Featured Teachers

Some of you may already know of Ray Troll. He’s been creating some of the most beloved scientifically accurate art for years. Ray makes science fun and beautiful and we’re lucky to call him a friend of Shape of Life.

When we had our first request from a seven-year-old boy determined to save the planet one critter at a time, we had to give him a call and find out more.

Lucky us! Rachel sought permission to use our Shape of Life video for the creation of her questions about sponges. We heartily agreed and share her story with you.

The thing I like about Ms. Duke is that she gets us to do stuff we normally wouldn’t—like the time we got our families to join in a neighborhood clean-up. I never thought we’d do that!”, said Ms. Duke's student, Emma.

“Project-based learning is my favorite. Students need real-world connection. When they are actively participating, the learning becomes so much more meaningful for them.”

“I love collecting and exploring plankton because you literally never know what you’re going to find each time you pull in that fine mesh net”

“I have the honor to return to my community college roots as a tenure-track instructor at Pasadena City College. I am really enjoying the innovative initiatives happening in my department. It’s a very full circle moment in my career!”

“We explore, we look, we smile.” these are much more than the introductory words to Stanton’s video. They are Stanton’s approach to life. One can’t help but smile when listening to Stanton’s rich Trinidadian voice describe his experiences conducting marine research with students in the reefs in Grande L’Anse, Trinidad.

“Science is like playing! It’s hands-on and fun. It has the capacity to explore places you’ve never been, help or heal and lose yourself in the process. My very first mock lesson in teaching school was about states of matter. I used chocolate as my medium,” laughs Sandy.Learn more about Sandy’s imaginative and engaging approach to teaching science and  gifted kids. And, don't forget to check out the excellent Coral Reef Lesson Plan that Sandy prepared for Shape of Life.

Getting Messy with Ms. O’Frizzle“I encourage my students to roll up their shirt sleeves and GET MESSY! Make mistakes. Ask lots of questions. Biology can be dirty business,” said Ali. “If you’re not getting messy you’re just not having fun.”Learn more about how Ali became Ms. O’Frizzle and one of our most engaging community members on Shape of Life social media.