Science + music = effective teaching

Turning classroom experience into lasting knowledge is essential to good instruction, and music is a great tool for making sure memories last. Accordingly, I'm delighted by a tale from Texas about Debra Cave's work to create a new generation of science-in-song.

"I was amazed at how quickly students seem to forget what we captured in class," said Cave, a former nurse who took up teaching four years ago. "If we don't do something to push it into long-term memory, it will be lost."

Her solution: Get a little wild, and the memories stick.

"It's hard to get excited about chlorophyll," she said "But by singing and dancing, emotion gets attached and it's stored long term."

The Dallas News has the full story, with a hat tip to Accomplished Teacher. Sample songs are at www.thejamminclassroom.com