This article describes how a farm-based class in the Great Lakes region investigated how plants and animals prepare for winter. Two groups of children, ranging in ages from three to five years old, had a farm, pasture, gardens, forest, and a pond available for exploration. A low teacher-to-child ratio was maintained, with one teacher to…

Using the National Center of Education Statistics' Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), this report analyzes data on Native American recipients of bachelor's degrees among 16 physical science and engineering fields. Overall, Native Americans are earning physical science and engineering bachelor's degrees at lower rates than the…

Agricultural communicators and extension educators need to make scientific information about global warming, a critical component of climate change, more salient to the general public to increase knowledge and to encourage people to take action to mitigate its effect; however, views on global warming are diverse. Scientists have repeatedly shown…

Kids Rethink New Orleans Schools is an organization of primarily middle school youth that formed after Hurricane Katrina destroyed most of the city's schools. This chapter describes Rethink's first six years of operation, which culminated in school system policy changes and an HBO documentary about the organization's groundbreaking work.

Objective: Socially-relevant and controversial topics, such as the climate crisis, are subject to differences in the explanations that scientists and the public find plausible. Scaffolds can help students be evaluative of the validity of explanations based on evidence when addressing such topics and support knowledge gains. Method: This study…

This study examined seasonal differences in children's segmented-day physical activity (PA) and time engaged in sedentary activities. Seventy-three children wore a pedometer during winter and spring and completed a diary relating to their after-school sedentary activities and time playing outside. Children recorded higher steps in spring compared…

The purpose of this research was to explore children's understandings of everyday, synthetic and scientific concepts to enable a description of how abstract, verbally taught material relates to previous experience-based knowledge and the consistency of understanding about cloud formation. This study examined the conceptual understandings of cloud…

Learning Management Systems (LMS) are software-based platforms that provide the framework and tools needed to create online learning and/or training. Integration of a Learning Management System (LMS) in public education "opens new possibilities for online interaction among teachers, students, and parents" (Blau & Hameiri, 2010, p.…

The aims of this study were to analyse recreational sea kayaking and touring incidents in Norway with a specific focus on wind conditions and to elaborate on practical implications for the prevention of future incidents. We included 49 incidents reported by the media between 2000 and 2014. Incidents occurred in various wind conditions, but most…

Sarah DeBacher and Deborah Harris-Moore offer their experiences with teaching in the aftermath of traumatic situations. DeBacher, who taught at the University of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and Harris-Moore, who taught at UC Santa Barbara following a mass shooting, explore the difficulty of teaching writing in the wake of…

As districts contemplate how to safely reopen schools for the coming year, it is important that each facility that is used to carry out the mission of the district be maintained to provide a safe and healthy environment. This maintenance involves cleaning and sanitization, modifications supporting social distancing, modification of movement…

Observing and documenting elements of weather teach children about using tools and their senses to learn about the environment. This column discusses resources and science topics related to students in grades preK to 2. This month's issue describes an activity where students indirectly document local weather by counting outdoor clothing types worn…

In snowy climates, school superintendents must frequently decide whether an impending storm warrants closing schools for the day. Concerns about student and teacher safety must be weighed against the loss of student learning time, along with state requirements for days of instruction and the cost and inconvenience of extending the school year into…

Competition to attract international students continues to grow and understanding the factors that influence study destination choice is critical to the marketing efforts of nations, states, and institutions. This survey-based study of international students at Michigan State University demonstrates that they appear to choose the country in which…

This study explored the effect of arts integration into science during an instructional unit on force and motion and one addressing natural weather disasters. Seventy-eight elementary students in four classrooms (grade 5, grade 4, and two at grade 3) participated in the study. This study assessed content retention, student-made products…