Active Learning Activities

Biologist Says: Mini-Game for Recalling Biology Terms

A familiar and easy to implement game to help students with recall of biological terms.

BioQuest: Mini-Game for Categorizing Biology Terms

A fun consolidating activity at the end of a topic or unit to help students categorize and consolidate biological terms.

Finding Catharsis in Film and Media

Students analyze a film or piece of media watched in the course using two concepts: climax and catharsis.

Hemoglobin Hustle: An Adaptation of Race for the Hat

Used the Race for the Hat activity to create a Jeopardy-style session on blood & blood disorders for a pathophysiology class.

Group Work Project Contracting

For instructors planning student group work projects over many weeks or months.

Electron Odyssey: Journey through the Mitochondria’s Electron Transport Chain

Students play the roles of protein complexes to see how electrons, protons, and energy moves through the ETC to produce ATP.

Put Your Theory on Trial

Scaffolded debate that explores the nuances of a belief that the teacher has introduced.

Controversy in the Science Classroom: Nature of Science Quiz

Feeling Feverish: Homeostasis of Pyrexia

How to Write Reading Annotations

This activity helps students improve their quality of reading annotations using platforms like Perusall.

5 Senses Lab

Peer Review, Assessment & Feedback

Two Stage Quiz

This activity gives the students the opportunity to talk about the concepts seen in class and to discuss with their peers.

Live Demonstrations of Beats and Interference of Sound

In this activity, students learn to apply the principal of superposition to two new sound contexts.

Circuits: Card Sorting With Multiple Representations (E&M)

Students develop their ability to reason about physics concepts in terms of multiple representations, beyond just equations.

Electrostatics: Card Sorting With Mutiple Representations (E&M)

Students associate configurations of charges with their characteristics from word, diagram & graph representations.

Building Effective Teams

Rock Paper Scissors Lizard

“Light, Camera, Action” Starring Reactions in Photosynthesis

The Sailing Iguanas: A Mini Case in Speciation

Cytoskeletal Proteins in Amoeba

Taking the role of a biologist, students statistically determine how different drug treatments can affect amoeba cell shape.

Photosynthesis: Light Dependent Reactions

From “Yum” to “Yuk”: A Case in Point… Mutation

Brazil Nut Tree

Students take on the role of ecologists, tasked with saving the Brazil nut tree from the effects of deforestation.