SDW17 - Category3

23 April is recognised as the World Book and Copyright Day by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). On 4 April 2017, Scientix published eight great science books selected by its Scientix Ambassadors to give you the opportunity to read some or all of them before the World Book Day. Save the date and join us on this occasion to celebrate great literature in the field of science!

Click on one of the buttons to see the two selected books per subject.

For the STEM Discovery Week 24 to 30 April 2017, teachers are invited to participate in a discussion in an open forum here about the selected books and share ideas on how they can be used in science lessons. Scientix will award the best ideas shared with this community.

The goal of the competition is twofold:

  • To raise general awareness about science and scientific literacy through a community based approach and peer-reviewed exchange of information.
  • To show how scientific literature can improve classroom discussions and activities.

You are welcome to use the forum here to introduce yourself and to get to know other colleagues interested in science literature. Scientix will use the discussion forum to inform you as soon as new discussion threads are added on 23 April. You will receive a notification by e-mail if you introduce yourself in the discussion thread.

Read the terms and conditions

NOTE THAT YOU MUST BE REGISTERED AND SIGNED IN WITH YOUR OPEN ID IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DISCUSSION FORUM

Foorumid (cat3)

Share your classroom ideas here

Robert Baldursson, modified 6 Aastad ago.

Share your classroom ideas here

Community member Postitused: 33 Liitumise kuupäev: 11.05.15 Viimased postitused
Use this thread to share your classroom ideas inspired by Engineering for every kid: Easy activities that make learning science fun by Janice VanCleave. Looking forward to hearing your ideas!
gülhanım dursun, modified 6 Aastad ago.

RE: Share your classroom ideas here

Community member Postitused: 2 Liitumise kuupäev: 5.11.16 Viimased postitused
Hello
My class activity is 
To determine how the shape of a material can
make it stronger.



Metarials : 
Papers , Glue

We are going to test the strength of paper, folded in differently  shaped columns, by piling books on top. This is very similar to how columns are used to support buildings and other structures.

The cylinder can support the most books because it’s walls don’t have any edges. The force of the books cannot become concentrated in a particular area. The load is distributed evenly. In other words, all parts of the cylinder are sharing the load of the books.  All parts of the cylinder, therefore, contribute to it’s overall strength until, finally, it collapses.The square and triangle deform more easily.  They shift the weight of the books to their edges and corners, which deforms their walls and leads to a quick collapse.  They are unable to carry weight only at their edges.  



 
Maria Melniciuc, modified 6 Aastad ago.

RE: Share your classroom ideas here

Community member Postitused: 6 Liitumise kuupäev: 12.12.16 Viimased postitused

The activities are based on the chapter 9 Recover Petroleum Engineering from Janice's VanCleave book.

Activity 1

Individually the students will search on the Internet the topic:  What is the petroleum used for?
A Padlet will be created by the teacher and the students will complete with the examples they find  (links, pictures or videos about petroleum and petroleum products).


Activity 2

Students will watch together the video with the experiment   Mixing Oil & Water Science Experiment (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neS6Tm_HXKE ) and after that will try to answer  the questions in the video.

 
Activity3
The teacher will explain the miscibility and density notions using the Tedex lesson http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-don-t-oil-and-water-mix-john-pollard#watch (the video has aRomanian subtitle too) and some other  videos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6aoJNqt1MQ (Oil and water mixed in slow motion), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AwUeeBMcRk  (SchoolFreeware Science Video 5 - Density of Salt Water, Fresh Water And Oil) and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z50jEi1igNQ (Denser Than You Think - Science Experiment).

Activity4
The students will try to answer the questions  in the Think part of the Tedex lesson http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-don-t-oil-and-water-mix-john-pollard#review

Teacher will help with additional questions (the exercises in Janice's vanCleave book) and an extra activity in the Dig Deeper section of the Tedex lesson (Additional Resources for you to Explore) http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-don-t-oil-and-water-mix-john-pollard#digdeeper  

Homework
Groups of 3 students will be formed and they will have to try the experiment at home and they will film the experiment trying to explain the results.
A report on the experiment will be written by every group using  the structure that Janice VanCleave suggests in Guide to the Best Science Fair Projects: Introduction, Experiment, Discussion, Conclusion, Acknowledgements and References.
 
 


 

These are the eight science books selected for the World Book Day and STEM Discovery Week 2017! In order to compete in our competition, start by:

  1. Read one or more of the selected titles
  2. Design an idea for a classroom activity based on your book
  3. Share your idea with peers in the discussion forum above during the STEM Discovery Week 24 to 30 April

Science books

 

This world famous book in the field of physics explores the origin of our universe, including the Big Bang and black holes, and the relevance of concepts such as space and time and other forces that govern our existence.

Author: Stephen Hawking

Originally published: 1988

Uncle Tungsten was a producer of tungsten-filament lightbulbs who ignited Oliver Sacks’ interest in chemistry, especially chemical reactions and the periodic table. This book is a fascinating story about scientific discoveries and inspiration during childhood.

Author: Oliver Sacks

Originally published: 2001

A brief history of time

Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a chemical boyhood

Technology books

A young boy, who is the outcome of genetic experiments, possesses great tactical skills playing computer games. This may be just what mankind has been waiting for in order to fight back against invasive alien species.

Author: Orson Scott Card

Originally published: 1985

This futuristic science-fiction describes the technical evolution of robots that are originally developed in order to serve humans. However, they eventually become so advanced that humans become obsolete.

Author: Isaac Asimov

Originally published: 1950

Ender's Game

I, Robot

Engineering books

Engineers can see a structure where there is none in place, possessing the ability to turn problems into solutions and solutions. This book collects narratives and case studies to show how engineering is used to innovate, standardise and optimise.

Author: Guru Madhavan

Originally published: 2015

This book is a collection of 25 entertaining experiments and activities in engineering in everyday situations, including step-by-step instructions, expected results of each activity and simple scientific background for each experiment.

Author: Janice VanCleave

Originally published: 2007

Applied minds: How engineers think

Engineering for every kid: Easy activities that make learning science fun

Mathematics books

Robert really dislikes studying maths, but this changes when he meets the Number Devil, who appears in Robert’s dreams to teach him maths and inspire him. With the help of the Number Devil, Robert gets to know fractions, geometry and other mathematic concepts.

Author: Hans Magnus Enzensberger

Originally published: 1997

Mr. Ruche receives a delivery to his house in Paris including a great number of maths books from Brazil. His parrot likes to talk about maths and together they give lessons to children. However, he soon discovers the real reason behind the delivery.

Author: Denis Guedj

Originally published: 1998

The number devil: a mathematical adventure

The Parrot's Theorem

STEM Discovery Week IN NUMBERS

SDW17 Infograph

This infograph demonstrates the main achievements accomplished and outreach during STEM Discovery Week 2017.

 

COMPETITIONS

‘MAKE YOUR OWN POSTER’

‘Make your own Poster’ with your favourite subjects and resources from the Scientix Resources Respository. Read more.

‘ORGANISE A STEM EVENT’

Organise or participate in an event dedicated to any STEM subject and opportunities from 24 to 30 April 2017. Read more.

‘YOUR FAVOURITE SCIENCE BOOK’

Share ideas for classroom activities in relation to selected science books and discuss them in an open forum. Read more.