Super Smart: Science [Paperback]

Colleen Kessler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 2007

Looking for challenging activities to jump-start students' minds in science class? Look no further! Super Smart: Science provides just the answer teachers need for engaging students in science activities. Emphasis on science skills is increasing in schools across the nation, and teachers can use the 180 days of activities, critical thinking challenges, and mini-experiments in this book to draw their students into the fun of science learning.

The real-world science activities in this book focus on the nature of science, life science, earth science, and physical science. Super Smart: Science makes science exciting for all students by introducing them to the scientific properties all around them. This book is perfect for any teacher looking to increase enthusiasm, grab students' attention, and impart lasting lessons on scientific concepts.

Grades 5–8

Editorial Reviews

Review

Super Smart Science contains science challenges, based on the National Science Standards and centered on the areas of the nature of science, life science, and earth science. This book consists of 180 challenges aimed at fifth through eighth grade students and is meant to correspond with a typical 180-day school year. Each day has three components: "Thought for the Day," a quote related to the field of science, "Cool Fact," information or trivia usually related to the activity or teaser, and "Activity or Teaser," a short experiment, brain-teaser, or critical thinking puzzle to spur student thinking. Every teaser or puzzle also has a solution for the teacher's reference. The activities and teasers can be single day challenges, or they may require a few minutes on consecutive days. Colleen Kessler is a gifted intervention specialist for students in grades 2 and 3 in Ohio. Kessler received her bachelor's degree in elementary education from Cleveland State University and holds a master's degree in gifted education from Kent State University. Kessler has created a book meant to challenge fifth through eighth students. Her background in gifted education shines through in the teasers and activities which are written in a way that evoke critical thinking and analyses of scientific information.

Overall, Super Smart Science is valuable resource for science teachers of grades 5–9 advanced learners. The variety of warm-up activities and experiments in this book help students connect science to their lives in a format that is both interesting and challenging. Once you make Kessler's book your own, it will generate interest and enthusiasm, while fostering high-level, creative thinking opportunities for your science students. --Catherine Macaulay, Roeper Review, September 2007

About the Author

A gifted intervention specialist for students in grades 2 and 3, Colleen Kessler feels strongly that all students should be challenged to experience and learn new things every day. She believes that studying science allows students to appreciate the world around them, while fostering a love of nature that can last a lifetime. Colleen received her bachelor's degree in elementary education from Kent State University. Colleen has written several educational resource books for teachers of advanced learners, as well as test questions and passages for publishers like McGraw-Hill. She lives in Ohio, where she enjoys being outdoors with her family, spending time with her son, teaching, writing, and reading.

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Prufrock Press (April 15, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593632134
• ISBN-13: 978-1593632137
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,779,511 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended as an adaptable, easy-to-use supplement to elementary school science instruction., September 2, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Super Smart: Science (Paperback)

Colleen Kessler, an intervention specialist for students in grades 2-3, shares her wisdom and experience in Super Smart Science: 180 Days to Warm-Ups and Challenging Activities, a compendium of activities and science experiments meant to stir students' interest and expand their scientific knowledge. Each day's suggestions opens with an inspirational "thought for the day" quote, followed by a cool fact. The rest of the recommendation can take the form of a sample activity kids can do with everyday materials, or a teaser story problem with a solution. "Teaser: Why don't you feel or see a mosquito bite until after it starts itching? Solution: The mosquito bites by inserting her lancets into the capillary beds beneath the skin, and drinks by lubricating her mouth with saliva. The saliva acts as an anesthetic and contains an anticoagulant that causes an allergic reaction in humans - hence the bump and redness." Recommended activities include making a simple compass, having students try to be "human stopwatches" to see how good they are at estimating time, to making raisins "dance" on carbonated water since the carbon dioxide in the water tends to collect on their uneven surfaces. Highly recommended as an adaptable, easy-to-use supplement to elementary school science instruction.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Incorrect information, November 25, 2009

By 

S. Holmes - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Super Smart: Science (Paperback)

Beware, this book contains incorrect nonsense about equal transit-time regarding air moving over a wing: "...whether the air goes over or under the wing, it arrives at the other side of the wing at the same instant." This is just factually wrong. Look up Equal Transit-Time Fallacy for more information.