to explore nature, attend ranger guided programs, and complete activities for each park. If your budding park ranger completes a Junior Ranger Program, each park offers a patch or badge and a certificate of completion. Can’t visit a particular park? Visit the NPS’s on-line WebRangers page.

3. Visit a Science Center

There are many fabulous science museums that offer kids access to interactive learning opportunities. For those fortunate enough to be within driving distance to a NASA center, consider a visit. Learn about space exploration, aeronautics, and ongoing missions and discoveries. Many of the centers, including Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX, Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, FL, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA, welcome visitors and offer tours. If you can’t travel to a visitor center, then be sure to visit NASA Wavelength and explore the vast collection of educational resources NASA has to offer.

With centers across the nation, the Audubon Society provides outdoor adventure for all ages. Visit a sanctuary, go on a hike, and explore the local lands and wildlife. Many centers offer nature-themed programs designed exclusively for children and families as well as summer camps. Centers are open to the public, but those with memberships may visit for free and receive discounts on programs and camps. Find an Audubon Center near you.

4. Try Hands-On Science Activities

Hands-on science activities at home are a great way to have some summer fun, spend family time together, and even learn a little something new. Science at home is affordable and typically can be conducted with household objects and resources. Follow your child’s lead and try experiments related to his or her interests. Get started with these science activities for kids or browse this collection of home science activities from Scientific American.

5. Star Watch

Grab a blanket and the bug spray and head outside for some star gazing. If possible, get away from light pollution, you will be amazed at what you can see once your eyes adjust to the dark on a clear night. Bring a star chart and try to locate a few stars, planets, constellations, and galaxies. Use binoculars to identify surface features of the moon. If that isn’t spectacular enough for your aspiring astronomer, try counting the number of “shooting stars” during a meteor shower. August’s Perseids meteor shower is a great one to enjoy on a warm summer evening. Check out this year’s not-to-miss celestial events to watch with kids.

Above all, be sure to get your kids outside to get some fresh air and soak up some vitamin D!

Looking for more ideas for summer fun with your children? Be sure to read 100 Summer Activities for Kids!

Earth Day is April 22. Earth Day celebrations aim to raise public awareness on environmental issues. Learn more about the day, fun activities for kids, and resources available!

Since 1970, Earth Day has been celebrated with the hopes of promoting ways to help keep our planet healthy. Today, our waterways are less polluted and our air is cleaner, yet there is still much work to be done before we can consider ourselves a sustainable society. This year, engage your students or children with one of these eco-friendly activities on Earth Day or the weeks surrounding it.

Activities for Children – Kindergarten to Grade 6

Plant a Tree

It may seem cliché, but planting a tree is a simple act that helps the environment and gets children outdoors enjoying the natural world on Earth Day. Coordinate with your school a place on the grounds where your class can plant a tree or check with your local conservation board for a public location. Apply for free trees through organizations like Trees for Schools (UK only) and Trees for Wildlife or by having students write to local nurseries.

Raise a School Garden

April is National Garden Month, making Earth Day the perfect time to plant a school garden. Gardens are an excellent way to get kids moving, encourage healthy eating, and incorporate project-based learning into your curriculum. A school garden takes time and commitment, but in planning and raising a garden, you will sow seeds that will help your students reap a lifetime of rewards! Get started with these school gardening tips.

Let the trash pile up!

During the week leading up to Earth Day, arrange with the custodian not to remove the trash and recycling from your classroom. On Earth Day, have your students weigh the trash and recycling they generated (weigh trash separately from recycling). Over the next week, challenge your students to toss and use less, plus recycle more. After a week, have students weigh the trash and recycling again and calculate the decrease (hopefully!) in trash weight and increase in recycling weight. Extend the lesson for older students and have them calculate percent increase and decrease as well. Get started by assigning the lessons Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and The Trash Patrol, then read our America Recycles Activity Guide for more ideas.

Walk to School

It is good for the environment and our children’s health. More and more schools are planning annual walk- or bike-to-school days. Why not plan one for April 22 or use Earth Day to have your students start planning for National Walk to School Day in May? Visit the Walk & Bike to School website for more information on getting started.

Declare April 22 Waste-Free Lunch Day

With the help of your class and the EPA’s Pack A Waste-Free Lunch site, make Earth Day a school-wide commitment to reducing the mounds of garbage generated during typical school lunch. Have your class coordinate with administrators and cafeteria workers and help spread the word to students and parents about what can be done to minimize lunch waste.

Get your students excited for Earth Day by engaging them with these interactive lessons on Climate Literacy and Environmentalism by PBS Learning Media and with Help Teaching’s self-paced science lessons.

Activities for Teens – Grades 7 to 12

Participate in a Citizen Science Project

Engage your children or students in authentic science by participating in an eco-themed crowd science collaboration. There are numerous projects running that allow students to participate with adult supervision, including the environmentally oriented: The Lost Ladybug Project, and Globe at Night.

Take a Field Trip

What student doesn’t love a field trip? Plan an inexpensive day out by arranging tours of your local landfill, recycling center, wastewater treatment facility, and/or power plant (even better – visit a plant that uses renewable energy and one that uses a nonrenewable source). Yes, it will be dirty, hot, and smelly, but what better way for students to develop an understanding of where energy comes from and trash goes than to see it for themselves?

Host an Environmental Career Fair

Enlist your students in finding local professionals working in environmental careers to visit the school on Earth Day. Arrange for a career fair that allows students to hear about green jobs and discuss job duties with the professionals. Have students prepare questions ahead of time and write thank-you notes after.

Conduct a School Energy Audit

Challenge students to work in small groups to perform an energy audit of their school. Each group can audit energy use for a given building space like the classroom, cafeteria, gymnasium, or auditorium. Groups can share their results and compare their findings, then use the data to prepare an energy action plan to present to the school administration. The National Wildlife Federation and Green Education Foundation both offer resources for energy audit projects for students.

Build a Rube Goldberg Machine

Ask your students to bring in a variety of cleaned items from their home recycling containers during the week leading up to Earth Day. On April 22, divide your students into teams and task them with designing and building a machine that completes a simple eco-friendly task such as turning off the lights or watering a plant. Provide basic materials, like string and wire, to aid in construction. Be sure and have your students demonstrate their machines to an audience and see if their projects can be displayed in the school lobby or library.  Find free lesson plans and ideas at RubeGoldberg.com.

Launch a Project-Based Learning Unit

Spring has sprung and students are anxious to get outside, making Earth Day the perfect time to embark on an environmentally focused project-based learning (PBL) initiative. BIE.org offers extensive PBL resources for teachers and students.

Be sure to visit Help Teaching’s Earth Science Printables and Lessons for free environmental science resources to use on Earth Day and year-round!

Additional Online Resources

• KidsKonnect has worksheets for Earth Day and Planet Earth, Sequoia Trees, Terrace Farming, Oceanography, Forest Fires, Gardens, Weather, Swamps, Wind Energy and many more resources related to Earth and environmental science
• BusyTeacher has loads of resources for Earth Day here
• EarthDay.org, the world’s largest recruiter of the environmental movement, working in over 190 countries, presents us with ways to drive positive action for our planet. This year’s theme is “Invest in our Planet“. Click here to find out how you can participate.
• The National Education Association has eco-friendly lessons for Earth Day and every day
• Bring environmental justice and awareness into your classroom with these videos, articles, and lesson plans from PBS Learning Media
• ReadWriteThink will help your students research some environmentalists who have made major contributions to our planet
• Here are 5 Distance Learning Earth Day Lessons Your Students Can Do At Home from Population Education
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has many free resources for teaching about the half-century history of Earth Day
• Celebrate Earth Day on April 22, 2021 at this family-friendly online festival honoring our planet presented by New York’s American Museum of Natural History

The 50-year legacy of Earth Day can be effectively transmitted with these resources.  Hopefully, in another 50 years, your students will have witnessed the solutions to many of our planet’s environmental problems.  Happy Earth Day!

Image source: Unsplash

Science is a wonderful subject to teach. It’s all about exploring, learning, and discovering how the natural world works. The Internet is positively busting with amazing (and questionable) resources, which can lead to hours of your time being spent looking for quality resources to use in your classroom. 

We hear your calls and have put together a list of Free Interactive Web Resources for Teaching Science that we love. While we’d all love to have operating rooms, telescopes, and a laboratory in the classroom, we’ve kept things simple. All you’ll need is an Internet connection, tablets, and computers, which we’re sure you already have in your teaching toolbox. With these interactive resources, your students can experience science unlike any generation before.

e-learning for Kids provides animated mini-courses covering many scientific disciplines for elementary and middle school students. Students can work their way through each course and take the provided quiz when finished.

YouTube channels for kids such as SciShow Kids and NatGeo Kids 

https://www.youtube.com/c/scishowkids/featured https://www.youtube.com/natgeokidsplaylists/featured 

offer a wealth of well-researched information you can rely on in the classroom whether you’re teaching the body, volcanoes, or how we grow food. 

Edheads offers a variety of exceptionally well-designed interactives with accompanying teacher guides. For example, let your students discover physics with the virtual Simple Machine.

VisionLearning https://www.visionlearning.com/en/glossary this is an excellent resource for providing explainers and definitions of scientific terms and concepts.

KS2 Bitesize by the BBC brings science alive with their collection of living things, materials, and physical processes interactives. Each topic includes animated activities, background reading, and a quiz.

BrainPop is an amazing resource to have in your teaching toolbox. It offers a wide variety of subjects and grade levels. It’s video lessons are well crafted and come with other teaching materials such as quizzes, worksheets, graphic organizers, related readings, and many more. 

Smithsonian Learning Lab is a free and interactive site that provides teachers with literally millions of digital resources and tools that can be downloaded and even adapted. You can create personalized lessons and share them with colleagues as well as class rosters. 

Learner.org provides dozens of interactives across scientific disciplines and is searchable by grade level. Be sure to try Amusement Park Physics, where students investigate the physics of amusement park rides by constructing animated roller coasters.

NASA Quest brings the expanses of the universe to K-12 classrooms with its innovative collection of interactive resources. Challenge students to design robotic airplanes to explore Mars, solve air traffic problems, or take part in the next NASA Quest Challenge.

PBS LearningMedia offers an extensive collection of interactive STEM resources. Search this collection of videos, audio files, interactives, and images by discipline and grade. The “Background Essays” and “Discussion Questions” offer great starting points for classroom use. Resources are free, but you need to register for an account after viewing three.

Scholastic offers a range of interactive activities geared toward elementary and middle school students. Check out the “Weather Watch” module. Students will enjoy playing Mother Nature with the Weather Maker interactive and solving real-world “weather mysteries” with the Weather Detective Web Quest.

Wonderville will grab students’ attention with their engaging collection of science-themed activities, comics, games, and videos.

Mystery Science Their Open-and-go lessons inspire kids to love science. Their K-5 science curriculum is loved by kids all over and they’re aligned to Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core!

PhET Science Simulations This site offers free, fun and interactive simulations on math and science that are research-based. PhET tests and evaluates each of its simulations extensively so that they provide the most educational value and effectiveness.

Stem Rising This is a US Department of Energy initiative aimed at inspiring and educating students to set them on an upward trajectory into a career in the STEM. It provides programs, competitions, events, internships, resources, and much more.

Exploratorium offers educational media perfect for classroom lessons and activities that center on playing to learn. It provides resources for a wide range of ages and ability levels and supports different educational philosophies from informal unschooling to more traditional classroom structures. 

California Academy of Sciences is a treasure trove of diverse, research-rich lessons that will inspire budding scientists. This can be used along with the academy or as a standalone. 

Defined Learning This website provides a stellar line up of resources that are perfect for project-based learning from kindergarten all the way up to 12th grade. It empowers students to thrive with research-proven methods.

Ripley’s Believe It or Not, Weird But True, and other enterprises like them have made an entire business of highlighting the odd, wacky, and incredible things the human body can do. Yet, engaging high school students in a topic that they may feel they already know enough about (after all, don’t we walk around in these bodies every day?!) can be a challenge. We list top strategies for teaching anatomy and physiology to bring it alive in the classroom with resources that will draw students in, hold their interest, and maximize their learning.

The Importance of Anatomy & Physiology

Anatomy, or the study of the structure of body parts, and physiology, or the study of the function of body parts, may be offered as a separate course in some high schools or may be integrated into various topics within a biology course, including botany and the human body. Therefore, neither anatomy or physiology is completely new for students in the upper grades. The key is to explore this wide range of topics in a way that students find fresh. But why are anatomy and physiology so important?

• The study of the structure and function of the body is crucial for the basis of health and medicine. Today’s technology for diagnosis and management, pharmaceutical development and application, and techniques for the treatment or prevention of disease—all depend on anatomy and physiology. Understanding the anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology of our own bodies make us all more science literate—more capable of asking the right questions, understanding relevant concepts, and making sound decisions about our health.
• An anatomy and physiology course integrates both the life sciences and the physical sciences of physics and chemistry—much like biochemistry—and provides a natural interdisciplinary approach to topics from the simple to the complex, allowing students to begin to understand the relationships between various branches of science.
• The field of anatomy and physiology is a wonderful example of exploring a single entity—the human body—by breaking the overwhelming expanse of it into systems. The systems can then be examined independently and relative to one another. The skills of analysis, synthesis, and making connections can also be applied across disciplines.
• Learning anatomy can be a huge exercise in memorization because of the many structures in the body, such as the skeletal and muscular systems. Developing techniques and ability for memorization will serve students in any subject.

An Approach to Teaching Anatomy and Physiology

Not every student in a biology or anatomy and physiology course is interested in pursuing a career in health and medicine in college or professional school. So how do you keep all the students in your classroom engaged in learning? First, students need to feel that the subject matter has relevance in their world. That’s the easiest part; every student in your classroom has a body!

1. Introduce material with a story. Be clear about objectives for the lesson or unit. This may include a list of vocabulary terms and key concepts. Then find resources that will lay a foundation of interest while touching upon these terms and concepts. A news story, podcast, or segment from a network program could fit the bill perfectly. A quick online search can bring up interesting stories that cover just about any organ system.

• Body Pods podcast. A series of seven podcasts, each is a unique focus on a part of the body and is produced through a collaboration of an artist and a scientist in the field.
• LiveScience online. Read about some of the strangest medical reports, affecting systems from the eye to the gut.
• ABC News online. This article covers baffling medical conditions.

Present only the portion that is relevant to the current topic. While some students may find themselves squeamish with any content dealing with the body, do exercise caution in avoiding exploitative or insensitive material.

2. Conduct laboratory activities that allow students to use their own bodies. Everyone has been medically examined using equipment that they may find intimidating and foreign, so allowing students to use simple items to take physiological measurements makes real science reachable. When students understand what these numbers mean and what normal ranges and abnormal values indicate, concepts can be solidified. Get started with these classroom activities:

• Human cardiovascular and respiratory function.
• Muscle physiology.

3.  When real-life experience is impossible, look for the next best thing. Images, animations, videos, and simulations abound in the world of anatomy and physiology for both states of health and disease.

• The Visible Body. This website has apps of images and simulations that cost, but there is also free content available.
• Videos Medical. A YouTube channel, this video series shows blood moving through a beating heart or bones and muscles putting the body in motion.
• MedLinePlus Surgical Procedures. These videos show actual surgeries, from angioplasty to knee replacement. Warning: Some videos can be quite graphic, so preview thoroughly before introducing to students.

4. Explore and solve a medical mystery. Use case studies as a culminating activity to reinforce vocabulary and concepts. Alternatively, case studies could be the primary method for covering a unit. Although a complete inquiry process would most likely take much longer than allowable in a course, allowing students to form groups under a system of their choice would allow for more in-depth examination and understanding. Groups work independently then present their case study, course of action, and conclusions to the entire class. Students work together to learn the anatomical structures and major physiological concepts of their system, common disorders and diseases of the system, and methods and techniques used to examine and assess the system. Students could broaden their resources, reaching out to experts in the field locally or digitally, as available.

Remember to make instruction effective by engaging students right from the beginning, checking in using assessments and questioning, allowing for collaborative learning, and providing feedback throughout the learning process.

Dana Johnson is a freelance editor and writer specializing in science education. Using every bit of her experience as a corporate and government scientist, high school science teacher, and academic specialist, Dana creates, reviews, and edits premium science materials for secondary and higher education. She currently serves as Help Teaching’s biology subject matter expert. When not working away at her laptop, Dana loves reading, journaling in long hand, gardening, and patronizing the arts.

Since 2013, Computer Science Education Week has been held during the second week of December. This week is designed to make students and teachers more aware of computer science and the importance of building computing skills at an early age. While enrolling all students in regular coding and other computer science classes may be the ideal solution, you can still take small steps to encourage students to take notice of computer science and help them discover how much fun it can be. Here’s our pick of activities to promote computer science education.

Participate in an Hour of Code

In 2014, the Hour of Code gained a lot of publicity when President Obama sat down to join students as part of the event. This year, and all year long, you can also participate in an hour of code. Organize your own Hour of Code event at your school or join up with an existing group. If you’re not sure of what you’re doing, search for local volunteers to come work with your students during the event. For a less formal option, simply have your students complete one of the coding tutorials available through Code.org where they code with popular characters from Star Wars, Minecraft, or even Anna and Elsa from Frozen.

Don’t be afraid to go beyond an Hour of Code either. Many different apps and websites offer a series of lessons designed to teach students how to code or to think in ways that are related to the language of coding. A few of them to try in your classroom include:

Elementary

• Kodable – a fun app that comes with an extensive coding curriculum
• ScratchJr – a free app that teaches kids to think like a coder while completing fun tasks
• Tynker – another provider of an Hour of Code resources featuring brands and characters kids love

Secondary

• Hopscotch – an app that allows kids to make and publish their own games
• CodeCombat – an online, multiplayer game that requires kids to write code to play
• Kodu Game Lab – a visual programming tool that kids can download to create games

Hold a Computer Science Career Day

Students often hear that there are tons of job in the tech industry, but do they know what those jobs look like? Invite parents and other community members to your school for a Computer Science Career Day. Your speakers can rotate among classes to share what their jobs are like or they can set up tables in booths and talk to students as they approach them. If you can’t find individuals to come to school, then have students research different tech jobs or companies and share their findings with the class.

Show a Video

Take some time to show kids a video related to computer science. There are tons of Ted Talks related to technology that could inspire kids to consider a career in computer science. A few videos you might want to use include:

• The Math Behind Basketball’s Wildest Moves
• The First Secret of Design is Noticing
• Toy Tiles that Talk to Each Other
• The Future of Flying Robots
• How a Driverless Car Sees the Road
• New Bionics that Let Us Run, Climb, and Dance
• A 12-Year-Old App Developer

Have Fun with a MaKey MaKey Kit

While a MaKey MaKey kit does not involve a lot of coding, it does encourage kids to think outside of the box and imagine the cool things they can do when they combine computers with everyday objects. You can turn students’ experiments with the kit into writing assignments, science experiments, marketing proposals, and other educational activities.

Connect Computer Science to Students’ Interests

Your students may not be interested in computer science, but they may be interested in playing football, playing with their toys, or drawing and coloring. Chances are they don’t realize how much computer science can play a role in these activities. For example, it takes a lot of technology to take video of a football game, freeze it, and move it around on the screen. Give students the task of researching how technology plays a role in their favorite hobbies. They may discover that coders help create 3D models of their favorite toys or that they can create some amazing art with lines of code.

Get Away from the Computer

While learning how to code can benefit students, thinking in the language of coding is even more important. By promoting logic and creative thinking skills, you can give students the mental skills they’ll need to be successful in a computer science field.  CS Unplugged offers a large selection of activities designed to help kids develop these critical thinking skills. These include tasks such as learning about The Turing Test and discovering how difficult it is for computers to draw lines and circles.

For more resources to help you bring Computer Science into the classroom, check out Code.org and the Computer Science Education Week website. If you use some of these activities in your classroom, share them to Facebook or Twitter with the hashtags #CSEdWeek and #HourOfCode.

November 15 is America Recycles Day. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Americans recycled about 32% of their trash last year. The good news is this is a significant increase over the less than 10% that was recycled in 1980. The bad news is that a lot of our garbage still isn’t being recycled. Although we have come a long way in our recycling practices, we still have a long way to go. America Recycles Day is an opportunity to educate students about the importance of recycling, and more importantly, involve them in the process.

Create Recycling Infographics

Ask your students to research recycling facts and statistics, then create infographics based on their findings. Younger students can get creative and make poster infographics to display around school. Older students can craft digital infographics to post on school websites, classroom blogs, or social media. Get started by assigning our HelpTeaching lessons, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and The Trash Patrol, then by visiting the EPA’s Reduce, Reuse, Recycle website. Then use an infographic maker like Visme or Piktochart to present them. Below is a sample infographic for reference.

Host a Bottle and Can Drive

Bottle and can drives are great ways to encourage recycling and raise awareness, plus they double as fundraisers for schools and organizations. Students can help organize the event by contacting the local recycling center ahead of time, spreading the word in your community, sorting on the day of the drive, and arranging for collection bins and transportation of collected materials to the recycling center. For another simple and profitable way to encourage recycling, set up an ink cartridge recycling program at your school.

Attend an Event

Whether you are looking to get your children involved in a recycling event, enter a contest, or participate in a community clean up day, you can find something to do on America Recycles Day. There are over 2,000 events registered for America Recycles Day.  Find one to attend in your area here.

Reduce Food Waste

With the approach of Thanksgiving, America Recycles Day is perfectly timed to encourage children to reduce food waste. Learn about composting or start a compost at home or school. Have students create a step-by-step plan to explain how they plan to reduce food waste at home. Better yet, have your students organize a food rescue program or donations for the local food pantry. Get started with these tips.

Get Crafty

If you plan on having your students create crafts for holiday decorations or gifts, then consider having them do so using materials that would otherwise be tossed out. Here is an excellent list of recycled crafts for kids. Also, use this writing prompt for eco-friendly gift ideas.

Reduce Electronic Waste

E-waste is an ever growing concern and electronic items should never go in your daily recycling container. But, your students’ old phones, tablets, and MP3 players can help someone else. Encourage students to donate unwanted electronics for worthy causes. Shelter Alliance and Cell Phones for Soldiers are just a couple organizations that accept cell phones donations. Learn more about how and where to recycle and donate electronics here.

Host a Clothing Swap

According to the EPA, almost five percent of municipal solid waste comes from clothing, footwear, and textiles. Consider organizing a neighborhood or church clothing swap where children (and adults!) can bring clean, gently worn items and swap for “new” items that fit. Anything left over can be donated to local organizations like The Salvation Army or Dress for Success. Also, see about coordinating swap boxes with local sports leagues for common sports items that children outgrow, like cleats. Athletes can leave outgrown pairs of cleats and in turn, take a pair from the box that fits.

Inform Others

Over 60% of America’s garbage isn’t being recycled. Some people still don’t understand the importance of recycling. Others don’t realize how much of their trash is actually recyclable. Encourage your students to inform people about the importance of recycling. Write letters to the editor of the local newspaper, give speeches at city council meetings, or create pamphlets to give out to their neighbors. Encourage people to check with their local recycling provider to make sure they are following correct recycling guidelines.

Finally, and most importantly, ask your students to brainstorm ideas on how to best promote recycling in their school and community. Their excitement for the projects they develop, plan, and complete will be the most successful and rewarding activities!

Looking for more science activities for your students? Read 10 Engaging Earth Day Activities for Kids or try our free Earth Science worksheets and lessons.

If you enjoyed this read, you might also like what KidsKonnect has to say. Check out their articles today.

Don’t let nebulous ideas slow you down as you count down to this October’s World Space Week. Rather, shoot for the moon with these astronomical activities for celebrating World Space Week with your class or family.

Rendezvous with the International Space Station

Take this week to celebrate global cooperation in the near reaches of space by learning about the International Space Station (ISS). Check out the view from the space station. Get kids outside on a clear evening to look for the space station passing overhead. Visit NASA’s Spot The Station site to find when to view the ISS from your location. Screen a few of NASA’s Human Research Program videos with your students or read about Sleeping on the Space Station with this worksheet.

Mission Mars

The Red Planet continues to capture headlines and our imaginations. Take advantage of student interest in our planetary neighbor by exploring what we know about Mars. Have students participate in the Planet Four: Terrains citizen science project by examining and mapping images of Mars. Control a virtual rover with Experience Curiosity. Find more Mars-related games and activities at NASA’s Mars Exploration site and try our reading passages, Earth vs. Mars and One-Way Ticket to Mars.

Moon to Mars, Mission Artemis

Artemis missions will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon. The plan is to establish a sustainable base camp with an eventual plan and the giant next milestone: sending astronauts to Mars from the moonbase. While building the resources and technology for this goal, there are also plans of exploring all of the moon’s surface, sending astronauts and space robotic explorers. According to the official Artemis mission page, at the top of this list is the moon’s southern pole. Kick off your unit with this Moon Surface Features lesson and navigate the surface with Google Moon.

Escape with Science Fiction

Read classic or modern science fiction with your students. Go beyond what is scientifically accurate or misrepresented and discuss themes as well as what the story conveys about society, both real and fictional. Use Help Teaching’s Science Fiction Literature worksheets and Elements of Science Fiction lesson as a starting point. Then, ask your students to put on their creative thinking helmets and write a piece of science fiction. Here are some writing prompts worksheets to get you started:
Kindergarten and 1st Grade:
My Space Adventure
If I Were an Alien
2nd Grade
Alien Encounter
Journey Into Space
3rd Grade
Alien Welcome Committee
My Trip Into Space
4th and 5th Grade
The Colony
Pluto Poem
One Way Ticket to Mars

Finally, decelerate by watching a sci-fi movie! Perhaps your high school students will enjoy the interplanetary adventure The Martian.

Visit an Observatory This World Space Week

If you have access to a telescope, World Space Week is a great time to use it! Students may not have ever had the opportunity to actually observe planets, stars, or the Moon up-close through a telescope. If your school has a telescope, plan a viewing party with students and families. If you don’t have access to a telescope, some libraries offer telescope lending or viewing opportunities. Likewise, many observatories offer public viewing options and accommodate student field trips. To find a local observatory, check with nearby universities or try one of these publicly accessible telescopes.

If you’re still in need of fun ways to celebrate World Space Week, sojourn to the World Space Week website and download one of the educator resource guides or locate a nearby event for more out-of-this-world activities!

Looking for additional space science education resources? Visit HelpTeaching.com and try our astronomy printables and lessons.

If you enjoyed this read, you might also like what KidsKonnect has to say. Check out their articles today.

Looking to invigorate your science curriculum and teaching this year? Help Teaching’s team of teachers understands the time and commitment it takes to prepare meaningful science classes and lab activities, not to mention stay up-to-date with the latest scientific advances. We’ve gathered links from across the internet to over 80 of our favorite resources to help support rookie and veteran science teachers and homeschooling parents alike.  This year we’ve added several new science sites and a new category for our favorite engineering sites. Happy Teaching!

Our Guide To Teaching Science

Next Generation Science Standards

Whether or not your state has adopted the new science standards, they have been released and are the talk of the science teaching community.

Bozeman Science provides a free series of NGSS videos on each of the disciplinary core ideas. The videos give a clear overview of each standard as well as suggestions on how to teach the core ideas at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.

NGSS@NSTA provides current information about the implementation process and professional development opportunities, including free web seminars, to support science teachers looking to incorporate the standards into their curriculums.

NGSS is the primary resource for teachers looking to read and learn about the new science standards. Teachers may find the EQuIP Rubric overview page useful for identifying high-quality instructional materials that align to the standards.

The National Academies Press offers several NGSS-related publications useful for teachers, many of which can be downloaded for free after creating an account.

PBS LearningMedia NGSS links to a large collection of NGSS resources for professional development and classroom use.

Parent Q&A is a flyer designed to answer parent questions about the Next Generation Science Standards but is also a nice overview for teachers and administrators.

The Concord Consortium features a unique tool that allows educators to navigate the NGSS by core idea, practice, and crosscutting concept and locate high-quality digital activities that support the standards.

Breaking Science News

Check these sources regularly to stay current with scientific research. Better yet, have your students read them as well!

Newsela website and app keep educators and students alike up-to-date with current events, including a large selection of STEM news stories at different reading comprehension levels. Registering for the free version of the platform allows teachers and students unlimited access to articles.

Scientific American maintains a section dedicated to education that includes activities, information on their program connecting teachers and scientists, tips on improving science literacy, and more.

Live Science will help keep you up to date with science headlines across disciplines.

BBC Science & Environment is the place to go for breaking science news. Whether you are a busy science teacher or student looking for the hottest topics in science, BBC has coverage for you.

Science Daily offers a compilation of breaking news articles for those interested in the latest research.

ScienceBlogs hosts posts from over sixty blogs, presenting a wide range of science news and viewpoints.

HuffPost Science will help keep you up to the minute with breaking science stories.

NewScientist shares topical news stories on all things science-related.

Science Instruction

Like the scientific method, great science instruction takes systemic modifications. Read on for resources that will help invigorate your science teaching.

Good Thinking! The Science of Teaching Science by the Smithsonian Science Education Center houses a collection of must-watch videos for anyone who teaches science. These short, animated videos explore common student misconceptions on topics ranging from natural selection to chemical reactions.

NSTA Learning Center links science teachers with professional development resources by subject and grade. Be sure to peruse their collection of 4,000+ free articles, web seminars, podcasts, and modules available to support your professional growth.

What Works Clearinghouse reviews and summarizes education products and research to help educators make evidenced-based decisions when it comes to teaching.

SERC is working to improve STEM education by providing a rich assortment of professional development opportunities and resources for educators.

Understanding Science is a primer for teachers and students alike on what science is and how science really works.

BSCS Science Learning helps to transform science education by working with science educators worldwide to provide a variety of resources. They conduct research on improving science instruction, develop instructional materials, and offer professional development.

Baylor University put together a resource on how to identify effective stem resources for students to help make sure your teaching is effective.

Help Teaching’s library of printable science worksheets is ideal for practice and assessment. Our growing collection of self-paced science lessons for biology, chemistry, physics, and earth science are a great way to introduce topics and reinforce learning.

Science competitions and fairs can inspire students to pursue STEM careers while providing hands-on learning opportunities. Consider challenging your students to participate in a local science fair for one of these major science competitions: Young Scientist Challenge, ExploraVision, Regeneron STS, & Google Science Fair.

Science Activities

Science lends itself to hands-on activities that engage students in active learning. Save time and get inspired when preparing lessons this year by reading these links.

Science Friday partners with educators and scientists to create STEM activities, lessons, and resources for all learners. This site connects teachers with relevant, unique, and dynamic instructional materials, videos, stories, and more.

ScienceNetLinks brings together a large, searchable database of science lessons, interactive tools, news, and hands-on activities to support formal and informal science education.

Science Buddies is the place to look for science fair topics and activities. Not only does Science Buddies provide science fair project resources for students and teachers, but their growing collection of science activities are perfect for classroom and home use.

BIE maintains a library of science project-based learning units that encourage student inquiry and investigation.

Lawrence Hall of Science: 24/7 offers citizen science projects, hands-on activities, online games, and more for classroom and home exploration.

PBS LearningMedia has thousands of the best digital science teaching resources in an easily searchable platform by grade, subject, standard, and format.

Zooniverse brings together a collection of citizen-science or people-powered, research projects where everyday people can contribute to real science.

Science Kids has a nice collection of experiments, science fair project ideas, games, videos, and images designed to get kids interested in science.

Annenberg Learner brings together a collection of science interactives that can readily support any science curriculum.

Virtual Microscope simulates the use of various types of microscopes for students through the examination of set image samples.

PhET Simulations supplement classroom learning with a large array of well-designed science interactives.

The Science Spot contains a vast library of information and resources pertaining to all areas in science, including forensic science and astronomy. This is an essential resource of middle school teachers and students as well as for high school teachers. This website also provides tips for implementing interactive science notebooks in the classroom.

Hook your students on science by sharing videos from Veritasium, Science360, SciShow, It’s Okay to Be Smart, Untamed Science, and Help Teaching.

Collaborate and Explore

We teach our students that collaboration is an essential part of doing science. Practice what you teach with these links for connecting and sharing with teachers who have similar goals.

Teaching Channel is on a mission to create an environment where teachers can watch, share, and learn new techniques to help every student grow. Start by watching these science videos, then explore the entire site for more teaching inspiration.

Skype in the Classroom helps teachers connect with other educators and experts in their fields. Use Skype to bring your students on virtual field trips, interact with a virtual guest speaker, and collaborate with another class from across the country or around the world.

STEM on Google+, and STEM Educators are Google+ groups offering vibrant online communities of science teachers sharing resources and best practices.

Professional Learning Communities allow teachers to connect with others in their schools, districts, and communities who are dedicated to science education.

Google Educator Groups bring educators together, both online and offline, to share ideas on web-enabled learning.

AP Teacher Community connects and supports those instructing AP courses.

Astronomy

Don’t miss out on the latest discoveries about the universe with these links.

NASA Education for educators opens a universe of information about space science through lessons, videos, professional development, and more. Get started by browsing astronomy teaching resources in NASA Wavelength.

Google Sky does for the view of space what Google Earth does for the view of your neighborhood.

Air and Space Live webcasts from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum bring a world and beyond of learning opportunities for anyone interested in astronomy.

If the Moon Were Only 1 Pixel dubs itself, “a tediously accurate scale model of the solar system,” but don’t be misled by the tagline. This interactive is beautiful in its simplicity and will engage your students on this virtual journey through our solar system.

National Optical Astronomy Observatory offers numerous space-based resources, programs, and resources for educational purposes.

Biology

From life science to AP biology, helping students develop an understanding of the nature of life is essential for science literacy.

BioEd Online from Baylor College of Medicine offers science teachers resources that include lessons, videos, classroom slides, and a full library of magazines and storybooks for use with K-12 students as well as professional development courses for teachers.

BioInteractive by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute is a free collection of virtual labs, films, animations, apps, and more that are ideal for biology education.

Encyclopedia of Life offers an extensive collection of free resources on just about any organism.

The Biology Corner offers a wealth of teaching resources for biology teachers, including classroom presentations and lab handouts.

Ask a Biologist not only allows K-12 students to submit questions for biologists to answer, but also offers a wealth of biology-related articles, activities, games, and more.

Solve the Outbreak is a free app by the CDC that challenges students to solve epidemiology mysteries. It’s fun, really!

Cells Alive brings microbiology to life through amazing photos, interactives, and videos.

BEN: BioSciEdNet managed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, helps teachers to engage their students with animations and lab activities.

Biology4Kids offers clear explanations of many topics for elementary and middle school reading levels or for teachers searching for material covering the basics, from scientific study to cell biology.

American Physiological Society supports education through student activities and curricula, education projects that link teachers and physiologists, and teacher learning resources.

Chemistry

Teaching the central science takes knowledge, skill, and a bit of wow factor. Use these links to help make your class preparations a little easier.

American Chemical Society’s education page is the place to find materials for teaching chemistry, professional development opportunities, and reports on chemistry education.

ScienceGeek.Net is chemistry teacher Andy Allan’s personal website where he shares his collection of presentations, labs, and more.

Evan’s Chemistry Corner provides worksheets, transparencies, and lab activities for Regents Chemistry in New York State, but these resources can be used in any high school chemistry classroom.

Kent Chemistry contains instructional pages covering topics in chemistry, along with accompanying videos, practice questions, worksheets, and lab activities. Both high school-level and AP chemistry are covered.

Illustrated Glossary of Organic Chemistry catalogs 1,500+ terms and is an essential resource for any organic chemistry course.

Periodic Videos from the University of Nottingham features videos and experiments on each element. Check out their 500 videos on YouTube as well.

Crash Course Chemistry contains a playlist of YouTube videos covering various topics in chemistry in a short amount of time.

Chemmy Bear contains a multitude of resources for AP chemistry, from handouts and activities to study cards and practice tests. This site is especially helpful for newer AP chemistry teachers and for teachers of honors chemistry courses.

Seasonal science “holidays” offer fun and engaging ways to incorporate STEM activities into your classroom. Celebrate science this year with these theme days and weeks:
World Space Week Stellar Activities October 4 – 10, 2018
Earth Science Week Fun Daily Activities October 14 – 20, 2018
National Chemistry Week – Chemistry & Forensics October 21 – 27, 2018
America Recycles Day Activity Guide November 15, 2018
Earth Day Activities for Kids April 22, 2019
World Oceans Day Activities June 8, 2019

Earth Science

Developing student understanding of the earth’s structures and processes helps nurture an appreciation of the natural world.

EarthLabs supplies rigorous units on earth and environmental topics that focus on hands-on laboratory activities and data analysis. Each unit provides all the information, resources, and lessons necessary to elevate earth science and environmental lab instruction to the next level.

NOAA brings together a wonderful collection of resources about the oceans and atmosphere.

USGS Education compiles a wide variety of videos, maps, images, and interactives ideal for use in the earth science classroom.

ClimateChangeLIVE engages students with two electronic field trips for the classroom as well as supplemental materials and support for teachers.

COSEE is dedicated to helping build collaborations between students, teachers, and scientists interested in ocean studies.

Physics

Physics is daunting for many students. Great physics teachers actively engage students with the study of the interactions between energy and matter.

The Physics Classroom supplements physics instruction with tutorials, animations, teacher toolkits, and lab activities.

The Physics Front is an extensive collection of materials, including online tools and lesson plans for K-12 physics and physical science instruction.

PhysicsCentral shares everything from articles to posters to home projects to support those educating physics students at all levels.

APlusPhysics contains helpful video tutorials and web pages for students to learn from, covering topics ranging from high school physics to AP physics. The site also contains worksheets for teachers to print and distribute to students as well as activities that teachers can implement.

Burrows Physics‘ playlist contains a multitude of videos covering various higher-level physics topics. These are helpful in providing instruction to students outside of the classroom.

Practical Physics offers a wide array of experiments that enable students to get hands-on experience with concepts in physics, enriching students’ understanding and refining students’ ability to visualize the forces and science at play in the real world.

ComPADRE is a digital library of teaching resources for physics and astronomy educators.

American Association of Physics Teachers will keep you posted on conferences, projects, and competitions as well as just about everything you need to stay up to date with teaching physics.

Engineering Practices & Design

Today’s science students must understand engineering practices and design solutions to help them prepare for everyday life and career paths. Enrich your STEM curriculum with these engineering resources.

TeachEngineering is a website that guides teachers in nurturing students’ abilities to create innovations to challenges in any subject. Some activities include how-to videos on YouTube.

NASA Engineering Design Process aids teachers in helping students to understand that engineers must imagine and plan before they begin to build and experiment in a variety of challenges for K-2, 3-5, and 6-8. The site also provides plenty of guidance for supporting students in the engineering design process.

Science Buddies offers educators an exhaustive description of the engineering method with a side-by-side comparison against the scientific method.

TryEngineering has 100+ engineering lesson plans for teachers. Students interested in pursuing engineering careers will find the university and career portals useful.

EngineerGirl by the National Academy of Engineering offers a wealth of information on engineering professions for girls and women.

Although this list is by no means comprehensive, we hope it will inspire and energize your science teaching and classroom this year. Be sure to visit HelpTeaching.com and utilize our growing library of K-12 science worksheets, lessons, and questions!

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Joe Pizzuto-Pomaco is an educator, writer, and editor who has taught in public and private schools 15 years.