by: Norm Barstow
When I was an Elementary Science Coordinator, I used to visit the five schools in my district and each year introduced the Pringles® Kaleidoscope as part of the Sound and Light unit. At that time I used microscope slides, and it became quite a challenge to have the students line up and tape nine slides to make the triangular prism. Fortunately, Educational Innovations began to carry Kaleidoscope Mirrors (SM-3), thus making the task much easier.
2 Comments | 
Elementary level, experiments, Middle School level | Tagged: homeschool, kaleidoscopes, light, mirrors, parent friendly, PBL, phenomenon based learning, phenomenon-based science, reflection, science, symmetry, triangular prism | 
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Posted by Tami O'Connor
by: Tami O’Connor
So, what can be better than awesome, Super! Wow! Neat! Science stuff? Tough question, but how about FREE awesome, Super! Wow! Neat! Science stuff? At Educational Innovations, we want to start paying you back for being a loyal customer!
On October 14, 2013, Educational Innovations launched its new customer loyalty program. You can now earn Extra Credit Points every time you place an order online and pay using your credit card! Sounds easy right? Well, it is! Just log on to your account with your username and password, and for every $10 you spend, you will earn 2 Extra Credit Points. What if you don’t have an account? Great question; in less than one minute, you can create one for free!
So now, in addition to having the coolest, highly motivational, and fun science products, all at affordable prices, you now have one more reason to shop at Educational Innovations. And don’t forget, we also offer free UPS Ground shipping on all online orders over $75!
Extra Credit Points expire one year from the date you’ve earned them, so be sure not to wait too long before you use them. So, what would you like to save up to buy?
Leave a Comment » | Elementary level, High School level, Middle School level | Tagged: customer loyalty program, Educational Innovations, extra credit points | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor
by: Marty Sagendorf
Light is magic stuff: it has no mass, it comes in many colors, it has energy, it can be emitted and absorbed, but it can’t be saved in a bottle or bucket. Even though we can’t ‘save’ it, we can explore the many ways that light behaves around us. We are told, or we read, about reflection, refraction, and the many other properties of light’s interaction with objects, but until we actually experience these we really don’t fully appreciate ‘the magic of light’.
That’s what this Optics Kit, from Educational Innovations, allows us to do – experience light by doing. This kit provides the necessary components to perform extensive investigations – ten are completely detailed – and new ideas for experimentation will naturally develop as optics principles become familiar.
Let’s begin with something we see every day:
Start by drawing a line along, and one-half inch from, the long side of a piece of 8-1/2”x11” white paper. At the mid-point of this line, draw a perpendicular line extending across the paper. This line represents a ‘NORMAL’ to the mirror’s surface.
Leave a Comment » | College level, experiments, High School level, Middle School level, Physics | Tagged: co-planer surfaces, dichroic filter, laser, light, Marty Sagendorf, optics, PBL, phenomenon based learning, phenomenon-based science, polarizing filter, reflection, refraction, science | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor
Help Us “Lesson” Our Impact on the Environmentby: Michael Finney
As you may know, Educational Innovations offers lesson plans and activities for many of our Super! Wow! Neat!® products. Designed with practical classroom application in mind, these lesson plans and activities require minimal effort or outside materials. They are suitable for in-home use, as well, though some supervision may be required. Some of our products feature lesson plan ideas for different grade levels.
Leave a Comment » | About Us, Elementary level, experiments, High School level, Middle School level | Tagged: Educational Innovations, science lessons | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor
by: Janice VanCleave
The mystery artifacts used for this investigation are special and can be purchased at Educational Innovations. The artifacts are called “Ice Melting Blocks,” but this name gives too much information. Prior to the investigation, I suggest that you introduce them as artifacts, objects that have been intentionally made or produced for a certain purpose.
To investigate mystery artifacts and determine their possible purposes as well as the real or imaginary culture that might have made them. Set the stage by placing the mystery artifacts on a table and covering them with a cloth. If possible, screen off the investigating area so that only the “student science explorers” can view the blocks.
4 Comments | Elementary level, energy, experiments, Middle School level | Tagged: conductors, Educational Innovations, experiments, ice melting blocks, insulators, Janice VanCleave, mystery, observation time, PBL, phenomenon based learning, phenomenon-based science, science, science explorer, science explorers, scientific method, student science | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor
