Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

How big is big? How small is small? Using a remarkable series of images, this site lets students begin a tour far outside our galaxy and finish up looking at things infinitesimally small. It's all done with "powers of ten."

tag(s): exponents (35)

Turn a unit on space into something unforgettable with this amazing site that explores infrared astronomy and brings it back to earth. Start by learning how to navigate within the site by clicking on the "help" tool. (It's quite useful for first-time visitors!) Then start exploring the offerings that include cosmic games, galleries of outstanding infrared educational videos and images, classroom activities, and an "ask an astronomer" link. An infrared tutorial provides excellent background information about infrared waves. Students can visit the Infrared Zoo to literally "see" the difference between warm and cold-blooded animals, find out if people glow in the dark, participate in a variety of interactive on-line activities, and learn about the connection between infrared waves and astronomy.

tag(s): light (56)

Geography and earth science teachers will drool over NASA's collection of earth images made from the International Space Station. Use them to illustrate topographic formations and features, then move on to special sets that cover more specific areas. You'll need to make your own connections, but there's plenty of raw material in this one.

tag(s): biomes (110), earth (184), images (263), landforms (39)

Nothing fancy about this site, which offers a surprisingly digestible set of comparisons of the distances from here to there in the cosmos. The author abandons scientific notation in favor of long strings of zeros in the numbers, and it has the intended effect. The images, of course, are of the sort that NASA does best.

tag(s): moon (73), planets (113), solar system (110), sun (71)

This retrospective on 20th century scientific advances is particularly strong in its information on the scientists who made the discoveries. Teachers interested in presenting the scientific process by which these advances were made will find the information here a useful addition. Good information; not a lot of "whiz-bang."

tag(s): scientists (67)

The NIST Physics Laboratory offers this condensed history of time measurement, which chronicles the evolution of time-keeping from ancient calendars through the establishment of time zones and atomic clocks. The text is readable and the graphics are interesting while still loading quickly. Depending on the amount of detail you want to absorb, this one would work well for upper elementary through secondary students.

tag(s): time (91), time zones (7)

The American Chemical Society offers a complete series of activities for grades K-8, all based on hands-on experience. Click Education in the middle of this opening page find programs and units for Elementary through Graduate School. Also offered is a section for careers in science. This is a great resource for science teachers who need additional chemistry content or activities.
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tag(s): chemicals (39), energy (133), experiments (55), inquiry (24), matter (45)

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory offers this page as a starting point for several of its programs to learn more about Mars through remote sensing, robotics, and imaging. Try it as a resource for lesson planning or students interested in learning more about the red planet.

tag(s): mars (26), nasa (30), solar system (110), space (222)

This is the home page for the final report on the Shuttle Columbia disaster. The report has received significant attention because it calls on NASA to reform and bolster many of the safety and management practices which, according to the report, have remained deficient for many years.

tag(s): space (222)

This site provides a sampling of activities from a larger web-based curriculum on Astrobiology. Developed in conjunction with NASA's astrobiology institute, this site provides a detailed teaching guide alongside activities aimed at creating a dynamic curriculum through internet resources. The site's activities include an exploration of different types of stars, and possibility of life in different parts of the galaxy.

tag(s): space (222)

This site presents teachers with a searchable index of natural sciences resources contained within the museum's site. Scroll down the page and click Resources for Learning. You can browse the web-sites, activities, and experiments by sub-topic, grade level, or resource type. Current subtopics include anthropology, astronomy, biology, earth science, and paleontology. Special collection exhibits present theme-based activities that cover additional topics and change occasionally. Be sure to check out the the Past Exhibitions for topics such as Biodiversity, Antarctica, and deep sea explorations, and much more. This is a great site for sorting out all the wonderful resources the museum has to offer. There are over 1,000 resources currently available on countless subjects.

tag(s): amphibians (17), biodiversity (36), brain (56), climate change (99), darwin (13), dinosaurs (43), diseases (66), diversity (40), fossils (41), light (56), mammals (22), natural disasters (18), oceans (149), paleontology (28), poisons (2), space (222), volcanoes (55)

Here's a site with dozens of images and histories of military and civilian aircraft. The site also includes histories of many aircraft used by U.S. presidents. Click Education from the top menu bar and find a section of lesson plans by scrolling down the page. View a list of the scavenger hunts on the right menu bar. Type videos in the search bar to find a list. This site could assist with research on aviation history or related topics.

tag(s): air (101), aircraft (16), aviation (40), flight (34)

Head off to the year 2031 and learn how a Martian colony might actually work in this site from the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. Learn the options for life support, the scientific work that might go on at the station, and more. There's not a lot of "glitz" to this one, but the concepts will fascinate interested students.

tag(s): mars (26), space (222)

Chicago's Adler Planetarium offers this interesting introduction to the way in which early cultures interpreted the heavens. There are dozens of examples drawn from as many ancient cultures, and all organized into themes that would have been essential to these civilizations. A set of lesson plans rounds out this intriguing unit.

tag(s): calendars (37), stars (71)

From an exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History, this site offers an introduction to Einstein's work that mere mortals can understand. Einstein set the world of physics and cosmology on its head by showing that forces like time and gravity are variable, not constant. The implications of these discoveries let to the creation of entirely new sciences. There is much to learn here.

tag(s): scientists (67)

The November, 2002 Leonid meteor shower produced some great images and accounts, some of which appear on this page from Space.com. Amateur astronomers will find the information interesting, and space or astronomy teachers will no doubt find additional uses for the accounts and images.

tag(s): space (222)

NASA's Apollo program site offers a one-stop collection of resources about the American manned moon landing program. Users can select mission-by -mission accounts of the program's progress, with lots of photos and text on each mission. Because this site links to a variety of archival NASA content, the presentation can be very uneven. If you're a space buff, though, this one's a gold mine.

tag(s): moon (73), nasa (30), space (222)

NASA's comprehensive Hubble telescope site includes six major sections targeted to different student audiences. There are games and introductions for elementary students, as well as images and more detailed information for older students. If the galaxies are your destination, this is an ideal starting point.

tag(s): space (222), stars (71)

Why does that Harvest Moon appear so huge? This page from the Sandlot Science site offers an explanation that middle and high school students should find interesting. There's an interactive applet that illustrates how the phenomenon actually works. Try this one if you're studying astronomy, the solar system, or puzzles and illusions.

tag(s): moon (73), solar system (110)

This site from the PBS Nova series chronicles Galileo's life, experiments, and scientific accomplishments. Users will find a detailed time line, articles about Galileo's accomplishments, and a nice series of interactive "experiments" illustrating his fundamental discoveries. Great site for the study of astronomy, inventors, or the Renaissance. Though some resources require Flash, there is a lot to earn from the features that don't.

tag(s): galileo (6), gravity (43), moon (73), renaissance (38), solar system (110)