By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2011-05-19
In a previous blog on student teaching, Christina Atton reflected on her student teaching in science. Her cooperating teacher, Ms. Chevin Stone (from Donald E. Gavit MS/HS in Hammond, IN), shares her experiences as Christina’s cooperating teacher.
In a previous blog on student teaching, Christina Atton reflected on her student teaching in science. Her cooperating teacher, Ms. Chevin Stone (from Donald E. Gavit MS/HS in Hammond, IN), shares her experiences as Christina’s cooperating teacher.
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2011-05-14
Did you see this article from Education Week shared on NSTA’s Facebook page? Study: Interactive Tools Matter More Than Teaching Methods
The article has more details, but basically in the 12th week of the semester, a college physics class was divided up. For the next week (3 hours of instruction), one section continued the lecture approach with the professor while the second was taught by two graduate students using an “interactive method including short, small-group discussions, in-class ‘clicker’ quizzes, demonstrations and question-answer sessions. The teachers got real-time graphic feedback on what the students were learning and what they weren’t getting. ” On a quiz covering that week’s content, the second group outperformed the first “The best scores in the traditional class were below average for the interactive class” “In addition, student attendance and attention were higher in the interactive class. ”
Those of us in the K–12 world are probably not surprised by the results. Many of us already vary the instructional strategies in a class to get students actively involved and use formative assessments for feedback on student learning. But it’s a fascinating study, and one that could be validated with your own teacher action research.
From what I read, I do wonder if perhaps the novelty of the strategies (technology and collaboration vs. large-group lecture) and having two instructors contributed to the results. It would be interesting to follow up on these variables.
The EdWeek article begins by asking “Who’s better at teaching difficult physics to a class of more than 250 college students: the highly rated veteran professor using time-tested lecturing, or the inexperienced graduate students interacting with kids via devices that look like TV remotes?” I think this question poses a false dichotomy based on stereotypes—the stodgy veteran lecturer vs. the hip technology-using newbie. I would like to see a study on what happens when “highly rated veteran” teachers use collaborative strategies and technologies—for more than 3 hours of instruction!
In a workshop this week, teachers (which included veterans and newbies) used several Web 2.0 tools that could foster student engagement and collaboration. I observed that when the participants (teachers) used the discussion forums on the course Moodle site, their contributions were more detailed and reflective than if we would have asked them to share out loud.
Another tool we used was lino a web-based communication system that mimics posting sticky-notes on a bulletin board. The instructor creates a board and shares the URL with others who can post notes on it. The applications are endless—we asked the groups of participants to each post 4 notes: a definition, examples, nonexamples, and questions (color coded). Each team worked on a laptop, but they could what others were posting in real time. We then debriefed as a large group, with all of the notes visible on screen. The “canvas” can be saved. I could also see using a canvas for an ongoing KWL chart for each class, a quick way to review, or an exit activity. Hmmm.
We also dabbled with Mindmeister, a tool for brainstorming and creating mindmaps (similar in concept to Inspiration). Once again, the instructor sets up the map and shares the URL. In real time, others can contribute. The map can be saved. It was interesting to see the collaboration in real time via laptops as participants added to or commented on and idea from someone on the other side of the room.
Both of these tools have a basic free version that requires login for the instructor. Others do not need a login to participate. I’m sure that students (and teachers) would catch on quickly!
Note: the study was recently published in Science. A paid AAAS membership is necessary to see the entire article.
Did you see this article from Education Week shared on NSTA’s Facebook page? Study: Interactive Tools Matter More Than Teaching Methods
By Claire Reinburg
Posted on 2011-05-12
Activities that focus on food and cooking can help students see how relevant and fascinating science can be in everyday life. In a recent illustration of the enduring appeal of food’s scientific underpinnings, one of the most sought-after classroom slots for Harvard undergraduates is in the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences’ course “Science and Cooking.” Last fall in the class and accompanying public lectures, 13 well-known chefs dished on how they use food science in their celebrated restaurants, creating foams, spheroids, and other avant-garde features of their culinary offerings. Why not infuse your own lessons with a cooking activity to stir up students’ interest and appetite for science? Author Sarah Young’s new book Gourmet Lab: The Scientific Principles Behind Your Favorite Foods is a collection of hands-on experiments that challenge grades 6–12 students to take on the roles of scientist and chef as they boil, bake, and toast their way to a better understanding of science concepts from chemistry, biology, and physics. Read the May 2011 issue of NSTA’s Book Beat for a free lesson from the book, “Cold Milk,” in which your students will measure the energy transfer in the creation of ice cream. May’s Book Beat also offers grades 3–6 lessons on food-related topics like chemical change in cooking pancakes and measuring the relative acidity of everyday foods like corn, lemons, and apples.
By NSTA Web Director
Posted on 2011-05-11
All you earlybirds out there are in for a treat this month if you look eastward just before dawn (and the weather is clear). Four planets will be engaged in a slow-motion dance, aligning themselves differently day by day in a tight segment of the sky.
NASA has created a nice video describing the phenomenon:
[youtube]__RLPmenKeo[/youtube]
All you earlybirds out there are in for a treat this month if you look eastward just before dawn (and the weather is clear). Four planets will be engaged in a slow-motion dance, aligning themselves differently day by day in a tight segment of the sky.
NASA has created a nice video describing the phenomenon:
[youtube]__RLPmenKeo[/youtube]
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2011-05-11
For the past few years, I’ve had a self-contained fifth-grade class, and my students and I enjoyed doing many hands-on science activities and investigations. Next year, I’ll be teaching science to all of the sixth-graders. The science classroom is well equipped, but I’m looking for suggestions on managing five sections of science every day, especially labs.
—Elizabeth, Bowling Green, KY
In a self-contained classroom, you could be flexible with the schedule. If a science activity took a little longer than expected, you could adapt. But your new situation will be sensitive to the bell schedule. Your classes will be back-to-back, allowing little time between dismissing one class and welcoming the next. Preparation and organization will be important.
Plan your activity for the amount of time you have. If you have a single period (e.g., 45 minutes), you are limited to investigations that can be completed (including the introduction and cleanup) within that time or those that can be paused and continued at another time.
Prepare materials and equipment in advance. Have a surplus of materials so you won’t have to leave the room to get something. Assemble trays or boxes with materials for each lab group. A card in the box (or notes on the board) with an “inventory” helps students know what to return at the end.
If students get to class after the activity has started, allow them to work on the activity if and only if you first brief them on the safety issues (as you did with the rest of the class at the beginning of the activity). Prepare seatwork for those waiting for a turn or are not doing the activity. Students doing seatwork should remain at their desks.
Even the best class or most advanced students can run into difficulties. Resist the temptation to stay at your desk and grade papers or plan the next activity. Monitor your students as they work. In addition to looking for safety issues, you can do some formative assessment as you walk around. You can ask and answer questions, guide their thinking, and eavesdrop on their conversations. You can have a list of lab skills and check off students as they demonstrate them. Also note anything that you would change for the next class or the next time you do this activity.
Time flies during an activity, and if the bell rings while students are still working, they’ll want to rush on to their next class. Students must assume responsibility for cleaning up at the end of the period so that everything is in place for the next class. Set an alarm or timer to provide enough time to clean up the lab stations and debrief on the activity.
Have a sign at each lab station with a list of cleanup tasks. Check each group’s lab station and their box or tray to inventory the equipment and materials before they sit down. Do not dismiss the class until the cleanup is complete and all equipment and materials are accounted for.
Just as in a self-contained classroom, you’ll need organizational strategies, such as labeling or color-coding the paperwork for each section of students, designated routines to hand in assignments, and a place to store 100+ science notebooks.
Another challenge in teaching several sections of the same subject is maintaining your energy level. Even though you’re doing the same activity all day and hearing the same questions, it’s a new experience for each section of students. Your enthusiasm in the last period class has to be at the same level as first period.
And wear comfortable shoes on lab days—you won’t have a chance to sit down!
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2011-05-08
While reviewing some materials from a workshop, I came across a few online gems this week to add to the SciLinks keyword assessment. Even some of the experienced teachers in the workshop had to stop and think about the differences between analytic and holistic rubrics. We were guided to Jon Mueller’s page on Rubrics for a clear and concise discussion, with examples.
Creating analytic rubrics (which include both criteria and descriptions of the levels of performance for each) can be a time-consuming effort (but worth it). The Rubric Maker website looks like a good tool. The full version requires a subscription (for a fee). But there is a free version, the difference being that the finished rubric cannot be saved on the website or shared via the website. It can be downloaded as an Excel or HTML file that maintains the formatting, and the Excel version can be further revised/edited. Once you enter a grade span (Primary, Elementary, Middle, High) and a title, you’re able to choose criteria and descriptors. You can edit most of these to use your own terminology or performance levels. A nice feature is that it also creates a student “checklist” with a description of each criteria (e.g., I proposed a hypothesis that can be tested by my experiment. I followed safety rules.) This would be really helpful to share with the students. There are other rubric generators on the web, such as Rubistar, which requires a free registration. You can create, save, and print a variety of customized rubrics right from the website.
When I got home from the workshop, I poked around the rest of Dr. Mueller’s site, the Authentic Assessment Toolbox. My reaction was WOW—this is a wonderful tutorial or guide through the process of creating assessments that are based on identified standards/objectives. He writes in a conversational style and includes lots of examples and a glossary of assessment terms. I really enjoyed reading the “Workshops” section which are basically think-alouds as he “converses” with a teacher and guides them through the process.
Exploring these resources could easily be a professional development project on assessment or the development of common rubrics.
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mstinas/3188728867/
While reviewing some materials from a workshop, I came across a few online gems this week to add to the SciLinks keyword assessment. Even some of the experienced teachers in the workshop had to stop and think about the differences between analytic and holistic rubrics.
By Peggy Ashbrook
Posted on 2011-05-06
Towards the end of the school year we often think of resources we can share with families to use over the summer. I like to describe my favorite outdoor areas to explore with young children with tips for what to take to make the experience last longer (snacks and hats) and be safe (know what poison ivy looks like and use sanitizer after playing near, in, a creek). As I tell my preschool parents, don’t discount the science you do every day with your children. Most household chores involve math, literacy and science skills— sorting clothes by color, reading pictures and words to see how much and then measuring the amount of laundry detergent, and watching bubbles form as the water pours in. Once all the chores are finished (lol), turn to the public library and internet for science activities to do with young children.
Reading books aloud, especially those that allow children to predict what might happen next, or what a character is thinking, give children practice in coming up with questions and ownership in voicing them. It gives us adults practice too, in allowing enough “wait time” for children to to formulate their thoughts. Try Fortunately by Remy Charlip or any other work of fiction.
Use your judgment about the age appropriateness of activities because you know your child best. Here are a few sites to gather ideas and directions:
First Hand Learning’s printable mini-journals for observations in nature.
“Go Beyond the Classroom” blog with videos on play-based learning and book suggestions.
Foundation for Family Science, with activities on the website and a book of activities, Family Science, for various ages.
Museums of all kinds often describe activities to try at home on their websites. The Exploratorium, the museum of science, art and human perception has pages and pages of activities to pick from.
Scientific American “Bring Science Home” activities based on the National Science Education Standards for children ages 6 to 12 years old—to be undertaken with the help and guidance of an adult.
The list doesn’t stop here—share your sources with all of us Early Years teachers and families.
Peggy
By admin
Posted on 2011-05-06
Reds and pinks, oranges, yellows, greens, blues, purples, browns, even grays and blacks, these represent a spectrum of colors that we take for granted thanks to synthetic dyes, but once weavers and fabric makers took great pains to extract these colors and fix them to textiles. Dyers made the colors from lichen, henna, rose madder and juniper, saffron and pomegranate, woad and indigo, acacia and pinon trees.
But a chance discovery, as you’ll learn from the Chemistry Now video, made these colors cheaper to obtain and more effective. In 1856, 18-year-old William Henry Perkin was given the assignment of developing a synthetic route for the production of quinine, which previously could only be extracted from the bark of a cinchona tree grown in South America. He was working with coal tar, and reacted it with potassium dichromate. The result was a black precipitate. When cleaning it up, he discovered it left a rich purple color on the cloth he was using, and the rest is history. Or is it chemistry?
We have reached the 13th week of the weekly, online, video series “Chemistry Now,” and chemistry has moved to industry as a source of interesting video and lessons. As we’ve written before, please view the video, try the lessons, and let us know what you think.
Photo: Corey Holms
Through the Chemistry Now series, NSTA and NBC Learn have teamed up with the National Science Foundation (NSF) to create lessons related to common, physical objects in our world and the changes they undergo every day. The series also looks at the lives and work of scientists on the frontiers of 21st century chemistry.
Video: An 18-year-old London chemistry student tries to make synthetic quinine for malaria treatment, and instead creates the first synthetic dye. View a video that tells the story of the 1856 Chance Discovery that transformed the textile industry worldwide. NBC Learn also profiles a 21st century chemist, Purdue’s Mary Wirth, whose nanomaterials research makes cancer “markers” easier to detect in blood tests.
Middle school lesson: in the Dye Chemistry, students use natural dyes to carry out an investigation to determine which natural products will produce the desired color on eggs or fabric.
High school lesson: the Natural pH Indicators lesson uses household solutions to teach about pH indicators, pH, and properties of acids and bases.
You can use the following form to e-mail us edited versions of the lesson plans:
[contact-form 2 “ChemNow]
Reds and pinks, oranges, yellows, greens, blues, purples, browns, even grays and blacks, these represent a spectrum of colors that we take for granted thanks to synthetic dyes, but once weavers and fabric makers took great pains to extract these colors and fix them to textiles.
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2011-05-01
Next semester, I’ll be student teaching and I’m currently in the midst of my Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment classes. However, I really don’t have any insight into the life of a student teacher yet. I’m curious what I should do to prepare for my experience as well as any recommendations for making the most out of student teaching. Thanks!
—Andy, Phoenix, AZ
I imagine you’re excited and little apprehensive about student teaching. Each college or university program has different requirements, expectations, and timelines for the experience. Most distribute some sort of publication or handbook to student teachers during an orientation session (these are often available online). Usually one faculty member is in charge of student teaching. You may want to find that person and ask about the program expectations, placement options, logistics, and recommended preparation.
Before I began student teaching at Gavit [a middle school], I was placed in a first grade classroom. Although, one may think these two placements would not relate, my experience at O’Bannon [an elementary school] has helped me to prepare for this experience…I learned…to prepare the best you can, expect the unexpected, and prepare to adjust. During my experience in first grade, I struggled to find an understanding between the philosophy I learned in my classes and the developmental needs of the students. There was not one student who fit the ideal “average student” we read about in class. There were students who were well above the average level of first grade and students who were well below. I never had any trouble creating lesson plans throughout my classroom studies, but when I began planning at O’Bannon I found it extremely difficult. I did not want to fail any of the students, but felt I needed a better understanding of how each student learned best before I could teach most effectively. I do not believe I prepared enough the week I was observed in the elementary the classroom. Therefore, when I arrived at Gavit I decided to take a different approach.
The past two weeks I have been preparing myself differently. First, I went through the seventh-grade science book and studied the concepts the students have been learning all year. I compared the concepts to the standards that still needed to be met. Now I have an idea of where the students’ understanding is and where it needs to be when I finish my experience. Next, I listened and observed. I observed the way Mrs. Stone interacted with the students and how they responded to her. Some words of advice I received from Mrs. Stone [were] to always have my ears open and be aware of what the students are saying amongst their friends. I began to listen to what they were saying without them knowing I was listening. I learned much more about them then I could have with the introduction games. Seventh grade has changed greatly since I was in it and I will need to adapt my thinking. Finally, I began interacting with the students through helping with work and walking around asking them about their extracurricular activities and home lives.
I am preparing myself to meet the needs of each class, which are different. Some classes need more of a direct method, while others enjoy and can handle more cooperative or independent learning. I hope to find the best balance and excite the students about science.
Next semester, I’ll be student teaching and I’m currently in the midst of my Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment classes. However, I really don’t have any insight into the life of a student teacher yet. I’m curious what I should do to prepare for my experience as well as any recommendations for making the most out of student teaching. Thanks!
—Andy, Phoenix, AZ