10 Great Science Reads

Below is a lost of some great science reads that children are sure to enjoy. Included in the list are some books that teachers will find are great resources for their science lessons, and parents may use to explore science with their children.

1. Where did Bunny Go? By Nancy Tafuri

            This book talks about Bunny, who plays a game of hide and seek with his friend Bird, Squirrel, and Chipmunk. When everyone has been found but Bunny, his friends start to worry that he has run away or doesn’t want to be found. Bunny finally comes out of hiding, assuring his friends he was still playing and just had a great hiding place and blended in very well. This book teaches young children about how animals use camouflage to blend into nature.

2. A Rainbow of My Own by Don Freeman

            This book is about a boy who sees a rainbow outside and decides to go out and play with it. He lets his imagination run wild and wonders what it would be like to have a rainbow of his own. When the sun comes out, the rainbow goes away and the boy is afraid that he will never see it again. He then goes into his room and finds that the sun is shining through his fishbowl and making a “rainbow of his own” on his wall. It teaches children the fact that sun and water are required to create a rainbow.

3. Floating and Sinking by Jack Challoner

            This book lists several activities children may complete to explore different items that float or sink, and why they do so. It also explores the difference between floating and swimming, so children have a real-world connection. Finally, the book explains how very heavy objects, such as hot air balloons and airplanes can possibly stay up in the sky without falling from their weight.

4. Animals on the Trail with Lewis and Clark by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent

            This book explores the animal and plant species Lewis and Clark came into contact with and discovered while exploring the uncharted territory in the Western United States. The book includes real photographs of the animals and plants, as well as route maps the pair traveled are also available in the back of the book.

5. Make a Match: A Preschool Sorting Game by Tish Rabe

            This book, as stated in the title, is geared toward preschoolers and other young learners. It comes with its own sorting tray in which children are able to sort colors, shapes, animals, and more. It also offers six different ways in which children can sort the items, so they can explore with the different characteristics that may be used to sort things.

6. I Took a Walk by Henry Cole

            This book takes its young readers on a walk through nature, showing them the different things that can be found in the environment. It includes flaps children can fold out to find hidden aspects of nature and plenty of examples of common wildlife and plant species that can be found in nature, both on land and in the water.

7. Endangered Animals by Faith McNulty

           This book discusses different endangered animals from around the world, including panda bears, gorillas, and blue whales. It can serve as an introductory text for a lesson on what it means for an animal to be an endangered species, and which animals throughout the world are characterized as such.

8. Birds, Nests, and Eggs by Mel Boring

            This book serves as a take-along guide to identifying different birds in nature. Teachers and parents can easily use it with their children while on a nature or bird-spotting walk. It also discusses the different kinds of nests birds build, and where they build them, as well as interesting facts about birds’ young and how they care for them. The book includes a place for children to make drawings of what they see and take notes while observing and identifying birds.

9. The Best of Wonder Science: Elementary Science Activities, Volume 1 by James Kessler and Ann Bennett

            This book is a resource for elementary science teachers. It includes over 400 science activities that may be completed in an elementary classroom. Each activity includes step-by-step directions, as well as an explanation as to why the experiment turns out the way it does, and what it can teach children about science. The activities and experiments listed in it are hands-on and engaging, and are meant to get children interested in science.

10. A Head Start on Science: 89 Activities for children ages 3-7 by William C. Ritz

            This book is a great science resources for pre-k and elementary school teachers who needs inspiration for incorporating science into their classrooms or coming up with quick and easy science lessons. The book includes, as the title suggests, 89 different science activities to complete with children, and offers multiple literature connections, as well as follow-up and enrichment ideas for each.

10 Science Lesson Plans

Here's a list of lesson plans I collected from various sources. The lessons are all centered on science topics and ideas, and include great experiments to conduct in the classroom. A summary of the lesson is listed below each title.

1. http://www.lessonplanspage.com/sciencemdseasonsandprecipidea2-htm/

This lesson plan, entitled “Seasons and Precipitation,” is a great interactive way to teach children about the relationship between the different seasons and the amounts of precipitation that occurs during each. The lesson plan is directed toward a second grade level, but could easily be used in younger grade levels. After reading a book on seasons, students are to make collages of pictures of each of the four seasons. Students must separate out the pictures themselves and put them in the correct sections for the seasons, allowing the teacher to check for understanding. The students then share their collages and are to describe the state of water and how they look in each of the seasons.

2. http://www.lessonplanspage.com/sciencelacamouflagesortingactivityk2-htm/

            This lesson plan is entitled, “Camouflage- Do Animals Play Hide and Seek?” and is geared toward grades K-2^nd. After reading the book, “Where Did Bunny Go?,” a book about a bunny playing hide and seek with his friends, the teacher is to show pictures of animals that use camouflage to the students. Students will practice together deciding if animals will be able to hide easily in nature or not. They will then receive their own stacks of pictures of animals and be asked to sort them into two piles; one of animals that can hide easily in nature, and ones that can’t. The class then goes over which animals they sorted in which categories.

3. “Sorting Seeds” from A Head Start on Science; 89 Activities for children ages 3-7 by William C. Ritz (page 261).

            This lesson plan focuses on teaching children to observe, compare, contrast, and classify items, using seeds as the basis for these concepts. Children receive their own bags of seeds which vary in size, shape, color, and texture. They are encouraged to observe the seeds closely with a hand lens and to notice the differences and similarities between different seeds. They then sort the seeds however they want to, and share their method of sorting with the class. The teacher then has children brainstorm different characteristics to sort the seeds by, and has them work with a partner to sort the seeds by a different characteristic than they used the first time. The lesson includes follow-up activities and enrichment ideas for different levels.

           

4. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Edible-Rocks-Freebie

            This is a great lesson on the different types of rocks. The teacher builds the first examples of the three types of rocks, and leads a discussion on which model represents which type of rock and why. Students then work together to build the different types of rocks using edible materials including graham crackers, cake icing. Chocolate chips, and starbursts. There is also a recording sheet included for students to draw and describe the different rocks they created. At the conclusion of the lesson, students may sample a taste of their own “rocks.”

5. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Weather-In-A-Cup-Water-Cycle

            This is an extremely engaging and exciting lesson on the steps in the water cycle. Students get to create their very own “weather in a cup” that shows the steps of the water cycle. Students fill two cups with water, leaving a little room at the top. They place shaving cream on top of the water in one of the cups, to represent clouds, as the first step; condensation. They then add food coloring into the shaving cream until it starts to fall down into the water, which represents the stage of precipitation. In the second cup, students place a small amount of blue food coloring and set it in a sunny spot. They check back on the state of this cup a couple of times throughout the day, and it represents the final stage; evaporation. The lesson plan includes labels, worksheets to describe the different processes occurring, and pictures of what the cups may look like. This lesson is geared toward 2^nd-5^th grade.

6. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Erosion-Lab

            This lesson includes a hands-on activity on erosion. Students build landforms using different types of soil (dirt, fine sand, gravel, moss, etc) in large disposable aluminum lasagna pans. They then follow the scientific method by making hypotheses on what effect running water will have on their different landforms. They then test their hypotheses using a watering can to create running water, and propping one end of the pan up on books to create a slope. They record their observations on a recording sheet and are then allowed to add rocks and other obstacles in their landforms, and run the experiment again. In the conclusion, students rate whether or not their hypotheses were correct. The lesson is geared toward 2^nd-5^th grade.

7. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Earths-Layers

            This lesson was created for a fourth grade classroom, and focuses on Earth’s layers. The teacher will show children different fruits cut in half in order to introduce them to the fact that the Earth, like these fruits, has different letters. Students will be able to explore different foods, such as an apple and hard-boiled egg (without the shell). They will then fill out an information sheet describing the different layers of each and comparing them to the Earth’s different layers. There is a picture of Earth, showing and describing its different layers, included with the lesson.

8. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Sound-and-Touch-Exploration

            This lesson was created for use in grades K-1^st and is focused on the exploration of touch and sound with different objects found in the classroom and/or daily life. For the sound aspect of the lesson, different items will be placed into separate plastic containers, and they will work with partners to try to guess what object is in the container by the sound it makes when they shake the container. For the sight aspect, students work together to guess what an object is by feeling it while it is still in the container. There is also a key with pictures and words that students may use to help them figure out which object they are hearing or feeling.

9. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Snow-Day-Lesson

            This lesson includes an engaging activity for students to build their own model of a snow-covered road to test their methods of friction. The students will create their snowy slope on a baking sheet, using either InstaSnow or the inside of a baby’s diaper. Students create their “snow” by mixing water with the polymer, then spread it over the baking sheet, putting one end of it up on a stack of blocks to create a slope. They will then experiment with sand, gravel, salt, and other materials to create friction, and will test how effective their friction is by using toy cars on the slope and timing their descent. A reflection sheet is included in the lesson for students to come to conclusions about their experiments and effectiveness of their friction materials.

10. “Absorbing Water” from A Head Start on Science; 89 Activities for children ages 3-7 by William C. Ritz (page 219).

            This lesson plan focuses on teaching children the skills of observing, comparing, classifying, and communication, using a water experiment to do so. In this lesson, children use eyedroppers to drop water onto an assortment of objects. They are to observe what happens to the water and to the objects as the water is dropped onto them. The teacher guides the students into deciding which objects are absorbing the water, and which aren’t, along with characteristics of each category. The lesson includes possible center connections along with literature connections for teachers’ use.

10 Science Blogs and Websites

Here's a list I compiled of some of the best science blogs and websites I found on the web. A summary of each is included below its link. Enjoy!

1. http://www.teachercertificationdegrees.com/top-blogs/elementary-teacher/

            This is a great blog written by a middle school science teacher outlining tons of science activities and experiences. Even though he is a middle school teacher, most of them could easily be done in the elementary classroom, or adapted to be appropriate. There are videos included which make it very easy for a teacher to see how to carry out the experiments or activities, or to show students if it is not possible to complete the experiment in the classroom.

2. http://creatinglifelonglearners.com/

            This is a useful blog for teachers interested in incorporating more technology into their classrooms and their children's learning experiences. The blog offers many tips on how to integrate technology into lessons, especially those dealing with science. It also provides links and many resources for teachers to free technology that is easy to use. It is a very user-friendly blog that allows you to choose grade levels and subjects from a drop-down menu, so teachers can find what they're looking for easily in a pinch.

3. http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/explorer.html

            This website is split into two main areas: the teacher entrance and the student entrance. The student’s section of the site includes an “elevator” that the children may “ride” to a desired floor, each of which are labeled with a different aspect of science. Once at the floor, there are different rooms that serve as the subcategories of the floor’s topic, which the students can enter and learn all about that category. The teacher entrance includes activities for the teacher to complete with children in the classroom that correlate to every room and floor in the student’s entrance, so that the things they are learning on the site become more real to them. The site focuses on dinosaurs and the era they lived in, as well as Earth science.

4. http://www.howstuffworks.com/

            This is a valuable website for children of any age and grade level. To access the science portion of the site, there is an easy to use navigation bar at the top with a single button labeled “Science,” which takes the user to a page full of information and science exploration activities. It includes photographs and videos of how things in our world and everyday lives work, that we may not have considered to be scientific before, including animal processes. Students may use the site to explore different science topics and teachers may use it to research interesting lessons and facts to infuse into the classroom unit.

5. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forkids/kidsclub/flash/index.html

            This website is run by NASA and is geared toward children and enhancing their science learning experiences, specifically in the topic of outer space. It includes real pictures taken from space as well as games that children can play to help them learn more about what it’s like in space and how to run a space station. It also includes links for students to explore to discover why we study space, as well as a link to space art project cut outs and supplies. There are teacher and parent pages as well, that give tips for how to infuse science learning into their children’s lives.

6. http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/kids/

            This is a kid-friendly website that includes science activities to be completed either at home or in the classroom, as well as a spotlight of a cool science fact that changes every week. There is also a link for all kinds of science-related careers for kids to explore, to get them interested in science as a future job, and ones that they may not have previously known about or considered. It also includes a career quiz that a student may take in order to find out which science career they are best suited for.

7. http://science-project.com/

            This website provides thousands of ideas for students’ science fair projects on tons of science topics and subject areas. The projects provided on this site can be used by children in upper grades to come up with fun science fair project ideas, or by teachers as inspiration for engaging experiments to complete in the classroom. It includes photographs of children completing the different activities and experiments, along with step-by-step directions for each, and discussions on what is being tested and conclusions that the experiments may show.

8. http://www.tryscience.org/

            This is an awesome site that includes links for teachers (or students and their parents) to try their own science experiments, take scientific field trips, or participate in science “adventures.” It also includes links for teachers that offers many resources such as classroom science activities and lesson plans. There is also a parents’ page that explains the importance of science and how to be involved in their children’s’ learning, which is also offered in Spanish for families that do not speak English.

9. http://www.wxdude.com/index.html

            This website was created by a TV meteorologist Nick Walker. His website includes links for teachers, parents, kids, and future meteorologists alike, with many resources for learning abut and exploring different aspects of the weather. He also has a link specifically for books on weather that teachers and parents may find to read to or with their children, as well as a kid-friendly A-Z reference guide on all meteorology topics.

10. http://cicobb.typepad.com/es/

            This is a blog created for teachers that focuses solely on elementary science. It provides links for science resources, great advice and teaching tips, and offers many hands-on activities and experiments to be completed in the classroom, along with photographs that correspond with the directions. It also includes links to professional development opportunities, including seminars and conferences geared toward teaching science.

Solar System Prop Box

Before introducing the Solar System Prop Box to a classroom, I would first engage them in an introductory lesson on the solar system. We would cover the eight planets and some of their characteristics, as well as other objects that are present in the solar system. I would then introduce the box and its content to the students, demonstrating how they may be used and offering suggestions for enrichment activities. I would probably then allow the students to explore the contents and activities, but the box would be out for their use during station time, as the entire class could not use it at once.

Outside of the box- you could definitely spruce this up a bit and decorate it however you wish!

Books 

Below are a collection of books I have chosen to include in the box as a way for children to gather background information on the solar system and outer space. I included a sampling of both fiction and nonfiction texts. 

1. Solar System SOS by Arlen Cohn
2. First Graders from Mars by Shana Corey
3. Stargazers by Gail Gibbons


4. Amazing Space Q & A by Mike Goldsmith
5. Our Wonderful Solar System by Richard C Adams
6. Magic Treehouse Research Guide: Space by Mary & Will Osborne

Prop Box Materials List

Activity 1: Creative Constellations

Have children brainstorm a shape that they think would make a great constellation in the night sky, then draw it onto a piece of black paper with a while colored pencil. When they have finished drawing, they use their pencils to poke holes in the paper along the outside of the shape. Finally, all the new "constellations" are hung on the windows so that the sun shines through the holes an the "stars" twinkle. 

Creative Constellations cue card

Creative Constellations materials

Activity 2: Paint Galaxies

Students will have learned that galaxies in space have certain characteristics and how they are structured. This activity gives students to paint their own galaxies on paper plates (which make it easy to form the rings), using the colors they have seen, while allowing for some creative license.

Paint Galaxies cue card

Paint Galaxies materials

Activity 3: Orbits

Inside the blue file folder, a sun is drawn with connect-the-dots orbits circling it. Students are to trace out the orbits (by connecting all the dots with the same numbers) to form each planet's orbit. Then, they place each cut out planet (which are labeled with each planet's name) on its correct orbit path. They may take turns quizzing a partner on their knowledge of the correct planet order.

Orbits cue card

Orbits materials

Activity 4: Solar and Lunar Eclipses

This activity requires 3 different children, each with their own roles. One child holds the flashlight and is the "sun." Another holds the purple ball a distance away from the sun and is the "earth," while the third child holds the softball, or "moon" between the sun and Earth. The children then experiment with putting the moon between the earth and the sun and the earth between the sun and the moon, to explore the differences and effects of both solar and lunar eclipses.

Solar and Lunar Eclipses cue card

Solar and Lunar Eclipses materials

Activity 5: Solar System Memory Matching

This activity is pretty self-explanatory. There are cars with different parts of the solar system and outer space on them, and corresponding cards (written in the same color) with a fact about that part of the solar system, or a definition of it. Students are to lay every card out in rows, with the writing facing down, and play the game Memory with the cards, making matches when they find the correct definition or fact about each aspect they turn over. 

Solar System Memory Matching cue card

Solar System Memory Matching materials

      The closing activity that will allow me to assess what new knowledge students have gained from completing these prop box activities is a writing prompt. In it, students are to write a letter home to their family or friends, pretending they are an astronaut who has been on a flight to outer space, outlining what they have seen, done, and learned while on their journey.

Closing writing prompt