Week 4 - A Day in the Garage

Good Day Fellow Scientists!

Today in Science class we learned about electricity.  I also learned a new pedagogical skill to add to my toolbox.  I learned that a great lesson can be launched from a simple toy....



Peep, peep....



The first E (engage) was used to start this lesson rolling, the toy was introduced and the question was asked, "How does it do that?"  This set off the the next E (explore), as we tried to decide just how it did work, discovering that an entire chain of hand holding people can keep the pet peeping.  Continuing to the next E (explain), we discovered that it had something to do with the circuit and electricity.  We were sent to the the following E (extend) with the assignment to cut up strands of lights and figure out how to make them light up without plugging them in.  Below is our exploration of this:

Exploration....

Success!!!

Then there is always room for fun!

 

 

Our text reading focused on electricity and atoms, explaining the difference between a series circuit and a parallel circuit, and the in's and out's of an atom.  There was also an introduction to the periodic table, which we will be doing with our 3rd graders this week.

 



 

 

In a review of the powerpoint that we viewed from our portal, I learned that gifted students vary in their learning pace, the depth of their understanding, and that their interests are deep and varied. 

We also learned about another approach to differentiation, which is to look at the dimensions of Depth and Complexity.

There are key questions that can be asked in a variety of areas in order to improve thinking skills in several areas.

 





Family Science Night!

 

In class, we reviewed our science kits for Family Science Night - me and my partner are going to "Break the Force!"  You should come and join us:

Rio Vista Elementary School - Anaheim
Thursday, February 28, 2013 - 6:00 to 8:30pm


I leave you with another Albert Einstein quote:

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has
never tried anything new."



 

 

 

 



Week 3 - A Day in Town

Hello Fellow Scientists!

Today we did more hands-on activities...Are you seeing the pattern here?

However, before we got into the hands-on fun we learned about a fabulous program called, Project Learning Tree, or PLT.  It is a program of the American Forest Foundation that existed to promote environmental education in order to ensure that everyone appreciates and understands what a vital role forests play in our lives.  The best part is that because we have an awesome instructor, who is sharing this program with us, we received this great book:

 

 

 

Our first hands-on activity was "Tree-rific!"  We learned about the parts of a tree.  Did you know that sap is made in the leaves of a tree?  Yep, it is!  Then it travels down the tree to nourish it.  Then, we received a mystery bag full of a variety of items:

 

 

 

Do you know which of these items comes from a tree?

.

.

.

.

.

ALL OF THEM!

 

In the words of the late Huell Howser..."Isn't that amazing!"

 

 

From trees we moved to diapers.  Our investigation began with a test to see how much water a diaper would hold.  We hypothesized that it would hold 2 red solo cups (our measuring devise) worth of water.  Here is our process:

 







We began filling the diaper, and filling the diaper, and filling the diaper. 

 

 

Believe it or not, the diaper held nearly 3 red solo cups worth of water.  We could hardly believe our eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is our diaper with all that water in it!

 

 

Diaper Facts:

* They are made from a polymer called sodium polyacrylate CH2--CH(CO2Na)

* This substance can hold 200-300 times it's weight in tap water

* A diaper will stay in a landfill between 250-500 years

* 24 billion consumed annually in the US alone

 

Below is our diaper with the inside material exposed along with a new diaper and the inside material:

 

The material in the wet diaper absorbed the water and becomes a gel-like substance.  The unused diaper material is like cotton and tiny crystals.  The crystal is what absorbs the water and swells to the gel material.

 

 So, let's see what we did:

 

Engaged * Explored * Explained * Elaborated * Evaluated

 

Yep, we covered all the based!

 

 

I'll leave you will a little knowledge about students that was imparted by a teacher, and shared with me by my cohort Danica:

 

They don't care what you know;

if they don't know that you care.



Week 2 - A Day at the Ocean

This class was another day filled with hands on activities!  I did a few things that I never thought I would do:

1.  Dissect a squid
2.  Eat the squid.  Yes, that's right...I ate it!

But, I'm getting a little ahead of myself, we began class with some facts about the ocean.  Did you know that oceans contain nearly 80% of ALL life on Earth?  Isn't that an astonishing fact!

We investigated facts about a sand dollar, here are a few:
     *The "star" on the back is pores for gas exchange
     *They live in shallow water and like sandy bottom
     *They are related to the starfish and the sea urchin
     *The hole on the bottom is it's mouth



Sand Dollar Bottom Side

Here are a few pictures of the sand dollars, the up close pictures are taken with the ProScope:


Sand Dollar on the Beach

Sand Dollar Mouth



Next, we investigated facts about squid, here are a few:

     *They are invertebrates

     *They can propel themselves, by pushing water through

     *They have a beak and tentacles

     *They are related to jellyfish

 

Then, we began our dissection of the squid.  I was not as brave as some in the class and chose to wear plastic gloves.  After we dissected the squid, we fried them up and had a little calamari snack!

Here are a few pictures of this fun!:

Everyone is a little nervous!

That's the beak in the middle >>>

It was a little slimy!

<<<That is the cartlidge from it's spine.

Ready for the batter!!

Prep station

Almost ready to snack on!!

 

Here are a few important points for this week:

     *Think ahead about questions that you will want to ask your students during a lesson

     *IRE - Initiate, Respond, Evaluate

     *Give time to allow students to talk out loud and think so they can absorb the information

    

I'll leave you with this great quote that we were introduced to:

 

"There are only two ways to live your life. 

One is as though nothing is a miracle. 

                The other is as though everything is a miracle."                 

A. Einstein

Week 1 - A Day in the Kitchen

This class reminded me of just how much I like science.  My goal is to learn strategies for creating interesting lessons that will spark students to reach for a deeper understanding of the subject.  The Wonder Stew that we made in class is a perfect example of a hands on project that will get students asking questions.

Wonder Stew:

 

I want to make Science fun for students and the best way to do that is to get, and keep, them engaged.  Higher level learning always takes place when the students are completely engaged!  Once they are engaged, the learning cycle has begun:

                *Engage*Explore*Eplain*Elaborate*Evaluate*

Our text describes science as a process, a set of ideas, and a way of thinking.  The process can be referred to as the scientic method.  The set of ideas are the theories, definitions, and explanations that exist to explain things in the natural world.  Lastly, a way of thinking refers to the ability to be open-minded and cooperative in your science journey.

Here are a few important points from this week:
*Inquiry is imperative
*Hands on activities
     *Connect to students
     *Give opportunity to reflect
     *Clearly define goals
*Address misconceptions
*Familiarize yourself with the Standards
*Technology is important in science