Teaching Tips and Resources

Teaching Tips

• Take time to intro - make sure students understand why they are here, and why they should care.
• Make sure students understand your expectations and what is going to happen in the lesson.
• Always make sure you have students' attention before you begin speaking to the group. Vary your techniques - use countdowns, actions, humor, call and response, signals, etc.
• Engage students to maintain focus and energy - a worthy read: Engaging and Managing Students in Outdoor Science (BEETLES)
• Use Discussion Routines - don't always just call on one student at a time - get all involved - for more great resources on productive talk, see Encouraging Student Discussion and Productive Talk (BEETLES)
• Use EPR/TPR (Every Pupil Response/Total Pupil Response) - give them time to think, then when most are signaling they have an idea, have them share (see discussion routines for varied ways to share). For example, "scratch your chin thoughtfully if you are still thinking, and when you have an idea, or think you know, point to your brain." "Thumbs up if you think you understand, sideways if you aren't sure, and down if you don't get it yet." Good ways to check in.
• Vocabulary checks - when you use a word they may not know, stop to give a brief definition, or ask them to give one.
• Use Wait Time - this is hard - but giving students time to think before answering for them is more effective. Sing Mary had a Little Lamb or Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in your head if you have a hard time waiting without jumping in .
• Elicit prior knowledge from students after giving them context (what do you think you know about...?)
• Validate and redirect responses - even if they are way off, you can usually pick one word they said and use that as a springboard to redirect to what you are looking for. "It has something to do with making things..."
• Use active demonstrations (involving students) when possible - e.g. Glacial Shuffle, fun/quick hand motions for repeated concepts (e.g., in geology, vulcanism and glaciation)
• Avoid value judgments in the beginning, help students make those judgments on their own after learning more
• Less telling, more showing, and better still, more involving (hands-on, inquiry, discussion)
• Encourage scientific processes - ask students what they notice (observation), and what they wonder about what they noticed (questioning). Learn more about using "I Notice, I Wonder..." methods (BEETLES)

Outdoor Science Education References

• BEETLES - Resources for Outdoor Science Programs (Lawrence Hall of Science)
  • Engaging and Managing Students in Outdoor Science - very good stuff in this.
  • I Notice, I Wonder, It Reminds Me Of... (aka, INIWRMO) - Good exploration prompts
  • Discussion Routines - it is really helpful to find ways to involve all students rather than only one at a time raising their hand to participate.
  • Encouraging Student Discussion and Productive Talk is another resource on this topic.
  • Ecosystem Literacies and Exploration Guides

Science Standards and More

• A Framework for K-12 Science Education
• Next Generation Science Standards
• California Education and the Environment Initiative
• A Blueprint for Environmental Literacy

Professional Development / Outdoor Environmental Education and Science Education Organizations

• California Association for Outdoor and Environmental Education - Great statewide and regional conferences and more
• California Science Teachers Association - Excellent Science teaching conferences
• National Science Teachers Association
• North American Association for Environmental Education