More Tools For Science
Project Noah is a tool to explore and document wildlife and a platform to harness the power of citizen scientists everywhere. This app not only teaches biology concepts, but civic responsibility and journalism. Students can contribute to this crowdsourced nature journal of flora and fauna simply by taking pictures of the world around them. You and your class can also join group or global missions to gain information for particular research goals. One of the best parts of this app is the “active user community,” which gives your students a great forum to talk science with professionals and novices around the world.
For hands-on inquiry science, Instructables is a great source for cool projects that will inspire and guide kids. This community of user-created projects aren’t limited to science alone, but include a huge repertoire of physical science, biology, and food science activities (many of which are created by students). You can also get involved in education groups and send messages to other teachers or parents. This is a great all-around resource for any STEM supporter.
Algodoo mixes the concepts of a sandbox and laboratory so that students can create their own physics questions and discover the laws that govern gravity, magnetism, and light. Teachers can use the built-in lessons, which feature reflection and assessment options, or create simple labs and tutorials that can be duplicated by students at a later time. Teachers love this app because it really gives students a hands-on experience with physics. Watch my Algodoo Presentation here
News-O-Matic is a non-fiction reading app launched in early 2014 as a way for educators to support their curriculum with reading practice. The School Edition provides five CCSS-aligned stories each day, with additional extension activities and quizzes. News-O-Matic also incorporates writing exercises, which is perfect for schools that promote cross-curricular content support. Although it’s not specifically a science app, there is a wealth of great science and math activities and stories. News-O-Matic is a great tool for teaching students how to discovery the science in non-science news and to question and discuss how science impacts real news. Great for promoting science literacy.
Labster is a web-based app which focuses on teaching biotechnology and microbiology, specifically to perform labs that are too expensive or unsafe for a traditional lab setting. Best of all, the app is inquiry-based, meaning that students can make mistakes, hone their hypotheses, and learn the underlying concepts in a very organic way. A recent study published in Nature Biotechnology showed that regularly using this app in the classroom actually increased learning outcomes by more than 70%.