Flannery O’Connor said, “I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.” The importance of journal writing is endless: it will help mental clarity, stimulate creative thinking, problem-solving, self-reflection, increase self-awareness and identity, and many other benefits. It is a great warm-up activity to pair with silent reading. Students’ writing can be taken for a grade or participation grade. The quote prompts here were all taken from my book, The Little Book of Big Quotes Vol. I. This list contains over 180 prompts and is editable so you can delete any that do not suit your audience and add some of your own! More journal prompts will be added periodically. Follow me so you can be notified ASAP and can download the most current version of this lesson. If you found this lesson helpful please leave a positive review at my store, thank you!

"The Scientist Rap" rap & hip-hop MP3 music file from the book "Got the Flow: The Hip Hop Diary of a Young Rapper" by Carlos Salinas. Includes printable handout of song lyrics. (100% clean) The main character of the book ("Got the Flow: The Hip-Hop Diary of a Young Rapper") 16-year-old Troy Jones challenges his science teacher that he can write an educational and positive rap song about science without any cursing. He promises to include the legendary scientists: Albert Einstein, Sir Isaac Newton, Nicola Tesla, and Thomas Edison. His teacher, Mrs. Hass, makes him perform it in front of the entire class for his passing grade. He is determined to become a successful rapper to give his mom a better life. If he can write a clean, educational song, then he is a better rapper for having met the challenge. Inspired by losing his first two rap battles, he is determined to win the third one.

"The Scientist Rap" rap & hip-hop music video and song from the book "Got the Flow: The Hip Hop Diary of a Young Rapper" by Carlos Salinas. Includes printable handout of song lyrics. The main character of the book ("Got the Flow: The Hip-Hop Diary of a Young Rapper") 16-year-old Troy Jones challenges his science teacher that he can write an educational and positive rap song about science without any cursing. He promises to include the legendary scientists: Albert Einstein, Sir Isaac Newton, Nicola Tesla, and Thomas Edison. His teacher, Mrs. Hass, makes him perform it in front of the entire class for his passing grade. He is determined to become a successful rapper to give his mom a better life. If he can write a clean, educational song, then he is a better rapper for having met the challenge. Inspired by losing his first two rap battles, he is determined to win the third one.

As many students struggle with understanding what atoms are and how they function and behave, this short, comical story was written to help teach and explain it with humor and wordplay. There are three main characters: the proton, the neutron, and the electron. They are having dinner when a hilarious argument ensues (along with scientific wordplay!). Includes nonfiction reading worksheet on atoms, 20 multiple-choice questions on both pieces, and a KWLS chart. I wrote this short story to help teachers like you help your students understand and learn science through humor. I hope you found it helpful and I would love to hear from you on what you think may make this lesson better. Completely customizable Word Document to meet your needs. Includes answer keys and 18 sheets total.

Helps students investigate body systems including the circulatory (heart & blood), respiratory, skeletal, muscular, digestive, excretory, reproductive, integumentary (skin/hair/nails), nervous, and endocrine (glands/hormones) system. Editable Word document! Includes rubric, helpful instructional videos, works cited page, and other helpful internet links. This lesson is student-centered meaning: -it allows you to become a facilitator -happier teachers -happier students -happier administrators

Thirty-one fill-in-the-blank listening questions to Mythbusters' episode "Viral Hour"(S6, E12) to help students focus on the episode. Can be graded. Key included. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators

A fun class activity that allows students to nominate a peer for a honorable title such as most talented, most style, funniest, most intelligent etc. You can change the categories and each sheet has 4 voting cards.

7 multiple-choice questions about the types of natural resources and the effects of human actions. Helpful internet links and answer key included! Editable Word document. This lesson is student-centered, meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator! --happier teachers! --happier students! --happier administrators!

The activity comes with 4 YouTube video links (entitled: The NASA moon landing, Life on Mars?, Galileo’s Story, and Life on a Space Shuttle) along with small-group discussion questions. This activity worked great with my 7th graders and really engaged them in discussions. I would play the video twice and then let them discuss and answer the questions. This lesson is student-centered meaning: –it allows you to become a facilitator –happier teachers! –happier students! –happier administrators!

A PowerPoint Show explaining the difference and probability of each trait in a Punnett Square. With details on side. Great visual of flower trait probability included. Editable! Standards:Organisms and environments. The student knows that reproduction is a characteristic of living organisms and that the instructions for traits are governed in the genetic material. The student is expected to: (A) define heredity as the passage of genetic instructions from one generation to the next generation; (B) compare the results of uniform or diverse offspring from sexual reproduction or asexual reproduction; and (C) recognize that inherited traits of individuals are governed in the genetic material found in the genes within chromosomes in the nucleus. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers! --happier students! --happier administrators!

Notes explaining the 3 laws of motion with a short (5 MC question quiz) on each law. A final 15 question MC quiz at the end to assess learning. Four quizzes total, all keys included. Includes internet links to helpful videos and materials! This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers! --happier students! --happier administrators!

A fun class activity where students identify the cell organelles and create either an animal or plant cell. The plants cells have a cell wall and chloroplasts. Includes cut out parts and directions. Materials needed: glue, scissors, poster paper, pencil. Visit my store for much more helpful and free stuff! This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators

A 4 page set for research project on Sun, earth, and/or moon. Explains the requirements (which you can change), project ideas, as well as possible project topics. Includes “works cited” pages and presentation score sheet as well. This worked great for me because the students got to choose their research question(s) and created something that was only their own. This lesson is student-centered meaning: –it allows you to become a facilitator –happier teachers –happier students –happier administrators

This lesson is designed to help engage and facilitate learning about weathering, erosion, and deposition process for students. It includes linked videos, handouts, and creative ways to assess students’ learning (blank comic strip templates).There is also Frayer model vocabulary model sheets available to help students understand and remember key vocabulary. Also includes works cited page for research. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators

A graphic organizer of 3 columns and 6 rows with the columns labeled "Asexual" and "sexual" reproduction. Each row is labeled: Definition: In your own words, be specific Characteristics of offspring: Advantages: Disadvantages: Drawing/ Illustration: Answer Key included. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators

A matching quiz on 11 body systems. Includes circulatory, endocrine, muscular, skeletal, male reproductive, female reproductive, respiratory, digestive, urinary, excretory, nervous. Answer key included. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators Standard: Identify the main functions of the systems of the human body. (e.g. 7.12B) ! ! ! ! ! !

A research project for students to research and gain a deeper understanding of natural resources and the current problems facing the world. Includes requirements, sample project ideas, and brainstorming topics. Standard: (iii) Energy resources are available on a renewable, nonrenewable, or indefinite basis. Understanding the origins and uses of these resources enables informed decision making. Students should consider the ethical/social issues surrounding Earth's natural energy resources, while looking at the advantages and disadvantages of their long-term uses. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators

A graphic organizer that allows students to brainstorm what adaptations they would need to survive in each type of environment. Environments include Tropical forest, dessert, grasslands, arctic, cold forest, and aquatic. This is a great group activity that will help explain what adaptations are. Also included KWL chart for students monitoring their learning progress!

Video guide questions for the Mythbusters episode: Moon landing Hoax. Great to keep the students focused. Word for word from video. Link to stream episode online as well. Key included. Standards: (i) To develop a rich knowledge of science and the natural world, students must become familiar with different modes of scientific inquiry, rules of evidence, ways of formulating questions, ways of proposing explanations, and the diverse ways scientists study the natural world and propose explanations based on evidence derived from their work. (ii) Scientific investigations are conducted for different reasons. All investigations require a research question, careful observations, data gathering, and analysis of the data to identify the patterns that will explain the findings. Descriptive investigations are used to explore new phenomena such as conducting surveys of organisms or measuring the abiotic components in a given habitat. Descriptive statistics include frequency, range, mean, median, and mode. A hypothesis is not required in a descriptive investigation. On the other hand, when conditions can be controlled in order to focus on a single variable, experimental research design is used to determine causation. Students should experience both types of investigations and understand that different scientific research questions require different research designs. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators

This handy tool has been proven time and time again in studies to help students activate prior knowledge, help monitor their progress, and reinforce new learning. Here's a free downloadable PDF KWL chart and graphic organizer. This lesson is student-centered meaning: --it allows you to become a facilitator --happier teachers --happier students --happier administrators