Spring is Everywhere! Baby Bunnies are Here

To continue my nature observations from previous posts, spring is all around us! I am extremely pleased to see signs of life continuing to pop up everywhere. In particular, I have been observing daffodils this week. Daffodils are a beautiful yellow flower, and I have not yet seen one fully in bloom. My garden will soon be full of them! 


In addition, the hudson highlands nature museum has recently acquired four new additions to the animal family at the wildlife center. Four new baby bunnies were recently born, and this past week I had a chance to play with them. The mother is white with blue eyes, while the father is brown with brown eyes. The baby bunnies are: (2) brown with brown eyes, (1) white with black spots with with blue eyes, and (1) black with blue eyes. It made me think- how do we have such color variations from two parents who are just white and brown? Then, it made me recall something I learned in my genetics class- epistasis.  Epistasis is the phenomenon where the effects of one gene are modified by one or several other genes, which are sometimes called modifier genes. The gene whose phenotype is expressed is called epistatic, while the phenotype altered or suppressed is called hypostatic. The genes of an individual do not operate isolated from one another, but obviously are functioning in a common cellular environment. Therefore, this concept can explain why the different coat colors are seen in the offspring of the baby bunnies. Some genes when together can mask the production of another color, or be recessive to the expression of a different color. Therefore, sometimes new colors are also seen that were not seen in the parents. 

Moving Beyond the Science Kit

Although it can be very tempting as a teacher to take control of the situation and not allow the students to have free reign and full control of exploring materials and experiments on their own, it is more beneficial to allow students to investigate and create meaning on independently. Simply having students write down definitions to vocabulary words and telling them the definitions of words before engaging in an investigation is not enough to ensure a successful understanding. It is, in my opinion, better to allow students to establish some level of meaning and understanding before providing new vocabulary words. Otherwise, the students will not have much background knowledge or experiences to connect these new definitions and terms with. Also, the teacher should control much of the experimental design and initial problem posing; however, the student should then be given control over procedures and findings. Giving students the ability to make decisions and design their own procedures when it is time to address the presented problem is very important and crucial. Science ideas and understandings will emerge from all students at different times, and it is acceptable to allow a diversity of procedures (which are important for learning). In addition, students need to make personal connections to science concepts in order to understand more and make more permanent connections. 


It is important for students to learn about the history of science before engaging in an investigation or experiment because students should be provided with insights into the nature of science and the role of historical, philosophical, and technological contexts in the development of scientific knowledge. In chapter 10, Ms. Murray does just this when her students are preparing to learn about the atom, and has her students break into groups to research the scientists throughout the years that have contributed to the atomic theory. The students naturally realized that the atomic theory has constantly been refined and altered, and probably will be again in the future. Science is always changing and growing!


In addition to having her students research the history of science concepts and theories, and incorporate an open-ended approach to describing what an atom looks like, I like that Ms. Murray used mystery boxes to help her students understand how scientists can describe and understand something they cannot see. The students were surprised that by using their other senses they were able to successfully infer what the unseen objects were in the boxes; and therefore, the students now had a better understanding of how scientists gather data about something they cannot visibly study (the atom), as well. It is easy to see why scientific models are still evolving about the atom. 


Ms. Murray has her students research, discuss, and draw the structure of atoms, but also design and build their own atomic models with materials like Popsicle sticks, beads, and tape. The reason Ms. Murray has her students build and construct atoms in order to bring together all the information the students have collected, researched, discussed, and learned and apply it building a model representing all of these factors. Instead of simply stopping at the drawing stage, the students are now challenged to find objects and design models with specific measurements that will represent the sketches they have drawn. Agreeing upon and building one sketch design is a more challenging process that involves much collaboration and thinking. Now, the students are truly acting like the scientists they researched prior to this investigation- they are applying the data they have collected/observed and facts they have researched into a completed, simulated model. 


This week in class, we started fieldwork! It is very exciting and interesting so far. We are helping our 5th graders with science concepts and classwork, and in a week we will actually be teaching the 5th grade class a science lesson according to the 5 E lesson plan. I am excited to engage the students in this inquiry lesson about pH!

Snapshot- A Great Tool

I had never previously done a "snapshot" on my computer or for another class prior to being asked to create a snapshot of the Five Kingdoms quiz I took after we completed our expert and home group activities on the five kingdoms. However, after searching through google, I found out that the button "prt sc" on my pc keyboard enables that function if "alt" or "ctrl" is pressed prior. Then, by opening paint and copying the image, you can save and create a literal snapshot or picture of an image open on your desktop! Very neat! I will utilize this skill for years to come, and felt the need to share it. We are always learning!

The quiz was found to be on a great website (StudyJams), as well. Not only did it conclude the Five Kingdoms Jigsaw activity very well, but the website is now added to my "favorites" section due to the free quizzes and other activities it offers on its website for both math and science.

Therefore, here is my snapshot of the great Five Kingdoms quiz:

Completion of my Moon-Phase Log

I have been keeping a moon-phase log for 6 consecutive weeks, and today, I completed it. This experience has been educationally rewarding. Actively observing the moon change shape across the sky has allowed me to better grasp the idea and concept behind the various phases of the moon, and why the moon has these various phases (the moon is rotating around the earth). I will certainly use the moon-phase log in my classrom, as I can even remember completing a moon phase log when I was in third grade. The Internet is certainly a great supplemental aid to use in case one isn't sure what phase of the moon it is or how much % it is illuminated. Students will be able to personally observe the moon change shape from waxing to waning and new moon to new moon, and be better capable and able to explain why this cycle is occuring and how. Simply making students only read about the phases of the moon (new moon, waxing crescent, first quarter, waning crescent, third quarter, and new moon) is not enough to help students fully understand this concept and assimilate and accomodate this information into memory.

Therefore, here is my complete moon-phase log for all to examine, and my moon-phase log/reflection posted in my pb works page. Enjoy!

http://veronicaschneider.pbworks.com/f/VeronicaS+Moon-Phase+Journal.pdf

http://veronicaschneider.pbworks.com/w/page/35536459/My%20Moon-Phase%20Log

In addition, here is a great educational video I found that can help students understand the phases of the moon and the cycle it undergoes.

SPRING HAS SPRUNG!

I am very pleased to say that spring is finally here! Today is the first day of spring, and throughout the week you could see definite signs of new life everywhere. The buds have formed on some trees, the daffodils are growing up from the ground, other various flowers are growing out of the ground, the snow has completely melted, there is mud everywhere, and there is new life evident on all of the trees. At the farm I work at during the weekend, it was clearly evident that spring is here, as you could hear more birds chirping, see the buds forming, hear the crickets and frogs at dusk, and see a lot of insects! As a science lesson, I could take my students outside and ask them to find signs that spring has arrived using their senses. In addtion, we could learn why spring and other seasons occur. Perhaps the students could germinate their own seeds or plant their own flowers in a garden we could create and watch the new life grow. Perhaps students could set up their own experiments on plant life and growth by growing some plants outside wih full light exposure, some plants inside with artificial light, and some plants in a dark closet with no light and infer, record, and reflect on what happens. This activity and investigation would be accompanied by a lesson on plants, photosynthesis, and germination. We could also learn why March 20th is the first day of spring and not April 20th, for example.
This is a video I found that helps explain why we have different seasons (the earth's axis)

Planning for Science: Lesson Plans and Instruction

Teachers should always be prepared to before they come to school to teach their lessons. When teachers come to school prepared, students notice. However, one must remember that an activity is not a lesson! You need to know what science ideas you expect your student to develop, and how the process of reflection will lead to the construction of new ideas. The process of performing the activity and reflecting on it may be considered the science lesson. Students' spontaneous curiosity will give a teacher excellent opportunities to change one's origninal plan and mediate their experience on their own terms. Important science ideas emerge from successful science experiences. Constructing a lesson plan, or a document that describes plans for the lesson, will help engage students in a meaningful science activity and invite them to think about, reflect on, and construct ideas from this activity. A lesson plan should include these key elements: goals, science ideas, engagement section, exploration section, explaination section, elaborative section, and the evaluate section. Writing one's thoughts down is a way to collect and reflect on your planning and refine and modify your ideas as you move along. In my opininon, one of the most key elements to include in every lesson are open-ended questions. Open-ended questions are those that lead to multiple answers and help students think critically about the investigation. These questions should invite students to action and encourage student to apply various process skills. Also, open-ended questions should acess sudents' own ideas and prior knowledge, and check for students' understanding. It is very important to allow students' ample time to answer these questions, wether in groups or individually, and this wait time is the time that elapses between the moment you ask a question and the moment when you select a student to respond.

Cooperative learning groups, or an arrangement in which a group of students of mixed ability work toward the common goal of promoting each other's and the group's success, encourage meaning making for students. This is because each student is respondible for his or her own learning and the group's learning. Students have the opportunity to discuss their ideas with others, discover difference between their own explanations and other's, and defend their positions or alter their thinking as the group strives for consensus. As they interact, they acquire information from each other, and clarify ideas with their peers. Each student is motivated to more reflection by the inferences and opinions of others. These groups promote the kind of interchange and teamwork that are essential for sciencetific problem solving.The participation and aid from other students in the group benefits and helps others who may be struggling to understand certain concepts or ideas that may be unfamiliar to them.

Although planning for a lesson includes outlining and writing down the science ideas that will be learned, how the teacher will execute a lesson, what materials are needed, how the activity will take place, how to get the students interested, and how to encourage and motivate the students to explore, as a teacher you may need to sometimes let it go. Teachers need to be prepared in general to teach the lesson; however, they need to also be prepared to change and modify their lessons to respond to students' interests, ideas, and questions. The lesson plan should be utilized as a useful guide, and not an instruction manual. Students have questions of emerging relevance, and it is a good idea to motivate students to explore these questions that arise. Careful planning will give teachers the confidence of when to know when to let go because one will be able to evalute the science ideas connected to each topic and consider the possibilities for student to expand their thinking through new activities. Times to modify or let go of a lesson plan could include when the science idea you were hoping to emerge does not, students want to explore a related invetigation that is a good idea, or when students reveal alternative conceptions that are resistant to change. It is very important to listen actively to students' questions and encourage creative explorations. Teachers want to create independent science thinkers! These new ideas and explorations can only enrich the class knowledge even further.

It is extremely important to include students of all backgrounds and disabilities in cooperative learning groups because these small groups encourage these students, who are often reluctant to participate in science activities and distance themselves in science lessons, and therefore, learning little, can help motivate these students to participate more and feel more comfortable. These groups attend to their academic needs far better than individual learning activities. Group work can reduce individual competition and raise the level of cooperation. The support other students bring encourages more participation from these students who may feel lost or incapable of doing science.

Unfortunately, I cannot remember a teacher I have had in the past that asked key questions to make me think. However, I know as a teacher I will use key questioning in my classroom. Questions should be both open-ended and address process skills when inviting students to action. For example, questions can address observation skills (what do you notice?), inference (what do you think is happening?), comparing (in what ways are these things the same?), and predicting (what do you think will happen?). In addition, open-ended questions access students' own ideas and prior knowledge that invite students to come up with their own ideas about a topic or investigation. Finally, open-ended questions should check for stuents understanding. Students should reveal what they are thinking is occurring or has occurred during the investigation in order to see if they truly understood and comprehended the concept. Students can answer these types of questions in a learning log that prompts them to address their own thinkin and think critically and explore further.

This week in class, we shared our 5 Kingdom activity sheets with one another. I had kingdom plantae, and my other members of the group had animalia, monera, protista, and fungi. We each researched our assigned kingdom at home and regrouped to collaborate with others in the classroom who were researching the same kingdom as we were (expert groups).  Then, we met with our assigned groups to teach one another about what we learned from our research about each particular kingdom (home groups). This type of group work is known as "expert and home groups." I feel that this activity and learning experience was very successful in having us research and share information with each other. This activity was an examlple of collaborative learning in the classroom, and I believe that I could certainly use it in my classroom. I am now more knowledgeable about each of the five kingdoms than I was prior to meeting in groups, and it is evident that we learn very well from our peers. We needed to both research individually and collaborate our findings with one another before teaching each other. This was helpful for anyone who may have had trouble finding information or felt confused about what to do, and with many people researching we collected more information than we would have individually. We then evaluated each other on how we taught and informed the group about our kingdoms with helpful feedback. Collaboration and active learning and involvement is certainly key to success! I think that if I had simply read about the five kingdoms in a textbook then I would have learned and absorbed significantly less information than sharing information with my peers in an active and supportive environment. After sharing information with each other and providing feedback, we individually took a quiz to assess our knowledge on the Five Kingdoms. I got a 100%! Obviously, the information my peers had taught me was well-understood and absorbed. I will use this 5 kingdom activity in my classroom in the future.

Kappa Delta Pi

Hey, everyone. I'm not sure if many of you are aware, but Kappa Delta Pi is the International Honor Society in Education, and we have a chapter at our school (451). I am a member, and I think it is not only a great honor to a member of this society, but it is helpful, as well. Each month i recieve a monthly newsletter about teacher's stories from around the U.S, new methods of teaching, and helpful hints and tips for the new teacher. In addition, the KDP membership offers discounts to some teacher stores, as well. All around, there are many benefits of being a member of KDP, so you should too! Find out more information from the education office or Dr. Smirnova.

Here is the link to the KDP official webiste for additional information:
http://www.kdp.org/

Spiraling Curriculum- Explorations of Density

Learning, does not grow out of rigid, systematically and carefully planned experiences. Learning occurs from an experience that is natural, unexpected, expansive, and encourages open-ended investigations. Teachers can not always determine how an experiment is going to run, or how effective it will be. Students often take unexpected directions from the planned experiment that provide numerous opportunities to further their knowledge and understanding, or prepare the students for learning that science concept in the future. For example, Ms. Drescher's class took the concept of observing that all the different liquids had different weights causing them to disperse differently when mixed together and expanded it to include volume. When the students noticed that changing the volume did not affect how the liquids dispersed when they were mixed together, Ms. Drescher needed to then explain the concept of density the children had stumbled upon. All experiences students have with science are only preparing them and laying the framework to build upon with more challenging and complex science concepts in the older grades. With more vaired experiences in the early grades, students will be richer in prior knowledge and preparation that they can utilize in the older grades. Therefore, I feel that schools that demand exact adherence to a specified curriculum are missing out on the opportunity to further students' science experiences and prior knowledge to include a greater variety and quality. When a student tries to extend the lesson further or in a different direction, teachers in these types of schools will direct the student back on the very clear, outlined, and safe path they are expected to take. There are no risks involved, and without taking risks, I believe true learning will not occurr.

Density is mathematically defined as the mass of an object divided by its volume. It is expressed numerically in grams per cubic centimeter, and explains how tightly particles are packed together in a given amount of space. Even though a subject's mass or volume may vary, its density remains constant. Objects that sink have a greater density than the substance the object is in, which therefore, causes the obejct to sink. Objects that sink in water displace water, and the volume of the water displaced is equal to the volume of the object. An object that floats has a density that is less than the substance it is in, causing it to float. An object that floats in water it is supported by a buoyant force, and displaces water. This means the mass of the water displaced is equal to the mass of the object. For example, objects with a density greater than 1 gram per cubic centimeter will sink and those with a density less than that will float.

In the science story about the students observing how the egg sank in tap water, yet floated when salt was added to the tap water (demonstrating that since more particles were added to the water it became more dense than the egg) were able to visualize the concept of density. Comparing this to real-life experiences, such as being in the ocean, students can apply this to the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is many times saltier than any other ocean, and perhaps the students may be curious as to why it is many times saltier than any other ocean. Other questions that may arise could include: how do objects that float in the Atlantic Ocean compare to objects that float in the Dead Sea, is the Dead Sea too salty to support life, will objects float more in the Dead Sea than in the Atlantic Ocean or other oceans, etc. In an experiment, students can prepare by researching information about the Dead Sea on the Internet first, and then by performing an experiment. Students could simulate their own Dead Sea and other comparable ocean. By first researching, they could find out how much salt is in the dead sea by volume, and how much salt is in another ocean by volume, create a ratio to a more reasonable volume to use in the classroom, and find out how much salt would be needed to simulate the two bodies of water. The salt would be the changing variable, while all other variables would be controlled (volume of water, objects). Then, the students could use the same objects in each of their bodies of water, compare how much they float or sink, take measurements if possible to see how much the water was displaced, and conclude based on the collected results.

A spiraling curriculum is one where science curricula and topics are further expanded upon with each increasing grade. Students build upon previous knowledge of science topics year after year, developing a greater depth of understanding. From my personal experiences, I know I have and still benefit from this structure of a spiraling curriculum. I always had difficulty in math as a younger student in grade school. Each year, I would look forward to being able to forget everything I learned last year and think that I would never have to face those challenging word problems, for example, ever again. However, each year I would consistently be provded wrong, as we would begin the school year by reviewing concepts learned the year prior, and then spend the remainder of the school year expanding upon these foundational concepts. This pattern, of course, was present and consistent throughout all subjects taught in school I believe that is wasn't until recently that I have grown to appreciate this way and structure of teaching. Although I am in college, my professors are still building upon concepts I recall learning or at least being exposed to in high school. These prior experiences with concepts better prepared me and enabled me to do well in both high school in college, as I had a foundation to build new knowledge off from. Without a starting block, I could imagine it begin very difficult to try and assimilate and accomodate new information into my memory. For example, the early introduced concept of photosynthesis (sun+water+CO2-->oxygen and sugar) has been expanded upon each year I have been in school. All of these prior experiences with photosynthesis well-prepared me for the culmination of this concept in college biology. A spiraling curriculum enables students to be able to look back in order to look ahead.

This website has a lot of great science activities for kids:
http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/sci/

This activity, Tie Dye Milk, is a great surface tension experiment students love to do:
http://www.coolscience.org/CoolScience/KidScientists/tiedyemilk.htm

Still Searching for Spring

This weekend, I was scheduled to give more maple sugar tours to the public at the nature museum I work at. With all of the recent melting snow and nice weather, we were able to take the public on the full, unmodified tour into the mile long trial in the woods to the sugar bush. I gave three tours yesterday, and throughout my numerous walks along the trial and in the woods that day, I kept looking carefully for any new signs of spring since it is just around the corner! Of course, these cold nights and 40 degree days are a sign of approaching spring, as well as the melting snow and rain we have been having and the familiar sounds of returning birds from the south, but I was looking for buds on the trees and bushes. Unfortunately, there are no buds on the trees just yet, but I will keep looking until I spot the first one.

Internal Annual Clocks and Returning Birds in the Spring

Dr. Douglas Robinson - Bird Migration

In the course of a single year, nearly the Earth's birds will migrate some distance at some time. During the spring in northern temperate regions, most of the birds that actually breed "here" will return from points South as the ice and snow melt in the warming sun of the spring. Some species, such as the American Robin, only flew to the southern Atlantic states; other species, including the Sandhill Crane, wintered along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, while still others, including our brightest and best singers, the warblers, flew to the tropics and the southern hemisphere.

For species wintering along the equator, internal annual clocks promote increased restlessness and the signal to return to the northern breeding grounds. For other species, the urge to return is cued by increasing day length. Even longer day lengths after they arrive will stimulate production of hormones that trigger the growth of reproductive organs. But migrants may stop south of their final destination and then for the final push, use temperature, rainfall, atmospheric conditions, and food abundance to "fine tune" their arrival to their summer homes.

It is sensitivity to warming conditions, and perhaps earlier food abundance, that seem to be resulting in earlier and earlier spring arrivals of some species as global temperatures increase. The ability to time the arrival on breeding grounds has been strongly selected, as those who made mistakes or relied on the "wrong" cue paid with fewer offspring or even their own deaths. Look for those success stories of species to arrive in your yard in the near future!

After listening to Dr. Robinson's "academic minute" on the radio, it certainly reaffirmed what I was taught in biology during my freshmen year of college. The internal clocks birds have signal that it is time to return north, and others respond to the increase in day length. All of these sensitivities to outward stimuli and internal stimuli are fascinating for birds to be capable of doing- migrating back to locations many miles away at around the same time each season. As spring is approaching, I am indeed noticing the sounds of birds I have not heard all winter long. This must mean these particular birds have returned from the south already, and spring is on its way!

These instinctive clocks and responses to stimuli would be interesting to further research. Perhaps, as a class, my students and I could research the various migration patterns of birds in our area and wait for their arrival in the spring. These would be interesting projects to conduct in the classroom, and involve research by students while still incorporating the natural resources and nature surrounding our classroom. This project could then be possibly extended to research the migration patterns of other animals, such as sea turtles, who swim many miles each year to return to the beaches to lay their eggs.

Science in the News Review

Hello all! I forgot to post the link to my article along with my review of it some time ago. So, here it is and enjoy!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/science/space/31planet.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=gazing%20afar%20for%20other%20earths&st=cse

This article from the NY Times is about scientists searching for a possible Earth-like planet amongst other solar systems. They are measuring its mass with a speical satelite that measures how much light the planet blocks from the star it is circling. Next, the need to discover if these suitably sized planets are within the appropriate distances from the stars they are circling. It truly is science-fiction brough to life! Imagine, finding potential life on another Earth-like planet!

I think it is certainly crucial to have students research and keep up with the current science issues occuring in our world today. Therefore, having students find a science article in the news, review and reflect upon it, and then share it with the class is a great way to not only expand students' scientific thinking about the world globally, but increase and enrich the class knowledge about current scientific news and issues.


Here is the link to my review of the article:
https://campusweb.msmc.edu/moodle190/file.php/1527/moddata/assignment/5361/3826/veronica_article_review.pdf

Sustained Inquiry: Explorations of Living Things

Sustained inquiry is the development of an extended investigation over a period of time, and is a very important component of science in the classroom. Students work together, collaborating with their teachers, in discovering and investigating science concepts and ideas they can observe over a period of time. For example, most students in school will have an opportunity to plant a seed and watch it grow over a period of time, discussing and investigating what the plant needs to grow and flourish. Providing opportunities for elementary and middle school students to interact with living things helps to instill an appreciation of the complex processes involved in sustaining life. Having plants and animals in my science corner when I am a teacher will be a must to encourage sustained-inquiry lessons in my classroom. Students need to be able to directly observe and investigate living things in the classroom, pose their own questions, and search for these answers through observations, recordings, experimentation, and collaboration. Sustained inquiry is important to have in the classroom as opposed to simply just having scientific inquiry activities because students can become more involved in the responsibilities of caring and providing for the living things in the science corner, pose more inquiry questions, and become more involved in the overall inquiry process as it is over an extended period of time.

I believe that today's technological revolution has certainly made it more difficult than ever to distinguish between what is living and what is not living. Children see things that speak, move, need energy, grow, sleep, give birth, and eventually die. However, many of the characteristics I have just described also describe many of the new gadets, toys, computer programs, and other technological innovations we have in our society today. Children could certainly find it hard to distinguish between what is alive and what is not alive now more than ever. For example, many technological toys children have require them to take care of the virtual pets by feeding them, caring for them, walking them, and putting them to bed. These virtual pets are not alive, but they appear to be so! In addition, computers and cell phones are not alive; however, they often talk to us and we often can put these devices to "sleep" or in sleep mode. Children can certainly attribute these phrases to being alive. Also, many toys that children have move around on their own without being controlled and talk- also confusing for differentiating between being alive and not being alive. 

There are certainly so many varieties of plants in one's neighborhood or nearby suppliers that could be potential good candidates to bring into the classroom's science corner and discuss and investigate in class. For example, any flowering plants and plants that produce fruit would be prime candidates to discuss germination, what is a seed, discuss the parts of a seed under a microscope, the parts of a flower, what a fruit truly is (plant's ovary-protecting the seeds), and how plants grow (photosynthesis). Children could bring in seeds that they have at home from foods they enjoy eating (cultural diversity) and we could attempt to germinate them in the classroom. I know that in my biology class, we ordered Wisconsis Fast Plants from a website, which are named for their quick growth from germination to plant in less than five weeks. They are also good to use in classrooms because of their low maintenance and well-illustrated life cycle.

The lesson discussed in this chapter, "When is a vegetable a fruit," was a great example of both/and thinking. The children needed to compare two edible parts of a plant (fruits and vegetables), but before they knew which was a fruit or which was a vegetable, they needed to compare and contrast the edible plant parts they were given. By classfiying the edible parts into which has seeds and which does not have seeds, the students were able to see the distinction between fruits and vegetables. Vegetables are roots, stems, leaves, and flowers of the plant while fruits are the ripened ovary of the flowering plant (houses the seeds). The students can see that both fruits and vegetables are parts of a plant, and that fruits are only part of a flowering plant or a plant that produces seeds. Students can see both the distinction and the realtion between fruits and vegetables in this lesson.

Sustained-inquiry lessons provided in the lower elementary grades pave the way for independent research in the higher grades for many reasons. Students are exposed to the process of the scientific method and the ways of scientific inquiry at a young age through sustained-inquiry lessons. Children are provided with opportunities to pose their own questions, make hypotheses, and conduct their own investigations and experiments over a long period of time with the support and guidance of their teachers through these sustained-inquiry lessons. With repeated practice, children will develop a more scientific way of thinking and more confidence and begin to pose questions more natually and without as much help and input from their teachers. Students will see very rewarding and experience positive results from participating in these sustained-inquiry lessons, and will remain very interested in researching even more questions and pursuing more answers. This developed interest in discovery through investigation will have been a direct result of having the opportunity to explore science in a direct mannar. Students will, therefore, be more willing and have a desire to conduct independent research in the higher grades from this exposure to sustained-inquiry lessons and the confidence that followed. These scaffolded, meaningful experiences provided in the younger grades will better prepare students for conducting independent research in the older grades.

I found some wonderful websites offering ideas for sustained inquiry in the classroom:
http://www.realtrees4kids.org/sixeight/letseat.htm
http://www.neok12.com/Photosynthesis.htm
http://www.k8accesscenter.org/training_resources/ScienceInquiry_accesscurriculum.asp
http://scienceonline.terc.edu/site/courses.html
http://www.weatherwizkids.com/weather-rain.htm

In class this week, we learned how to formulate objectives! Objectives are the most specific component compared to  the aim, or national standards, and the goals of the lesson, or the state standards. Dr. Smirnova was very helpful in teaching us the "CBC" or conditions, behavior, and criteria components of an objective. The condition is the setting in which the behavior and the criteria will be met. The behavior is the action performed by the student, and the criteria is how the student's work will be evalutated. Objectives are overt and measureable; they are not covert and ambiguous. Verbs such as, appreciate, believe, comprehend, know, understand, indicate, grasp, familiarize, learn, like, and realize are not acceptable objective verbs to use because they are not measureable! A teacher needs to be able to assess a student after a lesson, and the verbs previously discussed certainly do not provide any opportunities for teachers to be able to do so. Verbs such as, name explain, outline, describe, illustrate, create, outline, compute, and diagram are sutiable verbs to utilize in an objective. A good example of an objective is: Given the necessary materials (paper towel, water and a few seeds) needed to observe the germination of seeds in one week, the student will write a reflective entry following the criteria of the rubric at the level of 3 out of 4. This is indeed an objective of an activity we took part in doing in class; however, during the week we did not see any germination of our seeds! Perhaps we did not water, or moisten, the paper towel enough. However, it would have been a great example of how to discuss the process of germination, parts of a seed, compare what is living and non living, and what a plant needs to grow through sustained inquiry in the classroom.

This is a picture of seeds germinating

Monsoon Season! Sign of Spring?

Wow! We are certainly getting quite a bit of rain today. I couldn't help but hear and watch the rain fall down all day today, and the winds were extremely strong! The sounds and power of the winds today actually woke me up, as it blew against the side of my house. It rained all day- about 2 inches an hour! However, if it wasn't getting closer to spring and if it wasn't as warm as it is outside, then this rain could have very well have been a major snow storm! Therefore, I am very pleased and happy to consider this rain to be another sign of springs approaching arrival.

As a teacher, I could incorporate this dreary, natural occurance into a positive teaching moment. Many kids at school may be upset that the rain is keeping them from going outside to play, but there could be a way to change children's perceptions of the rain. A lesson about rain and precipitation could be implemented: learn how rain forms in clouds, measure how big is a raindrop, collect rain and examine the droplet on a slide under a microscope, and measure how much rain is falling each hour. Children could interact directly with the rain, and create a meaningful, hands-on minds-on learning experience.

In addition, I noticed as I was driving over the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge that the ice that had recently covered all of the Hudson River is now almost all gone! Just a few days ago th ice, although not one solid sheet of ice, completely covered the Hudson River, and now almost all of the ice has melted. All of the snow on my lawn has melted as well, and now everything is very muddy. In addition, as I was trudging through the mud on a hiking trail at the museum, I could hear many different species of birds singing in the trees. These are all signs of increasingly warm temperatures, however! Therefore, the 40 degree temps, rain, and melting snow and ice, and singing birds are all reassuring signs that spring is indeed on its way.