Imagine a microscopic world filled with tiny motors, ratchets, switches, and pumps controlled by complex signaling and feedback systems. Now imagine that these parts can assemble themselves. This is the world presented to students in the protein structure unit of a genetic engineering course. Students learn how protein folding gives rise to the…

Electronic textiles (e-textiles)--fabrics embedded with electrical or electronic components--offer a new model for teaching this content. E-textiles also engage students in programming and engineering design through nontraditional projects and materials. This article describes a four-week electricity curriculum using three e-textiles projects that…

Viruses are all around--and within. They replicate inside the cells of living organisms. An estimated 1.6 million to 40 million of them occupy each cubic meter of the air people breathe. The activity described in this article helps students understand how the structure of a virus allows it to infect a specific set of organisms and cell types.…

The Calculator Controlled Robots activities are designed to engage students in hands-on inquiry-based missions. These activities address National science and technology standards, as well as specifically focusing on mathematics content and process standards. There are ten missions and three exploration extensions that provide activities for up to…

Now available as a Download! This valuable resource helps educators teach students about both the risks and benefits of flooding through a series of engaging, hands-on activities. Acknowledging the different roles that floods play in both natural and urban communities, the book helps young people gain a global understanding of this common--and…

Building and launching model rockets makes a great activity for a technology education class. A model rocket curriculum provides a valuable tool for improving students' technical skills, including following technical instructions and procedures while learning about aerospace technology. This article describes a way of making model rocketry more…

Introduces a project for elementary school students in which students build a robot by following instructions and then write a computer program to run their robot by using LabView graphical development software. Uses ROBOLAB curriculum which is designed for grade levels K-12. (YDS)

Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using laptop computers rather than desktop computers in science classroom and laboratory instruction. Finds that while laptops provide greater flexibility, they come at a greater expense. Lists the uses of laptops in a departmental curriculum. (Author/WRM)

Introduces internet resources that are available for instructional use in biology classrooms. Provides information on video-based technologies to create and capture video sequences, interactive web sites that allow interaction with biology simulations, online texts, and interactive videos that display animated video sequences. (YDS)

Preparing students to be successful in a rapidly changing world means showing them how to use the tools of technology and how to integrate those tools into all areas of learning. This booklet is divided into three sections: Design Activities, Experiments, and Resources. The design activities ask students to collaborate on design projects. In these…

Design technology integrates problem solving with an awareness of the effects of technology on society and the environment. This book places problem solving in a realistic context and addresses situations that are meaningful to students. Design technology aims to develop confidence in problem solving and competence in using technology wisely. This…

Reviews three projects that use a graphing calculator linked to a calculator-based laboratory device as a portable data-collection system for students in chemistry classes. Projects include Isolation, Purification and Quantification of Buckminsterfullerene from Woodstove Ashes; Determination of the Activation Energy Associated with the…

This book addresses the subject of integrating new technology in science instruction and is designed for pre-service teachers, inservice teachers, curriculum and instructional leaders, consultants, and designers of instructional materials for science. Examples for instructional practice lie within the elementary and middle level grade range while…

It is very important to provide a safe learning environment for students while engaging them in investigative and observational hands-on science activities. This teacher's guide provides information on safety rules and regulations in a narrative style while discussing both self-contained classroom teachers and science specialists in the elementary…