Skip to main content
Appalachian Today
News and events at Appalachian State University
  • For the media
  • Archives
  • Contact
  • Events
  • Webcams
  • Galleries
  • In the Media
  • Grants
  • Speakers
  • All Posts
  • Topics
  • Accolades
  • Alumni
  • Arts and Humanities
  • Athletics
  • Awards and Honors
  • Community Engagement
  • Diversity
  • Events
  • Faculty and Staff
  • Gifts and Grants
  • Global
  • Health and Wellness
  • Publications
  • Research
  • Safety
  • Scholarships
  • Students
  • Sustainability
☰ Menu
  • Events
  • Webcams
  • Galleries
  • In the Media
  • Grants
  • Speakers
  • All Posts
  • Topics
  • For the media
  • Archives
  • Contact
  • The university remains open, with emergency management protocols activated and operational modifications and precautions in place. Read the latest updates
View larger image

Dr. Leslie Bradbury, left, works with student teachers Megan Pope (holding balloon) and Marissa Rogers, right, on a fifth-grade science lesson related to forces and motion. The student teachers are testing their balloon rockets on yarn and fishing line to determine which allows the rockets to go farther and faster. Photo by Rachel Wilson

Dr. Leslie Bradbury creatively prepares tomorrow’s science teachers

View larger image

Dr. Leslie Bradbury is a proponent of experiential learning in elementary school science classes. She received a 2017 Appalachian Excellence in Teaching Award. Photo by Marie Freeman

“If I’m saying... ‘Kids learn best by getting to have experimentation with investigations,’ and I don’t model that, how are they ever going to learn how to do it?”

Dr. Leslie Bradbury, science educator

By Mary Giunca
Posted Oct. 23, 2017 at 3:59 p.m.

When Appalachian State University professor Dr. Leslie Bradbury wants to excite student teachers about the possibilities in teaching science, she stands on her head and drinks a glass of water.

The exercise provides a lesson in how the digestive system works, and a lesson in how to ignite a classroom over science concepts.

“If I’m saying to student teachers, ‘Kids learn best by getting to have experimentation with investigations,’ and I don’t model that, how are they ever going to learn how to do it?” Bradbury said.

Bradbury, a professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in the Reich College of Education, was recently honored with an award for excellence in teaching at the Fall Semester Faculty and Staff Meeting. She came to Appalachian in 2005, where her area of specialty is science education.

She was attracted to Appalachian for its reputation as a great place for training teachers, Bradbury said.

“The people here are passionate about excellent teaching,” she said. “It’s a very friendly place. We have conversations about what we’re doing in our classes and how we can improve and collaborate.”

Bradbury has always loved science. She received her Bachelor of Science in biology from James Madison University, a master’s in science education from East Carolina University and a doctorate in science education from the University of Georgia.

“I think science applies to everything in our lives, whether it’s the weather, our health or the world around us – all of it is science,” she said. “I think it makes it more exciting when we can understand why it works.”

View larger image

Dr. Leslie Bradbury is a proponent of experiential learning in elementary school science classes. She received a 2017 Appalachian Excellence in Teaching Award. Photo by Marie Freeman

Scavenger hunts, balloon rockets and more

Teaching science can be intimidating to young teachers, Bradbury said. With the focus on testing math and reading, many elementary schools aren’t spending as much time on science instruction as they did a generation ago.

“They’ve [student teachers] heard that the days are longer in the summer and shorter in the winter, but they don’t necessarily understand why that’s the case,” she said. “We use models with globes and flashlights and simulations to help them understand.”

She’ll send her student teachers outside on a scavenger hunt to find the ways rocks are used in daily life, or have them launch balloon rockets to understand forces and motion.

Haleigh Lowery, a senior elementary education major from Charlotte, said she’s become more confident about teaching science since taking Bradbury’s classes.

“Having her as a teacher has made me realize how much fun being a teacher can be,” Lowery said. “She has helped me to realize how important teaching science is, as well as how easy is to integrate other content areas into a science lesson.”

Partnerships with public school teachers in the Boone area provide a perfect laboratory for Bradbury and her students to try out their ideas for teaching science. Every Friday during their last semester before student teaching, her students are in local elementary schools observing and working with elementary teachers on teaching science concepts from lessons they’ve planned.

“I can say, ‘That seems like a really great idea. Let’s see how we can tweak it so it can actually work with second graders,’” she said.

What do you think?

Share your feedback on this story.

Faculty and staff honored for excellence
Faculty and staff honored for excellence
Aug. 30, 2017

Seven faculty and four staff members at Appalachian State University were honored for excellence at the Fall Semester Faculty and Staff Meeting on Aug. 25 in Plemmons Student Union.

Read the story

About the Department of Curriculum and Instruction

The Department of Curriculum and Instruction offers a broad range of comprehensive degree programs at the baccalaureate and master’s levels. The department seeks to provide quality programs that emphasize the integration of academics and field experiences. Learn more at https://ci.appstate.edu.

About the Reich College of Education

Appalachian offers one of the largest undergraduate teacher preparation programs in North Carolina, graduating about 500 teachers a year. The Reich College of Education enrolls approximately 2,400 students in its bachelor's, master's, education specialist and doctoral degree programs. With so many teacher education graduates working in the state, there is at least one RCOE graduate teaching in every county in North Carolina. Learn more at https://rcoe.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As the premier public undergraduate institution in the state of North Carolina, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls more than 20,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.

Share

Topics

  • Faculty and Staff

What do you think?

Share your feedback on this story.

Archives

Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

The migration of materials from other sites is still incomplete, so if you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Additional feature stories may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Photo galleries and videos published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • A university-wide Google Calendar may be found at Events at Appalachian

Share

Topics

  • Faculty and Staff

Other Recent Posts

  • App State coronavirus information
    App State coronavirus information
  • 2 App State seniors awarded Gilman Scholarships to study or intern abroad in 2021
    2 App State seniors awarded Gilman Scholarships to study or intern abroad in 2021
  • A ‘diploma in persistence’ for this App State staff member and student
    A ‘diploma in persistence’ for this App State staff member and student
  • App State names inaugural BCBS of NC Endowed Professor in Public Health
    App State names inaugural BCBS of NC Endowed Professor in Public Health
  • US News & World Report names App State Online programs among nation’s best for 2021
    US News & World Report names App State Online programs among nation’s best for 2021
  • Revealing Earth’s story through the geologic record
    Revealing Earth’s story through the geologic record
  • App State’s Paul Meggett named among NC’s top 100 African American attorneys for 2nd consecutive year
    App State’s Paul Meggett named among NC’s top 100 African American attorneys for 2nd consecutive year
  • Recent App State grad offers 4 tips for forming a pandemic pod for work and home life
    Recent App State grad offers 4 tips for forming a pandemic pod for work and home life
  • A look at generations of Black Mountaineers who inspire the Appalachian Community
    A look at generations of Black Mountaineers who inspire the Appalachian Community
  • US Department of Education continues funding for App State’s Student Support Services
    US Department of Education continues funding for App State’s Student Support Services
  • WCC, App State announce Aspire Appalachian Co-Admission Program agreement
    WCC, App State announce Aspire Appalachian Co-Admission Program agreement
  • Giving back to the community: One App State student’s idea to brighten older adults’ lives through art
    Giving back to the community: One App State student’s idea to brighten older adults’ lives through art

Archives

Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

The migration of materials from other sites is still incomplete, so if you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Additional feature stories may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Photo galleries and videos published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • A university-wide Google Calendar may be found at Events at Appalachian
  • Events
  • Videos
  • Galleries
  • In the Media
  • Grants
  • Speakers
  • All Posts
  • Topics
  • For the media
  • Archives
  • Contact

Appalachian State University

Copyright 2021 Appalachian State University. All rights reserved.

University Communications
ASU Box 32153
Boone, NC 28608
828-262-6156
ucomm@appstate.edu

Abouts

Disclaimer | EO Policy | Website manager: montaldi | Website Feedback

Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram LinkedIn Snapchat