Photographs offer teachers a way to collect and explore student work that might other wise go unnoticed or minimally examined. A teacher might use photographs to analyze students' strategies and work to promote future instructional practices that result in higher student achievement. As a tool, photographs document student understanding and…

This article is a presentation of a three-day sequence of lessons that engaged fifth-grade students in an exploration following the activities of scientists. From asking questions and analyzing data, to engaging in scientific modeling, to defending their theories to the scientific (classroom) community, these fifth graders were mirroring how…

Extended school year (ESY) is a summer program available for students with disabilities who meet specific qualifying criteria. Teachers are often hesitant to accept the position of the ESY teacher due to the ambiguities and demands of the position. The purpose of this article is to briefly share the impetus and focus of ESY and give special…

This article is aimed at teachers already experienced with activities involving small, student-collected data sets and who are now ready to begin working with large, online data sets collected by scientists and engineers. The authors discuss challenges, instructional strategies, and sources of appropriate lesson plans. With guidance, plus online…

Civilization simply would not exist without plants, yet their importance is often overlooked. As the nation's ability to respond to the botanical challenges associated with food production, climate change, invasive species, and biodiversity loss continues to decrease (Kramer, Zorn- Arnold, and Havens 2010), educators must discourage this…

This article describes a lesson plan that encouraged the usage of digital tools to enhance inquiry as a key tool in teaching elementary social studies. The lesson revolved around a field trip to the home of Civil War Governor Oliver P. Morton (Centerville, Indiana). The active, investigative, and questioning nature of inquiry in social studies…

Operation Magpie was a citizen science project that involved the community in collecting data about magpies. This article describes one aspect of the project from an education perspective. The study began with a collaboration of teacher educators, environmental scientists and a local radio station. After an initial workshop with 75 teachers, three…

Presents activities using the theme of collecting and interpreting data from the students' own classroom. Stresses communication among students and between students and the teacher. Includes reproducible student worksheets. (MKR)

Suggests ways census data in the "Statistical Abstract of the United States" may be used to develop thinking skills in economics. Presents a lesson in which students collect data on different types of work done by a small group of workers. Emphasizes the process of classifying workers in order to provide experience with this reasoning…

Created by teachers for teachers, the Math Academy tools and activities included in this booklet were designed to create hands-on activities and a fun learning environment for the teaching of mathematics to the students. This booklet contains the "Math Academy--Play Ball! Explorations in Data Analysis & Statistics," which teachers can use to…

Lists sources for instructional materials and products for teaching about the census, the demographic and socioeconomic composition of the country, immigration, congressional reapportionment, collecting and analyzing demographic data, and related concepts. Organized by type of media, and by vendor. (LS)

Presents activities taken from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Addendum Series, grades 5-8, involving data collection and chance. Students determine whether a game is fair based on the data collected and examine rule changes to ensure fairness. (MDH)

Presents five integrated mathematics and science lessons in which students investigate the characteristics, behavior, lifecycles, and motion of mealworms and the feasibility of raising mealworms for profit. Purpose, time, materials needed, procedures, and extensions for each activity are provided. (MDH)

Presents an activity in which students collect and organize data from a real-world simulation of the scientific concept of half life. Students collect data using a marble sifter, analyze the data using a graphing calculator, and determine an appropriate mathematical model. Includes reproducible worksheets. (MDH)

Describes an eight-day graphing unit for grades four through six using data collected from a local cemetery. Provides the activities of each day and excerpts of discussions taking place during the lessons. Concludes that working with real data helps students construct meaningful graphs. (MDH)