Videos for Science Teachers

From the origins of the universe to tree frogs, there are some fantastic video resources out there for teachers to use when illustrating tricky topics in the classroom. Open Culture is a particularly brilliant resource, with links to thousands of resources and a fantastic video library. It’s worth taking a look at everything they have to offer, but here are our top 6 picks for science teachers…

 

Videos for Science Teachers

1. A Universe from Nothing

This great talk from Lawrence Krauss is a whistle-stop tour from the big bang to the future and everything in between in under an hour! Author of The Physics of Star Trek, Krauss is practiced at making a complex topic accessible with jokes and comparisons, so this talk is perfect for students.

 

2. What it Feels like to Fly over Planet Earth

A lovely introduction to astronomy or physics, this is a beautiful reconstruction from 600 photographs, creating a 60 second time-lapse film. The beauty of this one is that it can form part of a much longer lesson, and doesn’t even have to be limited to science-  it could be the springboard for inspiring written projects or poems or a discussion with younger children about the universe!  Perfect for the budding backyard astronomer in your class.

 

3. Fun to Imagine

Using humour and everyday references, Nobel prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman takes complex physics concepts and makes them simple to understand and grasp – perfect for introducing students to key ideas without alienating them! Topics like ‘robots!’, ‘why is an elastic band stretchy?’ and ‘why won’t a tennis ball bounce forever?’ give simple everyday focus points for much larger questions of physics.

 

4. The Rap Guide to Evolution

Fantastic fun approach to the complex topic of evolution, this is a great way to launch discussion on the topic, or to inspire students to make their own creative projects around science topics!

 

5. The Periodic Table of Videos

A slight deviation from our list, this one isn’t from the Open Culture library, but it’s just too brilliant to be left out of any list on science videos! An award-winning project from the University of Nottingham, it provides a fun, fascinating video for each element of the periodic table, from experiments gone awry to trips to the vault of the Bank of England to look at gold up close and personal! An absolute must-see for chemistry teachers and students alike.

 

6. What the Earth will look like 100 Million Years from Now

Chosen for its versatility, this short 3 minute clip can be used as a jumping off point for a whole variety of topics, from tectonic plates to climate change and might be useful for students of a whole range of ages!

 

Where do you go to find the best video content for your class? And what videos have really made an impact on your students? Let us know your best videos for science teachers in the comments below.

 

Feature image courtesy of Flickr, Andres Rueda.

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