5 Tips for Using Games in the Science Classroom

Games are a great way to make learning more engaging and interactive. Here are 5 tips for using games in the Science classroom:

1. Use games to introduce new concepts or reinforce existing ones.

Introduce Food Webs/Food Chains.  Students learn the relationships between organisms (predator/prey, herbivore/carnivore/omnivore) quickly during this competitive game!  An alligator may eat most prey but all is equal when it comes to death & decay.

This is a great review of vocabulary such as autotroph/heterotroph, chloroplast/mitochondria… using a crossword and/or hidden message puzzles.  I have used it in class but it’s great as homework!  It’s one of a few homework assignments students actually like to do!

2. Incorporate games into lesson plans to break up the routine.

Interactive Jeopardy involves the entire class not just 1 student!  Each student has an answer sheet which can be used at the end to make their Final Jeopardy wager and as a formative assessment. We play in teams so students can collaborate, and their spokesperson rotates so everyone is engaged.

Students draw pictures to get their team/class to guess vocabulary terms.  I use this at the end of class and students have begged to stay after the bell to “finish.”  It is almost no prep.  I print the pages, cut the words apart and put them in a container. It sits on my desk so I can grab it whenever I have a few extra minutes.  I also add it to my sub plans.

3. Use games to review material before a test or quiz.

This game uses questions that address the state standards taught in 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade Science. We use it to review before the test given in the spring.

4. Allow students to collaborate and work in teams to promote teamwork.

Students answer a few questions on their own then they “find” other students to help answer the rest.  It’s a great way to get students moving and interacting with the content.  I have students initial the answer they give and then we review the answers together.

5. Use games to teach problem-solving and critical-thinking skills.

In this game, students have to use their knowledge of the periodic table to find their opponents ship/element before theirs is found by asking questions and guessing elements.  I am so impressed when students ask “higher-order questions!” It’s also really interesting to see how they plot out their strategies!

 

Incorporating games into my Science classroom is a fun and effective way to enhance learning! By following these tips in your classroom, you can ensure that games are used in a way that is both educational and engaging.

Use your content to make games for your classroom.

I hope your students enjoy games as much as mine.  It really makes Science fun!

Back to School - Measuring Stations

Every student can use the practice with measuring!  This is a great activity to start the school year with. 

I have 2 ways to do this using anchor charts.

Easy Prep:

1. Print the 5 anchor charts (large - 4 pieces of 8 1/2 x 11 paper) and hang around the room.
2. Have students rotate around the room and read how to use each tool
3. Give students a list of measurements and ask them what it measures and the tool they would need to use
• 14 g (mass/triple beam balance)
• 34.5 cm (length/ruler)
• 22° C (temperature/thermometer) 
• 5 N (weight/spring scale)
• 50 mL (volume/graduated cylinder)

Hands on Practice

1. Print the 5 anchor charts (small - 1 8 1/2 x11 piece of paper or medium - 2 pieces of paper) and put them at lab stations
2. Set out the tool (ruler, triple beam balance, thermometer, spring scale & graduated cylinder) at each station that the chart explains
3. Put objects to measure at each station 
• Graduated Cylinder Station - Graduated cylinders with colored water
• Thermometer Station - Containers of ice water, warm water and room temperature water 
• Spring Scale Station - Different sized bolts (put wire loop around the top of the bolt so they will hang from the scale)
• Triple Beam Balance Station - Objects such as toy cars, blocks, dice etc. 
• Ruler Station - Different lengths of string taped to the lab table
4. Ask students to use the tool according the directions on the chart.  
5. Have students rotate around each station - I use a lab sheet like this:
   

 

Assessment: Ask students to write a short explanation on how to measure length, mass, weight, temperature, and volume including the tool and units.

Differentiated: Give students a list of tools. Have them walk around and look at the poster to find what each measures.  

• triple beam balance (mass)
• ruler (length)
• thermometer (temperature) 
• spring scale (weight)
• graduated cylinder (volume)

Give students the word find with a word bank.

• measure, tool, unit, length, ruler, centimeter, meter, mass, triple beam balance, grams, weight, spring scale, Newton, temperature, thermometer, Celsius, volume, graduated cylinder, Liter, milliliter

Use a sentence stem for students to fill in.

• Length measures ________ The tool used to measure length is ______.  The units are ____.
• Mass measures ________ The tool used to measure mass is ______.  The units are ____.
• Temperature measures ________ The tool used to measure temperature is ______.  The units are ____.
• Weight measures ________ The tool used to measure weight is ______.  The units are ____.
• Volume measures ________ The tool used to measure volume is ______.  The units are ____.

Advanced: Give students a word find with no word bank.  The 20 words in the word find can be found on the posters.  Optional: offer a prize to the student that finds the words first!

For more measurement activities see:

***Each of these comes with its own poster.

At the end of class my students tell me they had fun.  I hope yours do too!

Back to School - Birthdays

 One of the things I do before school starts is set up my birthday chart.

I like to get this ready ahead of time because  I lose track of time once the school year starts and I don't want to forget anyone!

Grab the FREE Happy Birthday chart here.  

I laminate it and use dry erase markers so I can modify it when I get a new student or one leaves.  Use the chart to decorate a bulletin board, hallway, door etc.

I also make individual birthday pencils.  I like to leave these on student's desks so everyone knows it's their birthday.  If a birthday happens on a weekend, holiday or break, I hand it out the day before so they know we'll be thinking of them!  Grab a FREE set here.  *You could also attach these to a lollipop, pixie stick or crazy straw.

My students love these, I hope yours do too!

New (3rd grade) Space Unit

My 3rd grade homeschool group, started our Space Unit with a read aloud of the Dr. Seuss book, There's No Place Like Space. 

Our lessons will include stars & the Sun, gravity, telescopes, planets & seasons. This book touched on each one and was fun to read.

I looked for flashcards on the Solar System online and found several free versions however most had a dark background that weren't great for printing or the facts were too advanced.

I made these flashcards for the 8 planets, Moon and Sun for students to use in class to quiz each other.  There are interesting facts on the back and illustrations on the front.  

*These would be easy to adapt as a research project by copying them single sided and having students fill-in facts.