Teaching Students to Love Science and Technology

Buried Sunlight: How Fossil Fuels Have Changed The Earth By: Molly Bang & Penny Chisholm We had the opportunity to create book trailers in Science Methods. It was an interesting experience that I really enjoyed. I like being creative and making videos, so I took this assignment and put my all into it. I chose the book Buried Sunlight: How Fossil Fuels Have Changed the Earth by Molly Bang & Penny Chisholm. The book introduces fossil fuels and explains how they are changing our Earth and what we can do to change this. My video leaves a hook leaving readers wondering what we can do next. This would be a great way for students to become engaged in the beginning of a lesson. This would also be an effective way for students to create their own videos. This assignment could be used in any subject to introduce a book and leave other students wanting to read it. Along with the experience of creating a book trailer, I had the opportunity to research the effects of trade books an...

Take Aways from Teaching Science Methods: 5534 Over the course of the semester I have learned many new techniques, methods, and beneficial technology and websites I can use in my future teaching. But even more, I have learned how to create a well-written direct lesson plan and inquiry lesson plan. This process, and the feedback I have received has molded me into a better educator. I now feel more confident when teaching, and learned how to run a smooth lesson. I learned about the 5E's this semester, which was new to me. I now see this implemented in the science classrooms I work in. I realize how the 5Es are effective when teaching students science. Over the course of the semester, I have gained a new understanding to all of the components that make up a direct and inquiry lesson. I have made lesson plans in the past, but this course helped me take my knowledge to a new level. I have even created a unit plan (which I thought I was incapable of doing). I have grown as not...

Adapting the Science Curriculum Chapter 9 Effective ways to adapt the science curriculum for children from diverse cultural backgrounds, children with disabilities, and children with special gifts or talents... For English Language Learners: Having science reading materials for non-English speakers readily available  Reinforcing reading and language arts skills Organizing peer tutoring Fostering parent/classroom science connections For Students with Special Needs: Inclusion: inclusion of special needs students and typical students Differentiated Instruction Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Accommodations and modifications (on IEP) Science experiences provided to children with visual impairments (activities and reading materials should be reconfigured) Science experiences for students with hearing impairments  Science experiences for students with physical impairments Science experiences for students with emotional problems Science experiences...

Science, Engineering, and Technology  Chapter 7 & 8 Science is always adapting, changing, and incorporating new ways of teaching it. Today, science has so much more to it than just science. Chapter 7 and 8 in the text discuss how science incorporates engineering and technology.  When it comes to engineering it can be incorporated into a lesson in a variety of ways in every subject (language arts, mathematics, social studies, art, music, health, physical education, etc).  The Next Generation Science Standards  require teachers to incorporate engineering in the classroom. To check out more on engineering in the classroom, check out the article provided below.  Why Engineering for Children? Technology Enhancing Science Learning Technology is engaging for students! It encourages  curiosity and questions. Students connect with technology. It enhances student learning by providing immediate feedback, visu...

Strategies, Quick Checks, and Assessments in Inquiry Based Lessons: Chapters 5 & 6 Over the course of the semester I was able to not only learn from our text about useful strategies, quick checks with students, and sufficient assessments to use in inquiry based lessons, but I have also had the opportunity to implement and practice these strategies and assessments.  "How can I effectively create an inviting science discover space, encourage science talk, and foster cooperative learning in my science classroom?" (p. 72) Adding life to the classroom: such as setting up an aquarium or adding plants! Consider other senses: fill the room with sounds such as jungles, woodlands, animal noises, etc., this inspires curiosity and questions.   Distributing materials: Make appropriate techniques to distribute materials such as asking 2 to 3 students to help Provide work areas: extra space students can work at Providing clear directions  Create routines in the c...

Chapters 3 & 4 In chapters three and four of our text, it helps prepare future teachers to teach and inquiry based lesson. Chapter 3 focuses on what an inquiry lesson consists of, and chapter 4 helps teach methods of planning and managing for an inquiry lesson.  Inquiry is... "The careful and systematic method of asking questions and seeking explanations" (p. 38) In our inquiry lesson, students were asked a question "How did the fire begin in the house?" they then had to "seek explanations" by conducting research to come to a final solution of how the fire occurred. Once the research concluded and students found their answers, they presented their information using FlipGrid and wrote a letter to conclude the project about how they could help save the environment. With an inquiry lesson, students learn by constructing knowledge through asking questions, seeking evidence, and justifying their explanations.   Practices that sh...

How Children Learn About Science Chapter 2 "Science is an ongoing process"   (Derosa & Abruscato, 2015) Science is based on evidence, and seeking explanations based on evidence. It all starts with students coming prepared with prior knowledge on a topic and having questions to build off of. This chapter discusses how students and people are never finished learning, it's an "ongoing process." When it comes to science, to learn science, one must do science. A modern way students learn science is through: Constructivism . "Constructivism is a theory of human learning that is rooted in cognition of psychology and, to a lesser extent, behavioral psychology. It provides modern science teachers invaluable guidance" (DeRosa & Abruscato, 2015, p. 24). Three Principles to Constructivism: 1. Naive Conceptions 2. Assimilation  3. Accommodation When creating science lessons for my classroom it is essential to use UDL (univers...

What is a fossil? Did you know there are 7 types of fossils? It is something I have never given much thought about. I do not recall learning about fossils in school. I remember touching on the topic when learning about dinosaurs, but was never introduced again during my education. It was nice to learn more about where they come from, the different types of fossils, and where they can be found. I enjoyed presenting what I have learned about fossils to my class. At first my group and I sat there pondering what we could teach about a fossil, and what activity we could do with the class. The more we researched, the more we realized we aren't the first people to ever teach a lesson on fossils! There were many beneficial, educational, and visual sites to help us teach about fossils. This experience helped Nicole, Jamie, and I grow as teachers. We will be faced with challenging topics we aren't educated enough on when we become teachers, but with the internet we have such ...

"It is not just teaching science,  it is using science to teach thinking" (Derosa & Abruscato, 2015, p. 3) Chapter One of the text was all about why we teach science using inquiry, shaping young minds with curiosity, understanding science, and why technology is essential for teaching science in the classroom. When shaping young minds, it is important to embrace and direct curiosity. This will lead to making claims, gathering evidence, and generating explanations on their findings which follows the scientific method.  What is science? Science is a way of knowing.   A systematic quest for explanations based on evidence The dynamic body of knowledge generated through a systematic quest for explanations (p. 6) The book mentions how technology is changing everyday and we must keep up with it. Technology, science, and engineering are all combined, and that is why there is a push for incorporating technology and engineering into teaching science. ...

Over the last six or so weeks, I had the opportunity to spend time with and teach a lovely group of students at Bishop Dunn Memorial School. There were a variety of grade levels (2nd grade up to 7th grade) and a variety of different needs which made teaching difficult at times, but helped me grow as an educator. You never know what will be thrown at you in the world of teaching, and by teaching a variety of students of different grades and different needs, helps prepare me for the future. Before completing my fieldwork with Dr. Smirnova in Science Methods, I had never experienced lesson planning like this before. I feel I now have a better understanding about what she expects of us, as well as a better understanding of all the components of teaching science. I knew in the past the difference between direct instruction and an inquiry lesson, but after practicing these lessons and observing my peers I now believe I understand 100% what is expected when creating and giving these types ...

What's Bugging You? By: Sherri Brown 5E Learning Cycle approach: Insect Classification  This week I read the article "What's Bugging You?" by Sherri Brown. Yes, bugs were mentioned in the article, but the article went deeper into issues that students sometimes struggle with, and often teachers have a difficult time explaining to their students. The concept the article focused on was helping students develop classification and observation skills. In the article, the teacher began the lesson by providing her students with a pre-assessment on what is considered a bug and what is considered an insect. In the pre-assessment students were asked to circle insects and explain their reasoning why it was an insect. After the pre-assessment, the students were prepared and taught what an insect was using the 5E learning cycle instructional model: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate (discussed in another blog).  To Engage:  Teacher asked students wha...

What are the 5ES? Biological Science Curriculum Study (BSCS) The 5ES are an instructional approach used in classrooms during science lessons. It's a sequence that can be used to teach programs, unit plans, or individual lessons. Why do we use it? Because it helps students build their own understanding from new experiences and new ideas.  The 5 parts include..... Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate Engage: This phase is to draw students in and get them interested on the topic, while pre-assessing their prior knowledge on the topic. During this phase, students make connections with past and present knowledge.  Explore: During this phase students "explore" the topic. This gets the students involved in the lesson, which also provides them with the chance to build their own understanding. Typically during this time, the teacher provides the students with the necessary materials and a model before sending them on their way. Studen...

Monday, October 22: Secondary Effects from Climate Change Tonight, the third group presented on the secondary effects of climate change. This group included an interesting approach at teaching, which gave me some ideas for when I become a teacher. Direct instruction included teaching the students about effects on the body due to a result from climate change. I liked the use of Google Forms that this group used, but the students did need more visuals to deeper understand the concept being taught. In the inquiry lesson, the group began with a PowToon of a chairwoman on the board for Climate Change. All of the students were engaged and ready to learn. The scientific method was reviewed in depth before creating a hypothesis or starting research. The students took a couple minutes to turn and talk about their hypothesis, this was a great method to use to get students thinking. If a student was unsure about their hypothesis, a turn and talk could allow them to hear another idea and mak...

Monday, October 15: Tonight the second group presented their lesson plan at fieldwork. The lesson included direct instruction as well as an inquiry based lesson. The future teachers put in a lot of effort creating this lesson to fit with the variety of students we have at Bishop Dunn School. All different types of technology were incorporated in this lesson, which made it very engaging for the students. Powtoon, Peardeck, FlipGrid, and Kahoot were some of the websites used to make this a successful lesson. The topic introduced was Weather and Climate. I felt all of the students grasped what climate and weather were during the direct instruction. I do think climate/ biomes should have been touched upon a little bit more because students seemed to need a better understanding of climate before moving on. Before diving into the inquiry lesson, the scientific method was reviewed. I felt all steps were followed by the teachers to make this a successful lesson followed by all the neces...

On Monday October 1, Maria, Tori, and I had our first lesson plan. I learned a lot from delivering this lesson plan. It is so different to actually give a lesson, compared to observing one. I felt all types of emotions as we only had a week to prepare and did not have time to run through our lesson beforehand. We had a wide range of students from elementary school to middle school. I believe we accommodated as best as we possibly could due to the different levels we had in our class. The students reacted positively to using Pear Deck on the computers. I think it would have been helpful to give them a mini-lesson on Pear Deck before using it in our lesson, as it took time away from our lesson when students needed assistance. I felt our inquiry lesson was interesting and interactive. The students enjoyed researching to see what caused the fire in the house. Powtoon is an awesome tool to make lessons engaging and exciting for students. I plan to use it for all subjects when I have my own...

After having some difficulties figuring out how to get onto the link for Study.com , I finally got on and got to see what it had to provide for students of all ages on all subjects and topics. I played around with The Scientific Method and Making a Hypothesis. First the lesson provides a video with great visuals and information. Below the video is even more information. When the video is over the student then goes on to take a brief quiz on the lesson. I could see myself using this in my classroom as a homework assignment or an in class activity after introducing a new topic. This would be a great way to assess my students on how well they understood the lesson without giving them a grade. I could tell if I had to go over the topic again, if the students were ready to move on, or if I had to work with a small group of students to catch them up. It seems this website could be pricey, but if the school I worked for provided this website, it would be a great tool to use as assessments...

"Not a very happy situation, it's hard to turn back now." ☾ ☀ Dr. Edelstein ☁  The Climate Reality Project ☂ We had the pleasure of having the guest speaker Dr. Edelstein come into our classroom and discuss his expertise on climate change. He is part of the The Climate Reality Project. I knew minimal information on climate change before his presentation. I was introduced to new words and information I was unaware about, how to teach climate change to my future students, why and how climate change is occurring, as well as what we can do. I feel much more comfortable being able to discuss this topic with my future classrooms after listening to his presentation.  One word I took away from Dr. Edelstein's presentation was adaptation.  He described adaptation as: "adjustments we need to make to deal with climate change." We as teachers must be prepared to teach our students how to adapt and make adjustments to deal with climate change. He mention...

Science… where do I start? My earliest memories with science are exploring the outdoors on my own. I have always been curious of creatures, forests, and the weather. Second grade is my first memory of science in school. I remember learning about the solar system. It fascinated me. I like to think this is where my passion for science developed. I remember making planets out of clay; I put my heart in sole into this project. I loved art already so being able to tie in my love for art helped me develop a love for science. I was full of questions about science then, as well as now. Through elementary school I remember doing few science experiments/ lessons such as the life of a butterfly, electricity, and the solar system. It wasn’t until middle school when I realized science would be my favorite subject in school. Science never came easy for me, I had to work at it, but I have always loved it because there is so much to learn, so many questions to ask, and it is always changing.  ...

On Monday, August 27 I attended my first class of Methods of Science and Technology. I quickly learned this class would be much different than other courses I have taken in the past. Dr. Smirnova is very engaging, just like the educator I inspire to be one day. Right off the bat we were provided with videos and resources we can use as future educators and she even brought in guest speakers! Immediately in class, my brain started flowing with excitement and ideas on what I could do to make science engaging and interactive in my classroom. After watching the videos provided in class, questions started brewing in my head such as: How would I teach that in my classroom? What can I do to help? What can I do to make science engaging and purposeful? How will I make a difference in the future of science as a whole?  When I found the quote above by Edward Teller, it made me think that the science I teach my students will be the science and technology of the future . It it is impor...