1) The Earth Science students have a break through with using facebook. Several students used the vocab list that was posted on facebook to study for the astronomy vocab quiz, and the average score on the quiz was passing. The classmarker quiz was not a success - not enough students took the quiz. The success rate with the castle learning homework assignment was better but not stellar. Castle learning uses the same login and password as district computers, which I think makes it more user-friendly for students. I have also asked that students change their profile picture to their favorite planet for extra credit. In the classroom, we have used the LCD projector to view videos on the expanding universe and images of the planets of our solar system. Astronomy is not something that students can "touch", so I think the video supplements were very important.
2) The Big Bang Theory is quite, well, theoretical, and it is not really possible for students to fully grasp the concept by just talking or reading about it. The "Expanding Universe" video provided some exciting images to illustrate the theory of how the universe originated. I paused the video frequently to discuss the material, and pointed out that for all the complexity of the theory, the supportive evidence is simple, namely, Hubble's "red shift" evidence for an ever-expanding Universe. Sagan's "Pale Blue Dot" and "Cosmos" really informed my understanding and teaching of these concepts.
3) The introductory notes (powerpoint with graphic organizer) were too long. After teaching it to my first block class, I decided to break the notes into two class periods, and inserted vocab activities and video clips in order to provide the lessons with variability.
4) A virus has made its way through my entire family the last few weeks (on the bright side, we now possess herd immunity). I was the last to get it, and had to take the first sick day of my career on Thursday. The ESF students were studying the Tragedy of the Commons, and looked at an Onondaga Lake article as a case study. Earth Science students completed a graphing lab about sunspots and solar activity. We've had some lake effect snow, and Evan has enjoyed playing in it. Marty is four months old, and is starting to show his personality. He laughs almost constantly - could not have asked for a better baby. The kids really enjoy visiting their grandparents, and their grandparents enjoy having them. As a bonus, Laura and I get some time to just be.
Laura has committed to consuming meats that are local and/or free range. I have always enjoyed the meals she cooks, and now they are even better. For example, I ate the best bacon of my entire life this morning (nitrate-free!).
We watched I Heart Huckabees yesterday, which is relevant because it addresses our interconnected existence with regard to the universe. Also, I am reading Chris Hedge's "Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle".
5) "You are a genius" -student's flattering exclamation in response to my verbal introduction to the universe.
jason... (it's tiffany jewell)
ReplyDeletei have to say... i enjoy reading your blog posts. we are two completely different kinds of teachers... yes, i think your high school students would enjoy some of the things i teach my 1st through 3rd graders and vice- versa.
for instance... in elementary montessori... we start the school year with the creation story... or, the "big bang." we tell it as an impressionistic story with limited (simple) science experiments. from there... we build our science curriculum... cultural curric... basically, every thing we teach stems from that story.
(we call it a "great lesson"... there are five: the creation story, the time line of life, the time line of human life, the history of numerals, and the history of writing.
if you're ever interested in a simple big bang story to get your students going... let me know. i'd be happy to share it with you!
good luck!
hope the family is doing well...
(isn't local meat the best! it's what pulled me out of being a vegitarian...)