How I Teach Natural Selection to 6th Graders (Without Losing Them)
Natural selection is one of the hardest concepts in 6th grade science — not because it's complicated, but because students arrive with deep misconceptions baked in. Here's the sequence I've built to address those misconceptions head-on, including a simulation that generates real data students can graph and interpret.
Reading Rock Layers: Teaching Superposition Without the Textbook
The rock layer unit is a gift — it's visual, it's logical, and students can actually do the reasoning themselves if you set it up right. Here's how I structure the three-day sequence using relative dating and index fossils.
Making Body Systems Stick: An Interactions-First Approach
Most students can name body systems. Far fewer can explain how they work together. I've flipped the sequence — we start with interactions and work backward to individual systems — and it makes a real difference.
A Plain-Language Guide to Grade 6 MA STE Standards
The Massachusetts STE Frameworks document is 400 pages long. Here's what Grade 6 science teachers actually need to know, organized by unit and cross-referenced with NGSS Science and Engineering Practices.
Free Interactive Tools for Middle School Science (That I Actually Use)
A curated list of web-based tools that work on Chromebooks, don't require logins, and are genuinely worth the class time. These are the ones I return to every year.