Math, Science and Technology Web sites

TryScience.org is your gateway to experience the excitement of contemporary science and technology. This exciting site features on and offline interactivity with science and technology centers worldwide. TryScience and over 400 science centers invite you to investigate, discover and try science yourself. This site offers online experiments, field trips and adventures. Learn how a fuel cell works and try an on-line virtual electrolysis - www.tryscience.org.

Blackholegang.com
A range of science topics is presented at www.blackholegang.com for intermediate and middle school readers. Through a group of fictional kids - and their dog - author Stephen Kramer and illustrator Richard Torrey introduce subjects from space exploration to plant biology. The site includes a monthly science sleuth contest for younger students.

Middle school lesson plans available
Middle school teachers share their most successful lesson plans at www.middleweb.com. Science-related topics include material on Antarctica and space exploration. Math topics include percentages and ratios.

Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
Examples of play that can lead to inventions are presented by the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation at www.inventionatplay.org. The site offers imaginative games such as finding shapes in clouds and creating cities from building blocks, that encourage us to let our imaginations run free and our creativity to blossom.

University of North Carolina Educational Journal
The University of North Carolina publishes a bi-weekly journal at horizon.unc.edu/TS/ for educators who are working to create technology programs for their districts. The site includes a forum for teachers and presents articles on a wide range of related topics. The goal of the journal, Technology Transfer, is to assist with the integration of information technology tools into teaching and management of educational institutions.

Armchair Chemistry for the Middle Grades Manual
Inexpensive, safe and challenging hands-on activities can be found in an on-line lab manual, Armchair Chemistry for the Middle Grades, at http://chemsrvr2.fullerton.edu/HES/index.htm. The manual is accompanied by a teacher reference section and topics include mass, density, atoms and molecules. The experiments rely on common materials like pennies and eyedroppers.

The American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History has a site just for kids at www.ology.amnh.org. Fun facts pop up on the home page, such as the information that jellyfish are heartless, bloodless and brainless. The site leads visitors on appealing trips through various fields of science (the "ologies"). Each area offers an on-line multiple-choice quiz.

Lowell Observatory
Lowell Observatory has created a monthly electronic newsletter called Learn, as a resource for astronomy teachers in all grades. Topics include upcoming astronomical events, meetings, on-line resources, news items and activities for students. To view past issues, visit www.Lowell.edu. To be added to the recipient list, send an email to Kevin Schindler at Kevin@Lowell.edu.

National Science Resources Center
The National Science Resources Center has revised its Science and Technology for Children (STC) curriculum. The changes reflect current research on the relationship between literacy and quality science education in grades K-8. An introductory section provides teachers guidance on how to incorporate notebooks and writing into inquiry-based science classes. Also included are references on ways to use science instruction to help improve reading and writing skills. For more information, visit www.si.edu/nsrc.

Virtual Physics Labs
A virtual physics lab at www.hazelwood.k12.mo.us/~grichert/sciweb/applets.html highlights hundreds of activities and animated simulations for grades 9-12. Topics range from energy and forces to thermodynamics and wave theory.

Chandra X-Ray Observatory Education Material Available
An array of classroom-ready activities, printable materials and interactive games and puzzles related to the Chandra X-Ray Observatory is available at http://www.chandra.harvard.edu/edu/. Most of this material is designed for high school-level students, with some middle-school material available as well. Subjects range from the electromagnetic spectrum to spacecraft and instrumentation. Educators lacking access to the World Wide Web can contact Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138. Phone (617) 496-7941, fax (617) 495-7356.

Challenger Learning Centers
Students in grades five through eight can get hands-on science experience through the Challenger Learning Centers by taking a two-hour simulated space flight to the moon and Mars. To find a Challenger Learning Center in your area, visit www.challenger.org/clc/clc_netw_set.htm. This site also features free downloadable resources on planets and space.

(07/26/07)