Using Models to Teach Science Concepts

This week in my classroom students created models of the layers of sedimentary material on the Earth's surface to investigate fossil fuels; how they are formed and how human use changes the surface of the Earth and the impacts on the environment.  I tried to connect life science ideas with earth science concepts.  I also focused on energy use and transfer as a main theme. 

The lesson went well, however I needed more time at the start of the lesson and at the very end for students to share additional ideas.  The use of a model for students to visualize the layers of rock and where fossil fuels are formed worked very well.  Students were engaged throughout the lesson, they really enjoyed working with materials to better understand more complex concepts.

Evaluating Web 2.0 Presentation Tools

After evaluating a list of websites that offer the latest tools for implementing technology into a presentation I have to say that I am blown away by how far technology has come.  As an educator I am very excited to try these tools and implement them in my lessons.

Of the sites that I experimented with I found one called Glogster Edu.  This site is super easy to use and is very kid friendly.  I was surprised at how easy it was and how much I was able to do in a short amount of time.  This website is free and can be accessed anywhere there is an Internet connection.  This is one that I would share with my students for them to use. I would very highly recommend that you check out this site.

Another site that I visited and liked is called 280 Slides.  I like this site because it is very similar to PowerPoint, only it appears to be more advanced and can be used with PowerPoint presentations interchangeably.  I like the familiarity of this site.  This site allows you to publish PowerPoint presentations directly to the web.  There is no cost for this site.

I also found the website Vuvox very useful for professional looking presentations.  This site has a lot of information to read through, so I would not recommend it for kids to use, but it appears very practical for adults and to create presentations to share with students or my colleagues. 

21st Century Science

The content area that I chose is how particles interact, mass and force.  I found a wealth of information at http://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/airplane/newton.html . This website is very useful for providing students with in depth research information that will be very helpful to their understanding of complex topics.  Another website that I used that will encourage student involvement, and promote inquiry processes is www.learner.org/interactives/parkphysics , this is an interactive site that allows students to "build" their own roller coaster and put it into motion. 
Providing students with opportunities to practice and use technology to enhance their learning will give them critical 21st century skills that they will need today and in the future.  Students will have a solid technological foundation that will help them succeed in the "outside" world. 
One of the activities that I would do in my classroom is use building materials to construct models of roller coasters, ramps and bridges.  Students will test different models to see how effective they are and which designs work best.  I would utilize the websites above by having students look for information online and then using that information to draw and construct their own models.
The largest challenges that I face is the limited amount of technology in the classroom, and the students' inexperience with them.  Computers are available in the school computer lab but require time and advance planning to reserve the them.  Not all of my students have experience using computers either.  However the more that they use computers and use interactive online activities the more knowledgeable they will become.       

Heat Transfer Experiment Reflection

The first thing that came to mind when I read this experiment was the types of materials used in on-the-go coffee cups or containers such as Styrofoam, cardboard or even plastic.  I thought that this experiment made the perfect connection to something that I do daily; drink coffee.  I was instantly curious about heat transfer and which material would keep the water hottest at the end of thirty minutes.  The materials I choose to test were: foil, plastic wrap, a thick napkin, cotton dish towel, and cardboard.  My hypothesis was that the foil or the cardboard would keep the water at a higher temperature for the longest time.  Boy was I wrong.  The plastic wrap and the cotton dish towel kept the water the hottest.
I think it would be fun to test heat transfer by using food items in different types of materials to see what kept the temperatures the highest or the lowest.  I think students would be interested in trying things like macaroni and cheese, pizza, hot dogs or even brownies (yum!).  I think that by using food items the results would be different than those of the water because foods are solid rather than liquid.  I just finished a lesson (in summer school) with my students about matter (solids, liquids, and gases) and this would be a perfect extension to that lesson by introducing temperature and heat transfer. It encourages inquiry based learning as well.     

Momentum Reflection

I love working with marbles!  The question that I choose for my guided inquiry study was: How do different surfaces affect the momentum of marbles?  My hypothesis was that the rougher  the surface, the slower the marble would go.  The surfaces that I decided to try were, a pillow, carpet, hardwood floor and grass.  I collected my materials: a pillow, a stopwatch, a marble, and a yardstick, then I went to work.  I had a lot of fun doing this investigation and I think my students will as well.  What I found out was that each time I flicked the marble it traveled at the same speed, what was affected by the surface type was the distance that it traveled.  The smoother the surface was, the further that the marble traveled.  The marble did not stop on the hardwood floor until it hit a wall.

Participating in this activity allowed me to see what students may experience as they conduct guided inquiry investigation of their own.  I enjoyed using materials and getting up and moving around while searching for my answers to the question.  I realized too that there are many variables to consider, that I hadn't before.  One challenge that I had was trying to shoot my marble with a consistent force in order to not skew the results.  Handling materials properly can be a challenge for students, so I would be sure to explain the expectations to students about the marbles.  I would allow them to play with the marbles as long as they are being responsible.

This experience would benefit students by allowing them the opportunity to build on their prior knowledge, explore new ideas and communicate with others.  They would be able to see that normal, everyday objects can be used to investigate important concepts such as forces.   

Lesson Reflection

My lesson about Water Quality and pH level testing was a success.  My students were engaged and loved going to the pond, creek, and stream, all located on school property, to collect their samples.  They were interested in the quality of their drinking water and had many questions about pH levels in other nearby sources.  They showed a lot of concern about pollutants that may enter the Columbia River and came up with some creative ways to inform others about the consequences of polluting.   

Melting Icebergs Experiment, part 2

After completing the Melting Iceberg experiment I was reminded how important forming a hypothesis and comparing it to the actual results really is.  My hypothesis was wrong and I was excited about it!  I discovered that as icebergs melt they will (probably) not create world-wide flooding.  Now as far as icecaps are concerned, I still think that as they melt they do cause inland flooding.  A great example of this is happening right now in the area in which I live.  Fortunately the river levees are holding so there has not been any flooding here, but because of the significant amount of rainfall that we have had this year, the mountain snow is melting more rapidly and raising the rivers.

While doing this experiment I discovered that there will always be differences of opinion or ideas about popular issues. I was surprised to find that the idea of the greenhouse effect is not accepted by everyone.  There are some very interesting articles that challenge the idea.  http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/ has some insightful ideas.