There are so many ways that you can teach science content to your students to bring the WOW Factor! You can use interactive lessons, activities, and even gallery walks!
Gallery walks are great for content that has a lot of moving parts. Let’s explore more!
Middle School Science Lesson Ideas that Rock – Gallery Walks
There are some middle school science topics that include a list of new terms and moving parts that could be overwhelming to students.
For example:
Forms of energy include:
- mechanical energy
- kinetic energy
- potential energy
- gravitational energy
- thermal energy
- chemical energy
- light energy
- radiant energy
- sound energy
- nuclear energy
- magnetic energy
- and solar energy.
The human body systems include the:
- integumentary system
- skeletal system
- nervous system
- cardiovascular system
- endocrine system
- muscular system
- respiratory system
- reproductive system
- digestive system
- immune system,
- lymphatic system
- urinary system
- and the excretory system.
Other examples of topics such as this include the mitosis and the cell cycle, air masses and fronts, clouds, the water cycle, cell organelles, and the list goes on!
Gallery walks are an amazing way to teach topics such as this because you can break each category down and go into more detail and then look at the system as a whole.
Besides using them as a lesson to each content, there are so many ways that you can use gallery walks in your classroom!
1. Middle School Science Lesson
One of the ways that you can use gallery walks in you classroom is as an engaging middle school science lesson, and it is so much fun, and SO easy on the teacher. The only prep requires you to:
- print out the gallery walk posters
- post them around the classroom
- and make copies of recording sheets for your students
Students can then go around the room, read about each topic, and write down facts about each category, draw a picture, and more!
You can create your own or find one that is already created.
In this human body systems gallery walk, students can write down the body system they are learning about, write the main function of that body system, write what that body system consists of, and fun facts about that body system!
It’s great for students because they are moving around, working at their own pace, and it also encourages collaboration.
It’s great for you because you can walk around the room, listen and observe student thinking, and you can provide support where it’s needed!
Students can either turn the lesson in for a grade, hole punch into a notebook, glue into an interactive notebook, or whatever works best for your classroom.
2. Middle School Science Test Review
Maybe you already have a middle school science lesson for the topic, but you would like to do something fun for review. Gallery walks are also great as a review before a test or quiz!
You might teach the water cycle in your classroom. It’s a BIG topic, and here are so many moving pieces in the water cycle. There are so many processes.
This is such a fun lesson to teach and review. The gallery walk is a great way to teach the moving pieces of the water cycle, but it’s also great for review.
Since there is a lot of vocabulary involved: evaporation, condensation, sublimation, deposition, precipitation, transpiration, surface runoff, infiltration, freshwater storage, and groundwater storage, a gallery walk is a great way that students can review the main function of each part, learn more fun facts, and draw pictures to help sketch it in their memory!
3. Science Anchor Charts
Gallery walks are also a great anchor chart idea. While you are teaching a lesson on a particular topic with a lot of moving pieces, such as mitosis and the cell cycle, you could have gallery walk posters hanging on your wall so that students can see the big picture.
Something like the cell cycle can seem overwhelming to students, but having a visual to go back to ALONG with a description and a fun fact to refer to is great for visual learners!
4. Science Bulletin Board Ideas
Along with the anchor chart idea, gallery walks are GREAT for bulletin boards. In fact, I used my bulletin boards for content ALL of the time. It was a great place to put anchor charts, word walls, etc. so that students can refer to it.
I know that my students referred to the stuff I posted on the wall ALL of the time.
I also think back to when I was a student. I know a lot of the content that is engrained in my memory is that way because a teacher had it posted on the wall. My attention drifted away quite a lot, just like my middle school students’, but at least my mind drifted off to the content on the wall.
That’s what I want for my students. So content on bulletin boards it is!
5. Middle School Science Lessons Online/ Virtual Learning
Times have changed, am I right? Technology has taken over. Maybe you are teaching virtually?
So, maybe you can’t post posters all around the room or maybe your students are not even coming to your classroom at all?
Guess what? Gallery walks can be used online!
This forms of energy gallery walk comes with a DIGITAL version that students can click through each poster and type in information about each form of energy.
No prep required, no copies! Just make a copy and send it to your students. Simple, easy and fun!
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This is a great idea! I love using gallery walks in my classroom. I like to call it “around the room” activities, reviews, or games. My favorite part is watching all of my students being fully engaged with whatever content I am using for it! Thanks for sharing your ideas!
I love the different ideas. I teach 4th and these ideas have really opened my mind to new ideas for my classroom and for digital learning.