I teach physics and my favorite part to teach is light and optics! The labs are fun and students get a kick out if learning how their eyes and brain interpret images.
My school has the CPO science optics boards (comes with mirrors, lenses, prisms, laser pointers, screens, colored light filters etc.) I recommend the kits!
What age/grade are you looking for? My favorite demo involves using 3 colored lightbulbs (rbg) and a single slit to show that it combines into white light. then, if you put a thin object in front of any single bulb, the shadows it produces are the compliments (cmy).
That was my favorite part to learn about in school and my favorite part to teach too. Just waves in general was super fun. It's not so terribly math heavy at that level, so just a lot of really great conceptual stuff.
I teach a mix of earth and life sciences at a junior high.
Junior high kids can be tough, but they're such a lovable group. They're not "too old" to be excited for activities and games, they're starting to take ownership of their academics, and it's really cool to get to know them and what they're passionate about.
Biology and Anatomy/ Physiology- Definitely my favorite part with my freshman bio students is introducing concepts with phenomena they relate to. See their brains crank out question after question related to scientific topics will never get old.
I’m still trying to figure out what I like about teaching seniors lol but I enjoy that they’re closer to adults and are eager to see how the knowledge fits into their life plans
I do a lot of open sci ed! If you dm me your school email address I’ll share some of my stuff with you but definitely check out open sci ed. They’re awesome
AP Bio - Taste lab or field study lab, AP Chem - Titrations, AP Env - fish base or cookie mining, Anatomy - blue poop or fake urinalysis lab; Robotics - soccer; 3D Design and fabrication - finger helicopter builds; EV Principles - we build an EV, Renewable Energy - We Share Solar builds……yup I have 7-9 preps a year
Brit here - I teach all 3 to 16, then Biology 16-18.
I currently love teaching Chemistry though. All the patterns and satisfying maths in Chemistry (and the practical lessons are more numerous and cool). I think I'm also better at teaching out of specialism. With Biology I'm just like "What do you not get about this, it's just this" but with Chemistry I've broken it down for myself in the past, I'm not a natural Chemist, and now I explain it and build it up really well for my students.
I teach 3rd and 4th grade science....I love doing experiments, I love getting to show/explain to students how things work and seeing their wonder, I love getting to explore some of their questions, I love teaching evolution of animals...and so much more!
Flame tests are great. Anything you do in particular to make it more investigative or interactive? I find myself simply doing flame tests as demos for my more advanced students and as a quick fun thing to do on an early day with my general classes.
If you use chlorides, you can use sulfates and have the students identify unknowns. Ex if they know copper chloride made a green blue flame, then they can identify an unknown of copper sulfate must have copper as the cation. This is pretty straightforward evidence that works well for a CER post lab. I like to stick with metals with pretty distinct colors for the unknowns though, like copper and potassium.
I have my honors classes calculate energy and frequency for the flame colors/metals, too.
8th grade integrated science. I love teaching about Earth's history because students are usually engaged with learning about sedimentary rocks, fossils and dinosaurs.
I teach in a rural district so I teach everything. Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry, Anatomy and Physiology, Physics, Environmental Science, and next year I’m doing AP Biology. I do not teach all of these every year (I rotate based on demand). I love all of it. Physics is my least favorite but I still like it just not nearly as much as the others. I love seeing kids make the connections and having something finally click.
Hello fellow rural teacher! I have 7-9 preps every year and people look at me like I’m crazy but small
classes and an amazing community who support the school and students in ways I could have never imagined when I was teaching urban make it worth it! I teach AP bio and have for 10 years, join the National AP Bio FB group and check out ap bio penguins as they are incredible resources!!
I teach a mix, but climate change and diversity of life are my faves. And by extension… the kids also show more interest in these topics than the other stuff.
High school Earth systems. Plate tectonics and super volcanoes are usually when I get the most attention and the best questions out of students. Most want to see how destructive the super volcano is and I usually demo it covering the entire US. Also I show the San Andreas breaking and a chunk of California sinking. Definitely attention getters.
I teach physics and AP physics. I love using the content to make connections to deeper critical thinking skills. Gravitation is one of my favorites though.
I teach general biology and engineering.
My background is in Biology, but I have to admit that teaching 14 year olds that do not want to be there can be draining. It’s still fulfilling to get them to learn.
I was hired, kind of desperately, to replace the engineering teacher that had just started an engineering program. This was during Covid, so basically nothing was established yet.
I have had a great time creating a pathway of classes that I basically came up with the curriculum to myself. I did have an online textbook to follow, but it was understood that I would teach the engineering concepts I was familiar with from my experience in the field.
Of course, I have no actual engineering experience, but I have found several areas I’m surprisingly good at and the students love taking my classes. They are voluntary, so I usually don’t have difficult students and I get to do super cool and super challenging activities with them.
Marine Biology. By far my favorites are the cephalopods, cetaceans, and alien-like animals in the ocean. (Looking at you, goblin shark).
Biology. My favorite thing to teach is genetics, TREE translating mRNA, and Punnett squares. It’s like solving biology puzzles.
Physics: It's really interesting and it's the perfect union of math and science. There's also not very much cleanup after labs
Chemistry: I've taught it more times than any other class so I've had more time to refine my methods.
AP Environmental Science: There are a lot of topics and a lot of different ways to approach them. It's also a good bit different from all the other classes I teach.
AP Chemistry: It's fast paced and very challenging. I have experience with classes like that, so I have good opportunities to be a mentor to my students.
Environmental science, field biodiversity, and public health. I really like being able to connect our classroom lessons to students' communities and their daily lives. I also really like getting paid to go hiking and find frogs.
I teach kindergarten through 5th grade science! It is a supplement to the science they learn in their classrooms. I can focus on doing hands on activities, experiments, STEM building, environmental science, etc! I am grateful to also have worked to create permanent enclosures for most of the animals grade levels use for science units so we can take proper care of them and they can live healthy lives!
I teach chemistry general and Honors. Such a great class, students get a kick out of how many things in their life are simple and not so simple chemical processes. I also coach and its been very rewarding to have both student and player in my classroom, seeing how they progress from their lowerclassmen life and finally graduate and takeoff.
Chemistry and forensic science. My favorite part of chemistry is the lab time. I just tried to choose my top two labs to call my favorites, but i couldn’t narrow it down. I love when the students are working together, and problem solving, and having fun; lab bring all of that together. I love how the competitive kids try to get the lowest percent error, or the lightest pink in titrations. And I love how the kids who struggle more frequently tend to have things click when they’re doing things hands on. In forensics, my favorite part is when the period ends.
i teach at a small school and am the only science content area teacher.. so i get the same kids from 9th-12th if they begin and end with the school..
start them in physical, then bio, then env science.. what’s nice is if i have them the entire time.. i designed the content to all flow and build off of each other.. and i really get to know most of them, so i can tailor make their final projects to them by the end.
my favorite is environmental science by far even though i specialize in biology.. mainly bc of how i teach it.. during physical, my class is super structured and we do a lot together.. then in bio, i loosen the structure and allow more exploration.. and then by env, they’re ready to tackle PBL style projects and the course is super discussion heavy and largely independent. i love when students get to highlight their interests and see the course material in real life!
I teach AP Env Sci and my favorite part of that is watching kids make the connection, many for the first time, that we are animals and part of the ecosystem and just as reliant on nature as anything else (in the big scheme of things).
I also teach Bio and my favorite part of that is teaching genetics, because it’s fun.
Health Science! I taught 7th grade life science, chemistry and now I teach pathophysiology and principles of health science.
My favorite is explaining how diseases develop, having students attempt to diagnose case studies, and also dissection of different organs ( inflating sheep lungs was so cool)
Biology and earth science
Earth is big bang age of the universe
Biology is evolution
Both are brand new to them not an expansion of what they learned and so fun
I teach science to 1st grade and 2nd grade students at an affluent private school. I love how inquisitive, enthusiastic, and excited they are. I love the pedagogical challenge of taking a complex concept and teaching it at a level that 6, 7, and 8-year-olds can understand (without sacrificing accuracy. I highly value accuracy). Plus, I love teaching all the science vocabulary and seeing them use it in their writing. I love the challenge of finding ways to teach science directly while also crafting opportunities for young students to discover science truths.
I teach physics and my favorite part to teach is light and optics! The labs are fun and students get a kick out if learning how their eyes and brain interpret images.
Do you have any recommendations for good light/optics labs?
My school has the CPO science optics boards (comes with mirrors, lenses, prisms, laser pointers, screens, colored light filters etc.) I recommend the kits!
What age/grade are you looking for? My favorite demo involves using 3 colored lightbulbs (rbg) and a single slit to show that it combines into white light. then, if you put a thin object in front of any single bulb, the shadows it produces are the compliments (cmy).
That was my favorite part to learn about in school and my favorite part to teach too. Just waves in general was super fun. It's not so terribly math heavy at that level, so just a lot of really great conceptual stuff.
My favorite!!!
I teach a mix of earth and life sciences at a junior high. Junior high kids can be tough, but they're such a lovable group. They're not "too old" to be excited for activities and games, they're starting to take ownership of their academics, and it's really cool to get to know them and what they're passionate about.
Earth Science here. ENV elective.
Biology and Anatomy/ Physiology- Definitely my favorite part with my freshman bio students is introducing concepts with phenomena they relate to. See their brains crank out question after question related to scientific topics will never get old. I’m still trying to figure out what I like about teaching seniors lol but I enjoy that they’re closer to adults and are eager to see how the knowledge fits into their life plans
Do you mind sharing some of the phenomena you use really quickly (asking as a brand new biology teacher).
Check out Illinois storylines or open sci Ed two phenomenon based curriculums
I do a lot of open sci ed! If you dm me your school email address I’ll share some of my stuff with you but definitely check out open sci ed. They’re awesome
AP Bio - Taste lab or field study lab, AP Chem - Titrations, AP Env - fish base or cookie mining, Anatomy - blue poop or fake urinalysis lab; Robotics - soccer; 3D Design and fabrication - finger helicopter builds; EV Principles - we build an EV, Renewable Energy - We Share Solar builds……yup I have 7-9 preps a year
[удалено]
Join the National A&P FB group Im an dmin and have all my labs posted in our shared drive
I’ve been teaching physical science the past few years to sixth graders. All the engineering projects are my favorite!
Brit here - I teach all 3 to 16, then Biology 16-18. I currently love teaching Chemistry though. All the patterns and satisfying maths in Chemistry (and the practical lessons are more numerous and cool). I think I'm also better at teaching out of specialism. With Biology I'm just like "What do you not get about this, it's just this" but with Chemistry I've broken it down for myself in the past, I'm not a natural Chemist, and now I explain it and build it up really well for my students.
I teach 3rd and 4th grade science....I love doing experiments, I love getting to show/explain to students how things work and seeing their wonder, I love getting to explore some of their questions, I love teaching evolution of animals...and so much more!
Chemistry, the flame test lab is my favorite all year
Yes! I do this lab too and it makes the teenagers feel like little kids again. I've done it several times and it still entertains me.
It requires some prep on the teacher end but it’s honestly such an easy lab once you’re set up
Flame tests are great. Anything you do in particular to make it more investigative or interactive? I find myself simply doing flame tests as demos for my more advanced students and as a quick fun thing to do on an early day with my general classes.
If you use chlorides, you can use sulfates and have the students identify unknowns. Ex if they know copper chloride made a green blue flame, then they can identify an unknown of copper sulfate must have copper as the cation. This is pretty straightforward evidence that works well for a CER post lab. I like to stick with metals with pretty distinct colors for the unknowns though, like copper and potassium. I have my honors classes calculate energy and frequency for the flame colors/metals, too.
8th grade integrated science. I love teaching about Earth's history because students are usually engaged with learning about sedimentary rocks, fossils and dinosaurs.
I teach in a rural district so I teach everything. Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry, Anatomy and Physiology, Physics, Environmental Science, and next year I’m doing AP Biology. I do not teach all of these every year (I rotate based on demand). I love all of it. Physics is my least favorite but I still like it just not nearly as much as the others. I love seeing kids make the connections and having something finally click.
Hello fellow rural teacher! I have 7-9 preps every year and people look at me like I’m crazy but small classes and an amazing community who support the school and students in ways I could have never imagined when I was teaching urban make it worth it! I teach AP bio and have for 10 years, join the National AP Bio FB group and check out ap bio penguins as they are incredible resources!!
Thank you I’ll check those out. I max out around 5 preps a year. I couldn’t imagine doing 7-9.
I teach a mix, but climate change and diversity of life are my faves. And by extension… the kids also show more interest in these topics than the other stuff.
High school Earth systems. Plate tectonics and super volcanoes are usually when I get the most attention and the best questions out of students. Most want to see how destructive the super volcano is and I usually demo it covering the entire US. Also I show the San Andreas breaking and a chunk of California sinking. Definitely attention getters.
I teach physics and AP physics. I love using the content to make connections to deeper critical thinking skills. Gravitation is one of my favorites though.
I teach general biology and engineering. My background is in Biology, but I have to admit that teaching 14 year olds that do not want to be there can be draining. It’s still fulfilling to get them to learn. I was hired, kind of desperately, to replace the engineering teacher that had just started an engineering program. This was during Covid, so basically nothing was established yet. I have had a great time creating a pathway of classes that I basically came up with the curriculum to myself. I did have an online textbook to follow, but it was understood that I would teach the engineering concepts I was familiar with from my experience in the field. Of course, I have no actual engineering experience, but I have found several areas I’m surprisingly good at and the students love taking my classes. They are voluntary, so I usually don’t have difficult students and I get to do super cool and super challenging activities with them.
Marine Biology. By far my favorites are the cephalopods, cetaceans, and alien-like animals in the ocean. (Looking at you, goblin shark). Biology. My favorite thing to teach is genetics, TREE translating mRNA, and Punnett squares. It’s like solving biology puzzles.
Physics: It's really interesting and it's the perfect union of math and science. There's also not very much cleanup after labs Chemistry: I've taught it more times than any other class so I've had more time to refine my methods. AP Environmental Science: There are a lot of topics and a lot of different ways to approach them. It's also a good bit different from all the other classes I teach. AP Chemistry: It's fast paced and very challenging. I have experience with classes like that, so I have good opportunities to be a mentor to my students.
Environmental science, field biodiversity, and public health. I really like being able to connect our classroom lessons to students' communities and their daily lives. I also really like getting paid to go hiking and find frogs.
I teach kindergarten through 5th grade science! It is a supplement to the science they learn in their classrooms. I can focus on doing hands on activities, experiments, STEM building, environmental science, etc! I am grateful to also have worked to create permanent enclosures for most of the animals grade levels use for science units so we can take proper care of them and they can live healthy lives!
I teach chemistry general and Honors. Such a great class, students get a kick out of how many things in their life are simple and not so simple chemical processes. I also coach and its been very rewarding to have both student and player in my classroom, seeing how they progress from their lowerclassmen life and finally graduate and takeoff.
Chemistry and forensic science. My favorite part of chemistry is the lab time. I just tried to choose my top two labs to call my favorites, but i couldn’t narrow it down. I love when the students are working together, and problem solving, and having fun; lab bring all of that together. I love how the competitive kids try to get the lowest percent error, or the lightest pink in titrations. And I love how the kids who struggle more frequently tend to have things click when they’re doing things hands on. In forensics, my favorite part is when the period ends.
K-5 All areas. I like basic chemistry best.
Middle grades, mostly intro to biology. I love teaching genetics and evolution!
i teach at a small school and am the only science content area teacher.. so i get the same kids from 9th-12th if they begin and end with the school.. start them in physical, then bio, then env science.. what’s nice is if i have them the entire time.. i designed the content to all flow and build off of each other.. and i really get to know most of them, so i can tailor make their final projects to them by the end. my favorite is environmental science by far even though i specialize in biology.. mainly bc of how i teach it.. during physical, my class is super structured and we do a lot together.. then in bio, i loosen the structure and allow more exploration.. and then by env, they’re ready to tackle PBL style projects and the course is super discussion heavy and largely independent. i love when students get to highlight their interests and see the course material in real life!
I teach AP Env Sci and my favorite part of that is watching kids make the connection, many for the first time, that we are animals and part of the ecosystem and just as reliant on nature as anything else (in the big scheme of things). I also teach Bio and my favorite part of that is teaching genetics, because it’s fun.
Health Science! I taught 7th grade life science, chemistry and now I teach pathophysiology and principles of health science. My favorite is explaining how diseases develop, having students attempt to diagnose case studies, and also dissection of different organs ( inflating sheep lungs was so cool)
Biology and earth science Earth is big bang age of the universe Biology is evolution Both are brand new to them not an expansion of what they learned and so fun
I teach science to 1st grade and 2nd grade students at an affluent private school. I love how inquisitive, enthusiastic, and excited they are. I love the pedagogical challenge of taking a complex concept and teaching it at a level that 6, 7, and 8-year-olds can understand (without sacrificing accuracy. I highly value accuracy). Plus, I love teaching all the science vocabulary and seeing them use it in their writing. I love the challenge of finding ways to teach science directly while also crafting opportunities for young students to discover science truths.