Grant Providers Agree, Neuroscience is Worth the Investment Several months ago, Mr. Skoczylas, an Elementary Tech Coordinator, was trying to figure out how to best introduce young students in his district to the intersection of Life Sciences and STEM. As you know, at Backyard Brains, our tools and labs make it easy for students to […]

The second half of the Summer Senior Research Fellowship had the students and faculty traveling across Europe as they moved from Munich to Belgrade. In Belgrade, the new base of operations was the Center for Promotion of Science, (an incubator for scientists!) and the team was able to wrap up their projects in a tour […]

Failure is an important part of theReiterative Design Process! For some students, dealing with failure can be tough. It’s frustrating to encounter obstacles in science! And for teachers – how do you grade a project when a student puts a lot of effort in, but keeps hitting roadblocks? Many of you already teach like this, but […]

Scientific publications are a bit more formal than our preferred mode of “sharing the good word” of DIY Neuroscience–our TED videos are a great example of our normal route. But, scientific publications are a currency of authority, and they do offer the opportunity to lay out, very precisely, why we think that students around the […]

A simple Neuroprosthetic may be made with anything and everything! Recently, I’ve been working with an 8th grade STEM teacher – Ms. Amy Farkas, from Riverview, MI – as she guides her students through a unit on prosthetics, neuroprosthetics, and other assistive technology. She began her unit having her students learn about hand articulation, tendons, and the […]

Is DIY Neuroscience the best way to end the school year?* The end of the school year… as we all say, summer is “nearest unto heaven.” ** Students and teachers agree, when we enter that last week of school, it is easy to start checking out. Working with a friend’s class at a local Middle School, BYBer […]

Take it from Twitter: Low-cost EEG is a powerful teaching tool! As a business, it can be strange to package and ship off all these different neuroscience education tools, wondering if they’ll like their new home, will they make a difference in this big, strange world? Much like a proud parent, we are always excited […]

In March 2019, Backyard Brains turned 10 years old! We’re officially double-digits! We have grown so much since our inception as a grad school side project, and we’d like to take some time to look back on the years that got us here. Thank you to our customers and our supporters for 10 great years. […]

Bill Nye Under Mind Control? Don’t worry – it was just temporary! Earlier this year we received an order for a Human-Human-Interface that had our team glowing with excitement. It was addressed to none other than Bill Nye and one of his producers on Bill Nye Saves the World. In this recent Netflix show, Bill Nye and his science […]

Rockefeller’s Summer Neuroscience Program: Graduate Students share their excitement for Neuroscience with teens from all over NYC The Summer Neuroscience Program (SNP) is self-described as “a two-week course aimed at introducing talented and enthusiastic high school students to the brain,” but could more affectionately be described as summer neuroscience camp! Students learn about the history of neuroscience, modern trends and […]

Donors Choose Neuroscience Donors Choose continues to be a fantastic option for teachers who are determined to get DIY neuroscience tools into their classrooms, despite declining departmental budgets. With its Kickstarter-like backing program, Donors Choose gives educators another option for providing classroom equipment for their students without breaking the bank–by relying on the kindness of their community. […]

If you aren’t familiar, Donors Choose is like the Kickstarter for classrooms. Teachers who are hunting for funding to buy classroom supplies, tech, and tools can turn to their communities for support when the school’s budget can’t support them. This is an awesome opportunity for teachers to bring awareness to issues of classroom funding, to connect their classroom […]