Answers to Most Frequently Asked Questions

Dear Ms. Q, I'm a really shy person, especially when it comes to science. I know I should emphasize it more in my classroom, but it's really scary. I hate to look dumb in front of my kids. Any suggestions?

Dear Educator, Relax, breathe, and try books from our Easy Set of Activity Sheet titles (find this set on our order form and in our storefront). Or try the compilation Global TOPS #91. Our Get A Grip Workstation #73 also gives teachers and kids a really gentle entry to self-directed, hands-on learning. These programs are perfect for science-shy teachers, as well as for students who think they don't like science and math. All lessons (and their supporting teaching notes) are carefully crafted with clear, simple instructions that students (and educators) can read and understand independently. Your class will be so busy doing, they may never notice that you're learning right along with them. And if they do, all the better! You'll be an important (and, dare I say, enthusiastic) role model, helping your students understand that education is a life-long process. back to top

Dear Ms. Q, What if I get stuck and just can't figure something out?

Dear Educator, First scan the rest of this page, or our Homeschool Tips, for solutions to some common problems. If you don't see it there, you can email Ron or Peg Marson at for technical support. They'll usually get back to you quickly, even evenings or weekends, since TOPS is a small cottage industry. We need your cooperation to make this efficient, so please be sure to say which book and lesson you are asking about, the age level you are teaching, and state your problem as clearly as possible. (You may also find your answer by reading the entire teaching notes and materials list for that lesson!)

If you don't have access to email, you can call 503.266.8550 between the hours of 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific Time, but please be aware that the Marsons may not be available, or may not be able to give you the best possible on-the-spot answer.

Dear Ms. Q, I'm doubtful about the wide age ranges listed for these TOPS activity books. Grades 3-10? Grades 7-12? How can this be?

Dear Educator, Every child (every adult, for that matter) learns by doing at individually unique levels of competence and understanding. TOPS provides the context, the hands-on learning systems, for science and math process skills to mature and develop at all levels. TOPS activities are wonderfully flexible. Teachers with widely different teaching styles and kids at different age levels send us Raves. Children lacking reading skills or eye-hand coordination may need help setting up some experiments, but they enthusiastically interact and learn at any age.

Dear Ms. Q, How can you folks make any money by giving away so many free activities?

Dear Educator, TOPS activities are a little bit like love. In over 20 years of doing business, we have found that the more we give, the more we receive. Having sampled just the "TOPS of the iceberg," we hope you'll be inspired to order some of the 700+ experiments below water level, or to send us a contribution.

Dear Ms. Q, What does TOPS stand for anyway? Do you offer a weight loss program? Do you publish baseball cards, or what?

Dear Educator, TOPS is an acronym we adopted at our beginning, in 1977, to emphasizes science as process. It stands for Task Oriented Physical Science. But a quick perusal of our order form, or an in-depth review of this website, shows that we have broadened our scope far beyond physical science. So we kept the name TOPS, dropped the acronym, and added Learning Systems to emphasize our hands-on approach. You can call us TOPS, or TOPS Learning Systems, or TOPS Ideas, or TOPScience.org. It doesn't really matter what you call us. But please do call us.

Dear Ms. Q, Why can't I receive just one TOPS Ideas magazine in my mail box each September and January? Sometimes I receive NO copies, and sometimes I receive duplicates. Can't you guys be a little more consistent?

Dear Educator, Please examine the mailing label on each TOPS Ideas magazine you receive to understand its point of origin. If your label says "TOPS" in the upper left corner, this label is from our own mailing list. And the number directly below "TOPS" shows how many years are left in your subscription. If your label doesn't say "TOPS" it comes from an outside data base that we don't control. Some duplication is unavoidable. We can be more consistent if you'll e-mail our mailing list with up-to-date information. And won't you kindly redirect any duplicate catalogs with non-TOPS labels to your teaching colleagues? They will appreciate it, and so will we! (And so will Mother Earth.)

Dear Ms. Q, I love my science textbook. There, I said it. It's not PC, but it's the truth! My text systematically and logically covers every concept in my state's syllabus. Each chapter is capped off with good questions. Answers to both odd and even numbered problems are right there at the back of my Teacher's Edition. And hey, any student who wants to learn anything about science can read all about it. Simple, easy, efficient. I bet you hands-on wackos won't print this.

Dear Educator, A good textbook most certainly has its place! But can reading displace doing? What if we could only read about, oh, say, eating! I can't imagine the most thorough cookbook teaching me how to bake unless I get to interact with all those lovely ingredients, smell them in the oven, and taste-test the results. Messy, perhaps, and my cookies could crumble, but I end up with an experience I will remember long past the chapter quiz! Take pity on your poor starving students!

Dear Ms. Q, I recently requested free examination copies of your books to keep on hand in my science methods class. But my request was refused! Don't you folks value my influence upon my graduating teachers-to-be?

Dear Educator, Your recommendations are like gold to us! But we are quite a small non-profit educational publisher, not a huge corporation. And we don't sell multiple copies, like textbooks. Every book we ship is a complete science program, and most give you full rights to photocopy. If we were to give away our books to all the college professors who ask, we'd have to significantly raise our prices to all the teachers who dig into their own pockets to purchase TOPS. We hope you will continue to recommend us, not for the benefits to you, or to us, but to all those kids out there who become excited about science by doing TOPS.

Dear Ms. Q, But you do sometimes give your books away free, don't you?

Dear Educator, We certainly do. The purpose of our work is to make our creative, hands-on approach available to students everywhere. (That's why our activities use such inexpensive materials!) If you or your school simply can't afford our books, write us about your special circumstances, and we will do the right thing.

Dear Ms. Q, As a home-schooler, I want to be sure my children are prepared for college admission. Will TOPS provide the kind of science background they need to get into the college of their choice?

Dear Educator, TOPS doesn't cover every subject area, and few of our titles are intended as college-prep, but we do teach young people how to learn. We provide the hands-on experience each child needs to understand science as a process of inquiry, exploration, manipulation, wondering, asking, and problem-solving. The "subject" of this experience, whether it be physics, biology or chemistry, is of secondary importance. There are wonderful resources everywhere, and your kids will discover them with curiosity and relish when their natural sense of inquiry is encouraged. Once your children learn to be their own best teachers, they can become the rocket scientist, the plumber, the homemaker, the farmer, or poet they were meant to be. The TOPS books you use, and that college you have in mind, are merely stepping stones to help them along their way. And do check out our Homeschool Tips page for other helpful information.

Dear Ms. Q, Why is your website mostly black and white? Don't you think you're a little old-fashioned?

Dear Educator, It's our look, and quite consistent with our mission. Black and white, done well, is clear, interesting, orderly and calming. It loads fast on your screen. And in this age of bells and whistles, it's even unique! We want to dazzle your students with creative, thought-provoking activities, not gimmicks. Our line masters, reproducible on any black and white photocopier, are so attractive, they're actually ahead of their time!

Dear Ms. Q, How many science teachers does it take to change a light bulb?

Dear Educator, A bazillion science teachers can read, or lecture, or theorize about changing a light bulb. But it just won't happen until one actually does it, hands-on.

Dear Ms. Q, What is the purpose of life, anyway?

Dear Educator, The purpose of life is to discover what you're meant to do, then do it with all your heart. TOPS is our vocation. Our purpose in life is to help teachers teach, and children learn.

Yours most sincerely,
Ms.Q

P.S. Ms. Q gives advice to the science-prone on matters close to the heart. Please email her with your burning questions!

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Answers to Most Frequently Asked Questions