Blog
Tutoring Blog – submitted by Gerrie Storr
To all of you, my heart goes out to you as you struggle with the challenges of this way of learning that none of us anticipated. I'm reading the frustrations from all sectors on Twitter. Here's my two-cents worth. We're all in this together. Every single teacher I...
COVID-19 Precautions for the Science Classroom – compiled by STAO/APSO
Hands-on activities are integral to science education. Continuing to provide these valuable learning experiences in these uncertain times poses several unique challenges and obstacles that the safety-minded science teacher must overcome. The following documents,...
Rosalind Franklin: DNA’s unsung hero – TED-Ed
https://youtu.be/BIP0lYrdirI The discovery of the structure of DNA was one of the most important scientific achievements in human history. The now-famous double helix is almost synonymous with Watson and Crick, two of the scientists who won the Nobel prize for...
Christmas Tree Safety
Real trees can pose a serious fire hazard if the tree dries out. There's nothing like the fresh smell of a real tree, but real trees can also pose a serious fire hazard if the tree accidentally dries out. Steve Spangler teamed up with Captain Brian Ribble from the...
STAO Tribute to Irwin Talesnick
It is with deep sadness that STAO shares the news that Irwin Talesnick, for whom the Irwin Talesnick Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Science, a STAO award, was named, and a STAO Life Member, passed away on November 21, 2020. To celebrate his life and his...
Coding 101 and WEMADEIT in the Classroom PD | Western Engineering Outreach
2021 Teacher PD with Western Engineering Outreach Western Engineering Outreach is excited to announce upcoming dates for our free virtual teacher professional development sessions! Join us for Coding 101, where teachers will be introduced to the basics of coding as...
It’s Okay to be an Okay Teacher in 2020 – submitted by Brad Dixon
This year I feel like every time I turn around there is a new social media post or email from my favourite teaching organization or vendor, introducing or highlighting a new innovative or creative COVID-19 friendly teaching practice. It is great that so many people...
The Geminid meteor shower could be the best in years. CBC News
The nights may be frigid as temperatures dip to well below zero across most of the country, but there's a good reason to bundle up and head outside over the coming week: the Geminid meteor shower. The Geminids are one of the most reliable — and most active — meteor...
A Spectacularly Rare ‘Christmas Star’ Is Coming In December As Two Worlds Align After Sunset – submitted by Malisa Mezenberg
If you managed to see the crescent Moon pass Jupiter and Saturn this week, you’ll have noticed something else about the Solar System’s two largest planets. They’re now really, really close to each other, and on December 21, 2020—the date of the December...
Alberta student 1st Canadian to win $500K Cdn international science competition – CBC
A Fort McMurray, Alta., student is the first Canadian to win the $500,000 Cdn international Breakthrough Junior Challenge, a prize that includes a scholarship and new science lab for her school. Maryam Tsegaye, a Grade 12 student at École McTavish Public High...
What are the COVID-19 RNA vaccines and how do they work?
By now, we’re all familiar with the image of coronavirus. The spikey blob peppers news websites, looms behind reporters during bulletins and frequently punctuates your Twitter doom-scrolling. More recently, the news accompanying this image has taken a positive turn,...
The Astounding Physics of N95 Masks
https://youtu.be/eAdanPfQdCA This video covers the incredible engineering of the N-95 mask.
