How could we organize a math fair? And what kinds of projects would our students present? I’m not thinking here of projects that would be judged, as in a science fair, but rather investigations and activities that would engage middle school students and be presented for the whole school as well as parents. One idea comes from a 7th grade class at Frisbie Middle School in Rialto, California.

Multicultural Math Fair
Ten activities for the fair, each based on a different cultural heritage, are well described in both Spanish and English. Included here are tips on how to set up a math fair as well as student handouts and free software for specific activities, such as the Tower of Hanoi. You will also find links to resources for related activities, such as studying symmetry and patterns in Navajo rugs. A unique teacher-created site!

If you are looking for more project ideas, here are some I think would make great fair presentations and involve students in learning sound math:

Pascal’s Triangle
Here are three ways to explore the famous triangle: by finding patterns and relations within the triangle, solving a pizza toppings problem in Antonio’s Pizza Palace, or working with an interactive web unit. The set of three investigations could work well as one fair project.

The Noon Day Project: Measuring the Circumference of the Earth
In the course of this online project, students learn about Eratosthenes and his experiment, do a similar experiment by collaborating with other schools, and analyze and reflect on the collected data to determine the accuracy of their measurements and what they learned. The project provides detailed instructions, activities, reference materials, online help, and a teacher area.

The Global Sun Temperature Project
This website allows students from around the world to work together to determine how average daily temperatures and hours of sunlight change with distance from the equator. Educators can find project information, lesson plans, and implementation assistance. Participants can submit their project data, pictures, and final reports.

The Data Library
This web site contains an extensive list of ongoing data-sharing projects that would work well as fair projects. It also offers a great set of links to data on population, baseball stats, minimum wage, etc., excellent for students working on any statistics project.

Polyhedra in the Classroom
A set of activities developed for middle school students on aspects of polyhedra. The teacher-creator, Suzanne Alejandre, includes not only instructions for each activity but also assessment suggestions and her mathematical objectives for the unit.

Down the Drain
This Internet-based collaborative project allows students to share information about water usage with other students from around the country and the world. Based on data collected by their household members and their classmates, students determine the average amount of water used by one person in a day. They then compare this to the average amount of water used per person per day in other parts of the world. Students publish reports, photos, or other work for the fair presentation.

Everywhere our students are hearing about the HINI influenza. Their interest offers an opportunity to co-teach with a science teacher in an investigation of what we know and don’t know about this pandemic. The New York Times has created an interdisciplinary lesson Pandemic Panic: Researching the 2009 Influenza A (H1N1) Pandemic that asks students to inquire into the current influenza as advisers from multiple perspectives and to share factual information they learn with their classmates and school communities.

The lesson opens with students considering “what we know” and “what we want to know.” The investigation begins as student groups take on such roles as “health advisers” or “economic advisers” or “historical advisers.” “Statistics advisers” could be added, in my opinion. What do the numbers tell us? FluView from the CDC 2008-2009 Influenza Season Week 38 ending September 26, 2009, gives great graphs of several types, some with an over-abundance of information that students will have to sort, select, and make sense of for themselves and their classmates. Statistics and percentages are topics that take on real meaning here.

If the class becomes interested in other diseases that have affected the world, they could research such epidemics as yellow fever. To get them into the story, look into Yellow Fever and the Reed Commission. They could research the number of victims over time and create a timeline from when the disease first reached the present United States up to the discovery of how to control it. A google search on “number of victims from yellow fever” brings up a few good sources, such as an August 10, 1879, article from The New York Times and another from September 24, 1897. Fascinating! But students will need to find other resources as well—encyclopedias and other books, offline as well as online. 

If the information found is sufficient, they could calculate rates of change over the course of different decades. Were there times when the disease rates rose more quickly? When they did not change at all? You could explore with them the concept of the slope of a line, what it actually tells us. Your students will find that numbers tell interesting stories! 

How big are cells? Ask most middle school students that question, and they’ll tell you that cells are very small - even microscopic! But what if you asked them to compare the size of cells in a whale and a shrew?

That’s the engaging scenario laid out in “Whale and Shrew,” a formative assessment probe from Uncovering Student Ideas in Science, Volume 2: 25 More Formative Assessment Probes (NSTA Press, 2007). The probe unearths a subtle, yet fundamental concept of cell theory - that there are natural constraints that necessarily limit cell size. How can you help your students reach this conclusion?

An inquiry-based activity provides an opportunity for students to answer the question, “How does the size of a cell affect its ability to exchange materials with its environment?” Or, more simply stated, “Why are cells small?”

These two activities could be used as is, or they could be adapted for a guided inquiry experience. Both involve analyzing how the surface area to volume ratio affects the rate of diffusion in cubes of various sizes. Each uses different materials and a slightly different procedure.

Cell Size and Division
http://www.iit.edu/~smile/bi9226.html
Students test”cells” made of agar and phenolphtalein with sodium hydroxide. They observe the rate of diffusion (evident by color change) in 1×1x1, 2×2x2, and 3×3x3 cubes.

Experiment on Cell Surface Area and Volume
http://colgurchemistry.com/Sc10/Sc10BIOLOGY/PDFS/Sc10BiologyAct10SurfaceAreaVolumePDF.pdf
In this lesson, students test “cells” made of potatoes with Lugol’s solution. They observe the rate of diffusion (evidenced by color change) in cubes with a length of 0.5 cm, 1 cm, 1.5 cm, 2 cm, 2.5 cm, and 3 cm. They also calculate the surface area, volume, and ratio of surface area to volume of all cubes.

How can you turn these activities into an inquiry-based lesson? We recommend starting with the probe to assess studen thinking and spark interest. Next, you may ask students to generate a testable question based on the probe, or you may choose to provide the question for them. Students can then plan and conduct an investigation using the materials specified in either one of the lessons. Prompt students to generate claims and draw conclusions based on evidence from the investigation.

Teachers of younger students (grades 5 and 6) may wish to use the potatoes and Lugol’s solution, while an 8th grade teacher may have access to agar, phenolpthalein, and sodium hydroxide. Teachers may also modify this activity by removing the surface area and volume calcuations and instead relying on the qualitative observations made during the activity. Either way, students will gain new insight into why cells in any organism are small.

The Middle School Portal 2: Math and Science Pathways (MSP2) project is starting an online book club. Our first selection is The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. In it, Michael Pollan writes about how our food is grown - what it is, in fact, that we are eating. Pollan looks at industrial farming, then organic farming as big business and then on a small farm, and then what it is like to hunt and gather food for ourselves. Each of the four sections culminates in a meal - a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald’s; roast chicken, vegetables and a salad from Whole Foods; and grilled chicken, corn and a chocolate soufflé (made with fresh eggs) from a sustainable farm; and, finally, mushrooms and pork, foraged from the wild.

Please join our MSP2 book club group as we discuss each of the four meals and discuss ways in which these topics/ideas/concepts can be integrated into the middle school math and science classroom. We can get the discussion started and share resources in the group and then meet October 28, 2009 at 7pm EST to have an online conversation.

Do you have an innovative idea to enhance your school or district’s science education program? Consider applying for a Toyota TAPESTRY grant!

The Toyota TAPESTRY Grants for Science Teachers program, sponsored by Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and administered by NSTA, is now accepting entries for the 2009–2010 competition. Now in its 20th year, the program offers grants up to $10,000 to K–12 science teachers for innovative projects that enhance science education in their school and/or school district over a one-year period.

Fifty large grants and a minimum of 20 mini-grants totaling $550,000 will be awarded this year. Individual science teachers or a team of up to five teachers can submit proposals in one of three categories: physical science application; environmental science education; and integrating literacy and science. A judging panel convened by the NSTA will select the award-winning projects based on several criteria, including their innovative approach in teaching science and ability to create a stimulating and hands-on learning environment.

Since the program’s inception in 1990, Toyota TAPESTRY grants totaling more than $8.6 million have been awarded to science teachers across the country. More than 2,000 teachers have used those funds to develop and execute extraordinary programs that helped hundreds of thousands of students nationwide make a passionate connection with science.

For more information about the Toyota TAPESTRY Grants for Science Teachers program or to learn how to apply, visit www.nsta.org/pd/tapestry. Applications must be submitted no later than January 18, 2010 to be considered. Don’t delay, apply now!

Keeping up with the latest research in science is getting easier - wonderful science blogs and news services can inform and engage both you and your students. Depending on the blog or service, you can have the content delivered to your inbox or show up on your browser homepage. Look for the RSS symbol on the page for directions on how to add the content to your web site or favorite RSS Reader. You can follow many of these on Twitter. Here are some of our favorites - please use the comment box and let us know where you go on the web to stay current with what is happening in science.

Science 360 News Service
Science 360 gathers news from from scientists, college and university press offices, popular and peer-reviewed journals, dozens of National Science Foundation science and engineering centers, and funding sources that include government agencies, not-for-profit organizations and private industry. This portal provides links to audio, video, picture of the day, and selected blog posts (What the blogs are saying today). So if you only have time to look at one resource, this is probably the one you want to look at. One news blast each day.

Wired Science
This blog follows in the footsteps of the parent magazine - an eclectic mix of really interesting stories that cover all science disciplines. Lots of cool images and embedded videos. Not a lot of opinion - mostly summaries of the science that is happening now. Usually one post a day - sometimes two. Also covers some mathematics topics - the latest Mathematical Modeling for Surviving a Zombie Attack.

DotEarth: Nine Billion People, One Planet
In this New York Times blog, Andy Revkin explores the climate, sustainability, and other environmental issues facing us as the global population continues to grow. Frequent thoughtful, well-researched posts, interviews, and interactives will keep you up-to-date with the issues facing our planet.

Bad Astronomy
The guy that writes this blog, Phil Plait, the webmaster of Bad Astronomy, worked on Hubble Space Telescope. He is famous for debunking quite a few science myths (he doesn’t believe in alien encounters). This is a personal blog - he fights the misuses of science and praises the wonder of real science. Usually one post a day.

Science Buzz
Science Buzz, a blog from the Science Museum of Minnesota, is a way to dig deeper into science headlines and share questions and concerns with scientists, museum staff, and other visitors. Bloggers focus on science in the news, emerging research, and seasonal science. They encourage readers to be part of the buzzzzz. Two or more posts most days.

Science News - The New York Times
The science page of the NYT brings together all of the science content from the media outlet - articles, video, science blog posts (including DotEarth), letters to the editor and much more. The page is updated each day.

NPR Health Blog
This blog covers news about health and medicine. It is written and reported by NPR’s Science Desk. Two or more posts each day.

Tween Tribune
Many middle school science teachers expect their students to keep up with science news and trends. If you’re looking for a news source aimed at early adolescents, check out TweenTribune, which uses a blog tool to share fresh science news each week. TweenTribune also provides national and world news, entertainment, and a growing list of book reviews written for tweens.

ScienceDaily
ScienceDaily summarizes the top science news stories from the world’s leading universities and research organizations. These stories are selected from among dozens of press releases and other materials submitted to ScienceDaily every day, and then edited to ensure high quality and relevance. Updated several times a day with breaking news and feature articles, seven days a week, the site covers discoveries in all fields of science. A good search tool and readable content make this site very user-friendly.

Do your middle school students not complete reading assignments or not comprehend them when they do? Is student motivation an issue you struggle with? Do you feel that your students need assistance comprehending the textbook?

We’ve got two new Explore in Depth resource guides that will help - Reading and Writing Mathematics and Reading Comprehension Strategies in Science.

If you are interested in discussing reading, vocabulary, or other literacy topics with other middle school educators, join the Literacy in the Content Areas group of the Middle School Portal 2: Math and Science Pathways project social network.

You may have heard this complaint or even made it yourself: “These tests are more about reading than they are about math!”  Students are increasingly asked to understand and apply math to situations, rather than just perform an operation on numbers. This involves reading the math text that sets out the problem scenario.

Add to that the inherent difficulty of math vocabulary, where a word can mean one thing in a mathematical context and another in everyday settings.  Symbols, another part of vocabulary, can look alike but have different meanings, or different symbols can represent the same operation (for example, *, x, and · for multiplication).

And there’s the textbook, usually opened only for the problem sets, since most students are alienated by its language and its very format.

How can we help middle school students learn to read the math they need for today’s tests and high school courses?  Far from expecting teachers to stretch their class time to include yet more content, I’d like to offer online resources that can enrich math instruction as teachers help their students better understand the content they are already tackling.

Reading in the Mathematics Classroom
Written by Diana Metsisto, a middle school mathematics coach, this online chapter involves both the “why” and the “how” of integrating reading in the teaching of mathematics. She offers a number of concrete classroom strategies.

Unlocking the Mystery of Mathematics: Give Vocabulary Instruction a Chance
Math teacher Bizzie Cors realized that her students needed to “construct meaning for all vocabulary terms and connect to prior knowledge as well as to new concepts and algorithms.”  This led her to create a new process to teach vocabulary development.  Described here is what she calls the “sticky-note chain” process; its final product is a graphic organizer complete with sticky notes, connections, and problems created by the students themselves.

A Maths Dictionary for Kids
This animated, interactive mathematics dictionary for kids explains over 500 common mathematical terms in simple language. Each term is illustrated and, often, accompanied by an interactive applet that makes visual and immediate the definition of the term.

Getting to Know Your Middle Grades Mathematics Textbook
This article by Diane Kahle, an experienced teacher of middle school mathematics, shares general tips, small group and whole class ideas for textbook reading, and a ten-question scavenger hunt to help students learn how to find information in their mathematics textbook.

Books can be used to teach actual math concepts. For ideas, spend a few minutes at the Mathematics Bookshelf.

Please comment on these resources and offer your own ideas on teaching students to read math.

Do your middle school students not complete reading assignments or not comprehend them when they do? Is student motivation an issue you struggle with? Do you feel that your students need assistance comprehending the textbook?

Our newest Explore In Depth publication, Reading Comprehension in Science, is now available. We’ve done our best to provide you with helpful background information and resources, but there’s always more to explore. We’d like your help - do you know of other resources we should include?

If you are interested in discussing reading, vocabulary, or other literacy topics with other middle school educators, join the Literacy in the Content Areas group at the Middle School Portal 2 social network - http://msteacher2.org!

The Middle School Portal 2: Math and Science Pathways (MSP2) project will be hosting a series of free webinars over the next few months. The first four are all about integrating technology - Interactive Notebooks (7/25), Moodle for Middle School (8/5), Digital Storytelling (8/12), and Wikis for the Classroom (8/19) - Wednesdays at 2-2:45pm EST. More information about these webinars can be found in the Events section of the MSP2 social network. Hope you join us!