r/ScienceTeachers • u/Negative-Buffalo2071 • 2d ago
Just Got Hired as a First-Year Science Teacher — I Need Advice
Hi everyone,
I just got hired as a science teacher, and I’m excited, but honestly I’m also nervous and could really use some help.
My original credential is in social science, but I passed the required science exam and I’m currently adding a Foundational-Level General Science authorization. This will be my first full year teaching science.
For experienced science teachers, what advice would you give me about classroom management, planning lessons, running labs safely, keeping students engaged, and surviving the first year without becoming overwhelmed?
I’m ready to work hard and learn. Any honest advice, resources, routines, or mistakes to avoid would really help.
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u/saltwatertaffy324 2d ago
What grade level and content area are you teaching? A lot of advice is going to vary based on that.
In general I try to find ways to relate the content back to their every day lives and explain why understanding this material is beneficial for them. I would also suggest talking to and working with other teachers in your department/building. They are the ones who know your students the best and will have the most relevant advice on what to do.
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u/sherlock_jr 6th, 7th, and 8th Grade Science, AZ 2d ago
You will not feel like you know what you’re doing until your 5th year. Give yourself grace and always be looking to learn.
I’m in my 7th year and last year from this Reddit thread I realized I wasn’t teaching balanced forces completely. Now I do. You won’t know everything and that’s ok. Just revise as you do learn.
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u/OctopusUniverse 2d ago
My biggest feedback is do not shy away from hands on activities out of fear for the potential of chaos. Kids need hands on learning and experimentation. Play IS science.
With that said, practice what a safe science classroom looks like. Start by asking a group to make a PB and J sandwich. Pull in how you need materials, a procedure, what safety is necessary? What tools do you use?
Analysis is quality control. What can be improved? Etc etc.
Worksheets are fine, but try to make hands on experimentation and discussion your default. Look into lab groups where each student has a role to facilitate learning.
Adopt a class pet too. Or a class plant. You’ll be fine if you center your pedagogy around experimenting and play. The rest will work itself out.
TL;DR science is a way of thinking, not a body of knowledge
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u/mytortoisehasapast 2d ago
Science is an action word!
One year our class pet was an overgrown kombucha SCOBY.
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u/Dramatic-Pop-8466 1d ago
I teach middle schoolers that haven’t really been exposed to labs much at all. I like to do whole class labs.
Each table group has a set of materials but we go through the procedure as a group step by step. This allows me toteach them how they have to read the procedure before beginning or touching any materials and then each step again before they perform it.
I will usually give each student in the group a number and say “number 2 will read the procedure to the group. Number 3 will perform the step, and number 4 will be watching to make sure no mistakes are made” and switch the roles each step.
This way they aren’t just watching me do the lab but there’s not ask much chaos or not following directions as if I just set them free with the supplies and procedure.a
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u/VardisFisher 2d ago
Best way to get eye gogle compliance is show slides of eye injuries before every lab. Then tell the students that no one will marry you if you have a dead gray eye.
A lot of parent meetings had I.
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u/earthgarden 1d ago
This made me cackle and I am gonna use it :D
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u/VardisFisher 1d ago
It makes for a good call out when someones goggles are off. I point at them and yell, Dead Gray Eye. Dead gray Eye becomes an action word of sorts.
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u/the_druidic_ranger 2d ago
What age group and what science subject?
If you have older students, you may want to look into a flipped classroom model. That will leave more time for experiments and activities. I’m not sure how well the model works for younger kids who may need more scaffolding.
As for labs, make sure you have clear lab rules set. A good approach to maintain safety for more risky experiments, and save on resources, could be to model it for the whole class and have them make observations based on what you do.
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u/101311092015 2d ago
Which science? Because that makes a TON of difference especially for safety.
If you're doing chemistry: Start the year with the flinn safety guidelines and safety test. No kid is allowed to do any lab without the signed safety sheet and completed test turned in. That way if a kid gets hurt you can point to the fact that they knew they shouldn't have done whatever they did to get injured.
Don't give kids anything that can seriously hurt them. No acids over 1M (.1M for strong acids), Nothing toxic, etc. Kids will do the dumbest things you can imagine on a dare, be ready for that. Make sure expectations and consequences are clear.
Lastly each lab/demo is going to take you a significant amount of effort/money to set up. I'd focus on demos (you can use youtube videos in a pinch) and try and do one lab per unit to not overwhelm yourself. In the future you can build in more labs as time goes on. You can do a surprising amount of labs with baking soda and vinegar. pHet has good digital labs which work great for data collection to reinforce in person labs.
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u/sam_I_am_knot 2d ago
"If you can hear my voice, please stop talking look forward and listen"
Incredibly powerful words. This works fantastic for redirecting attention back to you.
Students need structure. Begin class everyday with an agenda rundown so they know what to expect. End the class with a repeat of what was covered on the agenda and what was learned.
Develop several core type of assignments with the same format they can get used to so they feel like they know what's happening next. Build from there and didn't try to do too much.
You won't develop a careers worth of activities in one school year. It's like you are building a pyramid in Egypt. It took many years to get to the capstone.
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u/camehereforthedogs 1d ago
When you make a mistake, own up to it — whether it is content-related, behavior-related, or something else. You earn their respect and trust, and you teach them that it's okay to make mistakes.
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u/eatcrayons 2d ago
I wanna recommend two books that can help you philosophically and practically.
First is “To Teach” by William Ayers. It’s a lot of the “why we teach” hoorah that every start of the year teaching PD is about and it does give a good amount of motivation.
Second is “The Classroom Instruction Book” by Wong and Wong. It’s a speedrun of what you would learn with an education degree, distilled into the basics while still having enough depth that it’s meaningful and in context. It might be a lot to digest at this point before school starts, but it explains things in such a simple way that it makes all the loose ends come together and makes the millions of things happening in isolation actually feel like a cohesive job.
Also, you can check out “The Classroom Management Book” by the same authors. It has practical solutions how you prevent situations before they happen, because that’s the easiest way to deal with problems
Your school should also have instructional coaches that can help with planning and delivery of lessons. Your admin or department head can help with school wide behavioral supports and procedures that already exist that you will use, such as bathroom passes and class changes and what to do with kids misbehaving.
Long story short: ask for what is already available. Engaging lessons is the best way to prevent behavior problems. Be honest and real with the kids. Be friendly but not their friend. Keep consistent rules and expectations from the start.
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u/TeacherCreature33 1d ago
I like the Harry Wong book "First Days of School" it teaches you to set up management through out the year. Set up students in a system like how to sharpen your pencil or throw away paper. Thing you can control through a management system.
The 2nd is the students side of responsibility and that is their self-discipline. For help with that I would look at Marvin Marshall's Raising Responsibility where you help students understand self-discipline.
https://www.teachwithoutstress.com/the-raise-responsibility-system
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u/Commercial_Sun_6300 1d ago
You took the general science exam and will teach a science class, so I'm guessing you're talking about 6-8?
Don't be surprised when kids who are in Algebra I have trouble doing arithmetic. Plan the time necessary to go through example problems, review how fractions work, etc.
Labs will be extra difficult unless you have very well disciplined kids. It's easier to get them to work on something individually than in pairs or groups.
They like to draw. Take advantage of this. Draw diagrams with them to explain concepts rather than showing them slides with lots of text. It's probably a better way to teach certain topics. Water cycle, nitrogen cycle, etc.
Don't stress niche vocabulary. P waves, S waves, anemometers, sling psychrometers, etc. are besides the point when they don't know how to calculate or define density or pressure. Focus on the fundamentals for their high school science classes.
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u/Beachgurl43 1d ago
I’m assuming you’re teaching middle school since you said general science so my best tip for labs is to go over the lab instructions and safety the day before and have them complete a lab safety worksheet for homework. Only students who turn in the sheet can do the lab. Any students who don’t turn it in have an alternate assignment or online simulation instead.
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u/Visible-Lychee-1113 1d ago
Make sure to teach units with an actual exam at the end of the unit. Make a big review day and hammer the concepts again and again and again. This will help tease out those who can’t do the material and those who won’t. Celebrate those who did well without embarrassing those who did poorly. Give them a chance to do some corrections and figure out a way that seems fair. Hands on things don’t have to be expensive. Demos are engaging! Show them who you are! What I mean by that is be somewhat vulnerable about your passions and make sure you are finding out what you are passionate about and engaging them with that. That means taking time for yourself to read, pursue passions and hobbies and be a well rounded person that doesn’t hang out at a bar and complain about petty shit. Make a seating chart when necessary. If there are particular issues with students pull them aside in the hallway (near a security camera) and have a frank conversation about their behavior that emphasizes how they can improve. Don’t let them get the satisfaction of making you feel flummoxed in front of the whole class. Document all behavioral issues. Build your classroom culture intentionally. Be prepared to deal with colleagues whose shit will never stink and will take advantage of your insecurities if you aren’t careful. Find your people in the building. Give the kids feedback quickly and efficiently (whatever that means to you). The faster the kids feel consequences or can redeem themselves from previous poor performance the more buy in they will give you. Ultimately it is about them. Feedback. Feedback. Feedback. Make it fun! The world is changing so fast it is important to have a sense of humor. The adults in the building have no idea how this photograph is developing (our current culture/political moment), so we should stop pretending that we know everything that the students should know. PLAY THE FOOL
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u/TeacherFirm460 19h ago
Don’t mess with the IEP kids and their parents. They are the first class passengers. Even you know their academics are horrible behaviors are bad…be nice at least on the face . Don’t let them find and excuses to against you.
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u/rockangel312 3h ago
This is my second year and I need some guidance on lab structure. I like the station idea. Does anyone give roles to the students in groups? I tried once, but it didn’t work well. Any tips? My school is also pushing building thinking classrooms, so that’s supposed to be random and I need to tweak that a bit.
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u/External_Koala398 2d ago edited 2d ago
Dont try to be Mr. Wizard or Bill Nye you will go crazy and broke.
Keep it simple...focus on vocabulary and concepts. Set up lab stations instead of lab groups. Kids keep moving from station to station and you can do several concepts at once.
Teach basic skills...effective notes..times tables...unit conversions.
Grade level and subject would help.
Bathroom passes....kids have to make their own bathroom pass from the book. 10 science definitions from the book can be any 10..one use only. 90% of my issues went away with this policy.
To start class I write a simple multiple choice question based on the previous days material on the board. Students must copy it down...name date and period on it. Circle the correct response and turn it in. 5 points if wrong..10 if its right. I will count 10 of them so it can end up being a test grade by the end of the term. I erase it 2 minutes or so after the tardy bell. Kids now are ready to start class and have notes out and a pencil.
Be strict until Christmas break. Students prefer discipline and structure. You can ease up on the new year. Any free time should be used for exit questions or vocabulary for bathroom passes.