Profile | NSTA Learning Center

Ruth Hutson

Blue Valley High School is a small rural high school in Northeast Kansas. I have the privilege of being the only high school science teacher in my district. I am fortunate to be able to teach the same students throughout their entire high school career. This year, I am teaching Applied Statistics and Analysis in Science, Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, Physics, and College Biology. I love the challenges that this workload presents and enjoy integrating all the disciplines of science with math and statistics so students best understand the process of science.

Location

Affiliation

Blue Valley High School

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IM Screen Name: Ruth Lehmann Hutson

Recent Reviews by Ruth

Yesterday, 10:36 AM

A myriad of resources for classroom teachers!

If you teach earth science or environmental science, you need to check out this web seminar. Deke Arndt gave a very informative, resource packed web seminar. He did a super job explaining the state of current climate science and how scientists are measuring the changes we are currently observing and how they have been measured in the past. I especially appreciated Arndt's explanation concerning how changing climate will affect humans and their activities. He provided some great analogies about how an unstable climate versus a stable climate affects weather. But, most importantly, Arndt showed us where we can look for the most up-to-date information.

Tue Oct 01, 2019 11:12 AM

Excellent inquiry activity

The author describes an excellent inquiry lab that uses live crustaceans (isopods). I appreciate that a colony of isopods can be easily maintained. The space these model organisms would require in a classroom would be minimal. This would be an unique way to study food preference and extensions could be made using Data Nugget data from other organismal studies. The suggested extension of a statistical analysis would be a welcome addition in my College Biology course. However, my high school biology students would also enjoy this type of ecological study. I plan to use it this year with my students.

Mon Sep 30, 2019 7:57 PM

A great way to make biology relevant to students' lives

I love how the author uses food to capture students' interest and then leads them through detailed, rich investigations into the biology behind the recipe. The course he describes is for non-majors, but this would be a perfect approach in high school to help students understand important biological concepts and still show how those concepts are relevant to their lives. I also love the multicultural approach to food. By comparing how several similar dishes are made, one can also introduce both ecological and chemistry concepts as well.

View all reviews by Ruth