Week 6 Complete!

This week we only had class on Thursday and we learned about Science Writing Heuristic (SWH). We started our parachute experiment today and were able to test all five of ours. During this process we were required to come up with beginning questions and ideas, write a hypothesis then make and test our parachutes. We had to test each parachute ten times and record how many seconds it took for the parachute to touch the ground from the deck, which is close to 2 meters above the ground. Next week we have to make claims with evidence, share claims, compare our experiment to other scientists and then complete a reflection. Every good scientist and every good teacher reflects on their work.  By comparing our experiment to other scientist we are practicing NCPTS 5 “teachers reflect on their practice” under “teachers link professional growth to their professional goals.”

            This week I struggled with writing the language functions, academic language, syntax and discourse. In order to overcome this struggle I used Google and looked up different examples of them so I was able to get a better understanding and use the appropriate terms for my unit. I was most proud that I was able to make a big dent in my unit plan this week.  I plan to continue working on my unit next week as well so I do not get behind. I was most satisfied doing our science experiment. We had to compare different objects as they were heated so we put a rock, a crayon, a piece of chocolate, and an ice cube on a pan and put it in the oven and tested it 3 different times. Our group had fun with this project and I am glad we were able to collect our data this week. However, our hypothesis was not correct so we will have to discuss and reflect on that this coming week. This week I contributed to our science group by collecting data and in class I did the typing in Google docs and recorded the times of the parachute. Next week I will continue helping with both of these experiments.
        This week the hyperdoc was on inquiry. They had a great video that explained what inquiry is and they included questions right after for students to answer that would keep them involved and engaged. I also really liked the swimming pool image they used for the different kinds of student inquiry.

            For my outside research this week I found a great science book that integrates literacy with science that I will be able to put in my resource kit. The book is called “Trapped on the Rock: Can science save your life?” By Gerry Bailey. Joe, an adventurous scientist, must apply his knowledge of science to survive in environments around the world.

Inc., E. C. (n.d.). Instantly access 25,000 high-quality books for kids. Retrieved September 28, 2017, from https://www.getepic.com/app/read/10500

            I read a very interesting article this week called “Telling children they’re smart could tempt them to cheat.” This article really surprised me and made me realize I have to watch how I talk to my students and they way that I word things. A study was done and it showed that when kids were told that they were smart they were more likely to cheat. When they are told they are smart they have more pressure on them to do well. This would be a great article for everyone to read.

Sanders, L. (2017, September 22). Telling children they're smart could tempt them to cheat. Retrieved September 28, 2017, from https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/growth-curve/telling-children-theyre-smart-could-tempt-them-cheat?tgt=nr

            My first tweet from this week is by Lee Ann Jung. It says if the score is in any way included in the final grade, it was not a formal assessment. Formal assessments should be occurring daily while teaching, but this is not a grade. We need to be careful when discerning between formal and summative assessments. 

My next tweet is from Tom Loud and it says that people will forget what you said and what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. It is our job as teachers to make our students feel loved, wanted and special. Our students need to know that we believe in them. They will forget what we taught and what we did in class but they won't forget if we were kind to them and made them feel loved.

Lastly, my third tweet is also by Tom Loud and it says that our greatest message to our students will be spoken on how we react when we are frustrated, not by our lips. When we are frustrated our actions will show our true character. As teachers we need to stay calm and relaxed and not let our students see that we are frustrated or take it out on them.

Cl-Ev-R Way of Learning!

          This week was a week full of learning. On Tuesday we created the water cycle in a bag, which is definitely something I will be using in my future classroom. I have been amazed by all the different activities and experiences we have done so far this semester. I never did any hands on experiments when I was in school so these are all new ideas to me. If I can do hands on experiments that interests the students like those of the water cycle, I will be following NCPTS 3, “Teachers know the content they teach” under “Teachers know the content appropriate to their teaching specialty.”

            Today we learned about the word Cl-Ev-R, which stands for claim, evidence and reasoning. First you have to make a claim of what you think will happen then you have to provide evidence of why it happened and then you have to explain how it happened. This is similar to the scientific method and will increase the involvement and learning of students.

What I struggled with most this week was trying to figure out why the foam container with holes in it did not fill with water. It was hard to find the information online as well. Finally after searching a few websites we found that an object floats when the weight force on the object is balanced by the upward push of the water on the object. Since there was no weight on the foam and because of the buoyancy of the water, it was able to float.  I was most proud that I was able to remember the whole water cycle when creating our water cycle bags. It doesn’t sound like much of an accomplishment, but I have forgotten a lot of information that I learned when I was younger and the water cycle was one of the things that I didn’t struggle with. Creating the water cycle bags also brought me the most satisfaction because I would have never thought you could make a water cycle in a bag. I was really excited to do this experiment so I can only imagine how fun this would be for elementary school children.

For the next week my action steps are to continue working on my unit plan so I can stay ahead, start working on my text facilitation project so we can get ahead on that and to finish our science experiment for the week. This week I contributed to class discussion and I contributed to our science group project experiment. Next week I can continue to participate in class discussion and continue to help my group with the science project.

Chapter 3’s text facilitation group did a really good job with using creativity. The video they used to explain constructivism was very clear on how to help transform teaching to get the students involved. They had great visuals and videos linked in. I also liked how they included an infographic in their powerpoint.

For my outside research I found an awesome website called the “energizer.” This website is a great way to get involved with science and create your own science. There are different games, examples and instruction on how to make a flashlight, how to make a compass, a telegraph set and many more different hands on experiments. This is a great website for Cl-Ev-R to be used on. More information can be found on the website below.

 (n.d.). Retrieved September 21, 2017, from http://www.energizer.com/science-center/steady-hand-game?&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=ENE-HHB-16_NonBranded_Science%2BCenter&utm_term=science for kids&utm_content=sffV00nlC_dc%7Cpcrid%7C187099817989%7Cpkw%7Cscience for kids%7Cpmt%7Cb

          The latest news that I have researched is Hurricane Maria that is happening in the Caribbean. Today it was recorded as a category 3 storm with winds of 115 mph. Puerto Rico experienced deadly flooding on Wednesday and Trump has declared this hurricane as another major disaster.

Visuals, G. (n.d.). Where is Hurricane Maria heading? Mapping the storm's path. Retrieved September 21, 2017, from https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2017/sep/19/where-is-hurricane-maria-heading-mapping-the-path-of-destruction

 My first tweet this week is from Amy Fast. Amy makes a great point, so often teachers and schools try to measure how students are doing instead of asking them how they are doing. Just because a student is doing well with their work, doesn't mean they are doing well in life and if a student is doing bad with their school work, then chances are there is more going on in their lives that we as teachers should and need to care about.

 My second tweet is from Trevor MacKenzie and his tweet is exactly what we have been learning and practicing in class. Starting the lesson with a question that causes the students to use inquiry is so much more powerful than starting the lesson off with a textbook or assessment. By asking the students a question, it immediately starts the lesson off with them thinking and will help to get them involved. 

 Lastly, the tweet from Tom Loud is also very powerful. Going off of my first tweet, teachers need to care and believe in their students. We may be the only ones who do believe in them, and we may be the ones that help them change their future. 

            

1/4 of the way through the semester!!

      This week in class on Tuesday Dr. Parker asked a question that really made us think. He said to the class, what would happen if you were a teacher right now and your students came into class and asked about the hurricane that is happening right now. He said if a student asks why are there hurricanes right now how would you respond? I was definitely caught off guard and had not even though myself why the hurricane was happening. That is something that I struggled with this week. I had to really research and learn why hurricanes happen. Since I am from the North and we don’t ever experience hurricanes, I hadn’t really put much thought in it. Now that I am in the south this is something I really need to be educated on. I now have a Google doc of the reasons why hurricanes happen so I can go back to it anytime I need to.

            I was most proud and satisfied with my ecosystem this week. I was proud that I was able to include enough nutrients, food and good soil for my frog to survive. I was not expecting the frog to survive in such a small space without the outdoor feeling. I also got a mosquito a caterpillar and another bug for my frog to eat so I am hoping the frog continues to live this week as well. Over the next week I want to continue to take care of my ecosystem by feeding my fish, frog, and watering my soil so my seeds can grow. I also want to get a good start on my unit plan this next week so I can stay ahead and don’t get behind.

            This week in class I contributed to class discussion and I helped to look up information when we were split into out groups for hurricane research. I found a good diagram that showed a visual of how hurricanes form. It would be a great visual to show the class because it has both words and pictures. I could use this diagram to show my students and explain it to them. It is a good way to explain to both audio and visual learners because I would not only explain it to them, but I will show them as well so they can get a more clear understanding. This would be NCPTS 4 “teachers facilitate learning for their students” under teachers use a variety of instructional methods.

            For my outside learning this week I found an awesome website for kids called sciencebug.org. This website is filled with different activities, puzzles, quizzes and experiments. I thought it was so cool because one of the experiments was to “test your boat building skills” The kids could build a boat out of aluminum foil and then they were to drop the marbles in the boat to see how many marbles the boat could hold. They had to remake the boat three different times just like we did in class. This website is filled with many different experiments like these and is a great way to help students get involved and learn while still having fun.

(n.d). Retrieved September 14, 2017, from http://www.sciencebug.org/boats.html

I looked at the hyperlink from week 2 since week 3s is not posted yet. I thought it was a really cool project. I have never used hyperlinks before but it is a great way to include a lot more information in a short power point. I really liked how at the end of their power point they made a place that said “your turn.” They had great visuals and it was very creative.

The current event I have read about and watched on the news that I’m sure everyone is talking about is hurricane Irma. This hurricane has cause many deaths and forced many people to evacuate their homes. I am sure people were not planning for this hurricane to be as bad as it was. Just like this unexpected event happened in our country, sometimes we have unexpected events happen in the classroom. We need to be prepared for anything that comes our way as teachers and learn to adjust on the spot even if we are in uncomfortable positions. When teachers are flexible teachers are practicing NCPTS 1 “teachers demonstrate leadership” under “teachers lead in their classrooms.”

 My first tweet is from teacher2teacher and it was a great visual of a school's welcoming moto. It says "when you enter this school consider yourself one of the special members of an extraordinary family." There is no better way to make people feel welcome than letting them know they are part of a family. We as teachers need to make sure our students feel like family.

 My second tweet is from Alice Keeler. This is a great reminder that yes technology is good, but the teachers are better. We as teachers can't let the technology do all the teaching. We still have to help our students grow as individuals and be there for them. Yes it is the 21st century and technology plays a huge role in our society, but children have to learn how to be social and interact with people as well.

My last tweet from teachergoals is very straightforward. We as teachers have to be the ones to believe in our students and make it known to them that we believe in them. If a students knows we believe in them, that might be the only reason why they keep going.

Ecosystem Fun!

This week was rather interesting. Tuesday in science methods we were able to go to broad river and we attempted to catch fish to put in our ecosystem. However, that was a struggle and it didn’t go quite as we planned. We were not able to catch any fish, but we were able to get rocks, sediment, leaves, sticks and flowers for the top part of our ecosystem. Since we were not able to catch any fish or creatures to go in our ecosystems, Dr. Parker had to go to the store and buy fish for us to put in our ecosystems. This connects to NCPTS standard 6 “Teachers contribute to the academic success of students.” When we told Dr. Parker that we were not able to catch anything, he immediately said he would go to the store and get fish for us. He could have told us we had to try somewhere else or that we had to go buy them ourselves, but instead he was an example of what a good teacher leader was like and he wanted to help contribute to our success with our ecosystems. We were then able to finish building our ecosystem on Thursday.

            What I was most proud of this week was I was able to catch a frog for my ecosystem. I do not like bugs very much but I wanted more life in my ecosystem, so I decided to put my fear to the side and grab that frog. I was most satisfied with the pictures I was able to take for my project “science through my lens.” I was amazed at how much phenomenon there is all around us that we don’t pay attention to on a daily basis. Over the next week and weeks to come, I will continue taking pictures of phenomenon. The way that I contributed to the class this week was in our science project groups and in class discussion on Thursday during class. I was able to talk a lot and help come up with ideas for our science project. Next week I can contribute to the class discussion and continue to contribute to our science project group.

            For my outside research this week I found an awesome app called Pocket Universe: Virtual Sky Astronomy. On this app you can view the sky and see the stars virtually. The app also includes constellation quizzes and a solar system view that shows the planets in motion around the sun. There is also a part of the app that features 3D planets that you can spin. This app brings the universe to life and would be a great real-world science app that students can use to learn and also have fun at the same time. For more information about this app you can visit https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2479951,00.asp

            An interesting science current event I read about this week was “Teaching methods go from lab to classroom” This article was a combination of psychology and actual testing to see what kids brains do and do not remember. Psychology research shows that children at all reading levels remember at least 25 percent more words when they practiced retrieving the information when they had cues to help them. These cues included images and hands on material. This is exactly what we are talking about in class. Students need to be the ones doing the learning. If they are able to do hands on experiments and use images and objects in their learning, they have a better chance of actually storing the information in their heads. More information and details can be found at the website that follows. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/teaching-methods-go-lab-classroom

My first tweet this week was from mindshift and I absolutely love the image. "Every child needs a champion" We as teachers need to be that childs' champion and need to be the ones who believe in them. My favorite saying from this image is "every child deserves an adult that will never give up on them" This means that no matter how long it takes a student to learn a concept, we can never give up on them. 

My second tweet this week was from George Couros. His tweet was about what should be found in a 21st century classroom. Children need to have a voice, a choice, and they need to be able to create and reflect. They need to have time to critically think, problem solve and then self-assess and connect their learning and integrate ideas. These eight things are all factors that we have talked about and continue to talk about in class. 

Lastly, my third tweet is from Meagan Wood. Her tweet is about how classroom rules are changing. In today's class there needs to be a vision, students need to be the learners, they need to know that it is okay to struggle sometimes, as long as they don't give up. Students need to know that it is okay to do what they are passionate about and lastly, they need to own their education and make it enjoyable and relatable.