About this blog

The NSTA blog currently consists of nine categories (or sub-blogs):

• Chapters and Associated Groups
• Conferences
• Early Years
• JCST
• Ms. Mentor
• NSTA Membership
• NSTA Press Books
• NSTA Reports
• SciLinks

The Chapters and Associated Groups (CAGs) blog is dedicated to helping the past, current and future leadership of NSTA’s CAGs.  Highlighting helpful resources, providing leadership tips and association management solutions, this blog is designed to help keep our CAGs strong!

The Conferences category attempts to give a flavor of the NSTA conferences on science education: three regional conferences every fall, and a national conference in the spring. In the weeks leading up to a conference, you’ll get tips and guidance about what’s in store for attendees; as events occur at the conference, NSTA staff and other contributors will report on them; and—time permitting as we prepare for the next conference—we’ll post photos and wrap-ups.

The Early Years category is all about science education at the most elementary level: prekindergarten through second grade. Early childhood science teachers need their own place to find resources and get support. This online companion to Science and Children’s Early Years column is your place to interact with colleagues and share the joys and challenges of your classroom. Join the conversation!

The JCST section is an adjunct to NSTA’s Journal of College Science Teaching. In the words of JCST’s field editor, the blog is an attempt to “find a way to start a real conversation among JCST’s readers about our students, our jobs, and our lives. I know that there is much we share as college-level science instructors, and I know in my marrow that we can benefit from the experiences and the wisdom of one another.”

The Ms. Mentor category is the online version of the popular column in the member newspaper NSTA Reports. Think of Ms. Mentor as Ann Landers for the science teacher. Readers submit questions, and Ms. Mentor answers them—and readers comment on the answers. Real-world problems and answers from someone who’s “been there, done that”—or knows someone who has.

NSTA Membership is dedicated to the proposition that there’s a lot going on in this association, and a lot to talk about with colleagues and fellow members. After all, if it weren’t for NSTA members, there would be no NSTA Blog. NSTA’s membership director will do his best to highlight interesting activity in the various pockets and corners of our far-flung association.

So much happens behind the scenes and behind the books at NSTA Press®.  Claire Reinburg, Director of NSTA Press, says, “I have the enviable job of talking with authors who have ideas for terrific new books, and I have the privilege of hearing from teachers about the types of resources they need for their classrooms and for their own professional development.” Claire and her staff plan to share behind-the-scenes information and tips in the NSTA Press Books section of the NSTA blog.

The NSTA Reports section (coming soon) will offer comments and contributions from the editors and readers of NSTA’s member newspaper. In addition, the NSTA Reports category will feature information and resources we learned about between issues, along with “extras” such as survey and field-test opportunities.

The SciLinks category is devoted to helping you make effective use of NSTA’s SciLinks service, which connects key textbook subjects to NSTA-approved web pages that enrich student learning both inside and outside the science classroom. The service points to 19,000 vetted web pages, each of which reviewed against eight rubrics and aligned to a specific topic and grade level. The topics are then featured as extensions in hundreds of textbooks and selected NSTA publications.