Research Assessment (RAR)

For my (RAR) assignment I decided to take a look at Julie Luft's article about building a rubric for your classes.  As educators we can't escape constantly monitoring our children for progress.  We have to test them and we have to test them and we have to, you guessed it, test them.  However when we're not being task masters and assigning quizzes we need to give them something to do, and we need to grade them on it.

Julie Luft's article talks about some of the best and basic ways to construct a rubric for your classroom and for a particular assignment.  She lays out her plan in four easy steps:

1. Know your goals for instruction.
2. Decide on the structure for the rubric.
3. Determine the levels of performance.
4. Share with your students.

To me the last part of this strategy, share with your students, is the most important. As teachers I feel you need to be upfront and honest with your students about how they are being scored.  Being a teacher shouldn't be like being a dungeon master in D+D, pulling out random punches just to screw with the player, education isn't suppose to be a rigged game.  Far to many time in my life I have had to answer to a rubric, only to have the whole class wonder, "There was a rubric?"

In my classroom there will not always be a rubric for everything, sometimes an assignment is very cut and dry, but when the time comes for a rubric I will be sure to give one out to my class, go over it with them, and answer any questions that they might have.

Blog Finale

Over the last few months I've had quite the time reflecting on this class here in this blog on an almost weekly basis.  It's helped me deal with the stress that this class causes and allows me to unwind when the overload of work has gotten to me.  This however is my last blog post of the semester, sort of, and figured I would take the opportunity to reflect back on the whole process.  

Writing a blog has been very relaxing for me and while I was a bit confused about how to do it at first, the process became much easier as I went on.  As for topics, I was able to just simply talk about what we did in class each week and by doing that I was able to reflect on what I had learned and was able to absorb and rationalize what just happened.  Overall I found the experience very rewarding and will continue to use this blog in the future, however I have to write this post for a blog finale grade, however I'm sure I'll be back soon enough, as I know I missed some assignment somewhere that will require me to talk about it in a blog post.  So toodles for now, and before I exit, I want to shout out to everyone in my class who also had to do a blog, and you can find all there blog posts here:

http://catherinesscientificdiscoveries.blogspot.com/

http://colleensdiscoveringtheworldofscience.blogspot.com/

http://sciencethroughdiscoverylearning.blogspot.com/

http://dnamandasdiscoveries.blogspot.com/

http://johnosscienceblog.blogspot.com/

http://nowitsscience.blogspot.com/

http://myjourneyofscientificdiscovery.blogspot.com/

http://caitlinsscientificlearning.blogspot.com/

http://discoveriesthroughteachingscience.blogspot.com/

http://discoversciencewithmshynes.blogspot.com/

Good luck everyone and congrats on finishing the course. 

Final Thoughts on the Science Fair

Awhile back I posted a blog on the science fair, and about my history with science fairs which was none.  That was also before my project was finished, and before I saw the results on what I had gotten.  So, for the final time I will go into the depths of the science fair; the experience, the process, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

First, my project:

My project was the self-inflating balloon project, which came with the following hypothesis: The mixing of vinegar and baking soda will cause a chemical reaction that will cause the balloon to inflate.

It took me two days to make this project and if you couldn't come down the science fair to show your support, I have my full project on display in the picture above.  When the baking soda, mixes with the vinegar, the balloon inflates on its own, as you can see in the pictures attached to my project.  

Overall my project went over well, however there were area's where I could have easily improved the experience.  First, I could have offered a variable as in when telling the user to add more or less baking soda/vinegar to the project to see if the results will be the same.  Second, better questions for the reader to look at and answer probably also would have help me out.  Finally, the pictures weren't the best either, I should have taken some better pictures, or better yet, filmed myself doing the experiment and shown it during the science fair so the kids/parents could have done the experiment themselves.  

Through it all though, I accept the work I did for this project as it was my first ever experience with the science fair.  I explained in a previous blog post that I had never done a science fair before and that this was my first time.  Overall I found the experience to be rewarding, but also kept me wondering.  Prior to this, I understood how the science fair worked, I'd seen enough about them, yet never actually participated in one before, but still understood the overall process.  As someone looking to teach science to young kids, I question how this activity helped me out in furthering that goal.  Judging the actual science fair was something I really enjoyed, and as a teacher that is what you will be doing for the most part, judging the science fair, not participating in one.  

However, who am I to judge, I did get a half way decent grade and as I said before the experience was worth it.  Plus I can finally say I competed in a science fair, something I couldnt't say when I was a kid.  Although, the ironic part about all of this is that kids had way better experiments than I did, and when you really boil it down, that's the important aspect. 

It's to late for me to launch a love for science, but it's not to late for some of these kids, who have a bright future ahead of them.  

Science in The News

One of the assignments that we had to do in our ever evolving science class was an assignment on science in the news.  Briefly, we had to gather a bunch of articles, talk about them, and share them with the rest of our class.

For my the topic of my articles, I choose space/astronomy.  I chose these articles because, while I find science to be my least favorite subject, I have always found space to be engaging.  They call it the final frontier for a reason and that's because it's the part of science I feel we know the least about.  From looking at the different articles I collected, there seems to be something new, a new claim or discovery, almost everyday.  As we unfortunately watch our own planet fall apart scientists have been looking toward space more and more in an effort to save humanity.

Space is probably the most relevant topic to teach in classrooms these days, and unfortunately I don't think it gets the air time it deserves, even in the secondary level.  Exploring space and finding a suitable home for the human race, or saving our own planet is the defining topic of our time and as teachers we need to implore this onto our students as best we can.  The articles that I have pulled out work well in talking about a number of the different planets, and former planets for that matter, and talk about what the future holds for Earth, Mars, and beyond.  I have gathered these articles for everyone to look at, and can be found here.

Book Talk

Today I finally completed my book talk for my science methods class.  This was not my first time doing a book talk.  I recently just did a book talk with 10 different children's books for my Literacy Methods course, so the topic was not unfamiliar with me.

Producing a trailer, however, was a totally new experience.  I had never made a movie in my life, save for a couple 15 second ones captured on my phone in my high school days, so this was all new to me.  I used the website Animoto to create the trailer and it was very easy to use.  As you are well aware if you've been following this blog, I am not the best with technology.  I've probably made a reference to your great-great grandmother being able to use Facebook better than myself and its totally true.  Animoto however was extremely easy to use, and it created my trailer in just four steps. They just require an e-mail address to sign up and it's free.



There are watermarks on the sides of the film when you use the free version, however its nothing grotesque that ruins the quality of the film.  If you want them to go away, you just have to upgrade.  Overall this was a very fun experience and surprisingly quick.  If you want to check out the video I made for my book talk you can check it out here.

My main man Copernicus

While doing our space project in class a few weeks back, I stumbled upon an interesting fellow by the name of Nicolaus Copernicus.  

Now many of you have probably heard of Copernicus, however, do you really know the man?  He single came up with the solar system.  That's right, THE solar system, the one we so wrongfully use to pick on Pluto.  

In 1543 Copernicus wrote a book titled, " De revolutionibus orbium coelestium" or as it's simply know today, "The Book".  In this book, Copernicus makes bold statements, that we today would laugh at the very notion of being thought of as balderdash.  In his book he stated the Earth was round, and that Earth was not the center of the universe.  Again, these are things we would replay with a simple, "Duh" today, however those comments were so flamboyant at the time, they landed Mr. C in jail, where he would die within a few months.  

Thankfully his students, most notably Galileo Galilei, continued to carry on his work long after his death.  As we all know Copernicus was right, the Earth was indeed round, and we revolve around the sun, not the other way around.  As a famous rapper musician once said, haters gonna hate.

Astronomy

Over the last couple weeks, our class has had to gather together 7-10 different articles about astronomy.  I've always liked astronomy, and found space to be incredibly interesting.  The fact that we can look up into the sky and think that it could essentially go on forever, really makes you think.

Ever since I was a kid I've always been fascinated with what happens above us.  Each year in school I'd pretty much bomb every science test with the exception on two: astronomy, and weather.  Weather always interested me, simply because of where we live.  In the northeast, we experience every season, and very rarely is the weather the same, even two days in a row.  Also as a child you tend to watch the weather channel more cause you just have to know when the snow is coming for an all important snow day.

Astronomy on the other hand was something that wasn't as accessible in the realm of facts.  As a child, all I could do was lay out on the grass and night and simply look up.  All you could see was stars and the moon, so it was up to your imagination to figure out what else was there.  As I got older, my questions began to be answered, however those answers usually just led to more questions.  The unique thing about astronomy is that it is the only scientific field that will never be complete.  Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science all have questions remaining, however those questions will be answered.  With Astronomy, and space, it never ends, and so questions will always remain.  

A never ending list of technology

Our class continued this week to explore the realms of the internet by continuing to use different websites and apps to further ours, and our future students educational experience.  As someone who is technologically behind the eight ball, these classes invoke a range of emotion from pure joy, to honest frustration.

The joy of this, is that we are learning new methods and interesting ways to teach our students, that perhaps myself wasn't offered in school because of a lack of technology.  The frustration comes from there simply being so much of it to try and test out.

However when you really break it down, most of these websites are the same thing just packaged differently.  A long list of websites may look intimidating at first, but when you start to examine them more closely, you'll realize they all do the same thing, and learning to master a new one takes no time at all because you've already been there in the first place.

A week 10 jigsaw

This past week saw the coming and going of the 10th week of class.  It's hard to believe we're just 5 weeks from the end of the semester.  It seems like just yesterday I was up all night trying to figure out a lesson plan for 3rd graders back in the 2nd week of class.

Anyway, this past week had us return to our classroom that we haven't seen since week one when we were introduced to the class with strange animal toys.  This time, the toys were left home and a jigsaw puzzle was brought out in its place.

What I mean by jigsaw puzzle is different type of teaching method.  The activity calls for the class to be broke up into two groups.  Each group then assigns roles to each person, and then finally you are to work with the other person in the other group who was assigned the same role as yourself.  You then do all the research and become an expert of the topic, then go back to your respective groups to teach your other teammates all about it.  After each group member has talked about their respective topic, you present your findings to the class.

While it may sound slightly confusing at first, believe me I was in the same boat, once you try it out it actually is a great idea, and one that I will probably use in my classroom at some point.

A fun activity since we all have some down time....

This week is spring break and we are all privy to some time off, which I believe no one will argue with, we could all use.  So instead of posting something about science, I decided to go slightly off the rails with a fun activity you can do either by yourself or, preferably, with a couple of friends.  

If you have the time, everyone should check out and learn how to do geocaching.  You can type that into google and your questions will be answered, but I will explain it anyway.  

Geocaching is a worldwide scavenger hunt done out in the woods, on nature trails, or even on the sides of country roads.  What you do is you download the app from the app store or google store and it will automatically find your location.  Then little dots will come up on your phone that will show you where to go.  You simply follow the trail and when you get close you need to open your eyes and look for something that you think isn't suppose to be their, most of the times its a hidden piece of tupperware that ranges in size.  Once you find it, you open it up, sign your name to the logbook and then discreetly put it back.  You then take out your phone, and log it as found and then move on to the next one. 

There's hundreds of finds to be had in the Hudson valley alone, and millions set out all over the world, I probably didn't do to good of a job explaining this so simply if you like the outdoors and you have the time, download the app and get out there.  Happy hunting.

Week Eight, last but not least

After eight weeks, four groups, two snow delays and boat loads of stress, our fieldwork experience has finally come to a close.  It's refreshing as we will not have to be rushing around making lesson plans and fixing last minute adjustments at 4 in the morning, but its also upsetting in a way.

Over the last four classes we've gotten bond a group of students who I think we, as a class, have a close connection to.  This sense of familiarity is what makes teaching become less stressful and more enjoyable.

When reflecting about this experience, the first thing I tend to jump to are the groups themselves.  I feel like every group did a great job in not only preparing fun activities for the kids but executing them as well.  Being on both sides of the coin really gives you that understanding of the stress and thought that goes into each one of these lessons, and I'm sure every group, including my own, had a sleepless night or two leading up to their lesson.

The next thing that jumped out to me was the patience and understanding that these kids have when it comes to inexperienced teachers giving them direct instruction.  Let's be honest, nobody's presentation was perfect but to me the kids didn't see the flaws, and overall they had a good time.

Finally, the parents jumped out to me as well.  Every week they would come in right at the end and, even though we would run long each time they didn't complain.  In fact, speaking for when my group went, some of the parents even decided to join in as the kids made it look like so much fun.

It's amazing to think that the fieldwork experience has come and gone, but it was a great experience and gave everyone in the class an opportunity to plan a lesson, dump that lesson, find a new lesson, execute that lesson, and watch the kids love what you prepared.  It was an amazing experience, very sad to see it go, but now we get to go back to class and do all the fun stuff that would normally entail and college class.

The Science Fair

This past Tuesday our class had to take part in the Bishop Dunn Science Fair with all of the other 7th graders in the school.  While I was unable to attend due to my work schedule I was still able to drop off my project ahead of time to avoid a grading penalty.  I was feeling rather cocky about my project; I am after all 15 years older and wiser than these children, so upon placing my project down I had no doubt in my mind that I would have quite the impressive project.

This is to say until I saw pictures.....

I was shown pictures of the science fair and all of the students whose projects were brought in to be graded and I couldn't be more impressed.  I will confess that science is not my strong suit, and when I was in school we never had a science fair, why I don't know exactly, but even if I had majored in science while in college I still think these kids would have knocked me down, academically of course.  This speaks to the level of teaching over at Bishop Dunn and just goes to show they take their science seriously.

Meanwhile at my old stopping grounds, they are still without science fairs and I believe the children suffer for it.  While a great deal of time and planning go into a science fair project, when finished it not only looks cool but it fulfills you with a great sense of accomplishment, and pride.  This pride translates over when you bring in your project and are overjoyed to share it with all of your classmates who are also proud and overjoyed of their respective projects.  I won't mention the school I went to that lacks a science fair, because they're probably not the only ones, any school that lacks a science fair is doing its students a disservice, by not allowing them to partake in one of the grand, coming-of-age. academic experiences. that will enlighten you down the path of being a scientist, or something completely different.

After Two Weeks Off...

It seemed like months since I had last seen my classmates, however after two very relaxing weeks away we were back in the educational fold with our second group finally getting their turn at the proverbial plate.

Group two's topic was life science which I'm thankful that my group didn't get because I personally find life science to be a bit boring.  This however was not the case when group two presented their lesson.

Despite having a tough topic to keeps kids focused, the two of them presented a very engaging lesson and the kids, overall, were very well behaved.  The thing that impressed me the most about their presentation was how well the two members of the group worked together, and how fluid their lesson seemed to go.  Each group member had their power-point slides memorized and knew who was doing what and when.

The final part of their presentation was their lab that was a total hit with the kids.  In their lab,using a dichotomous key they made up, the 5 groups of two students had to sort flavored jelly beans based on size, shape, color, etc.  There was a catch though that made the groups really pay attention, and that was that one of the jelly beans was vomit flavored.  While I myself did not try it, I was given some sturdy testimonies that it did indeed taste like vomit.  At the end of the lesson this warning didn't seem to stop the kids, as a few of them went for the vomit bean anyway.

Never a dull moment

Four weeks in and once again something new and exciting/terrifying was tossed our way in our scientific methods course. 

Mother nature was in full force Tuesday pushing schools all over Orange County to close down for the day including Bishop Dunn Memorial school where our class was suppose to take place.  Not wanting to miss class time we were scheduled to meet in an online chat group.  I'm not the most tech savvy person as everyone knows, so this frightened me a bit.  However I was pleasantly surprised at how easy this thing was to get in and work around.  

Once you got through the awkwardness of talking on a mic in front of everyone, or the silliness of the good doctor's grandson it was actually a very informative lesson, and I happen to learn quite a bit.  I think it was also good for each group to have the lesson plan format reinforced, clearly outlining what needs to be done and how exactly it should be taken care of.  It also didn't hurt that I saved myself 30 minute car ride and we got out of class by 6.  

Well, it's done....

Three weeks of class have already come and gone.  Crazy to think that 20% of the class is already done.  This week brought on a new challenge in the sense of teaching a group of students in a scientific after school program.

I, or I should say my group, was very nervous as none of us had ever done anything like this before and to add to that, we had to go first in our class.  Despite all of this though I feel like my group did an amazing job and most importantly the kids seemed to have an awesome time doing all the different stations we had planned out for them. I give those kids a bunch of credit because they hung with us during our direct lesson, which I think ended up running longer than we thought, after they have already gone through a whole day of school.

They however left with a bunch of stuff I'm sure will drive their parents nuts, and in the end you know you've made something good for a child when the parents wants to throw it away as much as possible.

By the way congrats to Albert Einstein on his gravitational waves theory that came to fruition this past Thursday.  The man predicted this would happen over 100 years ago.  Props.

Week 2 and the Journey Continues...

After finally calming my stress levels from the overwhelming first week, I trekked back to Mount Saint Mary for the second class.  My stress levels began to rise as we were to meet in a location I had never been before and I usually end up getting out of work late to barely make it to class on time as it is.  Thankfully all of my classmates are wonderful and helped me find the location easily.

We met a character this week, and I think I am using the word character properly here in Mrs. Foster-Faith, the cooperating teacher from Bishop Dunn Memorial School.  A very passionate woman, who clearly loves her job and is also willing to help out the fieldwork groups whenever they need it.  My group has seen this first hand this past week as we have been in constant contact with her and she is pretty good about getting back to you in the same day.  Also, while she wont hold your hand on the project she will lead you down the path that your group should probably go down.

Speaking of being lead down a correct path, I want to personally thank Dr. S for teaching me how to use google docs, google drive and pretty much google in general this past class.  It was the hands on tutorial I needed and I want to thank all my class mates for being patient with me this past week.  

My Scientific Journey

Someone once said that a picture is worth a thousand words, and while that my be true in some cases, I have two for this one; trash and can.

But before I throw this picture out, allow me to elaborate for a moment.  His name is doctor ybab-nam which is man-baby spelled backwards.  It's also how I've lived my life both in and out of the science laboratory, I'll let the ladies of the class judge if that is a good or bad thing.  

Sticking strictly to the science lab however, I've always had a child's like fascination with science.  All the experiments in school that involved fire or blowing things up were always the ones I did the best with which is why chemistry class was so confusing for me in high school, some weeks we'd be melting ice cream and looking at it under a microscope, other weeks we'd be learning about noble gases and off to sleep I went.  

What has me interested in this class is that we are solely dealing with elementary science and that is where my man-baby science powers are at their top form.  Science in elementary school was always fun and teachers made it interesting by incorporating fun experiments and fun tie ins with Bill Nye the science guy or the magic school bus, to name a couple examples.

I guess this is also the kind of science teacher I want to become.  All the cool science experiments I did at that age, I can remember everything about them, including the teachers names and faces.  I'd love to be that science teacher who leaves that kind of lasting impression on my students, cause in the end, isn't that what every teacher wants? 

Science, Art, and Bags of Dog Toys

Today was the first step in a lengthy 15 week course in which Dr. Smirnova, my new science, grad school, teacher....teacher, would try to convince me that I will become a good science teacher.  The jury is still out on that one as science was never quite my strong suit, hence why I ran the opposite direction in college to become an English major.

However after today's first lesson I do believe there is hope.  Aside from signing up for three of four websites that I'm still figuring out how to properly use without getting a virus, I learned that science really hasn't changed all that much from when I was in elementary school myself.  I honestly forgot how much fun I had in science at that age with all the experiments and actual interesting topics, such as dinosaurs and space.  I guess I still reflect back to the rough times of cutting open dead rats, learning periodic tables, and shining lights on rocks to notice if a 2 x 2 mm sections of moss will grow on a igneous rock when properly treated.

While we still have a long way to go, I believe there is hope for me yet in being able to teach science to the children.  Or perhaps there isn't, either way we'll find out in 15 weeks, which hopefully by then the good doctor lets the class know what exactly was in that mystery bag.