Using Games to Master the Mountain of Biology Vocabulary Words

Are your students struggling to master all the new biology terms and definitions we 

teach each day?

After teaching high school Biology for over 30 years, I know that one of the biggest problems my students are going to have in my class is mastering the mountain of new vocabulary words encountered each and every day.  When I talk to struggling biology students, they will usually tell me that they understand the concepts, and they understand "how and why" things work as they do, but they hate to memorize the vocabulary words.   In addition to learning new words and their meanings, the words are often hard to spell and hard to pronounce.  

In looking for ways to help my students, I quickly discovered that different styles of game play was the answer.  Students need a little fun and excitement in the classroom, and anytime you announce that you are about to play a game, even the most stubborn student will get excited.  In addition, students are naturally competitive with one another, and I found that they will study the vocabulary words in order to win a game!  Especially if there is a prize!  As a result, I developed vocabulary cards with corresponding definition cards that I call "Biology Buzz Words."

What is “Biology Buzz Words”?  The number of new science vocabulary words can be overwhelming to our students.  Practice and review in a game format is an excellent method of drilling and reinforcing the concepts and vocabulary.  Each set of "Biology Buzz Words" contains a list of vocabulary words and definitions that are found on a particular topic in a typical high school biology textbook.  The words and definitions are printed on separate cards.  Students will use these cards to play various games to help them master the vocabulary words.  At present, I have 17 different games that I play with my students.  The games include individual games, small group games and entire class games.  

• Mix/Match Games
• Catch Phrase style
• 20 Questions style
• I have / Who has
• Pictionary style
• Bingo
• First Day instruction
• Lab Stations
• Bell Ringers / Warm Ups
• Let's Talk About It
• Vocabulary Game Show
• Categories
• Hot Seat
• Concentration
• Chalk It Up!

My students really enjoy these game format review sessions.  I have to be careful about the time it takes to play these games, though.  If my students had their way, we would be playing games every day!  For prizes, I use Jolly Rancher candies.  Believe me, middle and high school students will really study the vocabulary words in order to win a candy!

Differentiation!

The types of game play are extremely versatile.  Make the game as easy or as hard as you want by selecting which vocabulary and definition cards you want to use.  The games can be tailored to meet the needs of any life science or biology class.  For an advanced class, use all of the vocabulary cards.  For a younger class, or a lower level class, choose only the vocabulary words that are appropriate for their level.  If your class contains students of widely varying ability levels, you can easily tailor the games for specific groups of students.  It is very easy to differentiate and customize instruction for a particular group of students by selecting the cards that are most appropriate for those students.

My Biology Buzz Word products come with a lot more than the vocabulary cards and the definition cards.  Check out the images below to see what is included with each product.

I have just begun to post these products to my TpT store.  The following are currently available, and many more will be coming soon.  Click on the links below for more information.

• Introduction to Biology
• Biochemistry:  The Chemistry of Life
• Biology Buzz Words Bundle #1

14 Ways to Use Task Cards in High School Biology

Instruction?

Reinforcement?

Retention?

No Problem!!

Task cards have quickly earned a prominent spot in my high school science classes.  I was slow to the party, thinking that task cards were a tool used by elementary teachers.  They couldn't possibly be of any use in my high school classes, right?  I could not be more wrong!

I think the thing I love best about task cards is that my students never complain about them, and in fact, even ask for them.  Teenagers will do anything to avoid school work, but my students have fully accepted the fact that the task cards have helped them study for tests and have improved their grades.

For those who might be unfamiliar with task cards, here is a quick description.  A task card is usually 1/4th the size of a sheet of paper, and usually printed on thicker paper.  I laminate them so that I can use them year after year.  Each card contains only one task or question.  For students who are easily overwhelmed by too much material or difficult concepts, task cards are a wonderful solution.  The student has a card in their hand with only one task or question.  They must complete the one task before moving on to the next.  It allows the student to focus and concentrate on only one thing at a time, rather than being presented with a long worksheet jam-packed with questions or problems.

So without further ado, here are 14 ways you can use task cards in your high school science classes to improve instruction, reinforce concepts and increase retention of the material you are teaching:

1.  Lab Stations:  This is my personal favorite.  Students of all ages get tired of sitting in a desk all day.  My students really enjoy being out of their seats and moving about the room.  I place 2 to 3 task cards at each lab station and have the students rotate through the stations.  This saves paper and printing since only one set of task cards is needed for the class.

2.  Competitive Game Formats:  Use the cards in a game format.  Divide the class into teams.  Place the task cards face down in a basket.  A team selects a card at random and must complete the task for a point.  It is a fun way to review for unit tests and high schoolers love the competitive format.

3.  Use task cards during instruction:  When teaching difficult concepts, stop periodically and check for understanding.    Ask the students to "pull out cards 16 - 20" and complete the tasks to see if they understand the material you have been teaching.  It gives the students a chance to relax just a bit and it provides an additional opportunity for them to absorb the mountain of details in a science class.

4.  Warm Ups and Bell Ringers:   

I use this one a lot!    As students enter the room, have them complete 4-5 task cards on concepts covered the previous day.  I have them write their answers on a sheet of notebook paper and collect them for a quick daily grade.  This strategy gets them to work the minute they enter your classroom, and helps them to get focused on the learning for the day.

5.  Exit Slips:  This strategy requires students to  write responses to questions you ask at the end of the class period.  It allows the students to reflect on what they have learned during the lesson and allows you to check for mastery of concepts.

 6.    Use task cards as part of your lab activities:  As students are carrying out and completing lab work, place a task card or two at their lab station and require that they include the answers to the task cards as part of their lab report.

7.  Homework Assignments:  At the end of your lesson, have students copy a few task card questions into their lecture notes to be completed for homework.  Checking student answers is a great way to start class the next day.

8.  Differentiate, differentiate, differentiate!!  How often do we teachers hear those words?  Well, task cards are the easiest way I have found to help learners of different ability levels.  By making customized sets of cards, you can give a student exactly what they need to be successful. Students can complete the cards you have given them and never know that other students have different sets of cards.

9.  Task cards are perfect for early finishers:  Task cards are not just for review and reinforcement.  They are perfect for enrichment!  When students finish their regular work early, you can give them enrichment task cards to deepen their understanding of the concepts being taught.

10.  Small group review sessions:   My students will often come in before school, after school or during a study hall period to use the task cards to review for an upcoming unit test.

11.  End of course testing:  Does your state require that students pass an end of course test at the end of the school year?  Mine does!   When reviewing for my end of course tests, I place different sets of task cards in plastic boxes and arrange them about the room,  Students select a set of cards and review through them in small groups.  When finished with one set, they select another .

12.  Tutoring:  My school offers peer tutoring and teacher tutoring after school.  Teachers and students alike will borrow my sets of task cards to use during after school tutoring.

13.  Hallway Extra Credit Display:  Post a few task cards on the wall outside of your classroom door.  Completion of the task cards can earn the student a few extra credit points.

14.  Bingo! Make a Bingo board out of task cards.  Students must complete 5 tasks in a row, column or diagonal to win.

Because task cards can be used in so many ways, they have earned a permanent place in my teaching arsenal.  They are fun and engaging, and provide excellent opportunities for students of all ability levels to master the subject matter.



Here are just a few of the task card sets available in my TpT store:

•  Cellular Respiration Task Cards
•  Photosynthesis Task Cards
•  Lab Clean Up Task Cards
•  Classification and Taxonomy Task Cards
•  Matter and Change Task Cards
•  Metric System Task Cards
•  Let's Read Science! Common Core Science Task Cards
•  Microscope Task Cards
•  Scientific Method Task Cards
•  Population Ecology Task Cards
•  Introduction to Ecology Task Cards
•  Viruses and Bacteria Task Cards


Or you can just click this link to view all of them!

Student Lab Cleanup: How to Improve It!

Students will help...

... IF they know what to do!

All science teachers know the struggles we face when we take the students to the lab.  There are many!  But the one I want to address here is lab cleanup.  We have precious few minutes between one class leaving the lab and the next class entering the lab.  It is imperative that our students in one class leave a clean and orderly lab station for the students in the next class. 

 

Click image to view in my TpT store.

My personal experience is that students do not “see” the mess they leave behind.  My students, for the most part, are good citizens, and they will try to carry out my instructions.  As the class nears the end of the period, they hear me say, “We are almost out of time…. Start cleaning up your lab area.”  But if I am not more specific in my directions, this lab class will not end well.

In the frenzy of the last few minutes before the bell, my students make an honest attempt at cleaning their lab station, but their idea of clean, and my idea of clean are not the same!  I want all of the paper towels in the garbage.  I want the lab station clean and dry.  I want the supplies to be in a certain order.  Etc!!

What I have discovered in my many years of teaching is that students need very specific instructions.  When I tell my class that “it is time to clean up”, the instruction is too vague.  The student wonders, “What does she want me to do?”  They look at their lab station and they think it looks fine. This is the nature of the teen age brain.  They have the wonderful ability to see only what they want to see!

My solution is The Student Cleanup Checklist.  I have made a set of task cards that have a specific instruction on each.  For each lab, I select the cards that are applicable for the particular lab.  The cards go on a ring, and a set of cleanup instructions is left at every lab station.  As the class period ends, I have trained my students to flip through the cards on the ring, and carry out all instructions.  This has been a lifesaver for me.  These are still kids, and they are still going to miss a piece of paper on the floor, but with my specific instruction cards, life around my lab is much improved.  The students do a much better job cleaning their area, and I have less stress as the next class is entering the room.

A few tips:

• Make sure that you laminate the instruction cards.  The lab is a wet place, and the cards will not last long if they are not laminated.
• Once laminated, the cards will last for years.
• Punch a hole in the corner of each card and place the cards on a ring.  I purchase packages of rings at my local Office Depot.
• Select cards that are appropriate for the lab of the day, then place the cards at each lab station.
• You can also post the appropriate cleanup cards on the board or other prominent spot in the lab.  Always post them in the same spot so that students will learn the procedure.

I hope the Student Cleanup Checklist will help improve your life in the lab.  Have fun teaching!

Classification and Taxonomy: Reviewing Important Concepts

This Kingdoms of Life Mix and Match Game is an excellent way to review the concepts of classification and taxonomy.

When teaching a unit on classification and taxonomy, the presentation of the six kingdom classification system seems pretty easy and straight forward, right? When I ask my students what kingdom frogs belong to, I know without a doubt that they are going to say "Animalia."  For our middle and high school life science students, learning which organisms belong to which kingdom is a simple task that is quickly and easily mastered.

But when I ask my students questions like these, they will hesitate.  And often give the wrong answer.

• Name the kingdom that contains heterotrophic plants.
• Name the kingdom in which all members are autotrophs.
• Name the kingdom that contains prokaryotes with peptidoglycans in their cell walls.
• Name two kingdoms in which all members are heterotrophs.
• Name the kingdom that contains organisms with specialized cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems.
• Name the kingdom in which all members have cell walls composed of cellulose.

Click image to view
product in my TpT store.

I have fallen in love with using mix and match card sort games as a way of reviewing and reinforcing concepts in my science classes.  My latest creation is this Kingdoms of Life Mix/Match Game.  

Students are given 6 larger cards.  Each large card has the name of one of the six kingdoms in the 6-kingdom classification system.  The set also has 80 "answer cards."  Students are tasked with matching the answer card to the correct kingdom.

The game comes with student answer sheets and a 7-page teacher guide.  The student answer sheets are optional, but I always have my students record the answer card statements on the answer sheet.  Writing is a way of studying, and the answer sheets make a great study guide for the unit test.  The teacher guide has lots of suggestions for how to use the game, directions for set up and implementation, and of course, a complete answer key.

The game is perfect for all life science students of different ability levels because you can easily differentiate the game for any group of learners.  By selecting which answer cards to use, you can make the game perfect for any ability level.

If you like this idea, you might want to check out my other mix/match games:
Cell Organelles Mix Match
Organic Compounds Mix Match 

If you are looking for additional activities for teaching classification and taxonomy, you can also explore this collection of hands-on classification and taxonomy activities for middle and high school students.

If you are looking for a more interactive digital review option, you might also like these biology hidden picture review activities that give students instant feedback as they work.

          👉 Link: biology hidden picture review activities