-
Breaking the Spiral of Silence: How to Talk Climate Without the Doom and Gloom
Read more…: Breaking the Spiral of Silence: How to Talk Climate Without the Doom and GloomWe’ve all been there: you want to talk about the environment, but the conversation feels like a one-way ticket to a “Sarah McLachlan commercial” level of sadness. You worry about being too political, too nerdy, or just plain depressing. In this episode, Kevin Matteson sits down with Kait Birghenthal, President and Project Coordinator for NNOCCI…
-
Bones, Beaks, Fur, and Feathers: A Barn Owl’s Buffet
Read more…: Bones, Beaks, Fur, and Feathers: A Barn Owl’s BuffetBy Ashley Pickard’s Sixth-Grade Class, National Cathedral School, Washington, D.C. Editor’s Note: Originally published in the November/December 1996 issue of Dragonfly Magazine, this vintage investigation takes us into the world of an avian predator to see what we can learn from the “leftovers” of its last meal. The Spark How can you tell what an…
-
Air-OO-Planes Away: The Quest for the Ultimate Flight Design
Read more…: Air-OO-Planes Away: The Quest for the Ultimate Flight DesignBy the Fifth-Grade Students of Ms. Ursula Sexton and Mr. John Lukas, Green Valley Elementary School, Danville, California Editor’s Note: Originally published in the September/October 1996 issue of Dragonfly Magazine, this story follows a class that combined science fiction with serious scientific testing to solve the problems of future space travel. The Spark Our investigation…
-
One if by Air: Mapping the Wonders of the Sky
Read more…: One if by Air: Mapping the Wonders of the SkyBy the Fourth-Grade Students of Mrs. Claudia A. Katz and Ms. Tamara Somers, Henry Ford Elementary, Hazel Park, Michigan Editor’s Note: This post is a vintage treasure from our archives, originally published in the September/October 1996 issue of Dragonfly Magazine. It highlights a classic inquiry method—KWPDLS—that helps young scientists organize their curiosity about the world…
-
Dreaming of Flight: If We Could Touch the Sky
Read more…: Dreaming of Flight: If We Could Touch the SkyBy the Fifth-Grade Students of Adams Elementary School, San Diego, California Editor’s Note: Originally published in Dragonfly Magazine in the late 1990s, this collection of student reflections and poems captures the timeless “sense of wonder” children feel when looking at the clouds and imagining the impossible. The Spark In our class, we started talking about…
-
Can Pyramids Fly? Our Investigation into Tetrahedron Kites
Read more…: Can Pyramids Fly? Our Investigation into Tetrahedron KitesBy the Fifth-Grade Class of John Cowens, Fort Vannoy Elementary, Grants Pass, Oregon Editor’s Note: This article is a “vintage” treasure from our archives, originally published in the September/October 1996 issue of Dragonfly Magazine. It captures the spirit of curiosity and hands-on discovery that has always been at the heart of Project Dragonfly. The Spark…
-
Rooted in the Past: How Students Uncover the Secret History of America’s Witness Trees
Read more…: Rooted in the Past: How Students Uncover the Secret History of America’s Witness TreesBy Maria J. Savaiano’s Fifth- and Sixth-Grade Students, Clara Barton Open School, Minneapolis, MN. Editor’s Note: This post is a “vintage” treasure from our archives, originally published in Dragonfly Magazine in April 1996. It captures a moment when a class in Minnesota decided to bridge the gap between local history and the natural world. The…
-
The Shrinking Heap: A Third-Grade Lesson on the Magic of Decomposition
Read more…: The Shrinking Heap: A Third-Grade Lesson on the Magic of DecompositionBy Phyllis Stewart’s Third-Grade Students, Horace Mann Montessori School, Dayton, Ohio Editor’s Note: Originally published in Dragonfly Magazine in 1996, this vintage inquiry takes us back to a playground in Ohio, where a group of third graders turned a pile of yard waste into a seven month-long lesson on the power of decomposition. The Spark…
-
How to Turn Your Science Class into a “Choose Your Own Adventure”
Read more…: How to Turn Your Science Class into a “Choose Your Own Adventure”Imagine a high school science classroom where the teacher refuses to hand out a rubric. Where students roll a 20-sided die (D20) to see if they can get five extra minutes on a quiz. Where the curriculum isn’t a rigid checklist, but a quest driven by the students’ own curiosity. In this episode of Dragonfly…