New introductions to invasive mosquitoes, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, increase the risk for vector-borne diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika in the United States. Tracking these new introductions is more important than ever. This lesson plan focuses on the collection of mosquito larvae and pupae before the onset of summer with a…

Inquiry projects can play an important role in science education, despite involving significant challenges for teachers and students. Based on historical references, small groups of students and their teachers carried out inquiry projects on the ability of certain insects to 'revive' after remaining immersed in water for some time. The striking…

The primary learning objectives of this "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS; NGSS Lead States 2013) aligned activity is to help high school biology students experience firsthand the role of replication in scientific inquiry and food preference as a behavioral reproductive trait of the Madagascar hissing cockroach. The secondary…

A lesson that focuses on the intricate co-evolution of flowers with their pollinators is one way to help students learn the delicate balance in nature and help ensure that our actions do not upset this balance. In this lesson students use the engineering design process to engineer a flower that is a perfect model for its chosen pollinator. Next,…

Understanding genetic mechanisms affords the ability to provide causal explanations for genetic phenomena. These mechanisms are difficult to teach and learn. It has been shown that students sometimes conceive of genes as traits or as trait-bearing particles. We termed these "nonmechanistic" conceptions of genetic phenomena because they…

During the Jurassic period (201 million to 145 million years ago), termites up to 15 mm long consumed and recycled vegetation and feces. Since then, termites have evolved into some 3,000 identified species, have colonized every continent except Antarctica, and are major contributors to nutrient cycling and vertebrate food webs (Shaw 2014).…

Exemplary for social insects, "Temnothorax" ants allow for various hands-on investigations in biology classes. The aim of this study was to provide a quantitative and qualitative analysis of secondary school students' learning achievement after teaching units with ants lasting between one and six weeks. The questionnaires included…

In this "Science Notes" feature, Duncan Short, from Inverkeithing High School in Scotland, describes how his school has created a wildflower meadow that is doubling up as an outdoor research laboratory. With guidance, pupils are using the new meadow to monitor what bumblebees are present, thus taking part in real and useful research. Two…

Many high school science students do not encounter opportunities for authentic science inquiry in their formal coursework. Ecological field studies can provide such opportunities. The purpose of this project was to teach students about the process of science by designing and conducting experiments on whether and how honey bees (Apis mellifera)…

"I Wonder" boards are a teaching strategy that can be used in the classroom, as well as during science learning opportunities in nonformal settings, such as after-school science programs or summer camps.This simple strategy has led to deeper science exploration in 4-H, as young people learn alongside program staff, teachers, or…

Madagascar hissing cockroaches (MHC) are amazing insects that can be an integral part of an effective science learning and teaching environment. MHCs have a fascinating social structure. They make excellent pets, teach students how to properly care for animals, and their large size adds to their "wow" factor. These characteristics make them unique…

We developed a predator-prey activity with eighth-grade students in which they used wolf spiders ("Lycosa carolinensis"), house crickets ("Acheta domestica"), and abiotic factors to address how (1) adaptations in predators and prey shape their interaction and (2) abiotic factors modify the interaction between predators and…

The authors have developed a lesson to investigate basic principles of ecology, more specifically niche partitioning, while using a jigsaw activity that explores galling insects' interactions with goldenrods. Not only does this lesson capture secondary students' interest and keeps them engaged in hands-on activities, the content addresses two…

Chromosomal aneuploidy, a deviation from an exact multiple of an organism's haploid chromosome number, is a difficult concept for students to master. Aneuploidy arising from chromosomal non-disjunction (NDJ) is particularly problematic for students, since it arises in the context of meiosis, itself a challenging subject. Students learning NDJ are…

A firefly learning module for the sustainable development was developed for Thai secondary school students in the study province. A deeper connection between environment, social and economic dimensions, which lies at the core of sustainability, became the key issue for this learning module. Also an important dimension of the module was the…