06.10.08
Spellings Approves Additional Growth Model Pilots
Secretary Spellings approval of two high-quality growth models, which follow the bright-line principles of No Child Left Behind. Michigan is immediately approved to use the growth model for the 2007-2008 school year. Missouri's growth model is approved on the condition that the state adopt a uniform minimum group size for all subgroups, including students with disabilities and limited English proficient students, in Adequate Yearly Progress determinations for the 2007-2008 school year.Teaching and Learning Resource — The Why Files
Feature the latest news in science, math and technology. Learn how infrared "vision" works, the science behind cloning, or the statistical calculations that make political polling possible. Visitors can also join the site's online forum to participate in various science related discussions such as why the night sky is dark, interstellar distances, Einstein's influence, and much more. (University of Wisconsin-Madison, National Science Foundation)06.09.08
Spellings Speaks at Reagan Presidential Library
Secretary Spellings delivered the keynote address at the grand opening of the Air Force One Discovery Center at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.Teaching and Learning Resource — Decades of Discovery
Describes 100 important discoveries in energy sciences, nuclear and plasma physics, advanced computing research, and biological and environmental research. Topics include the world's toughest microbe, the most distant object ever observed, why dinosaurs are extinct, how solar energy can be made more affordable, unraveling the mystery of antimatter, simulating environmental problems, and others. (Department of Energy)06.06.08
Teaching and Learning Resource — Engineering
Provides video clips and interactive resources for learning about the design process, history and impact of technology, innovation and invention, what engineering is, materials and tools, biotechnology, information technology, construction technology, energy and power technology, manufacturing technology, and transportation technology. Find lessons on designing an air bag, aircraft, boat, bridge, car, dam, electric circuit, glider, helmut, house, road, robot, roller coaster, and windmill. (Teachers Domain, Multiple Agencies)06.05.08
Pedagogy in Action
Documents more than 25 pedagogic techniques for teaching sciences to undergraduates: case-based learning, game-based learning, making and testing conjectures, peer review, quantitative writing, role playing, using spreadsheets, and others. Find more than 600 learning activities in biology, environmental science, geography, geoscience, math, and physics. (SERC, National Science Foundation)06.04.08
New — NSF Multimedia Gallery
provides nearly 100 videos and webcasts on a range of science topics: a fossil that may represent the first vertebrate to emerge from the sea, turning forest-industry waste into fuel and textiles, "superglue" produced by aquatic bacteria, a house built on a "shake table" (earthquake research), teaching robots to swim, 14 engineering challenges for the 21st century, solving a crime scene mystery, a 60-second history of the universe, earth's deep-time archives, dinosaurs, and more. (National Science Foundation)New — Secrets of Plant Genomes Revealed!
is a lively, upbeat video exploration of how plants got to be the way they are and how we can make better use of them in the future. Learn how plant genome research is revolutionizing the field of biology. Find out how scientists are unlocking the secrets of corn, cotton, potatoes, and other plants that are important in our lives. Discover why the study of plants is exciting and how learning more about plants can improve our everyday lives. (National Science Foundation)New — Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears
is a new online magazine to help elementary school teachers develop their knowledge of the Arctic and Antarctica and organize science and literacy instruction around polar themes. The first two issues, "A Sense of Place" and "Learning from the Polar Past," provide lessons and readings on data collection and representation, map skills, comparing the Arctic and Antarctica, measuring ice sheets, and paleontology and archaeology. Book recommendations are included. (Ohio State University, National Science Foundation)06.03.08
Teaching Resources: Water, Spreadsheets, Trails West and More
Water purification, spreadsheets, nanotechnology, planets, Escher, and trail diaries (1850s-60s) are topics of new resources at FREE, the website that makes teaching resources from federal agencies easier to find.New — Trails to Utah and the Pacific: Diaries and Letters, 1846-1869
features 49 diaries of pioneers who traveled westward across America to Utah, Montana, and the Pacific between 1847 and the meeting of the rails in 1869. Maps, photos, and published trail guides are included. Essays focus on the California Trail, the Mormon trail experience, trail guides, and maps and their use by overlanders. (Library of Congress)New — M. C. Escher: Life and Work
is an online tour of 24 prints by the Dutch artist Maurits C. Escher (1898-1972). In the 1920s-30s, Escher developed "the regular division of the plane" and used the idea of metamorphosis -- one shape or object turning into something completely different. He also explored complex architectural mazes and the representation of impossible spaces. (National Gallery of Art)New — Cleaning Water
is a lesson in which students (Grades 3-5) create and test a system to filter "gray" water. Astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) recycle their water, including moisture from their sweat and exhalations and water from showering and shaving. These wastewaters are purified and then used as drinking water. (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)New — Engineering Design Challenges: Thermal Protection Systems Educator Guide
helps students (Grades 6-9) learn how NASA engineers design thermal protection systems -- the systems that protect spacecraft from the heat of atmospheric friction (during launch and re-entry) and engine exhaust heat. Students work in teams to design, build, and test an aluminum foil and copper screening structure built to protect a model launch vehicle from a propane torch for as long as possible. (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)New — What Is A Planet?
is a lesson plan in which students (Grades 9-12) compare characteristics of planets, comets, asteroids, and trans-Neptunian objects; create a definition for the term "planet"; and formulate an argument for or against the planet status of a hypothetical newly discovered object in our solar system. (In 2006, the International Astronomical Union approved a new definition for "planet" and other bodies.) (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)The 20 Newest Resources
List of the 20 newest resources added to the FREE website.
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