Recommended Website:
The Futures Channel: Science & Technology
Age Range: 6-17 (elementary and high school students)
The Futures Channel provides multi-media videos that educators in any
setting can use to engage students and enliven curriculum. These videos
offer a connection between what students study (math and science) and how
scientists, engineers, explorers and visionaries use it to shape the future
of the real world. The idea is to inspire kids to consider careers in the
science and technology fields.
While this is a commercial site, in that they sell a DVD of all of the
movies they produce for classroom use, they have many short, FREE sample
films on the website that you can review along with free downloadable
lessons and learning activities in pdf format.
When you get to the website, you will see the featured movie, “Cheetahs,”
and a menu of science topics, from which you can view a variety of movie
titles. Choose the “Complete Movie List” to browse all of the titles or
select a subject category such as:
- Agriculture — Watch movies about fish farming and rice farming.
- Alternative Energy — See videos about human-powered airplanes, Maglev
Trains, solar energy, and wind farming. - Biology — Learn about eagles, horses, dogs, whales, sea creatures, plants,
and more. - Earth and Environmental Sciences — Explore weather, coral reefs, wetlands
and the moon. - Physical Science — Discover the science behind various sources of energy,
sound, flight, wind and water. - The Nature of Science — Find out about anti-gravity, space stations, water
fences, and more.
Click on any video title and a new page opens where you can watch the movie
(typically 2-4 minutes in length) and download and print out the associated
learning activities.
Once you are through examining the contents on the Science & Technology
section of the site, use the menu on the left side of your screen under
“Teaching & Learning” to explore videos about “Hand-On Math.” There are
also other movies about animals, art & music, space and more.
This is a great way to introduce students to various science topics that may
springboard them to further learning on their own. :)
