I have been teaching middle school science for the past 8 years. This year - year 9 - is my third year at ASFM. I have 3 groups of 7th graders and 1 group of 8th graders. I am also the middle school science coordinator.
I love to experiment with science and learn new science concepts. I always enjoy getting the chance to show students how fun science can be, and I love learning about new discoveries in science.
I teach science because it's awesome, and I want my students to feel that sense of awesomeness too. Science is all about discovery, asking questions, and being interested in the world around us. As Ray Mathias says in the video "Why Is Science Important," "it is a powerful expression of two of the defining qualities of humans - creativity and curiosity." Check out the videos below for an idea of why I love science and why you should too.
Why is Science Important? aka "Why Do We Have to Know This?"
If you've ever asked this question, then maybe you should check out one of the videos below. Even if you aren't planning on becoming the next big thing in the science world, isn't it still important to have a basic understanding about how the world around us works? And not only that, the critical thinking that the study of science requires helps your brain make new connections; studying science makes you a better thinking for whatever you want to do or be in the future.
"I think of what we are doing is we're exploring, we're trying to find out as much as we can about the world... but whatever way it comes out it’s nature, it’s there, and she’s going to come out the way she is. And therefore when we go to investigate we shouldn’t pre-decide what it is we are trying to do except to find out more about it." - Richard Feynman
"Yes, we are part of this universe, we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the universe is in us....My atoms came from those stars." - Neil deGrasse Tyson
"The joy of discovery...that's what drives us." - Bill Nye
"It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character building experience...to me it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another and to preserve and cherish the only home we've ever known, the pale blue dot." - Carl Sagan
"People can set their minds to magical, seemingly impossible ideas, and then - through science and technology - bring them to reality." - Astro Teller
...and awesome.
In the Business of Increasing Awesome
As Hank Green says in one of the videos below, NASA has been in the business of increasing awesome for decades...all while still having fun.
Biology: It Grows on You
I majored in biology in college, so it is oftentimes my favorite branch of science. It totally shaped the way we live our lives - biology IS our lives.
"An Audacious Leap of Imagination": Physics
Why does Professor Brian Cox love physics?
Physics can change the world.
Chemistry: Because matter matters
"Virtually everything we see and know, all the beauty of the natural world, is made of these few kinds of atoms arranged in harmonious chemical patterns." - Carl Sagan
But what is science anyway?
Professor Brian Cox and Richard Feynman describe the scientific method
This is actually an advertisement for the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason, but it has a great collection of scientists explaining what science really is: a perspective, a way of life, a way of thinking
A former science teacher and current teacher of science teachers on how people do science
Who am I and why do I teach science?
I have been teaching middle school science for the past 8 years. This year - year 9 - is my third year at ASFM. I have 3 groups of 7th graders and 1 group of 8th graders. I am also the middle school science coordinator.
I love to experiment with science and learn new science concepts. I always enjoy getting the chance to show students how fun science can be, and I love learning about new discoveries in science.
I teach science because it's awesome, and I want my students to feel that sense of awesomeness too. Science is all about discovery, asking questions, and being interested in the world around us. As Ray Mathias says in the video "Why Is Science Important," "it is a powerful expression of two of the defining qualities of humans - creativity and curiosity." Check out the videos below for an idea of why I love science and why you should too.
Why is Science Important? aka "Why Do We Have to Know This?"
If you've ever asked this question, then maybe you should check out one of the videos below. Even if you aren't planning on becoming the next big thing in the science world, isn't it still important to have a basic understanding about how the world around us works? And not only that, the critical thinking that the study of science requires helps your brain make new connections; studying science makes you a better thinking for whatever you want to do or be in the future.
Why is Science Important? from Alom Shaha on Vimeo.
Sir David Attenborough (you may know him better as the man who narrates Planet Earth) discusses why science is important.
Neil Degrasse Tyson explains why studying science is important even if you don't want to work in the sciences when you grow up.
From the mouths of scientists. So many different reasons for exploring their passions in the area of science.
Some text resources:
Why Learn Science?
Science is Beautiful and Amazing...
"I think of what we are doing is we're exploring, we're trying to find out as much as we can about the world... but whatever way it comes out it’s nature, it’s there, and she’s going to come out the way she is. And therefore when we go to investigate we shouldn’t pre-decide what it is we are trying to do except to find out more about it." - Richard Feynman
"Yes, we are part of this universe, we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the universe is in us....My atoms came from those stars." - Neil deGrasse Tyson
"The joy of discovery...that's what drives us." - Bill Nye
"It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character building experience...to me it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another and to preserve and cherish the only home we've ever known, the pale blue dot." - Carl Sagan
"People can set their minds to magical, seemingly impossible ideas, and then - through science and technology - bring them to reality." - Astro Teller
...and awesome.
In the Business of Increasing Awesome
As Hank Green says in one of the videos below, NASA has been in the business of increasing awesome for decades...all while still having fun.
Biology: It Grows on You
I majored in biology in college, so it is oftentimes my favorite branch of science. It totally shaped the way we live our lives - biology IS our lives.
"An Audacious Leap of Imagination": Physics
Why does Professor Brian Cox love physics?
Physics can change the world.
Chemistry: Because matter matters
"Virtually everything we see and know, all the beauty of the natural world, is made of these few kinds of atoms arranged in harmonious chemical patterns." - Carl Sagan
But what is science anyway?
Professor Brian Cox and Richard Feynman describe the scientific method
This is actually an advertisement for the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason, but it has a great collection of scientists explaining what science really is: a perspective, a way of life, a way of thinking
A former science teacher and current teacher of science teachers on how people do science