Science teachers looking to enhance their curriculum with stimulating online content will be sure to find the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Educational Materials website quite useful. One of the main offerings here, HHMI’s Biointeractive, provides a wealth of resources including animations, videos, interactive resources, teacher’s guides, podcasts, and more. Topics include health,...

The Department of Biological Sciences at Idaho State University offers this website as part of a project "to enhance teacher preparation in the sciences by emphasizing inquiry and experimental approaches to science teaching." The site offers one or two lesson plans (mostly at the high school level) for the following subjects: the cell; molecular basis of heredity; biological evolution;...

The National Institutes of Health's National Institute of General Medical Sciences is committed to "basic discoveries for better health." Part of their work includes reaching out to the public through science education publications and online resources. This particular resource allows interested parties to explore the interior design of cells. The electronic booklet contains five chapters, a...

Spring is coming, meaning it's time to track migrations. Journey North (last mentioned in the February 19, 1999 Scout Report) allows students and teachers to track their favorite critters as they make their way to their summer homes. Beginning in February, Journey North will provide migration updates on various species like Bald Eagles, Gray Whales, Hummingbirds, Caribou, and more. After free...

The Khan Academy is a "not-for-profit with the goal of changing education for the better by providing a free world-class education to anyone anywhere. " Designed as a type of educational tool and a living archive, the site contains over 2100 videos that include algebra lessons, calculus sessions, cosmology, and developmental math. The "tool" function comes in when visitors discover that they can...

Kimball's Biology Pages (first reviewed in the May 9, 1997 Scout Report) is an online biology textbook created and maintained by Dr. John W. Kimball, a veteran biology educator and retired Harvard professor. Dr. Kimball believes that the hypertext format is especially well suited for biological study because its nodal structure better approximates the relationships between biological subjects than...

This Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory project demonstrates how computers "can teach some things better, either by themselves or through synergy with conventional methods." The Whole Frog Project uses 3D digital imaging to provide high school biology classes with the opportunity to explore the anatomy of a frog. The virtual frog dissection kit, a Web-based interactive program, uses "data from...

Teaching science can be a daunting endeavor. However, whether you’re a first-time teacher or a seasoned veteran you will find much to appreciate on this website from Lesley University. Created by subject librarians, the site includes data sources for those working with upper level high school students as well as advanced undergraduates and includes teaching resources for students of all ages. On...

Created by a group of educators at the University of Maryland, the goal of the MathBench Biology Modules is "to integrate quantitative approaches and mathematics more deeply into the undergraduate curriculum." As they note on their website "the modules are not full of equations and proofs. Instead we try to bring math to life using intuitive approaches, everyday situations, and even humor."...

Bringing together the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and the lithosphere can be a formidable challenge. This classroom activity created by H. Catherine W. Skinner of Yale University manages to do that quite elegantly, and it is one that geology teachers will want to try out in their own classrooms. In this activity, students will be presented with the opportunity to explore the natural processes that...