#NSTA13 Academy: Day 2

Note: These posts were written in April 2013 as I attended the NSTA Annual Conference at San Antonio, Texas, as a New Science Teacher Academy Fellow. Due to standardized testing and a hectic schedule back at home, I am now only able to upload these posts! Sorry for the long delay.

#NSTA2 Series: Day 1

Hello from #NSTA13, San Antonio!

Receptions and Meet-and-Greets
Thursday was quite busy! As a National Science Teacher Academy (NSTA2) Teacher and DOW Fellow, there were several meet-and-greets and receptions I had to attend. I thoroughly enjoyed the networking opportunities and befriended many passionate and wonderful people. During a breakfast reception, we were introduced to several NSTA2 alumni. It was good to hear about their experiences with the Academy; they talked about how their experiences have helped them with their careers, and where those experiences have led them to where they are now. The importance of building a professional learning community (PLC) during your first years as a teacher was a common message I heard from their discussions. It was a message I definitely agreed with, and certainly passionately talk about with other new teachers.

NSTA2 Breakfast Reception

Here are some excerpt tweets from those receptions, which I found inspirational and motivating.

Best quote of the night from the Academy Dinner: “You’re among your kind! This is your professional learning tribe!”

Great #PDisms from the NSTA2 Alumni Panel: ”Perfect your craft, bring it back, and never stop learning.”

“We have to be model life-long learners. Be a reflective practitioner. Don’t wait for an invitation to do something.”

“Use your passions to find something new. Make it your own! Stay open, go learn!”

With 3 amazing women: Tiffany, Damaries, and Mary Ann!

Found my Pinterest social networking card

Sessions attended and Lessons learned
Despite the many mandated events, I was able to make it to 2 different sessions for the day. Based on my reflections from the previous session, I picked the NGSS strand on effectively measuring student learning and resolved to attend as many sessions offered in this genre. The first session was a follow-up from my all-day PD; it was on developing effective formative assessment and was again presented by Anne Tweed. From this session, I was quite surprised to learn that formative assessment was not only a feedback loop between the teacher and a student, but also between the student and his or her peers.

In order to promote feedback among students, it is imperative for the teacher to create a positive and supportive classroom culture. I was glad that the session touched upon this, and I was able to take away some strategies to work more on this component to ensure that I can make formative assessment really work in the classroom.

The second session was on the Common Core and writing in the science classroom. Our ELA and Writing teachers are phenomenal, and I have seen exemplary written work from the students. However, I noticed that when I ask the same students to write in science, the quality of their work is not level with their work from their ELA or writing classes. Many of them do not see science as a “writing” class, so they do not take their writing as seriously as they should. This session was very helpful; it provided me with great ideas on how to introduce and teach academic vocabulary, how to make the science textbook less intimidating and complex through “picture walks” or “text navigations”, and to come up with ways to make writing in science more structured and more motivating for students.

Sadly, I was unable to stay for the whole duration because I had to man a booth in the Exhibit Hall. However, the presenter’s PowerPoint is available through Carolina Biology’s website so I am going to go back and view it when I get home.

The DOW Chemical Booth
In the early afternoon, I was one of the NSTA2 representatives who had to man the DOW Chemical Booth in the Exhibit Hall. This was a great opportunity, because I was able to meet one of the company’s associates and their marketing team and thank them in person for their support of the NSTA New Science Teacher Academy. I honestly did not know a lot about DOW, but after my time spent at their booth, I know now how invested they are in supporting new teachers and STEM education. One of the biggest things I learned was that they are also seeking to connect their scientists and engineers with teachers to promote science literacy, STEM education, and careers in science. I will definitely be taking advantage of that in the future!

With the DOW fuzzies demonstrating lab safety

Scientist Talk
One of the last receptions I attended on Thursday was the “Scientist Talk”. At this reception, all of the NSTA2 fellows listened and interacted with a panel of scientists and representatives from our respective company sponsors. It was eye-opening; I didn’t realize until then that there is also an entrepreneurial side to teaching. There are actually many science education outreach programs available, and many companies are seeking teachers who can use those programs to supplement their instruction or even provide their students with internships.

The panel members gave some great advice regarding how to reach out to companies and their scientists. “Be specific about your classroom needs. Do your research, and make contact with the companies and organizations. Share your own ideas on how you can use the programs in your classroom. Focus on the scientific processes, problem-solving skills, and applying knowledge and skills to new situations—these will help students be successful beyond school and in life.”

If you have a scientist guest speaker in the classroom, they also recommend asking the following questions: “How do you use the scientific processes in the real world? How do you apply science and technology in the real world? How do you really use science in the real world?”

One of my new PD goals is to spend some time in the summer researching these programs, and trying my hand at writing more grants to secure funding and more equipment for my classroom next year. We have GE and the new College of Nanotechnology here in Albany, and it would amazing to have their scientists come in to our classroom and possibly work with us on collaborative STEM projects…

Found Alfons, a fellow mentee, at the DOW booth

Thank you, NSTA and DOW
As I was walking around and trying to absorb as much as I could from the conference, I couldn’t help but send out great waves of appreciation and gratitude to NSTA, the DOW Chemical Company, and the world for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Even though I’m more than halfway through with the NSTA2 program, I still find it hard to believe that I am one of the lucky candidates, and that I am here at the conference. I have learned a lot this past year, and I can feel the change within me. I am more aware and more confident about my teaching. There are a lot of resources and materials I can use, but the most beneficial aspect of this experience is the community. I have definitely learned a lot not only from my mentor and colleagues, but also from the other teacher fellows, conference presenters, and other attendees. I met and befriended many science teachers during the conference, and that to me is the most valuable part of this experience. It lets me know that as a new science teacher I am not alone and that there is always help available when I reach out and ask for it.

Clapp’s mentee group!

#NSTA13 Academy: Day 3

Note: These posts were written in April 2013 as I attended the NSTA Annual Conference at San Antonio, Texas, as a New Science Teacher Academy Fellow. Due to standardized testing and a hectic schedule back at home, I am now only able to upload these posts! Sorry for the long delay.

#NSTA13 Series: Day 1, Day 2

Sessions attended and lessons learned

With only one event to attend on Friday, my schedule was less frantic and overwhelming this day. I was able to take my time and really enjoy the conference on my own. The morning began with a chemistry presentation sponsored by DOW Chemical Company. Several chemists shared hands-on inquiry labs that we teachers can use in the classroom. We rotated among 4 stations– creating goofy putty, cleaning pennies with lemon juice, searching for iron in our cereals, and making tie-dye patches through chromatography with Sharpies and rubbing alcohol. I had tons of fun, and was already brainstorming ways to incorporate some of these labs during the last few weeks of school or for our annual Field Day event in June.

Playing with goofy putty

Listening to a chemist explain procedures for the iron-fortified cereal lab

Making tie-dye art with isopropyl alcohol and markers

 

One of the other sessions I enjoyed today was one on using 3D graphic organizers for formative assessment. This helped me continue my focus on measuring student learning, and it was also a fun break from the countless hours of sitting through PowerPoints and discussions. Originally I tried to get into one of Dinah Zike’s foldable sessions, but after seeing the very long lines, I quickly realized I was better off attending one of her off-shoot sessions. This was a fun session, and I was able to pick up the basic folds and several strategies on how to use foldables for formative assessment. This session taught me that sometimes you have to figure out how to work smarter, not harder!

Focus group survey
As part of their research, NSTA selected me as one of the candidates for a focus group survey regarding NSTA2 and the annual conference. I actually enjoyed this short time with the researchers and the other candidates because it allowed me to provide feedback about what worked and what didn’t work for me throughout the year as I worked as a teacher fellow. It felt good to have an outlet to voice myself, and to provide feedback and suggestions on how to improve the Academy for future candidates. I really hope that NSTA thinks about creating a website and forum for NSTA2 alumni. I would love to come back as a mentor one day, and give back to the professional learning community.

Sightseeing
After spending most of the morning and afternoon in sessions and in the Exhibit Hall, my brain told me I needed to take a break and get away from information overload. One of the best things about this trip was meeting and making new friends who love to eat and try new things like me. After a quick text, a friend and I took off and enjoyed the lovely Texas spring day at one of San Antonio’s botanical gardens. The beautiful flowers, peaceful setting, and a leisurely walk were exactly what we needed!

View of the waterfalls at the Japanese Tea Gardens

Strolling through the Japanese Tea Gardens

Making Friends

One of the best things about this conference was meeting other passionate science teachers. I was very lucky to meet this special group of ladies on my trip. Though we all came from different cities and taught different grades and subjects, I felt a great connection to these women. It’s not every day that you meet a stranger, and feel as if you have known them for years! I had a great time  sharing what I learned from the sessions, and exploring San Antonio with them! I wish them the best in all their endeavors, and know that they are out there making a positive change in many lives.

Science teachers rule!

#NSTA13 Academy: Day 2

Receptions and Meet-and-Greets
Thursday was quite busy! As a National Science Teacher Academy (NSTA2) Teacher and DOW Fellow, there were several meet-and-greets and receptions I had to attend but I enjoyed the networking opportunities and befriended many passionate and wonderful people. During a breakfast reception, we were introduced to several NSTA2 alumni. It was good to hear about their experiences with the Academy; they talked about how their experiences have helped them with their careers, and where they are now. The importance of building a professional learning community (PLC) during your first years as a teacher was a common message I heard from their discussions, and from the general conversations around me.

[insert PD-isms and reception photos]

Sessions attended and Lessons learned
Despite the many mandated events, I was able to make it to 2 different sessions for the day. Based on my reflections from the previous session, I picked the NGSS strand on effectively measuring student learning and resolved to attend as many sessions offered in this genre. The first session was a follow-up from my all-day PD; it was on developing effective formative assessment and was again presented by Anne Tweed. From this session, I was quite surprised to learn that formative assessment was not only a feedback loop between the teacher and a student, but also between the student and his or her peers.

In order to promote feedback among students, it is imperative for the teacher to create a positive and supportive classroom culture. I was glad that the session touched upon this, and I was able to take away some strategies to work more on this component to ensure that I can make formative assessment really work in the classroom.

The second session was on the Common Core and writing in the science classroom. Our ELA and Writing teachers are phenomenal, and I have seen exemplary written work from the students. However, I noticed that when I ask them to write in science, the quality of their work is not level with their work from their ELA or writing classes. Many of them do not see science as a “writing” class, so they do not take their writing as seriously as they should. This session was very helpful; it provided me with great ideas on how to introduce and teach academic vocabulary, make the science textbook less intimidating and complex through “picture walks” or “text navigations”, and come up with ways to make writing in science more structured and more motivating for students.

Sadly, I was unable to stay for the whole duration because I had to man a booth in the Exhibit Hall. However, the presenter’s PowerPoint is available through Carolina Biology’s website so I am going to go back and view it when I get home.

The DOW Chemical Booth
In the early afternoon, I was one of the NSTA2 representatives who had to man the DOW Chemical Booth in the Exhibit Hall. This was a great opportunity, because I was able to meet one of the company’s associates and their marketing team and thank them in person for their support of the NSTA. I honestly did not know a lot about DOW, but after my time spent at their booth, I know now how invested they are in supporting new teachers and STEM education. One of the biggest things I learned was that they are also seeking to connect their scientists and engineers with teachers to promote science literacy, STEM education, and careers in science. I will definitely be taking advantage of that in the future!

[insert DOW photos]

Scientist Talk
One of the last receptions I attended on Thursday was the “Scientist Talk”. At this reception, all of the NSTA2 fellows listened and interacted with a panel of scientists and representatives from our respective company sponsors. It was eye-opening; I didn’t realize until then that there is also an entrepreneurial side to teaching. There are actually many science education outreach programs available, and many companies are seeking teachers who can use those programs to supplement their instruction or even provide their students with internships.

The panel members gave some great advice regarding how to reach out to them. “Be specific about your classroom needs. Do your research, and make contact with the companies and organizations. Share your own ideas on how you can use the programs in your classroom. Focus on the scientific processes, problem-solving skills, and applying knowledge and skills to new situations—these will help students be successful beyond school and in life.

If you have a scientist guest speaker in the classroom, they also recommend asking the following questions: “How do you use the scientific processes in the real world? How do you apply science and technology in the real world? How do you really use science in the real world?”

One of my new PD goals is to spend some time in the summer researching these programs, and trying my hand at writing more grants to secure funding and more equipment for my classroom next year.

Thank you, NSTA and DOW
As I was walking around and trying to absorb as much as I could from the conference, I couldn’t help but send out great waves of appreciation and gratitude to NSTA, the DOW Chemical Company, and the world for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Even though I’m more than halfway through with the NSTA2 program, I still find it hard to believe that I am one of the lucky candidates and that I am here at the conference. I have learned a lot this past year, and I can feel the change within me. I am more aware and more confident about my teaching. There are a lot of resources and materials I can use, but the most beneficial aspect of this experience is the community. I have definitely learned a lot not only from my mentor and colleagues, but also from the other teacher fellows, conference presenters, and other attendees. I met and befriended many science teachers during the conference, and that to me is the most valuable part of this experience. It lets me know that as a new science teacher I am not alone and that there is always help available when I reach out and ask for it.

Post NSTA Conference: Putting Lessons to Use

#NSTA13 Series: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Sense Making and Wrap Up

Wow, I can’t believe it’s been almost a month since attending the NSTA conference in San Antonio! I did learn a lot from my sessions and networking, and definitely did not waste time tweaking my instruction and teaching strategies. One of my PD goals were to spend more class time for sense making and wrap up. I have been using a lot of sticky bar graphs, and poster charts lately to get students thinking about what they know and what they’re learning.

Vocabulary

Another thing I’ve been working on from my sessions is being more deliberate with academic vocabulary. I used to have visual vocabulary word walls, but now I have gone back to tiered vocabulary and picking  key vocabulary words at a time explained in kid friendly language. I have noted that students seem less overwhelmed this way, and are showing more understanding of core ideas in class.

We have seven or eight weeks left of the school year, and I still have one more action research project for NSTA. I’m focusing on how to make labs more inquiry based. It is quite difficult trying to explicitly modeling sections of an inquiry lab during the last few weeks of school, but I have noticed that students are more motivated and engaged when they are designing their own experiment than they were when I was using direct-inquiry cookbook labs.

One of the online mentors shared her “design diagram”, which I think will come in very handy next year. I aim to spend the first weeks of school really talking about the scientific process, and introducing them to more student-generated inquiry labs. That will help increase the academic rigor in my instruction, and provide students with more practice on inquiry skills.

Bringing In Speakers

Another thing that I have been working on these past few weeks is inviting more people into the classroom to share how they use science in their careers. Last week, we wrapped up our unit on the Digestive/Excretory systems. In one of our morning conversations, I learned that the cafeteria manager loved talking about nutrition and was looking for ways to introduce students to new foods that will be brought in for next year. I quickly invited her to speak to the students about her work as a nutritionist, and we both came up with the idea of tasting stations. Students were able to try dark leafy vegetables such as kale and Swiss chard, whole grain pasta, exotic fruits such as dragonfruit and lychees, and veggie burgers.

It was a great experience for everyone! The students were able to see her in a different setting and experience new foods; she was able to spend time out of the cafeteria and share her passion for nutrition; and I was able to help students make real-life connections with what we were learning in the classroom.

New foods spread

Exploring the nutritional values of kale and Swiss chard

Trying (and liking!) the lentil salad

Another person who enjoyed her visit to our classroom was our school nurse. On our quest to design our own experiments to find out how physical activities affect heart rate, students needed to learn how to find their pulse and measure heart rate. The school nurse was able to stop by, talk about how to find pulse points, and even demonstrated with a few students on how blood pressure is measured. She loved interacting with the students, and it was a good experience for them to learn from someone else other than me. By bringing in other people to the classroom, I noticed that students are asking a lot more questions these days about what we are learning. They are more curious, and ask more in depth questions about why and how things work. I definitely will have to spend some time over the summer and find more people to come in throughout the year.

 

 

 

#NSTA13 Academy: Day 1

Note: These posts were written in April 2013 as I attended the NSTA Annual Conference at San Antonio, Texas, as a New Science Teacher Academy Fellow. Due to standardized testing and a hectic schedule back at home, I am now only able to upload these posts! Sorry for the long delay.

Arrival at NSTA Conference

Greetings from San Antonio, Texas! I can’t believe that I’m here for the annual NSTA science conference! The past months have been filled with web seminars, weekly check-ins with my mentor, and working with students on mini explorations and projects. It’s quite surprising to see how time has quickly flown by, and that we’re now here for the conference!

Thank you, NSTA New Science Teacher Academy, and our sponsor, DOW Chemical Company, for this exciting opportunity. San Antonio is a beautiful place. I was fortunate to arrive early yesterday afternoon. Once I checked in, I headed back out to explore the lovely sights of San Antonio’s Riverwalk.

Partial view of the RiverWalk

Wednesday’s PD Session
Today, I attended an all-day session by Anne Tweed and Cynthia Long on effective science instruction, and how to align them with the newly released Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The bulk of the morning was spent on looking at science research and discussing elements of quality NGSS instruction with other teachers, administrators, and policy-makers. Through our discussion, we realized that many of the elements we were sharing were quite similar to four factors or indicators already listed in said research: quality of lesson design, implementation, science content and classroom culture.

All day PD session on effective science instruction

According to research, lessons that were rated as low-quality had one or more of the following components: activities were done for solely for activities’ sake, scholars were passive learners, and the teachers did all the work. It became clear to a lot of us that for effective science instruction to take place in our classrooms, we needed to place more emphasis on increasing academic rigor, coming up with ways to help students make sense of the content, and improve our questioning strategies.

Lessons learned and PD goals
As I discussed these elements and factors with other teachers, I realized that there were definitely a few things I need to work more on when I return to the classroom. Looking at these indicators of quality instruction, I can see both my strengths and area of improvement as a science teacher. I am strong in lesson design and content, but implementation and classroom culture can use more work.

With a compressed program back at school (read: I’m teaching a year’s worth of curriculum in half a year), I also see now that I haven’t been too strong on sense-making and wrap-ups. There is much pressure to get things done on time, and sometimes I forget the main priority— student learning! With that said, my goal is to make more time and provide more structure in my instruction to help students make sense of our lessons, labs, and activities.

One of the ways I thought about achieving this is to go back and make sure I am teaching key core ideas in a broad way rather than focusing on minute details. Another way is to end class 10-15 minutes early, chuck out those 3-2-1 exit ticket half-slips, and have students go back and free-write their thoughts about the day’s essential questions. What did they understand? What did they struggle with? How can they make connections with today’s lesson to other lessons, or with real-life events?

I think that I can also be more deliberate in my use of labs. There’s a big push to do 2-3 labs a week. Students love the labs, but what are they really taking away from them? Reflecting over the past couple labs we have completed, I realize that they weren’t truly making those vital connections between the text, their lab experiences, and the core ideas. As a new science teacher, I have been relying a lot on cookbook labs this year. I liked the idea of using 10-min or 15 -min “warm-up” or “demo” labs to introduce core ideas, and make abstract concepts more tangible for students. However, now I think deliberately pairing down the labs, and choosing longer and more inquiry-based labs would make better use of our time, and create more of an impact on student learning.

Using Formative Probes in the Classroom

Formative Probes

The second to last web seminar I attended for NSTA’s New Science Teacher Academy this spring was on student inquiry. It was led by one of my secret idols, Page Keeley! (If you have an NSTA account, I suggest you search for that archived seminar from the Learning Center and watch it ASAP!) As a student teacher two years ago, I was very lucky to get copies of the first four or five volumes of her books from one of my Twitter PLN members. They have been very valuable to me in my instruction over the past years.

As a new teacher, I had the opportunity to use several of her formative probes in my instruction. Previously, I used them as warm-ups or bell-ringers before I introduced new units. They were used to quickly assess scholars’ background knowledge, preconceptions and misconceptions about the unit I was about to teach. The warm-ups were paired with think-pair-shares, small group and whole-group discussions. I listened carefully during these discussions, noted key concepts and/or skills I needed to address, and sometimes saved quotes from scholars which I would later refer to during direct instruction and lectures.The seminar, however, taught me that I was barely scratching the surface with these formative probes.Keeley shared many ideas on how to incorporate the probes before, during, and after instruction.

Sticky Bar Graphs

One of the tips I decided to try right away in class were the sticky bar graphs. At the time, I was transitioning from “Characteristics of Life” to ” Cell Division”. (See previous post on inquiry lab, Characteristics of Life). We were going through the major characteristics of life (“MRS. GREN!”), and we were moving onto energy processes and growth. I used the probe, “Sam’s Puppy”, from Keeley’s Volume 1 book to see their thought processes on cell division. Scholars were given the prompt, directed to write a short written response to justify their reasoning, and then anonymously post their results in a bar graph using post-it notes.

A “before” sticky bar graph on cell division

I loved the sticky bar graph because it allowed me to quickly assess the scholars’ thinking in a glance. As you can see in the picture, the majority of the class picked option A and this taught me that they were already aware of cell division as a way for most organisms to grow, reproduce, and repair damaged structures. Scholars who chose options B and C relied on other background knowledge, which I later was able to expand on during a short class discussion on their choices. Some scholars were reluctant to share at first, so it is important to stress the fact that there is no right or wrong regarding these formative probes. It is simply a way to get scholars thinking about what they already know and believe about science concepts, and for them to articulate these thought processes. For example, 3 scholars chose option B because they thought organisms grew larger as they absorbed more food. 1 scholar chose option C because he thought organisms grew larger as a result of cells increasing in size.

The discussions proved most beneficial because scholars asked each other questions, and each had to defend their reasoning behind their options. The scholar who picked option C later realized a flaw in his reasoning when another scholar asked, “If organisms grew based on the size of their cells, how does that account for short or tall organisms? Do you mean to say that some cells stretch out more than others?” Hmm…

Unfortunately, I was unable to go back to the bar graphs at the end of instruction due to interim testing schedules. If I were to go back, I would give them the same formative probe and a different colored post-it note to see if they have changed their understanding of cell division at the end of the unit. It would be nice to see the before and after graphs!

Card Sorts

The other probe I later used for cell division was a card sorting activity on cell cycle stages and mitosis phases. Scholars really had a hard time with this part of the lesson, despite the acronyms (I make cupcakes, but Pam makes apple turnovers!), hand mnemonics, and the dozens of clips and animations I used in class. After going through my notes from the seminar, I decided to create my own card stock templates and laminated the cards. During the week, scholars spent 20 minutes a day practicing with the card sorts. They were allowed to use their notes at first, but soon they were challenging each other to match the labels, diagrams, and definitions in decreasing time frames. Again, the card sorts were a quick way for me to assess who were at-level, beyond-level, or needed more 1:1 help. I walked around and observed each group, and paired my observations with a simple 3-point checklist for assessment on that day.

Can you spot the mistakes?

Stages of cell cycle card sort activity

I really liked the card sort activity because it was a good way for scholars to practice vocabulary, match definitions, and to get them moving around and working with partners or small groups. 2-3 scholars per group would work best, I think, for these sorting activities. In retrospect, I should have used this strategy earlier with cell structures/organelles and functions! I think I will do this probe for that concept next year. Using the probes for formative assessment is definitely a work in progress, but they have taught me a lot about my scholars’ thinking. I will try to work on incorporating more probes in my arsenal, and making sure I go back frequently during and after instruction to tie everything together.

Analyzing Student Work and Inquiry Labs

My first exploration for NSTA New Science Teacher Academy was on analyzing student work in science. In mid-February, I was transitioning from the girls’ school to the boys’ school so it was perfect timing to gather data on new scholars. When I began the exploration, I had one goal: to try to go back and add more inquiry to the lessons I just taught in the beginning of the year with the girls.

Exploration and lesson plans

The first unit was on the major characteristics of life. Previously I taught the unit through direct instruction and then a lab. This time, I decided to take an “activity before content” approach. On Day 1, scholars were pre-assessed with a Page Keeley formative probe, where they worked individually and then in groups on classifying a group of items as living or non-living. They pair-shared their results, and then worked together to generate a list of characteristics they believed all living organisms had in common.

One of the classes’ brainstorm charts

On Day 2, I set up a rotating lab with 8 stations. (The lab was adapted from STEM Mom’s blog post on the same type of lab.) Scholars were directed to use the list of characteristics they came up with as a checklist to determine if the specimens at each station were living, non-living, or dead. There were obvious specimens—a live bamboo plant, a beaver skull, rocks and minerals. There were also some specimens that scholars had trouble with–germinating but moldy tulip bulbs, terrariums with dead leaves and fungi, a microscope slide of frog blood cells, and a beaker of yeast in warm water. If I had more time to set up the lab, I would have included the resurrection plants, cut flowers in water, and guppy fish. (In retrospect, I should have asked the scholars for their suggestions for  next year’s batch! I’m sure they could have come up with more interesting specimens!)

On Day 3, scholars finished their post-lab questions and had small-group and whole-class discussions on their findings. I asked them which of their characteristics from their checklist were most helpful and least helpful, and which characteristics they would pick if they were to perform the lab a second time. We proceeded with a video and guided notes on the major characteristics of life.

On Day 4, scholars wrote a short written essay in response to a prompt. They used their new knowledge and lab experiences to justify why a specimen of their choice from lab would be considered as a living thing. At the time, it seemed to me that scholars really struggled with this last activity. Next year, I will provide a graphic organizer with the essay prompt so that they can sort out their thoughts and articulate their experience more easily. I think I will ask them to write their essay as if they were trying to explain the concept to a younger sibling, or to an elementary school student.

Another idea for next year’s culminating activity is to have them complete a scenario-based assessment. Previously during my research, I came across a PowerPoint called, “Is Sammy Alive?”, in which a young boy slowly becomes bionic. Scholars have to decide if he is alive, non-living or dead using their new knowledge of the major characteristics of life. I like how the teacher incorporates web 2.0 tools like Wallwishers with this activity, so I think I can try to adapt this lesson to spur discussions in class. I can also mix this PowerPoint with another assessment, where scholars pretend they are a newspaper columnist and they have to defend their reasoning on Sammy’s situation.

Conclusions and lessons learned

My first exploration provided me with an editable PDF tool that allowed me to assess target scholars. From their work, I noticed patterns and trends occurring within the class. For example, analysis of their pre-assessment revealed that many of the scholars’ observations relied on what they “knew” and “felt”. I realized that I needed to take time out and model how to do proper observations for lab. The effect was two-fold because I was also able to model my expectations for proper lab drawings. I also learned that the A-B-C approach was very helpful; when I did the activity first, they had something to connect the academic vocabulary and content to when we finally went over it during direct instruction. They were able to participate more in class discussion because they remembered what they saw and did, and could say that they had “proof” of it instead of it being something they already “knew” or “felt”.

To date, I try to rearrange my instruction to fit the A-B-C approach. One of the downsides is that lab set up can be time consuming. Sometimes it is not easy to get the lab materials ready on time, so I have to forego the activity and do the content (ie. direct instruction) first.

It is interesting to note the differences using the A-B-C approach in single-gender classrooms. When I taught all females, they seemed to have a better grasp of the concepts when I taught content before the activity. They seemed to want to know what they were doing first, and why. In contrast, when I taught all males, they seemed to have a better grasp of the concept after the activity. It was easier for them to understand academic vocabulary when I was able to say, “Remember when…in lab… and this happened? That’s [insert vocabulary here]!”  That’s definitely something I’ll have to research much further, but I think after trying out the A-B-C approach, I will try to do more inquiry labs before direct instruction first.

Making Cabbage pH Indicator

RED CABBAGE pH INDICATOR RECIPE

2 medium sized red cabbages
a blender
hot boiling water
fine sieve
funnel
mason jars with lids

This recipe produces at least 2L of red cabbage juice. Roughly chop the cabbage into small chunks. Place 2 cups in a blender and cover with boiling hot water. Cover and pulse for a few seconds. Add another cup of cabbage and pulse again until all chunks have been reduced to thick smoothie-like consistency. Let steep for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, pour the cabbage mixture through a sieve and let the liquid drain into a mason jar. Repeat the process until you have used all of your cabbages. Let the juice cool and cover tightly. To check pH, sample the cabbage juice with vinegar and bleach. This entire process took me about 30 minutes to complete.

This weekend, I found myself in a predicament. I was researching labs on cellular respiration, and it seemed that many of the labs required bromothymol blue solution. Bromothymol blue solution is an indicator, and a chemical that I do not have available on hand. Let’s rephrase that: I have no chemicals available at all. I work in a new laboratory space that does not include a fume hood or storage space for chemicals, so it takes a lot of creativity and research trying to figure out safe substitutes for lab.

In class, we were finishing our unit on Photosynthesis and wrapped up with a lab using Elodea plants submerged in test tubes. Usually, learning the formula for photosynthesis can be difficult for scholars so I rely on labs on helping them make tangible connections between formulas and concepts in class. I wanted to start our unit on Cellular Respiration with a lab using yeast and bromothymol solution. This way the scholars can make the connections between the two processes and their formulas. That’s when I hit a dead end: no bromothymol blue solution.

I thought about ordering online, but even with expedited shipping and handling, the solution would not make it to school on time for the day of the lab. So, I did what I always do when I am in a predicament— I sent out an SOS email to my NSTA Science Teacher Academy mentor, to science community forums, and local science teachers in the area asking for alternative labs or suggestions. One of my PLN members from the NSTA Biology List serves responded, and suggested I make an acid-base indicator out of red cabbage.

Bingo! I thought about a session I attended earlier this month from an all-day Lab Day conference at The College of Saint Rose. The presenter shared 5 life science labs, one of which was called “Micro-Mood Necklaces”. In this lab, she used red cabbage juice and yeast to show the process of fermentation. The solution was put into micro-tubules strung onto necklaces, and the solution changed color over time as the yeast reacted. The color change may not be as dramatic as it would be with bromothymol blue solution, but there would still be a color change and that was what I wanted my scholars to witness with the cellular respiration lab. Whew!

Needless to say, I rushed to the grocery store and added several heads of red cabbage to my weekly grocery list. The fiancee became nervous, imagining it was another one of my creative spurts of culinary inspiration. He only relaxed after several repeated assurances that there will be no red cabbage in our dinner menu. Anyways, I hope the red cabbage indicator works. I am interested to see how the cellular respiration lab turns out this week.

NSTA Exploration #1: Analyzing Student Work (Informal Reflections)

As a NSTA New Science Teacher Fellow, part of my work requires completion of two explorations. These explorations can best be described as small action teacher research projects, but with the added benefit of real-time feedback from various experienced science mentors. For my winter exploration, I chose to focus on analyzing student work to inform and drive my instruction and assessments.

For those not familiar with my current position, I am shared staff between two single-gender middle schools. This means I spend half of the year with one gender, and then move on to teaching the other gender for the remainder of the year. One large disadvantage is that I have to cram an entire year’s worth of science into five to six months. As a result, instruction is very fast paced and it doesn’t leave a lot of time to really delve into the major concepts and skills.

This is where my attempt at differentiation in student work comes in. Earlier this month, I introduced 2-5-8 menus for our Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration unit. The unit spanned only 8 days, and my goal was to keep scholars engaged by giving them choice over their final performance tasks. Scholars picked 2 activities whose points totaled to 100 points. A generic rubric was photocopied on the other side of the 2-5-8 menu.

After a few days of perusing the 2-5-8 menu, here are some things I learned.

Positives:

• Scholars became very engaged, especially those who previously were not during previous direct instruction and class activities.
• Scholars realized they needed to think more deeply about concepts and skills they were learning in class in order to create their products.
• Scholars were asking higher-order questions and more clarifying questions in class because they knew they needed to learn the information in order to create their products.

Areas of Improvement:

• Expect things to get messy and loud! (Also, be comfortable with learning being this way) This type of learning requires scholars to talk, to move around, and to be more active than they usually would be during silent seat-work. I should also have been more specific by setting clear expectations about what they can or cannot do (ie. staying seated in one area vs. walking around the room). I should also have specified locations in the classroom where different classes can put their unfinished work.
• Provide more independent class time for scholars to work on their projects. Many scholars do not have materials available at work so it is important that I give them time in class to have access to posters, crayons/markers, and Internet access. Using  differentiated menus when I am already in a time-crunch to cover topics before deadline was probably not the smartest idea right now… but at least, I am trying something new and learning from it.
• One generic menu is not sufficient for a mix of products. Have at least a minimum of criteria for the different products so the scholars know exactly what is expected. If possible, have some samples on hand.

I have learned from informal observations and listening to my scholars that I need to give them more time to do their work. Despite a very restrictive deadline, they are my top-most concern and I need to give that to them. So, I’m trashing the next lesson. I’m giving them more in class time to catch up, work on and finish their final projects, and do 1:1 conferences with struggling scholars tomorrow.

New Teacher Chronicles: The Paper Trap

One of the things I struggle with as a new teacher is figuring out how to create a sustainable system for grading and assessments. In my first year, I developed and established the routine of starting class with a Do-Now, handing out customized 5-10 paged packets for guided notes and independent practice, and ending class with an exit ticket. The Do-Nows and exit tickets were half-sheets of paper that had 5 questions. The questions were mixed; some were recall, while others were application.

In my first year, I took home everything. I graded everything. My office desk was covered in neat piles of stacked papers. The “nook” area in my apartment was covered in paper clips and papers. Huge chunks of my weekends were spent on calculating and logging grades in the grade-book.

Over time, my assessments changed. Do-Nows were shortened to three questions, and then now currently to one writing journal prompt. The prompts are usually the previous day’s essential questions, or big question of the day. As I learned more about assessments (specifically formative assessments), I began to grade less of the Do-Nows. I stopped grading the exit tickets too. The exit tickets themselves transformed from a list of critical key questions to a 3-2-1 format, in which scholars are asked to explain what concepts they felt most confident about and to pose a question from an area in which they felt uncertain from the lesson.

Even with the transformation in my Do-Nows and exit tickets, I noted that in my attempt to document scholar progress through these probes, I began to create charts. I have 3-column charts with scholar names, and a check system to document their work on their homework, Do-Nows, and classwork. So… here I am, in my second year of teaching with almost the same amount of paperwork on my desk as I did last year. 

It feels claustrophobic, and I feel overwhelmed sometimes. When I get that feeling, I try to take a deep breath and remind myself that first and foremost, I teach young children. I teach them how to explore and investigate their natural environments.  However, when I look at my desk, I get bogged down with grades and paper—so much paper! One of my colleagues tell me every day to make it simple. With the increasing pressure of standardized testing and grades, how does one keep it “simple”?

Perhaps that is something I still have to learn as a new teacher.