Sept 30 Class

Today was an online class only. We were asked to read chapters three and four. The reading guide that I filled out followed these two chapters. These chapters ask a teacher to focus on the four domains of knowledge that can help harness the children’s shared base of understanding. The four domains are simple mechanics of solid bounded objects, behaviors of psychological agents, actions and organization of living things, and makeup and substance of materials. The chapters also give case studies that look into actual classrooms and what they are doing. The major components that are used to make good units and help the students progress require a lot of time on the teacher's part. Also, the right material must be used so the student's can tie everything together. By having good lessons and guiding the students, they will be able to take this knowledge into their other classes. These chapters discussed ways in which teachers can try to improve their teaching to meet short-term and long-term goals in the classroom and find ways to help a child's progression throughout their years in school.

Sept 25 Class

Today in class we performed an online assignment. We joined in to a Webseminar. The seminar was about stars and astronomy. The biggest element of the stars is hydrogen, then helium and metals. The stars are hot, glowing balls of gas. An interesting fact that I found was that stars are born in the Orion Nebula. Also, the most important factor in how a star evolves and eventaully dies is it's initial mass. There are two different types of stars, high mass and low mass. High mass stars are very bright, burn "fuel" rapidly and have short lives. Low mass stars are less bright, "burn" for billions of years and have very long lives. There were also many other facts about stars that I think would be very beneficial in the classroom. I think that it is important for students to learn about the stars and how they are formed.

Sept 23 Class

Today we did a lab that tested acidity. We had baking soda and vinegar and we mixed the two together which created a reaction. This showed us that this is what happens with acid. So, we used baking soda and tested the acidity of different fruits. We tested, white grapefruit, pink grapefruit, orange and lemon all in the juice form. After we tested these we then tested each of this in a chunk form. We placed the chunk into a cup and then poured baking soda over top of them. The reaction wasn't as large on the chunk as it was in the liquid form. I think this is because with the chunk, there was more surface area for the reaction to occur, so it was more spread out than in the liquid form. The liquid was also more concentrated than the chunk. I feel that this would be a great activity to do with younger students in a classroom, because it deals with food that they may encounter everyday in their lives. When something is closely related to them, they are more likely to be able to draw the connection and the activity will have more meaning to the student.

Sept 18 Class

Today in class we talked about the Science Standards and the goals of each. We discussed how important it is that throughout every day in our classroom, these goals are met. If these goals are not met, in a sense, the teacher hasn't given the students all the tools they need. For each grade they are different, but there is a common goal throughout all the standards.
After discussing the standards we did an activity on the web. We had to create our own meals, but had to follow a certain standard. I found it hard to match the calories to the foods that we had. I obviously don't eat right myself! It was very interesting to see how many calories are in the different foods we eat and we don't think about what we are consuming. I think that this would be a great activity for kid's to do in a classroom so they can visually see what they are eating and the effect that it could have on our bodies. Overall, today's lesson was very educational, not only as a future teacher but also as a student learning about the different foods that we take into our bodies.

Sept 16 class

Today in class we discussed what it means to be proficient in science and the four strands. The four strands are Understanding Scientific Explanations, Generating Scientific Evidence, Reflecting on Scientific Knowledge, and Participating Productively in Science. All these topics go into depth about different aspect of science and how teachers can use them to their advantage.
At the end of class we created a board game. This board game is very educational and can help the students realize all the safety features in the science classroom. The game is very easily played and easy to set up. This type of game can be used for any grade level and the students will still understand it. Everything tied together today and relates back to different ways in which we can engage our students in the classroom and find better ways to teach them.

Sept 11 Class

There are many reasons why we should teach science well in the classroom. First off, we need to make sure that we know the subject because it helps us become the experts to our students, makes us a participant rather than an observer and it also helps us become an engaged citizen. There is new research out that talks about a different way to teach science that will hopefully engage the students more and make them think differently about science. An important topic to cover in science is the language. There are many terms that we use in everyday language that has different meanings in science, like theories. In science theory is an explanation that has undergone significant testing. Where in everyday life, someone might say they have a theory of why something happens. So, as a teacher it is important to be knowledgeable in science but also teach the terminology to the students. This is what I got out of class today.

Sept 9 Class

The lab we did today in class didn't work correctly the first couple times we attempted, but once we got it figured out it was interesting. We came to the conclusions that the temp dropped dramatically when placed in the cold water and rose immediately when placed in the warm water. This follows my hypothesis of what would happen during this lab. We also placed the temperature probe in our hands and measured each persons temperature. It was cool to see how different everyones body temperature ranged.