More From NASA in Astrophysics, Astronomy, Earth Science and Much More!

Space is humanity's new frontier.  Astronomy is a field of study which fascinates students of all ages.  It is taught in varying degrees in all science courses (physics, geology, technology, biology, and much more).  To inspire students to pursue studies in the sciences, NASA has created a website that taps the interests of teachers, researchers, teens, kids, and citizen scientists. 

What is highlighted in NASA SCIENCE ?  Everything including earth, heliophysics, astronomy, missions, technology, astrophysics, solar system is found here.  There are also news feeds which cover the latest news on space.  In fact, a current one debunks the "end of the world" myth which has earth being destroyed on 12/21/12.  The most effective way to ease the unwarranted fears of students is to supply the facts and NASA does an exemplary job of it.  Check out the SCIENCE CAST on why the world will not end.

Build assignments around the planets.  Have students take a "walk" on Mars or research current missions to explore the solar system.  What is there in astronomy that would not be found intriguing by even the most reticent student?  Start here and move out to planetariums, backyard star parties, astronomy clubs, etc. 

Bring the stars, planets, universe into any classroom with this site:)

Denise

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Khan Academy--114 Geometry Videos To Support Your Instruction

If you are looking to develop more review support in your math classes for your ELLs and others, you should take a look at Khan Academy.  It covers all areas of mathematics and science.  The videos are simple to follow and clearly would support a teacher's instruction.  Further, if you have ELLs in your classes, you can find translations in every subject.  Imagine having a newly arrived Mandarin only speaker and offering this site as a tool to access the content of your lesson.  The anxiety level of that ELL would definitely drop since he or she would not be totally in the dark in following your activity.  KHAN LANGUAGES lists all the languages available on the site.

For this post, I pulled out only one subject area--KHAN ACADEMY GEOMETRY.  Within this section are 114 videos all on geometry.  The total viewing time is slightly over 15 hours.  Though the amount of time on each subject component varies, they typically do not exceed 10 minutes more or less.  Access to the site is free and open to anyone.  Since ELLs typically need to jump two hurdles academically--language and content, they would benefit from such online support because it would provide them with additional practice in mastering the content.

Denise
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PS  If you use CHROME as your browser, you may have a problem accessing my blog.  What you should do is ENTER the site (ignore the warnings--for some reason it has a problem with WORDPRESS BLOGS---and then bookmark it.  Once bookmarked, the problem is fixed:)

NEED Incredible Supports for Science? Look No More:)

If you have limited resources when it comes to securing quality science video supports for your lessons, you may want to take a look at this site.  Click on TOPICS and you will find a wide range of science topics covering astronomy and space, earth and environment, chemistry, life science, mathematics, physics, medical sciences, engineering, and technology.  No membership is required.  SCIENCE 360

Another awesome feature here is the radio broadcasting segment.  Teachers (and students) can get the free iPhone and Android apps to listen at will.  If your school allows students to bring their smart phones to class, you can have them use them to complete assignments using this site.  Imagine how this might help your ELLs who often need more time to process academic content.  Now, they need only go to the app on their phones to review class material.  On this site are over 100 radio shows and audio podcasts.  Surely, there will be several that address your class content.
SCIENCE 360 RADIO BROADCASTS 

Would you also like to assign reading as part of your homework (or classwork)?  Here you will find news from science magazines, blogs, and news articles.  The readings cover 3-12+.  You need only scan for content and reading/grade level.  Since it is a change from the familiar textbook, students might exhibit a bit of excitement in doing the assignments:)  Further, for optimum use in class, assign small groups to read, review, analyze, and share out their understanding of assigned reading sections.  ELLs will benefit from this type of activity since they would not be navigating the site on their own.  Cooperative group learning communities make content accessible to everyone in the group so everyone is a winner:)  SCIENCE 360 NEWS SERVICE

Hope you enjoy the site. 

Denise


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