"Real" Work and Milk Carton Recycling

One of the activities that I have done with my class that I am the most proud of is a milk carton recycling program that I did with my AP Environmental Science class 3 years ago.  I had a great group of girls, and we decided to enter to Lexus Ecochallenge.  They outline the steps to be taken pretty clearly, including identifying a real problem in the school or community where they could make a difference, and then implementing a plan.

After much discussion, we planned, and successfully implemented a plan to recycle the milk cartons at lunch. We worked with the cafeteria staff, the custodians, garbage collection, and the group that does the recycling.  We got buckets to rinse the cartons, worked out a way to clean and store the buckets.  We got special bags to put the milk cartons into, and developed a process to collect, clean, and store them until they were recycled.  We worked out a schedule for who worked which lunch periods. They really did it!  They carried through until the end of the school year.  In the end approximately 10,000 milk cartons were recycled by our small group!


Two other very cool parts of this project, besides the learning experience for my class was (1) the involvement of the principal. He was really excited and would often help out at lunch time. (2) the learning experience for the other students in the school. Since we were visible in the lunch room, other kids would often ask why we were collecting them. This led to kids from other lunch periods, or from breakfast, bringing cartons to my classroom. I got a box and would collect them there, then at lunchtime we would bring them down and put them with the others. It spread! Such a small step can really make a difference. I think the class learned on so many different levels. That's the kind of 'real' learning that's energizing and exciting to teach!

Learning About Teaching With Case Studies

This is a short post to share a resource with you. If you aren't familiar with the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science you should check it out.



 This is primarily a high school and college resource, although it could perhaps be modified to lower age levels. When I taught AP Environmental Science, I used these case studies quite a bit.

I have had mixed results with middle school doing anything similar.  They need a lot of modification.  However, as I transition back to high school, I plan to try to use these more.  I think the roll-out of Common Core, and increased non-fiction reading is a perfect place and reason to use case studies.  It forces students to read and comprehend non-fiction, and could be a great jumping off point to build in more current events and news articles from around the world (which is one of my goals for next year).

There are a couple of cases designed for middle school, others for general/information education, and the cases are searchable in many ways.

Each year they have a fall conference to learn about teaching with case studies.  I have wanted to attend, but never have.  This year, there is a special piece of that conference for high school teachers, and a scholarship for high school teachers.

Wish me luck, and definitely check out the website for your own classroom use, or just for ideas.

A modification of a case, along with the supporting lesson plan materials that I created when I was student teaching are still posted here

I used this case as a jumping off point for sock mitosis (picture is students doing the same activity, but not my students, from http://www.rpi.edu/dept/eng/otherweb/GK12/indexca2b.html)

I have used this lesson since then with high school kids (good results) and middle school kids (pretty good results)...they didn't get all about mitosis, but they definitely got the larger picture and remember, still, that errors during the egg formation can cause Down's Syndrome.  Guess they learned something!

Be Brave - Grant Writing is Not Off Limits

I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to take my students in a field trip this past week. I teach in an urban, Title I school. I took my students to Cumming Nature Center, which is about a 45 minute bus ride. It was a great experience for me and them!!

Many of my foreign ELL students got off the bus and made comments like "welcome to Sudan"..."this looks like my country"…"I haven't seen anything like this since I left my country."

Many of my native, urban students had never been in the woods, never hiked, never touched much of the outdoors. They screamed when they were asked to look for worms, complained that the grass and trees were itchy, but in the end they liked it.

I had them fill out an evaluation/reflection and asked them if the would do it again (everyone said yes). Thumbs up or thumbs down (all thumbs up and a few drew in horizontal thumbs). What they learned:
- they learned things like -- woodpeckers live in trees
- worms eat dead things and leaves
- you can find worms and salamanders under logs. The salamander was cute. They didn't know that dropping it would hurt it, and apologized (genuinely) when one girl got scared and dropped it.
- they were impressed that the docent had dirt under her nails and was so excited
- they had fun picking up sticks and learning.
- they loved the beaver dam

At the end, the docent asked them to consider hugging a tree. Most of them did, and some said that was their favorite part!!

I think they will remember and understand a lot of ecology better, but I also think there is something so therapeutic and healthy about spending time outside. Many of my students don't get to do that. They live in areas where it's not safe to go outside and play.

I learn as much from seeing them in this setting and seeing what they learn and know and are interested in as they do. One student said he wants to live someplace like that when he grows up. He wouldn't be able to say that, if he had never been exposed!

This was made possible due to the Target field trip grant. If you are considering applying for a grant, do it! Figure out, really, why this will benefit your students, write it down, and apply. It's work to apply, and work to do the permission slips, lunches, bus, medical forms, etc but its worth it!!

If I can ever help you with a grant application or ideas for field trips, please let me know

Do You Need a New and Engaging Way to Teach About Static Electricity?

If you are interested in a fun, hands on lab to do with your students that you can do with readily available household materials, here is a good one. This is one my students always remember, and they enjoy doing. It's good early in the year to get them excited about science and used to doing stations (they can't really do any damage and the instructions are pretty easy to follow). It's also good at this time of year, when everyone is getting restless.  Just click on the picture

Nervous and Endocrine System Graphic Organizer Freebie for You

I, personally, hate for students to read and answer questions because frequently they do not do a good job of pulling out the information and making it their own.  I prefer to use graphic organizers to help them organize their own information, and to help them pull out their information, rather than only quoting.

For human body systems, I created this organizer to pull together nervous and endocrine systems (body control systems).

It is a freebie on TpT.  Click here or on the picture to check it out!  If you like it, please leave feedback.

Have Your Promising Scientists Designed Their Own Research?

The weather is finally turning nicer, at least here. I'm not sure if its here to stay, but in my own house I have tomato seedlings and broccoli seedlings sprouting. Outside I planted some spinach (protected) and the bulbs are coming up. I love this time of year!

It also reminded me of a really cool lab that I did last year with my 7th graders that would be very easily adapted to many different age and grade levels, and was a great way to start the year. It easily built in many lab skills such as measuring, designing an experiment, observations, organizing data, and even graphing. It's really up to you where you go with it.

We first read a story to do with plants, and seeds, and brainstormed all the things plants need to survive. We then thought about how we could make the plants grow better or differently. Each student (or pair of students), had to decide on one thing that they were testing (spacing, amt of water, type of soil, type of container, etc). We wrote our procedure, planted the seeds, and took observations. We graphed our data. It's basic, but incorporates so many science skills that kids are using naturally. It gives a place to connect them to.

One of my favorites was this. She was testing the amount of sunlight. She put one cup of seeds in the window, and one in a closet.

This could easily lead into its own whole lesson!

Although this was a lesson that I did to start the year off, it would also be a great summarizing, end of the year, springtime lesson. Maybe the seeds could even be planted outside somewhere, especially depending upon your climate and when your school year goes. It's a very engaging lesson to kids, and easy to incorporate skills, or direct it where you want it to go. Another plus -- needs very little equipment.

And check out her pictures! I just think they are pretty cool :)

How to Find and Use Amazing Science Images in Class

I have been seeing so many amazing science related images lately. I have started collecting some of them here.
They are amazing, eye catching, and engaging. But how can I use them in class?! That's been a his question bothering me on and off recently.

Here is a list I've come up with, and I'd love if you'd add your ideas:

• Print and hang them up like posters
• Have students explain the image at the end of a unit  That works especially well for a photo like this from http://www.verycoolphotoblog.com
  http://www.verycoolphotoblog.com/2012/12/03/star-trails-at-little-sahara-dunes-in-utah/
• Use them for engagement at the start of a unit
  
• Use them as a writing activity on inference (thanks sciencenotebooking.blogspot.com)
• Use them as a free write/prior knowledge -- what do they think is going on? -- this could be science related RTI, a few minutes left at the end of class, or simply for interest and engagement.  Remember why you think science is cool!!  Share that with the kids and get them excited about science! 
• Maybe have them use the images to create images of their own (photos? Cartoons? Joint project with the art teacher?)
• Create interest for a project that is coming up (example - animal photos, or adaptations, cool weathering formations).  Do a gallery walk or powerpoint to get them thinking. 

How would or do you use really cool science images in class?  Or do you just like to look at them?

What to Do When You Can't Do a Hands-On Activity

My first choice, of course is to do activities as hands-on, either in partners, lab groups, or individually. Sometimes this is not feasible.....this might be because of behaviors, scheduling, lack of money and supplies, time, space, etc....so then what.

I have been struggling with a lot of these issues this year, and struggling with how to adapt and improve my teaching.  I do not want to go toward doing a lot of book work and worksheets or notes.  I really don't believe that is for the best for anyone.

Soooo....sometimes I've done demos.  This is ok, except my attention, to some extent is on the demo and I can't re-direct kids, or handle behaviors as much.  Also, the demo usually happens once and some kids, inevitably, aren't paying attention and miss it, or want to see it again.  I am starting to really like showing a video clip of the demo.  I can focus their attention on certain things, refocus them, prompt them, and play it over and over.  They are also great for things that take time, but can be sped up or slowed down.

Here are a couple that I have used recently:

8 Important Reasons to Use Foldables With Your Students

Why do foldables work?

My high school students sometimes used foldables, and they seemed somewhat helpful, but for some reason when I got to middle school foldables were great!  Give the kids a chart or some other kind of graphic organizer and they are bored and don't seem to get as much out of it.  Give them a foldable and  they like it.  I wanted to find out why.

I like foldables because....

- They are a little bit kinesthetic.
- They get to be more creative
- They are creating a study tool
- They get to create something that they are proud of at the end.
- They seem to do better at pulling out information, not just copying from the text.
- They really help students organize information.
- Kids like to look back to them to study! They seem to remember where to find their information and find it more meaningful than other notes.

I also wanted to find some other information about foldables and why they work.  I found a lot of opinions, but not a lot of really backed up data.  However, here are some great resources that I found:

http://www.foldables.blogspot.com/ (discussion of using foldables)
http://getinthefold.blogspot.com/ (great information on foldables and the common core)
http://tothesquareinch.wordpress.com/category/foldables/ (great examples of middle school math and science foldables):
And of course, the creator of foldables http://www.dinah.com  with lots of examples

Here are my products that are in my TpT store that are foldables.  All have been used in my classroom.  These include:
 - circulatory system, excretory and digestive system, heat transfer, sexual and asexual reproduction, plant and animal cells, and more will be coming.  (Can you tell we've been doing human body??!)

If there is a particular topic you want to see, let me know!

Science Resource Listing

This is What It Looks Like When I Get Frustrated with Classroom Management

I have been having a lot of trouble with glue this year. I have done interactive notebooks for years, and never had the kind of problems that I've had this year.  The group of middle school kids that I have don't know how to use glue - they put TONS OF GLUE, then when they close their book it oozes out, pages stick together, and the page they glued is all wrinkled and wet.

I have tried to demonstrate, I have gotten frustrated and yelled, I have designated students to go around and glue.  Some worked better than others, but the problem is still not straightened out.

Friday we really spent sometime getting our notebooks set up for the next unit (I figured we'd get the glue issue out of the way all at once).  I was so frustrated.  I kept thinking "My six year old can do this!"

Then I had an idea....videotape my 6-year-old showing them how to do it.  He heard my complaining and said "I could show them how to do it"

I'll let you know how it goes. I think it might be crazy enough to actually work!  What do you think?

Get Your Students Outside of the Classroom - No Excuses!!

Why its so important to get your students out of the classroom

Do you want to spend your whole day sitting, reading, writing, etc.  A lot of what we ask of our students, we wouldn't want to do ourselves.  I think this is particularly true for middle school students.  They are wiggly, social, active creatures.  They need to be moving around.  It's nice weather. They want to go outside. So do we. We are teaching about the outdoor world. Its OK once in a while to take them outside and conduct a class or activity outside.

Lessons outside the classroom

One of my favorite lessons when we learn about weathering is to take the students outside for about 10 minutes, with dry erase boards, to look for examples of weathering, draw it, and decide if its chemical or physical weathering.  Then, of course, they have to share they findings.

Students find it very exciting. It takes some management, but can easily be done in a short class period and on school grounds, even in an urban setting.  They love it! Its a big change.

I have also taken Biology classes outside to look for quick examples of living and non-living things, or to look for examples of different types of ecological relationships.

Where can I get more ideas to take my students outside? 

Here is a link to other ideas: 

Five Minute Field Trips: Teaching about Nature in Your School Yard (full-text)

AND 10 Minute Field Trips: A Teacher's Guide to Using the Schoolgrounds for Environmental Studies. (full-text) which is available in full text or for purchase as a bound book (affiliate link)

Enjoy, and let me know what you do in your classes to get them out of class!  

An Innovative and Memorable Look At the Skeletal and Muscular Systems

Get Your Students Excited About the Skeletal and Muscular Systems

Students were yelling and screaming they were so excited about what was going on in class. They left the room talking about the lab we did that day, and other classes later in the day came in very excited to see the skeletal and muscular systems in action.  I knew this was a lab I needed to share with you.  Students were totally engaged and focused on the lesson.  They had different roles that fit their different needs, but everyone was busy and involved.

Do you want your students thinking differently about something they probably encounter every day?

Human body systems are taught at so many different grade levels. Students are often interested and excited as it relates to their own body, but they quickly can lose interest if the information is dry and repetitive.  Here is one of my favorite labs.

Be ready for some yelling and middle school excitement :).  A great introduction to dissection, in a pretty tame way.

Here is a video clip from YouTube: (not mine)

Some pictures from my class this week:

How did we learn about skeletal and muscular systems?

We did a little bit of notes and background about the skeletal and muscular systems, using a graphic organizer (click here to get the free graphic organizer) to see how they relate to and to get the main idea, but the 'meat' of this lesson (pun intended!) is a chicken wing dissection! Chicken wings are cheap, easy to obtain and pretty safe as long as you take basic precautions such as wearing gloves and googles, washing hands, and washing equipment. I make it easier by using paper plates (that get thrown out) for dissecting trays, and using scissors instead of scalpels. Students get a change to see all the parts that they are learning about: tendons, ligaments, cartilage, bone, joints, muscle, as well as skin and fat. They also get an understanding of how those parts work together. By carefully following the lab instructions they are able to actually move the chicken wing and see the parts working together to make it move. They love it!! And I have to admit, its pretty cool to see!

And if you want to see more, or use this resource yourself, check it out. They will gain a much better understanding of the skeletal and muscular systems, and have an experience they remember!!

Skeletal and Muscular System Mini-Unit 

Wondering About Common Core? Better Targeted Resources You Want

As a science teacher, how does the Common Core shift effect us?  What can we do to teach to the common core?  And what do we already do?

I think we already do a lot that aligns with common core.  Some of that is a topic for another post....

One way that we can easily integrate more common core standards is through the use of scientific news articles.

Science news articles can be used in class or as homework to extend a topic, or as a hook to introduce a topic. They are also great for common core skills when reading non-fiction text like summarizing, inferring vocabulary, finding details and main ideas.

Some great sources are below.  Feel free to add additional resources in the comments.  I'd love to hear what you are using in your classrooms.

                                            sciencenewsforkids.org

http://www.timeforkids.com/news

http://www.dogonews.com/category/science

Scary Secrets Behind What Our Students Know about Seasons

Did you ever see this video?  It shows some common misconceptions, and how much trouble even Harvard graduates have grasping the idea of why we have seasons.

I have been shown this video a few times in PD's and graduate courses, but if you haven't seen it, its worth watching.  If you have seen it, I think its worth remembering that even when we think we are teaching things clearly, it can be very difficult and confusing for students to grasp.

Here is the full video http://learner.org/resources/series28.html

Misconceptions About the Reasons for the Seasons? Try This

Do your students have a lot of misconceptions about the causes for the seasons?   Try this. 

Need a seasonal science activity?

Do you do a seasonal/winter/holiday activity with your classes?  Sometimes I find it hard to work into an overly busy curriculum, especially with older students. I also am never sure if its better to add to the excitement and chaos, or if its better to maintain as much normalcy as possible.  I don't want to 'throw a party' on the day before break, but we also need some recognition of it being a special day.  It is not only a day before the break, and perhaps near Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, spring break, or summer vacation, but it is probably also near the Winter Solstice, Spring Equinox, or Summer Solstice.

This is how I teach about seasons, and celebrate a holiday in science class

Here is a compromise I have worked out.  The day before winter break (or somewhere right around there) is usually the winter solstice.   Its a great opportunity to talk about why and how the seasons change, how the solstice is celebrated around the world, and to review/introduce a key concept in Earth Science.

Now, thanks to technology, we can use a website such as www.daylightmap.com to look at the sunlight on that day all around the world. We can see which areas of the world are experiencing different amounts of sunlight.  We can then either set it to different times and dates to see the changes, or we can do this several times of year and see the changes.  I like to re-introduce it, since this is an area where there are so many misconceptions and confusions, and its so commonly tested.

We do an activity near the start of school (fall equinox), winter solstice (before winter break), summer solstice (end of school)---you get the idea.  Here is the activity that I use for the Winter Solstice

Or, go to www.daylightmap.com and see what creative things you can come up with on your own to help your students understand the real reasons behind the seasons! Please leave a comment with ideas you have :)