middle school science

Chemical Illustrations of Flattening the Curve

With the current global COVID-19 pandemic, there has been much discussion of “flattening the curve” by social distancing. These ideas can be demonstrated chemically, for example, by the iron-catalyzed decomposition of hydrogen peroxide to produce an oxygen gas foam. Decreased hydrogen peroxide concentrations, representing decreased human population concentrations from social distancing, produce oxygen gas foam, representing cases of illness, at a slower rate. A similar demonstration can be achieved using the popular Diet Coke and Mentos experiment. These simple experiments are best used as stand-alone demonstrations.

10 Principles of Effective Games to Make School a Better Learning Environment

Gameful learning isn’t about playing educational games; instead, it’s about creating a highly motivating and engaging learning environment by implementing proven game design elements into a course structure. With gamified learning, students are challenged and motivated to construct knowledge that goes far beyond the basics of an educational game.

What is Gamification in Education?

The notion is to increase student engagement and persistence by embedding game design elements in a course or lesson. It seems to work in other industries, but can game elements be successfully applied in educational contexts?

SBG Hacks: Lab Reports

As a chemistry teacher considering the switch to standards-based grading, you might be wondering how lab reports work in a system that is not based on points. With lab reports, you just need to decide whether you are grading chemistry content skills, scientific communication skills, or both.