As well as providing a valuable and enjoyable experience for pupils, outdoor learning also enhances and contextualises learning in science by helping pupils understand science concepts. Teachers' lack of confidence in which aspects of the science curriculum they can actually teach outdoors deters them from venturing outside the classroom for…

Describes a project that helps students integrate biological concepts using both creativity and higher-order problem-solving skills. Involves students playing the roles of junior scientists aboard a starship in orbit around a class M planet and using a description of habitats, seasonal details, and a surface map of prominent geographic features to…

This paper discusses the evaluation of an informal science education project, The Birdhouse Network (TBN) of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. The Elaboration Likelihood Model and the theory of Experiential Education were used as frameworks to analyse the impact of TBN on participants' attitudes toward science and the environment, on their…

Described is a mouse cage that can be built, at a cost of about $15, by intermediate-aged elementary students. (BB)

Describes a program in which biology students study animals in pet shops to learn about animal behavior. Lists general guidelines for starting a partnership and presents two sample student activities. (WRM)

Describes a number of laboratory experiments using woodlice as experimental animals. Includes topics such as physiology of water relations, behavior, and rhythmic activity. (CS)

Described in this unit are three activities related to classification and fish identification. In the first activity students design and use a dichotomous key to common classroom items, while Activity B involves the construction of a key to Lake Erie fish families. During Activity C, each student writes a story and draws a humorous picture of a…

In this set of two booklets for primary grades, students learn how to make a home for their animals (amphibians, insects, fish, crayfish) and a home for their rodents (hamsters, guinea pigs, gerbils, mice). The major emphasis in all Unified Sciences and Mathematics for Elementary Schools (USMES) units is on open-ended, long-range investigations of…