Resources for Educators
Ask a Biologist
Ask A Biologist began in 1997 in the School of Life Sciences. The site is maintained by a dedicated group of volunteers. It is designed as an educational resource for students preK-12, and their teachers and parents. Ask a Biologist is visited by over 2,000 people every day.
Chain Reaction
Chain Reaction is a science magazine/web site for students in grades 4-8, published by the Office of Research Communications at Arizona State University. Chain Reaction explores scientific concepts using real research explained by working scientists. The publication's goal is to spark interest in science and higher education and to provide teachers with a high-quality resource.
Ecology Explorers
Ecology Explorers is a community of scientists comprised of university researchers, K-12 students, and their teachers. Through this award-winning outreach program, 2,000 students in 75 schools across the Phoenix metro area conduct scientific research in their own backyards. Students learn about scientific inquiry and the environment while collecting data that contributes to understanding the workings of an urban ecosystem.
Sustainability and Agriculture Teacher's Guide
The Mediterranean Landscape Dynamics project utilizes archaeological, climate, geologic and paleobotanical data to test how farming and herding has shaped Mediterranean landscapes from the beginning of farming to the beginning of complex civilization. Science, social studies, geography, math, and other teachers can learn how history can help us make more sustainable decisions for the future.
Sustainability and Agriculture Teacher's Guide »
Sustainability Science for Sustainable Schools
The Sustainable Schools program teams graduate and faculty researchers with high school teachers, their students, and school district administrators to help schools become more sustainable. Partnering school districts identify the aspects of sustainability they wish to improve — campus sustainability, community, or curriculum — while graduate researchers, under the supervision of ASU faculty scientists, help teachers and students use scientific methods to assess their sustainability in those areas. Graduate research fellows also provide sustainability training to teachers, career counselors, and community members.
Sustainability Science for Sustainable Schools »
Teacher's Guide to WaterSim on the Web
WaterSim on the Web is an interactive tool that brings science to the general public. AP or introductory college-level geography or environmental science students can use WaterSim to explore future water scenarios for metropolitan Phoenix in an easy-to-understand format. Users can gauge water availability in response to changes in climate conditions, drought, population growth, urbanization, land use, and technological innovation, as well as test various policy decisions. (Student handout)
Teacher's Guide to WaterSim on the Web »
Urban Heat Island Curriculum
The Learning through Engineering Design website helps teachers implement inquiry-based learning through hands-on engineering projects that increase learner interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The urban heat island curriculum increases awareness about our built and natural environments and how we interact with them.
