Teaching Science with TOYS (TOYS)
Since 1986 we’ve offered teachers the opportunity to learn and teach basic chemistry and physics using toys and other everyday play items in the classroom. Elementary and middle-school teachers across the United States and in countries around the world have participated in the Teaching Science with TOYS (TOYS) program and used the TOYS publications in their classrooms. The TOYS program capitalizes on students’ natural attraction to toys and also shows that physical science is an integral part of our everyday experiences. The goal of TOYS is to improve teachers’ knowledge of chemistry and physics and to encourage the use of activity-based, discovery-oriented science instruction through engaging and non-threatening curriculum materials.
Two major TOYS initiatives, described below, were funded by the National Science Foundation and Miami University. TOYS continues to be offered today through funding from the National Petrochemical Refiners Association.
Teaching Science with TOYS (Phases I & II)
Teaching Science with TOYS (Phases I & II) was developed in response to the need to make physical science education relevant and accessible to all students. The program focused on helping teachers to be more at ease teaching science by increasing their knowledge of chemistry and physics through workshops offering toys-based science activities and by developing a collection of instructional activities and Teacher-Resource Modules. To this end, we published five TOYS books containing a wealth of toy-related activities. (See Toy-Based Science Resources below.) Follow-up surveys evaluating the impact of TOYS have consistently shown that participating in the TOYS workshops increased teachers’ comfort levels with teaching science and the amount of classroom time the teachers spend teaching hands-on science.
TOYS: CAPS
The TOYS: Cultivating Advancements in Physical Science (TOYS: CAPS) initiative was built upon the success of the first two phases of the TOYS program. Its aim was to maximize the lasting influence of the TOYS program within school districts. TOYS: CAPS cultivated district-level systemic changes to integrate toy-based physical science education into the curricula and resulted in new activities and teacher resource modules that provide districts with ample curricular resources to support effective change.
Toy-Based Science Resources
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