I decided to try something new this year with my Chem students: we made balloon orbitals! Below are some pictures and more information about this fun and short activity:
Awesome tool to stay in touch with students: The Remind app!
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you need or want to send a notification to your students for one reason or another? Maybe you forgot to tell them what the homework was. Or maybe you just want to send them an encouraging message during finals week. A couple of years ago I heard about this great new service/app for staying in touch with your students (or parent community, team etc) and it’s FREE!!!!! I was nervous about having a communication tool between me and my students. I didn’t want them to have my phone number or be able to text me with questions constantly. This app makes it so that they don’t see my number and I don’t see theirs. I also turned off the capability for them to reply to my texts (I much prefer the one-way-communication). I decided to give it a go last year because all of my high school students have phones and check them non-stop (note: a phone is not required to sign up for this service, they can also use their email). This was my experience using the Remind app:
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Feel-good Friday!
I read a couple of sweet and inspiring articles a couple of months ago and decided that I wanted to share them with my students. I was trying to think of how I could squeeze it into a day and then I asked myself if it needed to be “squeezed in” or if it was something I felt was valuable enough to have a special chunk of time “carved out” specifically for it. This is what I decided…
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Fun With Neon Expo Markers!
Here is a quick and fun piece of inspiration for you to use after Thanksgiving break: Neon Expo Markers can write on lab tables! Let’s talk about ways to utilize this awesome piece of information!
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6 Ways to Create the Science Mindset
I have noticed that when my students are in the right mindset, they tend to learn with more enthusiasm and are typically more focused. I have found that the following 6 ways tend to work well for creating a science mindset for my students when they are in my classroom working:
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Two Fun Chemistry Demos to do in the First Week of School (or anytime!)
Are you looking for a fun way to kick off your year to Chemistry? Here are two demos that you can do for your classes to help get them excited about Chemistry and science! These are very simple to do and set up and would be great for any age. Enjoy!
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New School, New Classroom!
Last year, I decided to leave my middle school of 6 years and try my hand at high school. I got a couple of different job offers and decided to go with the one with which I had more of a connection. Actually, it’s more than a connection… I will be teaching Chemistry in the very classroom I took it in when I was in High School! Yes, I am returning “home” to give back to the very community in which I grew up! I must admit that it was strange walking into that classroom again, but this time as the teacher. I have so many wonderful science memories from my high school years and I am so excited to create fun memories for my new students on which to look back. Now, onto the tour of my new classroom!
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STEM Car Crash Project
This year, I was lucky enough to be sent to the NSTA conference in Nashville, Tennessee. While there, I attended various workshops on Physics, Chemistry and Astronomy. I was most intrigued in the Physics-based car crash project and decided to implement it. Below is my account of how things went with my students and this project:
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Top 10 items every teacher should have
These are items that I got along just fine without, but then once I had them, I wondered how I ever managed. Plus, it has made my life of teaching more fun and enjoyable!
#1: A nice bag to carry your work in. We all take work home and for some reason, when you are carrying it home in some old ugly bag or a repurposed grocery bag, it feels… sad. I think that when you like the bag you are carrying your work home in, you are more likely to feel ok about the work inside of it. There are some really cool bags out there. Here are a few I like: messenger bags, tote bags and computer bags. I particularly like this store on Etsy. She does personalized orders (combining any fabrics she has and monograms as well!). Here is the bag I ordered from her:
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5 Tips to Make Learning More FUN!
I like to tell my students that if they are bored, I’m bored and if they are having fun, I am having fun. I really do believe this! There is a certain kind of unexplained magic that is palpable when the teacher and students have this synchronic energy of fun in a learning environment. When we have fun, we are more open to new experiences, we are more relaxed and most of all, we are happy! Who doesn’t want that everyday? I know I do and I am willing to bet that you do too. Below are just a few ideas for you to try as well as to help you get started in your own brainstorming session on bringing fun into your classroom.
The Ardent Teacher 