Virtual Classroom

       For last weeks class, Week 4, Bishop Dunn was closed because of the weather, so Group 2 was not able to do their lesson. Dr. Smirnova informed us that we would have a "Virtual Classroom" instead and to all meet online at 4:30. This was my first experience of a virtual classroom, even though I have taken a number of online classes before! It was very different from what I expected it to be. 
       Dr. Smirnova videoed in and started the class discussion on our lesson plan designs. I liked the idea of of the professor being able to video in, so it was a live dialogue between all of us, instead of just a powerpoint or article being posted and all of us having to post our comments. While Dr. Smirnova was speaking, we could type in a response in the chat area or respond verbally. 
      Here is a snapshot of our virtual classroom! You can see Dr. Smirnova in the top right, our conversations via chat on the bottom right and the powerpoint on the left side:
     
                                       

      First, we discussed the five Models of Teaching. Then we discussed the difference between Goals and Objectives in our lesson plans and how we should write them. Next, we moved onto our Unit Plan designs and the different lessons we could include in our plans.
      Even though we were unable to meet in person, we were able to have a great lecture. I am glad that I got to experience a virtual classroom.

Lesson Completed!

                                                  

      After all of the worrying, stress and last minute edits on our lesson, Group 1 managed to carry out a solid lesson after all! We had 14 students show up for our after school program, so that is a great start! Our lesson was on physical and chemical changes of matter.

      Of course, it was far from perfect but we made it through. We quickly met before the lesson to print out the pre-test Dr. Smirnova wanted us to use before we even started our lesson. This was not something we had planned for in our lesson! Once we got to Bishop Dunn, we each set up our stations and tried to connect my laptop to the Smart Board. Unfortunately the plugs weren't compatible with Macs and we had to borrow Mrs. F laptop. First, we administered the pre-test to the students and we made sure to tell the students that it was not a test that would be graded, just one to help us know what they already know. Then we began our direct instruction lesson which we used a powerpoint presentation for. Each of us (Kelly, Colin, John and I) were responsible for presenting a few slides of the powerpoint. We did our best to keep the direct instruction clear and concise and keep the students engaged in our lesson. We had demonstrations of chemical, unclear and no change of matter for the students. We mixed baking soda and vinegar, sand and water, and salt and water in beakers to show the children these changes. 

Here is our presentation: Group 1 powerpoint

     Once we had completed the direct instruction, we began our inquiry lesson. We broke the students up into four groups and gave them each a Investigation worksheet, where they could record their discoveries from each lab. Each member of our group was responsible for creating a lab that would demonstrate either a chemical or physical change of matter. Lab one was creating Goop, a chemical change. Lab two was creating lava lamps in a water bottle, another chemical change. Lab three was aluminum foil boats, a physical change. Lab four was creating a glue bouncy ball, a chemical change. Students were able to work at each lab for about 12 minutes, where they were able to complete the lab and discuss with each of us the changes (if any) they were observing. After the 12 minutes were up, the students rotated to the next lab. Once everyone rotated to each lab, we had a very quick closing discussion. We had originally planned to have the students come up to the Smart Board and fill out the Investigation worksheet and discuss it all together, but we did not have time for that. We also planned to have the students complete an exit ticket where they would answer three multiple choice questions about different changes of matter and then list any facts they learned/questions they had about the lesson. Unfortunately, we did not have time to do either of these activities, so we just verbally asked the students questions about the labs and the changes that they observed. Ideally, we would have had more time for the closing of the lesson, but things do not always go as planned in the classroom! From the questions we did ask, the students were able to answer us correctly and it was evident both there and during the labs that they understood the concept of chemical versus physical change of matter. This was very exciting to witness. The students really enjoyed all of our lab activities. 

Here are some pictures from our lesson:






     After our lesson, we heard some constructive criticism of our lesson from our classmates and Dr. Smirnova. We were told that in our inquiry lesson, there was no problem for the students to figure out and no clear expectations for the students. There were some more suggestions, but I don't want to bore you with all of those. We will be taking these suggestions and critiquing our lesson plan, in order to create the perfect science lesson plan. Even though we were the first group to go, I think that we set the bar pretty high for our classmates to follow! Even though our lesson might not have been perfect, the students had a great time and learned the difference between the physical and chemical change of matter. Now, we know what we have to do to further improve this lesson and what to do in the future! I am so glad that we are done and that it all worked out in the end. 

Another week done!

                                                       

I can't believe we are already done with week 2 and closing in on week 3. This semester is moving so quickly, especially in this class! I can't believe that my group presents our lesson in a few days, hard to believe considering we just started the class. This class is definitely on full speed ahead, very different from my other classes so far at the Mount. 

This past week we met in the Curriculum Library- before Dr. Smirnova's email- I never knew there was such a place! Luckily, it was not too hard to find and I hope to go back and explore it soon. This Library seems to have many great resources that we will be able to use throughout our time here both in and outside of the classroom. The librarian, Tiffany Davis, was very friendly and full of great information. I just wish we had got a chance to walk around the library with Tiffany to see where everything was located. 

Our cooperating teacher, Mrs. Foster-Faith from Bishop Dunne was also able to join us for class. It was nice to put a face to the name and know who we would be working with for the next few weeks- well in Group 1's case- week! Mrs. F came across a little abrupt at times and at first I was unsure as to what to think. However, as the time went on I realized that she is very serious and committed to her job and the students that we will be working with in the after school program. Mrs. F offered to help us all out however she could, whether it be with supplies, ideas, etc. My group took her up immediately on that offer and emailed her that night with our idea for our lesson. We were soon told that our idea was too broad and that we need to narrow it down and Mrs. F suggested we look into Next Generation Science Standards for some inspiration. This really helped our group and we were able to narrow down our topic. It is great to be able to correspond with Mrs. F and Dr. Smirnova about our lesson, as this fieldwork is quite different than our prior experiences here at the Mount. 

Today, my group and I met bright and early at the library to really finalize our ideas about our lesson and start writing it all up. We got a lot accomplished in the four hours we met for and then had more work to do ourselves afterwards. We all left feeling confident in our lesson, only to find out that Dr. Smirnova thought that we were missing some parts to the lesson. Hopefully we get this sorted soon and are all ready to go on Tuesday at 4:30. On one hand I wish we had more time, while on the other I am glad it will be over so soon! Fingers crossed it all goes well for us on Tuesday...or that we get a snow storm :)

 This has been a busy and stressful week- I hope that is not the case every week for this class! 

Scientific Me

                                              
          I always enjoyed science and the outdoors when I was younger and I owe a lot of that to my old neighbors. My neighbors were scientists at the Museum of Natural History and they studied different salamanders- they even had a few of their own at home. I used to always run next door to see Gladys...that was the name of my favorite salamander! My brother and I would always beg to go to the museum with them to be able to see where they worked and get to see the labs in which they worked! I was amazed about how many lizards, frogs and salamanders they had in their offices! One of their co-workers even let his Tortoises just wander around the halls! They made science and research seem so exciting and fun that I was certain I wanted to be just like them when I grew up!

In their backyard, they had what my brother and I called "the frog pond." It was this little home made pond- probably not even 3' by 3', where many frogs lived. I became quite intrigued with frogs at a young age and would always want a closer look at them in their habitat- one day I got so close to the frogs- that I fell in the pond with them! From that day on, I always look out for frogs and smile to myself about that time I took a dip with them!

        One of my fondest memories of Science in school was around 3rd or 4th grade. It was the first
science fair I would be participating in and I wanted to make sure that I had an exciting project. That project ended up being one of the classic project choices- the baking soda and vinegar volcano! I had so much fun creating the project- from start to finish! The project I created closely resembled this one:

                                                        

I remember this project being a hit with not only me but also with all of my friends at school. This was the first time I had worked on a science project outside of school and really enjoyed it. The whole aspect of combining baking soda and vinegar together to create a chemical reaction was so exciting. I can also remember when I was in Kindergarten, we had the life cycle experiment with the butterflies. When they first arrived to the class, they were caterpillars then after a week or so they became bigger caterpillars. Then after that, they started to crawl to the top of the net cage and create their chrysalis. I loved watching them spin themselves into their chrysalis! Eventually, the caterpillars would transform into butterflies within their chrysalises and then emerge as butterflies. This whole process was just amazing for me at that age! After a few days of flying around in the cage, we all went outside as a class and set them free. I was so upset to see them go that I remember going home and looking on leaves for caterpillar eggs, with the hopes that I could have my own science experiment at home. I wasn't able to find any eggs but I begged my parents for the butterfly kit so we could watch the process at home. Eventually I got it and got to see the whole process all over again! I now work in a Kindergarten classroom and love seeing the students have the same fascination with this life cycle as I did when I was their age!

What really changed Science for me, was a great Biology teacher I had in 10th grade. Ms. Salvati was wonderful teacher and had such interest and enthusiasm for the subject, that it was contagious! I loved all of the labs we did in that class and how she made all of the information so easy to understand. While many people in my class thought the idea of dissecting a fetal pig was gross- I couldn't wait to start! I also enjoyed learning about the cell process and being able to examine them under the microscope. Ms. Salvati and my neighbors influenced me with their love for science to start out college as a Biology major. However, the science teachers I had in college were nothing like Ms. Salvati. They were very boring and seemed unenthused about the subject. My one Genetics professor was the last straw. He had no excitement the entire semester and just lectured straight from the textbook. I could not keep up with the material and was loosing interest very quickly. The material became very intense and complicated to me and I decided to change majors. Sometimes, I wish I had stuck with it. However, the Professors I experienced in the Science department did not seem as enthused as my previous teachers once had. Since I had a good amount of credits in the sciences, I decided to pursue a Forensics minor during my undergrad. I really enjoyed all of those classes, especially the labs, where we tested fingerprints and compared DNA!

To me, science is the discovery of new things and a dynamic subject. Whether it is inside or outside of the classroom, science is ultimately all around us! That discovery may be made through reading about a scientific theory, or actually witnessing it in person. Science is ever changing and developing. Throughout our lifetime, science will continue to expand and we will learn about so much more. Science is exciting and fun but also confusing and hard. Science is useful, as it can help cure diseases, lead to vaccines and help society in general. It is also very important, which is why Science needs to be taught from young ages, whether it be experiments about the five senses to high school students in physics learning about the concept of gravity.

Science always intrigued me because so much of it is hands on and experimental. I loved being able to see the changes in life, mix solutions together, examine cells under a microscope, etc. When I get my own elementary class, I hope to inspire my students like my neighbors and former teachers have. Although, I did not end up with a Biology degree, I know that I will enjoy my time teaching science to my students. I can't wait to be able to share my interest and excitement of science and discovery with my students. Being able to see their eyes light up when a butterfly hatches or when they participate in their first science fair will be such a rewarding experience! I don't want to become like the professors I had in college who were just there to dish out the material to us. I want to keep my students interested and intrigued in the world of science. I want them to have that drive to continue their own experiments at home and look forward to learning about all science has to offer. There is just so much for them to discover in the subject of science. Science needs to be hands on, minds on experience for students- of all ages. Science is not meant to be only read about, yet instead experimented with and observed. It is important for students to feel like they are scientists and a part of figuring out a solution to a problem or observing the changes in something. Once that happens, they will have that stronger connection to the subject and want to do more with it. Many students find science difficult and I want to try my best to make all my students comfortable with the subject.

This Scientific Me project has allowed me to reflect on all of my science experiences both in and out of school. I hope that these experiences will shape who I become as an individual and teacher. I can only hope to inspire my students like I have been inspired. This project will help me create my own philosophy of science education statement by the completion of this course. I look forward to see where science in the classroom will lead my students and me.