Science Buddies Blog (Page 13)

Making Recycling Sorting Machines—STEM Success

March 15, 2024 8:00 AM

This teacher had students design and build sorting machines as part of an environmental science engineering unit. Connecting Engineering to Real-world Problems STEM Success! Educator: Kelly Long, Renaissance Charter School, Cooper City, Florida Resource: Build a Recycling-Sorting Machine Summary: Middle school students made sorting machines as part of… Read more

15 Density Science Experiments

March 13, 2024 8:00 AM

Use these free science lessons, experiments, and activities to teach K-12 students about density. Sometimes students wrongly think that an object's density is the same as its weight or its mass. Instead, density refers to an object's mass in a given volume. Two objects that have the same shape and size (volume) but have a different mass (like two same-sized balls with different weights) have different densities. As a physical property of… Read more

6 Picks for St. Patrick's Day STEM

March 11, 2024 6:00 AM

Bring on the luck of the Irish with these six fun, hands-on STEM projects for St. Patrick's Day! From the magical pot of gold at the end of a rainbow to lucky charms, leprechauns, shamrocks and more, St. Patrick's Day is brimming with opportunities to tweak science and engineering activities to fit the day. Try one of these green picks for chemistry, engineering, and physics fun with students of all ages: Leprechaun Snot: It just takes a bit of… Read more

Mario Day STEM — Bring Mario World to Life with Hands-on Science and Engineering Activities!

March 4, 2024 6:00 AM

Try these clever STEM activities to connect hands-on science and engineering to the ever-popular world of Mario! Let's-a go! Your kids and students probably know Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Bowser, and the Mario World gang, and chances are you do, too! March 10 is Mario Day, so known because in the right typeface, M A R 1 0 looks like M A R I O. (Once you see it, you see it!) This is the kind of clever… Read more

Elevate Your Science Classroom: Taking Independent Student Science Projects to the Next Level

February 22, 2024 8:00 AM

In part three of the "Why Do Science Projects" series, we review strategies to support advanced science and engineering projects. Science fair projects have been a staple of the American science classroom for decades, but these competitions have come a long way from the volcanoes and potato batteries of the past. National Geographic's new docuseries, Science Fair: The Series, highlights some of the impressive projects being completed by high school… Read more

Free science project support in the Ask an Expert forums

February 20, 2024 6:00 AM

Thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers, students working on science and engineering projects can get extra one-on-one assistance in the Ask an Expert forums at Science Buddies. Learn more about using the free Ask an Expert forums. Students need a little extra help? Try the Ask an Expert forums! Ask an Expert is an online bulletin board system where students (and parents and teachers) can ask questions about their K-12 science and engineering projects.… Read more

Ahead of the Curve: A Science Teacher's Guide to Proactive Science Project Planning

February 16, 2024 8:00 AM

In part two of this three-part "Why Do Science Projects" series, we explore how a bit of pre-planning in the spring can pave the way for successful projects in the coming school year. Introduction Are you a middle school or early high school science teacher looking to enhance independent science learning experiences in your courses? Perhaps you've glanced at the local science fair flier, telling yourself 'next year,' only to find yourself stuck in… Read more

2024 Rubber Band Car Engineering Challenge—10 Steps to Success

February 13, 2024 8:00 AM

Follow the 10 steps below to do the 2024 Science Buddies Engineering Challenge with your students! This year's challenge is the Rubber Band Car Challenge. Getting a high score requires creative thinking and engineering to make a car that can go as far as possible. How far will your students' cars travel? The 2024 Rubber Band Car Challenge is an exciting way to have students try engineering. As they design, build, test, and improve their cars,… Read more

Why Integrate Science Projects in the Classroom—A Teacher's Perspective

February 12, 2024 8:00 AM

Why should teachers have students do independent science projects? In part one of a three-part series, the new STEM Content Managing Editor at Science Buddies offers a teacher's perspective. Note: In this week's blog, we introduce Janna Privette, the new STEM Content Managing Editor at Science Buddies. With seven years of experience teaching middle and high school science, Janna has effectively integrated independent science projects into a variety of… Read more

Mini Trebuchets and a NM MESA Challenge

February 9, 2024 8:00 AM

The Mini Trebuchet STEM activity helped introduce students to science and engineering concepts needed for building larger trebuchets for the 2023 MESA Day competition. Using Short STEM Activities to Kickstart Engineering Students participating in the 2023 MESA Day challenge worked in teams to build trebuchets. In preparation for that challenge, educators used the Mini Trebuchet STEM activity to introduce the physics behind how a trebuchet works. … Read more

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