Mystery Science: Growing curiosity and love for science in your classroom

Think back to when you were a kid and what it was like learning about the wonderful world around you.  The excitement of seeing a rainbow and the wonder of seeing a butterfly emerge from its cocoon.  What did you find amazing?

Those were inspiring moments for me.  I was curious about the world and the mysteries it might yet reveal.  Many of these first experiences happened at school.

Teachers, whether you use the tools and ideas introduced in this blog or not, I hope you always lead the journey of discovery in your classrooms with curiosity and wonder.

Hopping off of my soapbox, I would like to introduce you to a great resource called Mystery Science. Featuring lessons ranging from five minutes to more than an hour, Mystery Science teaches science using curiosity and wonder.   Watch this 5-minute mini-lesson with those ideas in mind:

Thinking about curiosity and wonder, what did you notice?

Here are my top four takeaways:

1. Student curiosity drove the question -- We are always more interested in finding the answers to our own questions, and science is no exception.  The girl's question drove the lesson.
2. The question took us on an adventure -- We learned that some scientists study butterflies and that the butterflies have different colors for many reasons (camouflage, mimic something poisonous, look like a predator)
3. Intentional questions that grow curiosity and don't steal the wonder (1:52) -- When getting to the question of why some butterflies have bright colors instead of camouflage, Mystery Doug (no relation) does something great.  He stops and gives kids a chance to share their own ideas with each other.  Not only has he engaged students in the lesson, but he has created a little hunger for the answer.  Kids will remember why some butterflies have bright colors a little better because they thought about it first.
4. Student Choice drove what's next-- The end of the video invites students to vote on what the next question should be.  If you were paying attention, you might have noticed these choices were also student questions.  

Each takeaway can be utilized in your classroom with or without Mystery Science, so be thinking about opportunities in your curriculum to add curiosity and wonder.

What does a Mystery Science lesson look like?

Mystery Science lessons have three fundamental parts:

1. Exploration -- a video introducing a question or problem, including opportunities for discussion, modeling, and questioning
2. Activity -- a hands-on experience related to the scientific question being explored
3. Extras -- assessments, ELA writing prompts, and additional resources related to the question

What does planning for a Mystery Science lesson look like?

1. Look for curricular alignment -- Mystery Science lessons are aligned with NGSS standards.  Use the NGSS alignment guide to select the best Mystery Science lesson for your class.  Each lesson's disciplinary core ideas, cross-cutting concepts, and scientific & engineering practices are detailed.  
2. Preview the lesson -- Although the lessons are video-based, there are still many stop-and-start designed opportunities for discussion.  Preview the lesson to anticipate student questions and answers.  As the teacher, you will still play an active role in the learning.
3. Assemble the materials and perform the activity -- Each lesson includes an activity materials list made up of common household and classroom supplies.  While the steps in the activity are guided with video instructions, you should still perform the activity to verify that it is working and you understand it.  As a science teacher for 13 years, I can tell you that nothing is worse than a classroom full of kids staring at you in disappointment as the demonstration you have been building up to fails to work.  By performing the activity, you will also have an understanding of how to organize the materials prior to the lesson.
4. Identify opportunities to continue the learning beyond "science block" -- As mentioned in the previous section, each lesson includes additional opportunities to extend the learning into reading and writing time and explore additional questions.

Any other cool features in Mystery Science?

Absolutely!  One of my favorite features is the "email parents" button associated with each lesson.  Each email contains a brief summary of what students were learning about in Mystery Science that day.  Add parent email addresses to your account or simply copy-paste the content.   Keep parents informed and create a great opportunity for a dinner-time conversation.

Another feature Mystery Science is rolling out is called Anchor Layers.  Available for all 4th and 5th grade lessons this fall (2018), anchor layers will expand on anchoring phenomena in science by offering more student-driven activities, focused assessments, and structured learning opportunities connected to the NGSS standards.  In short, the simple Mystery Science formula is expanding this fall.

I want to do more with science beyond Mystery Science.  What else can I try?

1. Build curiosity with inquiry -- In Ramsey Musallam's Ted Talk, "3 Rules to Spark Learning", he tells teachers "Don't steal the wonder".  Inquiry is a fantastic model for introducing science phenomena while building student curiosity before introducing all of the answers.  If you don't like the term inquiry, just think of it as "play".  Creating an inquiry lesson can be boiled down into a few simple steps:
1. Identify the upcoming concept/phenomenon to be taught.
2. Brainstorm all of the ways you can observe this phenomenon.
3. Select the example that sparks the most curiosity and wonder.
4. Demonstrating only if necessary, let your students play with and explore the phenomenon.
5. Encourage students to ask their own questions, model their learning, and share their theories about their experience using a wonder wall or similar platform.
6. Begin the unit with students now more interested, connecting new learning back to their own experiences and observations made during inquiry activity.
2. Use models that are dynamic -- In science, a model is any representation of an idea or object.  Whether a student draws a picture of water evaporating into clouds or they use hot and cold water to create their own cloud, they are modeling.  The best models for learning allow students to be curious and experiment, modify the model so they can observe the change they are studying.  One of my favorite examples is this wave machine students can create and modify as a team.  (Important!  Models are all flawed because they are only representations.  Always take time to help students understand the limitations of each model)
3. Identify student misconceptions and give them experiences that disprove them -- If you have taught your science curriculum in the past, you can probably anticipate what students will struggle with.  Unfortunately, if not addressed, misconceptions in elementary school continue with students into adulthood.  When preparing for a new unit with your teammates, brainstorm those misconceptions and develop a variety of activities and experiences that help students overcome them.
4. Honor student voice by valuing their ideas until they no longer believe in them -- This may seem confusing at first, but it is an important part of developing curiosity.  Dr. Jo Boaler is a professor of mathematics education at Stanford University whom I observed while taking an online class.  While teaching a group of under-performing 8th graders a very challenging math problem, she invited student feedback and ideas.  Each time a student offered a possible answer, their idea was written on the board and their name was put next to it.  She never stopped at the right answer or made any comments about its correctness.  She honored each idea.  Other students could voice their support of an idea or provide their own but they had to provide their own reasoning.  Hearing and seeing the thinking of the class, students eventually removed their own ideas in favor of others.  The culture of collaboration and discovery was like no other classroom I have seen.
5. Build scientific ideas with interactive read alouds -- Read alouds can be a great time to teach science ideas.  Michelle Salgado is an elementary teacher using this technique to bring science into other subjects.  Watch her model this strategy in this Teaching Channel video.

In Closing

Mystery Science is a fantastic tool for building wonder, curiosity, and knowledge in students.  Take advantage of its many features and remember that there are a number of ways to build onto it to create your own wonderful science experiences.

Have a great summer!