E l e m e n t a r y E d i t i o n
A p r i l 2 0 0 7
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION Instilling today's elementary students with an understanding of
how important it is for everyone to work toward protecting the Earth's
environment can be fun, yet challenging. Science teachers might
have difficulty teaching this broad subject because many news stories
and lesson plans veer away from the science and focus instead on
emotional issues surrounding our responsibility to preserve the
environment. You may find yourself wondering which teaching methods
will both inform your students about the environment and inspire
them to nurture it. In this issue of Science Class, teachers
and their students can learn more about this topic through news
and journal articles, websites, books, and other resources. By emphasizing
the science of environmental conservation to students, teachers
can help create a new generation of environmental stewards.
Environmental Education in the News Article summaries provided by the NSTA WebNews Digest (visit http://www.nsta.org/mainnews for national news for science educators). News stories selected for this issue discuss various programs and resources to connect teachers and students to the environment. Visit http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2007-04/news_stories_elementary.htm to read more. Environmental Education on the Web In this month's elementary-level journal, Science and Children, NSTA members can read "A WebQuest for Spatial Skills" at http://www.nsta.org/gateway&j=sc&n=53629. For the complete Science and Children April/May 2007 Illustrated Table of Contents, visit http://www.nsta.org/gateway&j=sc&n=53649. SciLinks® is a web-based service from NSTA that provides online content chosen to augment printed articles and books. It does so through keywords; the keyword for this issue is Environment: http://www.scilinks.org/retrieve_outside.asp?sl=63204521226611 NSTA Journal Articles on Environmental Education These articles from the NSTA journal archives discuss how important it is for everyone to care for and about the environment. Click here to read more: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2007-04/elementary.htm Books, Books, Books To read about Environmental Education in NSTA Press® and NSTA Recommends® books, visit http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2007-04/books_elementary.htm. To read about the newest titles available from NSTA Press, visit http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2007-04/newbookselem.htm. To receive the latest NSTA catalog for your specific grade level, visit http://ecommerce.nsta.org/catalog_signup. Professional Development NSTA Web Seminars NSTA Web Seminars are 90-minute, live professional development experiences that use online learning technologies to allow participants to interact with nationally acclaimed experts, NSTA Press authors, and scientists, engineers, and education specialists from NSTA government partners such as NASA, NOAA, FDA, and the NSDL. The following Web Seminars are scheduled for April: NSDL:
Teach Engineering: April 10, 2007 Visit http://institute.nsta.org/web_seminars.asp
for registration information.
Global Science Teaching Seeking an Edge, Asian Teachers Visit American Schools A recent Washington Post article details what science
teachers from Singapore hope to gain from their visit to a magnet
school in Virginia. The article quotes George Wolfe, director
of the two-year-old public school, who asks, "How do you
measure excitement? How do you measure creativity? There's so
much publicity about Americans not scoring well on tests, but
few people ask the question: Then why are we producing so much
innovation from our scientists?" To read the article, visit http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/18/AR2007031801160.html. NSTA Opportunities The Early Years
Call for Papers Science and Children (grades preK–5) has issued a Call for Papers on specific topics. Click here to find out more: If your colleagues would like to subscribe to Science Class, please direct them to http://www.nsta.org/newsletters.
THE FINE PRINTThis
e-newsletter is brought to you by the National Science Teachers
Association
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Science
and Children (S&C) and NSTA have a blog devoted
to early childhood science (see