Connect students directly to the concept in a personal way. Capture students' attention by initiating a group problem-solving activity before delivery of instruction. Begin with a situation that is familiar to students and builds on what they already know. Construct a learning experience that allows diverse and personal student responses. Facilitate the work of cooperative teams of students.

Teacher magic show.

Objective: To actively involve students in an enjoyable "non-scientific" experience that requires observation of patterns and hypothesis formation.

Activity: The teacher performs a Magic Show of science-based and non-science based tricks. The tricks have been gathered from a variety of Science Magic books and also from an exciting trip to the local magic store. Simple, cheap tricks are easily mastered by the teacher, for example, "chinese laundry ticket," "ball and cups," "multiplying rabbits," etc. The experience can be enhanced with background music, top hat and cape, assistants from the "audience," and so forth. As students observe each trick, the students must record their observations about how the trick was done. A sample student observation sheet contains the following: THE MAGIC SHOW Trick: Observations: Repeated Actions?

Assessment: Quality of class participation and attention to experience.