Pin it to Teach it
Pop Culture
One major idea I've have to teach myself is that I'm not a performer or actress putting on a show for these kids. I'm there to make sure that they are learning important skills to apply to their lives. But the idea of engagement is so important especially in middle school. Whether we like it or not, not all of our students are going to be excited for every lesson we have prepared. The idea of incorporating popular culture into my science lessons though is coming much easier to me now. I've found so many resources such as the gifs, memes, and television show references in the lessons. Even though I did have to find the specific ones to fit with my specific lesson it made for a great hook to get them laughing or mesmerized. I showed the gifs below during the first week of school. You would have thought the newest blockbuster was playing on my white board. These little images or references shows our students examples of how the content we are learning can be applied to their own lives. Through this last quarter as a reward we will be making slime and relating it to both the movie "Flubber" and the chemical changes that occur when mixing the substances! If that isn't fun then I don't know what fun is!
How to Engage My Middle School Students
through Teaching Science with Pop Culture
Each of the following posts is a different example of pop culture and a different type of media that relates to a science concept or topic. I have listed what concepts of the science curriculum it relates to (if it relates to a specific one), explained the importance of each, and how it would engage my students. The ideas of how I would incorporate them into my own classroom are my own, but the gifs, memes, and projects themselves are made from amazing teachers that have shared their ideas online and Pinterest. The references for each are below each post.
Science on the First Day of School
If you've never heard of Buzzfeed before I highly recommend visiting the site for your own viewing pleasure. This Buzzfeed article consists of 18 science related gifs that are mesmorizing and even funny at times. Gifs are just seconds long and consist of a moving animation that repeats itself constantly. It is something that may only last 4 seconds, but you could end up watching and thinking about for minutes to hours. I want my students to be engaged in my classroom from the first day they enter it. I believe that these simple images can change the way they will think about science for that year and maybe even for their future science classes! Many of these images contain experiments and activities that relate to science concepts. I would show them this article and discuss them as an ice breaker activity on the first day, followed by a short yet engaging experiment of our own!
Class Rules From the Pros
The first week of school can be so monotenous for students, especially in middle school and high school. They hear the same type of rules and procedures in all of their classes for the entire first week, but you can mix it up in your class! You can apply your class rules to the pop culture. You can use television, movies, sports, or whatever you want. You then write your rule in a way that the person or character would say it if they were to tell the students the rule in their own words or in a meme format. It can be a a fun, laid back way to break the ice with your class and to show them that you aren't ancient and can actually connect with them on some level. This can be applied to any class, grade, and subject. Just mix it up to fit your situation!
The Circle of Life
The Lion King is an iconic childhood Disney film that can teach so many lessons to children. But in this particular instance the movie can teach students about food webs in the environment. A teacher has made a short film talking about the circle of life in a Youtube video. You could go through the actual movie and watch the most engaging and important parts (this is especially important for those students who haven't seen the film). Then by incorporating the standard below you can show real life versions of how food webs work in the environment. I even added a fun art project involving food chains where the students create a collage through their chosen organisms. This is such an engaging way to teach this standard, while also being a great connection to the students who may struggle with the concept.
To Screen or Not to Screen?
As a science teacher there are many opportunties to incorporate real life lessons that affect our students lives in the classroom. In this case, especially for students who are outside a lot it is important to emphasize the importance of sunscreen. There are so many ads for sunscreen shown to use through the media, but they don't accurately show the real affects that sunscreen can have on our health. This lesson would allow your students to see how sunscreen can protect their skin after a long day out in the sun. They will be amazed by the results and really begin to think about protecting themselves. I would teach this lesson when I teach about the sun and it's affect on our planet, but it could be incorproated any way you like!
Chemistry Cat
There are many jokes that get cycled around the Internet and then remixed over and over. In particular this type of media is called a meme. It is an idea sometimes like a catchphrase that gets spread through the media and the culture. This example consists of Chemistry Cat. These cat memes are made up of jokes and puns based on basic ideas from the periodic table of elements. Some other science jokes are thrown in too. This is just a funny way to possibily open your class for the day while teaching your students about these science concepts that may not be as entertaining as a cat in a bow tie and glasses. Along with the meme warmup idea you could have your students each find one to show to the class each day or have your students try to make their own for extra credit. It adds variety to the classroom, while also getting them to think about these concepts outside of the school walls.
Exit Slip Apps
Students love using apps between classes and after school on their mobile devices. These students love these social media apps and are great at expressing themselves and their thoughts in these formats. Here is a great way to incorporate these apps into a formative assessment format. Exit slips are great ways to assess your students in a laid back way at the end of a class. This is a great tool to use in any classroom, grade level, and subject area! This pack of exit slips contains 17 different app formats, including Facebook, Instagram, Text Messages, and even Email! The sheets can be used in full or half if you need to conserve paper. As a bonus the package comes with a bulletin board kit so that the students can "post" their work in the class or even in the hallway! This is a great way to assess your class while engaging them along the way!
Jokes on Jokes
Sometimes the classroom can begin to feel a little stiff or even dull. Jokes and puns can lighten the mood and even teach us something! All of these jokes were put together to teach a science concept. You have Earth science jokes about the three types of rock and rock paper scissors and physical science jokes about iconic bonds, bases, photons, and a gradulated cylinder. All of these jokes are both punny and get you to think for a second to figure the pun out if it wasn't automatic. When school today is so draining it is our job as the teachers to try to make the situation our students are in as enjoyable and comfortable as possible and I think jokes can help you with that along the way.
Singing about Science
Why is it that you can remember lyrics to hundreds of songs, but it can be so difficult to remember information that you've just recently learned? Well I don't have the answer to that so instead I think we should incorporate this skill into the classroom. By showing students music videos the songs get stuck in our heads and the information becomes easier to remember over a regular lecture. This video on the top right in particular would be great when teaching students about atoms. It could be a hook to a lesson or used whenever it fits for you! This video is called "Symphony of Science - the Quantum World!" It is described as "a musical investigation into the nature of atoms and subatomic particles, the jiggly things that make up everything we see. Featuring Morgan Freeman, Stephen Hawking, Michio Kaku, Brian Cox, Richard Feynman, and Frank Close". Kids will love seeing these celebrities and hearing the catchy beat! The second pin on the bottom right is a Youtube channel that contains popular songs remixed with science concepts! For example the latest song is "Volcanoes Place by the Ocean" (previously known as "Cake by the Ocean" by DNCE). This is literally the best pin I have ever found for science. Go listen and learn!
Chemical Gifs
Watch your students' eyes as they become mesmorized by these gifs about chemistry. These are just two of the many gifs on the link. These show chemical and physical reactions occurring with different substances. I highly recommend using these to introduce the difference between physical and chemical reactions. Or just have one playing as you begin class. It surely will get everyone on track for the day!
Science Games
Remember those file folder games from elementary school? Well here comes some games that can help students learn and practice the periodic table. The top right is a scavenger hunt featuring characters and people from popular culture. The bottom right game features the classic battleship with a twist. Both of these games can be kept in your room ready when you have a free day or extra time in class. They are helpful resources when memorizing the table gets a little boring.
Frozen Science with Olaf
Let Olaf take over and teach your students about the phases of matter. Open up with his song "In Summer" and then follow up with his activities connected to his pin. Then as a fun bonus activity show your students how they can have Elsa's frozen powers for an experiment. You could end the day with Elsa singing "Let it Go"! Enjoy these activities and lessons based on the movie Frozen. Your students especailly if they are younger will surely be engaged!
May the Science be with you
STEM activities are great ways to inspire young scientists! After the release of the latest Star Wars film I am sure that they will love these. You can choose to use the STEM activities on the far right or introduce coding to your class. You'll have to spend a day in the computer lab if you choose to do the "Hour of Code" project. Coding has become a major activity for young minds across the country so hop on board and see how you can help young minds grow!
Harry Potter and the Genetics Assignment
Let our favorite wizard teach your students about the magic that is genetics! This pin comes with lesson plans for younger and older students. Pick the lesson plan that fits your class best and let the wizarding world take over! This assignment is a great assessment either formative or summative of the genetics unit!
Scientific Method
Feat.
Lil Wayne & Drake
Learning the scientific method each year can become a bit monotonous and boring, but not this year! A brilliant teacher wrote scenarios based on the steps of the scientific method that involved the rap artists Lil Wayne and Drake. You can count on it that students will have fun reading about these celebrities while learning the method.
Big Hero 6 STEM
Incorporating movies into the curriculum can have a lot of positive effects because it increases engagement and interest in the material. These activities based around the Big Hero 6 movie are geared towards the STEM curriculum. The STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) activities could be connected to specific science concepts you happen to be teaching or can be great activities to practice the scientific method or following through with a procedure/instructions. Either way these can be great additions to your repertoire of science projects!
Trading Cards: Periodic Elements
Now these aren't baseball cards or Yugioh cards, but they can add some variety to your periodic table of elements lessons. Each of the 112 elements has been made into a character to represent it based on its' properties. You could use these to discuss the particular elements you are learning about or have each student pick one and have them do a project on that element. These are also great study tools for a periodic table assessment!
The Science Guy
There are some days when you just need someone else to explain the concepts and who better than the science guy himself, Bill Nye. These lessons contain an app, videos, and activities that follow along with the science curriculum. Find what you need and let a scientist teach them a few things about your unit. These are also great resources if you have an emergency sick day and need some substitute lesson plans!
Go out with a Flubber!
On the last day of school I would like to go out with a bang or flubber if you will. We will watch the movie Flubber with Robin Williams while making our own flubber in the classroom. They will read the directions and figure out how to make the concoction. This will be just a fun way to connect with the movie and relax after a long year of hard work!
Extra
Science
Fun:
BONUS: Storyline Online
Celebrities are a huge part of both pop culture and our students lives'. They are the role models of each generation. Well the Screen Actors Guild Foundation has created a site that shows celebrities reading children's books. So instead of reading to your class like you probably do every week, these celebrities get to be a "guest" in your room and read to them instead. The site has about ten young celebrities so far, but two of them stood out to me for younger students especially: Karan Brar from Disney Channel's Jessie and Bunk'd and Mindy Sterling from iCarly, A.N.T. Farm, and Chowder. It is an online streaming video program that is completely free and even comes with activities to do with the text after the video is over. This tool is great at encouraging reading among students when they see their role models enjoying it themselves!
Here is the link to my Pinterest Board for this project as well:
References:
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