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Last week we wrote about 3 Reasons to teach kids about modern-day scientists and their relevance to modern life. This week, we promised to cover some of those scientists, to provide practical inspiration to your students.

It’s easy to think of many great science discoveries as being from long ago. And that’s true too – science has a historical, non-fiction story to tell. But it may amaze and inspire kids to learn there are famous scientists alive today.

While we encourage inspiring kids with today’s popular scientists, we can’t cover them all in one article. But we’ll aim for some notable ones relevant to young students below. Though, we certainly never want to diminish the importance of others.

See this list for a list of 50 “influential scientists” on thebestschools.org for the accomplishers we might not have room to cover! Assigning focused bios on some of them can be a fun research project for your students too.

Who are some of today’s famous scientists?

We’ll name just five! Here goes!

Stephen Hawking

This is the physicist who makes cameos on TV, and the one who is remembered for being in a wheelchair and speaking through a computer. Despite his outward disability, he has amazingly outlived his diagnosis of ALS (yes, the ice-bucket challenge disease). On top of that, he has made significant contributions to science, especially when it comes to advancing Einstein’s theory of general relativity, in combination with quantum mechanics (which was hard to do). In 2014, a movie was made about his biography (rated PG-13, parents).

Neil deGrasse Tyson

This astrophysicist makes science fun for everybody. Given his ability to ‘dumb down’ science in a way that is accessible, with a highly likeable character, he is often seen on radio, TV and Internet videos. He even had his own show. And it all started when he was amazed by a visit to the Hayden Planetarium, which he now directs. Harvard, Princeton, Columbia – he’s studied at all of them.

This famous scientist alive today is the reason Pluto is no longer a planet, but a dwarf planet – which in turn has inspired funny t-shirt slogans such as, “It’s ok Pluto, I’m not a planet either,” “Pluto: 1930-2006” and “Pluto was framed.” The man picks up on the jokes though, being the humorous person he is, and has said, “All I did was drive the getaway car” (when referring to the ‘slaughter’ of the former planet’s status).

Bill Nye

This is the engineer-turned-TV-personality who rose to fame in the 90s for being ‘Bill Nye The Science Guy.’ He taught kids about science on a TV show. Today, he is active in many areas of science education, bringing back the nostalgic bow-tie to those who grew up in the 90s. Importantly, he is currently an advocate for climate change science, pressing the world that it is real.

But his career has been varied, to say the least. Did you know he has a patent on a ballet shoe design? And he helped make a sundial-like instrument for calibrating image colours on a Mars mission! He also worked at Boeing and was a aeronautics consultant.

In our last article, we mentioned that Bill Nye was rejected numerous times when he tried to be an astronaut. But that never stopped him from accomplishing his mission as a scientist!

Timothy Berners- Lee

This is the famous computer scientist behind the creation of the World Wide Web in 1989. How does information (like your tweets) get sent from device to device? Is it just, ‘in the air’? No! The Internet is an intricate web of fiber optic cables (and other types of cables). If we lose these, we could lose the Internet (yes, that’s right, that means Netflix goes down, kids).

But importantly, it all started with this one man, who had to find a way for this information to be sent through a system that was already there, but wasn’t being used the way it is today. Hence, we now have Hypertext Transfer Protocol. This is why our websites start with “http://www” and then something-something-something, dot-com.

And, guess how young Timothy started with his knowledge? By playing with railway toys! It’s never too early…

Richard Dawkins

This famous scientist living today is a zoologist. So yes, kids can now have fun imagining themselves as a real-life zoo-something! However, this job is not just getting to play with animals. This is the study of animals themselves. Dawkins became popular because of a discovery he made to further the insight of evolution. He wrote a book that focused on genes as adapting over time, rather than organisms.

However, his rise to fame also comes from his widespread, outspoken opinion on anti-creationism and religion. While that seems like a negative, or ‘touchy’ thing to bring up in a classroom that contains diversity of beliefs, it can help kids understand that there are different beliefs out there – but tolerance is important.

See our related articles on this subject:

3 Ways to manage diversity in the classroom

Ideas on teaching religious tolerance to kids

5 great activities to teach kids about multiculturalism in the classroom

Not only that, Dawkins actively tries to make science more understandable for the everyday person. This is a person you’d see being interviewed in talk shows and on the Internet.

Teach kids about today’s popular scientists to enhance their cultural awareness

These modern-day scientists are part of popular culture and are mentioned in conversation, interviews, and media. It’s important for kids to have an awareness of who is ‘famous’ other than movie stars! This tells them there are more avenues to success than being an actor, singer or ‘getting rich.’ Some focused studies on these individuals can also be influential in inspiring kids to become just like them, as we discussed in last week’s article.

In the last Century, scientists have made great strides for humanity. Discovering DNA, confirming gravitational waves, and creating the Internet were all major steps for mankind, let alone landing on the moon.

But who has been responsible for these discoveries? Who were the minds that taught us what kids learn in textbooks these days? And why should we care? How have they affected our personal lives? Are we only aware of Einstein as a scientist because of his notable hair-do? Do kids in your classroom even know when Einstein lived?

You may be wondering: but why is it important to teach kids about modern day scientists? Isn’t it the science itself that is most important? Well, we’d argue both are! Here are some important factors to consider when teaching kids about important people in science today:

Famous scientists inspire kids

Hearing scientist’s stories is relatable. Kids can think, ‘I can do that too!’ It makes the fantasy of being an astronaut real to them, for example. Chris Hadfield is a Canadian who went to space, and he’s a real, guitar-playing person! He makes singing videos on YouTube! How relatable is that?

But not only that, the stories of famous scientists can inspire kids to never give up. Bill Nye was continuously rejected when applying to be an astronaut. But today, he’s accomplished a lot in his role as a popular science educator and engineer. His resume goes far beyond TV appearances. Plus, it’s no secret that scientific discoveries require trying, and trying again.

See our related article:

How to teach kids to try, try again

Another way some scientists can inspire kids is through their diversity. Neil deGrasse Tyson, for example, is an African-American, which is rare in his field. And women especially face a male-dominated field, which has historically been a barrier to overcome. Science has no boundaries when it comes to who can be a scientist.

Modern scientists teach kids that knowledge builds upon the foundation others have laid

This is important – no one can do it alone. And sometimes it takes generations to make discoveries. Isaac Newton may not have had access to modern day computers to make the discoveries he could have made, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t have tried. Using the same logic, young scientists of today shouldn’t give up on the dream of curing cancer, for instance, just because it hasn’t been done yet.

When you hear the stories of how some famous scientists made it to where they are today, you will notice that they started their fascinations at a young age. As this article describes, fostering science-thinkers can happen early, and in the classroom. This is especially important for reasons of diversity and inclusion in science, noted above.

Modern-day scientists show kids that anyone can study STEM subjects

Here we follow the thought above, about fostering science interest in the early years, to promote diversity in the field. This is badly needed in our modern society, as not enough students are studying science, technology, engineering and math (the STEM subjects). And our modern economy depends on these fields.

Here, it’s also important to note that scientists don’t need to be ‘gifted’ or ‘good’ at school (as this article would explain). Often times we have the impression of the scientist as being the ‘brainy’ or ‘geeky’ kid at school. That doesn’t have to be the case. But they do need some important traits:

For one, they need to be interested, like Tim Berners-Lee was by his railway toys. Or the way Neil deGrasse Tyson loved looking at stars. And, theoretical physicist Brian Greene explains in this video that the way science is taught could be the problem here. “Abstract nonsense” is not helpful. Instead, kids need to see that science is exciting, and it explains what we would think is impossible. Think about it – ‘invisible’ atoms, mysterious black holes and plants that ‘talk’ – science reads like a superhero book!. “Science is your ticket to understanding the world and the universe,” he says.

Next, kids need to be dedicated. Stephen Hawking wasn’t the best student in his early years. But once he was told he had little time left, he was ‘all-in.’ All he needed to be the genius he is known for today, was a little motivation.

Still feeling like, ‘this is hard!’? See our article on how struggling students have a lot of potential:

Students who struggle to learn may actually learn better

And, an article we wrote explaining how to teach math in a way that matches a student’s learning style

Math Tutoring Tips for Children with Different Learning Styles

Teach kids about modern-day scientists to promote their future ambitions

As we’ve seen above, teaching kids about modern-day scientists and their stories can help inspire them to become scientists themselves. And even if they don’t become scientists with great discoveries, it is still encouraging to know about the stories of exceptional humans who changed life for others. At the same time we can let kids know that they couldn’t have done it alone.

Stay tuned for next week’s article when we will cover just a handful of these successful scientists alive today.

See our other articles on this series below:

• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (1): understanding the fundamentals of media
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (2): the elements of a news story
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (3): learning to write news copy (part 1)
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (3): learning to write news copy (part 2)
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (4): learning to research and identify sources of information
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (5): learning to critique the media and spot ‘fake news’
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (6): tips and resources for fact checking
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (7): covering magazines and feature stories
• Teaching kids how to start a newspaper (8): desktop publishing, design and layout training

With the U.S. election recently taking place, teens may have wondered what all the fuss was about regarding ‘the media.’ Was the media biased? Or were journalists doing their job? This brings up an interesting project for kids that may be a forgotten art: how to start a newspaper.

Let’s keep asking questions: What is the role of media in our modern lives? How is a newspaper put together? How is today’s news source gathering different than it was 20 years ago?

Teaching kids how to start a newspaper can bring up related topics that can be an ongoing learning experience. It can spark kids’ interest in the following career-related fields:

• Writing and writing styles
• Research and fact checking
• Political process, commentary and opinion
• Communication analysis
• Photography
• Layout and typography design
• Citizen journalism
• Online publishing and blogging
• Advertising
• Public relations

Let’s start with some of the things you can do as an educator to teach kids how to start a newspaper. You can do this as a classroom or school project, or as a homeschooling project.

We will make this an ongoing series on our education blog. Bookmark us to stay updated!

Step 1 on teaching kids how to start a newspaper: teach kids about the role of media in a democracy

Before your students get started on newspaper clippings and writing headlines, it would be wise to understand the principles on which media is founded.

Media has an important role in a democracy. And a democracy is the type of government and society we live in. This means that freedom of speech is, and should be a protected right among citizens of a democracy. That way, no one can be punished or persecuted for stating an opinion about a political leader. The theory here is that political leaders are thus held accountable for their actions, and must always act in the interests of the people it governs. The information spoken of in mass media is how citizens can decide who to vote for, which is essential in a democracy.

Here is a resource that helps a teacher explain the role of media to Grade 12 level students:

https://wikis.engrade.com/theroleofthemediainademo

On this note, there is the need to explain to students:

• • What is biased and unbiased reporting? How can it be spotted? (this is a big subject that can branch into several more questions kids can answer and learn about). See our educational blog post on teaching kids how to debate, for more resources on teaching this subject.

• • What is censorship? Why does it matter? (a great documentary on this subject is #ChicagoGirl, which explores the role of a 19-year-old teen aiding a revolution in Syria through social media. She gives the internet access to citizen journalism footage, which would historically have been censored by dictatorships).

• • What freedoms are guaranteed by the Canadian government? When would a government be ‘crossing the line’ in failing to ensure those freedoms? (This topic can cross over into a government or social studies class exploring the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms).

• • What is the difference between free speech, and libel and slander laws to protect citizens? And, should hate speech be excluded from free speech? Why or why not?

• • What is propaganda, and how does it affect public opinion? (The Canadian War Museum has a lesson plan prepared for this subject).

• How should journalists be protected, if at all? (This story in the Globe and Mail highlights a current case on this issue).

And so, with all of the above considered, your students can discuss the role of media in democracy. And they can ask, was it ok, according to democracy, for Donald Trump to ban specific media outlets from his 2016 election campaign events?

Your students may think the answer to the above question is ‘black and white.’ And this will be a great opportunity for you, as an educator, to remind them that there are always two sides to every story. In other words, you can teach students about bias in media (and how susceptible we all are to it).

Remember, there is more to this ‘Donald Trump media ban’ discussion when it comes to the first question in our list above: how can you spot biased reporting? This article by Vox delves into that explanation where Donald Trump is concerned. Then ask your students: were his complaints legitimate? And, did he have the right to do this, legally?

Educate students on the importance of reporting so they know how to start a newspaper

As we’ve seen above, understanding the purpose and role of media can help kids learn how to start a newspaper. This topic, while it stirs up debate and discussion, is not quite the practical side of making a newspaper yet. But it does help guide the process. With these foundational principles, students can then move on to learning how to write and report the news, plus several other steps to starting and running a newspaper.

Stay tuned as we delve into this project idea for kids in future educational blog posts!

A visit to a movie theatre doesn’t have to be only about entertainment. Children can learn plenty from a movie treat, even as a learning field trip. Let’s take a look at four ways in which going to the movies can be educational.

#1. Going to the movies can teach children about optical illusions

At first, movies were stored on a plastic reel in the form of frames with still images in them. Thanks to the optical illusion of the phi phenomenon, the images seem to move “when viewed in rapid succession,” (Wikipedia).

To teach kids about optical illusions using movies and the phi phenomenon, ask them to draw a simple figure of a man on each bottom right corner on the front of 20 pages. Now tell children to draw the man as if he were walking, making him take a different pose on each page. Then ask the children to thumb through the sheet of paper. When they get the knack of this, let them experiment with other drawings! With phi phenomenon, the objects can not only appear in motion, but also seem to get closer or farther from the observer.

See our related article on teaching optical illusions to kids:

Optical illusions: A hands-on science activity for kids

#2. Movies can teach children chemistry

We already know the first movies were stored as thousands of frames on a reel. Each frame contained one image – just one! But how do we actually get an image onto that plastic reel? Using photochemistry.

Photochemistry studies “chemical reactions that go with light” (KidzSearch). There are substances that change colour or translucency when they are exposed to light – any light. This is how paper photographs are made on special paper, and also how film is made into a special plastic that can ‘capture’ images based on the amount of light it gets exposed to.

Movie reels are made of thin plastic coated with silver halide crystals. When the sensitive movie reel is exposed to light, the chemical processes burn an image into a frame. Going back to the 1800s, one of the first chemical processes to produce permanent still images (without hand-tracing) was coined as the “Daguerreotype.”

This is important when learning about the history of chemistry used in movie-making. You see, the Daguerreotype was a preceding technology to it all. Further inventions that made modern movies possible, as always, were based on the concept of ‘standing on the shoulders of giants.’

Side note: If your local high school has a photography lab, you may be able to take students to see a real Daguerreotype being made! Be sure to ask what type of equipment is available at your school for learning on this subject. If the Daguerreotype is not available, a photography lab may have other chemical equipment to teach kids about photochemistry.

#3. Use movies to teach kids about light and the history of cameras

Following the above lesson, you can continue by explaining that photochemistry is a very important process in our everyday lives. Our vision depends on it. The discovery of light reflections through small pinholes also explained how the human eye works. Our eyes can be thought of as cameras themselves!

In history, light was experimented with using objects like the camera obscura. This ‘box camera’ is actually a fun experiment to teach kids about light. It can be made with materials as simple as a shoebox and tracing paper. Or, you can turn an entire room into a camera!

This extremely simple discovery about light’s journey was the first camera, which eventually led to movie-making. Of course, there were many steps for mankind to make before “moving pictures” were invented (like the magic lantern, for example). This teaches kids that history is important to science and modern inventions.

Taking this to the next level, you can introduce kids to the concept of light travel, and objects that bend light, such as glass lenses. This is how bacteria were first discovered, using early microscopes. From there, it’ll then be easy to explain why all modern-day cameras have curved lenses. It’s all part of show biz!

#4. Movies can teach children about analog vs digital

While film and light effects are cool to learn about, they don’t explain everything about the movie theatre experience in the 21st Century. Most of the movies we see at the movie theatre today are fully digital.

Digital cinematography is a very interesting concept to explain to children. By necessity, digital video recording uses binary data, which is a series of ones and zeros. And to make video ‘viewable’ to us, it has to pass through analog to digital, or digital to analog.

So this now brings up the lesson on the difference between analog and digital. This is an important concept for young kids to learn in today’s modern age of ‘gadgets’ and technology. Teaching analog vs digital also stems into other media formats, which kids may be interested in (like their music!).

Here’s a nice handout on how to explain binary numbers to children in an easy way.

And here is a great resource on teaching binary numbers with activities and subjects of interest to young kids.

Introducing your children to binary numbers can be a nice starting point to teach them how to code. We’ve written about why this is important on our blog here.

As we’ve seen above, going to the movies can be an educational experience. The science of the movies can teach children about optical illusions, chemistry, and even math. Now make your next trip to the movies a nice entertaining lesson for you and your kids.

As another fun project, maybe kids can learn about movie making itself! Check out this site for a fun learning resource on how to make movies with kids:

But remember, movies aren’t the only way to learn. In fact, they can be harmful in some ways. See our article titled, “How much is too much screen time?” for more info on this subject.

In the world dominated by the Internet and digital media, it’s easy to rely on various electronic tools to create a map. But the craft of making maps, otherwise known as cartography, can teach children a lot about mathematics, geography, and aesthetics. Teaching your children how to create maps can expand their sense of the size of the world. Maps are also important for other development processes.

Let’s take a look at what creating maps can teach your child.

Teach kids ratios and how to scale by creating a map

Depending on the area a map covers, one of the first steps in making a map is to determine its scale. Scale is the ratio of a single measuring unit on the map to ground distance. There are many things to consider while scaling. For example, Earth’s curvature. Because the Earth is an oblong sphere, the scale on a big map fluctuates. However, maps covering a small area can dismiss scaling restrictions of Earth’s curvature since the influence of curvature won’t be significant enough to cause any measuring errors. That said, maps with a scale of 1:10 000 usually represent small areas in a lot of detail (a city, for example), and 1:100 000 maps represent large areas with less detail (a country; a continent).

Explaining what scaling is might be a challenge, but one that will teach your child a lot about mathematics and spatial thinking.

Teach children about different types of maps and why they matter

There are many types of maps, each helping to illustrate different data. Let’s take a look at four most common map types and the subjects they teach kids.

General reference map

These are maps representing cities, roads, lakes, rivers. Basically, they serve to help you navigate around a city and reach a specific destination. General reference maps can teach your children how to navigate from one point in the city to another.

Thematic maps

These maps can represent language usage across a continent, cultural habits, political beliefs, or animal habitats, for example. These maps can help your children learn about international commonalities and dependencies. They also introduce them to the way environment affects human behaviour. For example, understanding population density using the visual form a thematic map can help students understand that humans tend to migrate to cities. This can lead to cultural discussions about why humans thrive when living near each other, or problems that can arise as a result of overpopulation, and so on.

Teach a thematic maps historical lesson about John Snow:

One famous example of a thematic map used for problem solving was when John Snow marked the areas of London that had cholera outbreaks. He used this information to relate the disease to the water supply in the city – an idea not well known at the time. This type of mapping is further segmented into an area of study called ‘medical geography,’ which helps doctors save lives today.

Get kids interested in their own thematic map references:

Here is a lesson by National Geographic that uses thematic maps as a learning point for students, in a way that may interest them:

Where in the World Would You Like to Live?

As well as another lesson by Saint Michael’s College:

Topological maps

These maps represent how certain elements on the map connect without relying on actual distances. Think about a subway map, for example. Or the way the Internet network may be displayed. A topological map can help explain the points at which information travels, rather than exactly how each fiber optic cable is winding through land or sea to get to us.

Topological maps are a good way to begin teaching kids about topology in mathematics, though this can become complex for younger learners. As an alternative, use this opportunity to teach how simplifying information can help us understand complex things in easier ways.

Here is a lesson that explains how to create a topological map, and the reasons why.

Weather maps

These maps serve to illustrate different meteorological conditions in a specific area. For example, within a country. They can also represent characteristics of various climates around the globe.

Weather maps can teach your children how to recognize and then associate different weather-related symbols. Try to teach kids what those symbols mean on weather reports.

Different kinds of maps can teach your children a wide spectrum of topics. From mathematical and geographical terms, to seeing connections and differences across and within countries. Encourage your children to use their imagination to come up with an idea for their own map in each of the many map types.

Check out these related titles on our blog:

• Teaching students how to navigate without a GPS
• Why should kids learn geography, and how can you help them do so?
• Teaching young children about maps to help their learning development