Batter Up: Investigating What Type of Wood Makes the Best Baseball Bat
In "Batter Up," learn about how engineers designed a test to determine baseball bat breakage rates for different types of wood.
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The question you will answer in this FACTivity is: What material or combination of materials creates a stronger tower? Materials: Paper Plastic Straws Wooden popsicle sticks Toothpicks Natural items (sticks,...
FACTivity – Batter Up
The question you will answer in this FACTivity is: What material or combination of materials creates a stronger tower? Materials: Paper Plastic Straws Wooden popsicle sticks Toothpicks Natural items (sticks,...
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A reflection from a baseball player after competing in the first all girl’s baseball tournament.
Spotlight – Baseball for All!
A reflection from a baseball player after competing in the first all girl’s baseball tournament. -
Learn more about the research engineers completed in 1951 about the best wood to use for baseball bats so they break less frequently. Discover what has changed since this earlier...
Spotlight – Time Warp for Batter Up!
Learn more about the research engineers completed in 1951 about the best wood to use for baseball bats so they break less frequently. Discover what has changed since this earlier... -
Much of the white ash wood used to manufacture baseball bats comes from trees in Northern Pennsylvania and New York. The white ash trees in these areas are experiencing problems....
Will the Emerald Ash Borer and Climate Change Affect White Ash Baseball Bats?
Much of the white ash wood used to manufacture baseball bats comes from trees in Northern Pennsylvania and New York. The white ash trees in these areas are experiencing problems....
Glossary
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Patrick Drane
I have always found math and science very interesting. I have enjoyed being able to use those concepts and tools in engineering to investigate mechanical systems, design tools, and solve...View Profile -
David Kretschmann
Growing up, my parents owned an auto body repair business. Being around auto repair sparked my curiosity of how things worked and held together when subjected to extreme conditions. I...View Profile
Standards addressed in this Article:
Social Studies Standards
- Culture
- Global Connections
- Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
- People, Places, and Environments
- Science, Technology, and Society
- Time, Continuity, and Change
Note To Educators
The Forest Service's Mission
The Forest Service’s mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. For more than 100 years, our motto has been “caring for the land and serving people.” The Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), recognizes its responsibility to be engaged in efforts to connect youth to nature and to promote the development of science-based conservation education programs and materials nationwide.
What Is the Natural Inquirer?
Natural Inquirer is a science education resource journal to be used by students in grade 6 and up. Natural Inquirer contains articles describing environmental and natural resource research conducted by Forest Service scientists and their cooperators. These scientific journal articles have been reformatted to meet the needs of middle school students. The articles are easy to understand, are aesthetically pleasing to the eye, contain glossaries, and include hands-on activities. The goal of Natural Inquirer is to stimulate critical reading and thinking about scientific inquiry and investigation while teaching about ecology, the natural environment, and natural resources.
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Meet the Scientists
Introduces students to the scientists who did the research. This section may be used in a discussion about careers in science.
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What Kinds of Scientist Did This Research?
Introduces students to the scientific disciplines of the scientists who conducted the research.
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Thinking About Science
Introduces something new about the scientific process, such as a scientific habit of mind or procedures used in scientific studies.
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Thinking About the Environment
Introduces the environmental topic being addressed in the research.
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Introduction
Introduces the problem or question that the research addresses.
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Method
Describes the method the scientists used to collect and analyze their data.
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Findings & Discussion
Describes the results of the analysis. Addresses the findings and places them into the context of the original problem or question.
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Reflection Section
Presents questions aimed at stimulating critical thinking about what has been read or predicting what might be presented in the next section. These questions are placed at the end of each of the main article sections.
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Number Crunches
Presents an easy math problem related to the research.
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Glossary
Defines potentially new scientific or other terms to students. The first occurrence of a glossary word is bold in the text.
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Citation
Gives the original article citation with an internet link to the original article.
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FACTivity
Presents a hands-on activity that emphasizes something presented in the article.
Science Education Standards
You will find a listing of education standards which are addressed by each article at the back of each publication and on our website.
We Welcome Feedback
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Contact
Jessica Nickelsen
Director, Natural Inquirer program -
Email
Lessons
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In this lesson plan, students will write sentences or short paragraphs about the article using 15-20 letters of the alphabet. This lesson plan can be used with any Natural Inquirer...
Lesson Plan – Alphabet Writing
In this lesson plan, students will write sentences or short paragraphs about the article using 15-20 letters of the alphabet. This lesson plan can be used with any Natural Inquirer... -
This lesson plan encourages students to think about a particular research topic across time, including past, present, and future. Students will compare and contrast the historical research with a more...
Lesson Plan – Time Warp Monograph Series
This lesson plan encourages students to think about a particular research topic across time, including past, present, and future. Students will compare and contrast the historical research with a more...
Education Files
Project Learning Tree
If you are a trained Project Learning Tree educator, you may use “Tree Treasures,” “We All Need Trees,” “A Few of My Favorite Things,” “Resource-Go-Round,” and “Paper Civilizations” as additional resources.