Science for Us

							          Science for Us
Teaching science can be hard
Academics should be helpful. We have
knowledge, resources, time. Some of us
want to help
If we learn to use teachers’ knowledge of
the needs, abilities, and interests of the
students - we can be useful
At Forest View we think we have this
happening.
              Projects
Earth/Sun/Moon unit with third grade
Light, Color, and Images unit with third
grade
Forms of Energy with fifth grade
Forms of Matter with second grade
Stars with second grade
Sky viewing/telescope observations
Today’s goal: Generate more opportunities
    Marketing Presentation
How does this collaboration work?
    Matching subject and scientist
    Utilizing academic resources
    Designing lesson plans that work
    Transferring ownership to teachers
What are the products?
    Curricular material and training to help teachers
    enhance science teaching
How can I use it?
               The Model
Teachers identify a science unit from NC
Standard Course of Study for collaboration
    Concepts difficult to explain (or understand!)
    Hands-on experiments are hard or unsatisfactory
    Extend to newer science, add more depth
A scientist with some expertise in relevant
field agrees to help out
              Starting Out
Together with scientist, some
demos/hands-on activities are selected
that can enhance the unit
    We have fancy demos and well equipped labs
    Letting us start with showing off our toys keeps us
    in our comfort zone as we learn to work with kids
    Gives teachers a chance to get to know us without
    unduly disrupting their teaching
    Cool demos are fun
In some cases, stop here. Still worth it!
Prepare preliminary set of lesson plans
implementing lessons learned from initial
experiences
    Can build these initially around the
    demos/experiments
    Add more hands-on activities, assessment and
    concepts
    Develop explanations, analogies, teaching
    methods
Students – the secret weapon
Students can present the lesson plans
across entire grade level
     Gives teachers an opportunity to familiarize
    themselves with material and methods
    Test bed for pedagogical ideas, experiments,
    materials
    See the lessons in action in a range of
    classroom situations
    For students – opportunity to gain deeper
    understanding of science while doing
    something worthwhile
Implementing teacher comments and
collective experience, crystallize lesson
plans and curriculum materials (willing
teacher together with scientist)
Develop teacher workshop so teachers
take over ownership of curriculum, with
continued support
Earth/Sun/Moon - an Example
Developed at Forest View over past three
years
Support third grade goal from NCSCS
Teacher workshops for third grade
teachers coming in fall ‘03
Students to teach unit at Hillandale,
expanding program
            The Lessons
Star, Sun and Sky Stories: Using Mythology to
explain our universe.
Hello Sun: Examination of the Sun’s movement
through the sky.
You Light Up My Life: Discover what are
shadows.
Me and My Shadow: Experiment with the length
of shadows and the height of the light source.
Night and Day: Exploration of the how and why
of darkness and light.
Guess My Shape: Learn the geometry behind the sizes
and distances between the Sun and Moon.
Phases of the Moon: Each student will create the
phases of the moon.
Where did the Moon Go? The story behind Eclipses
and who’s in the way of whom.
Sundials/This is a Stickup.
Theater of the Seasons: Dramatize the changes of the
seasons.
Seasonal Cultural Celebrations: Research the cultural
significance of the Winter Solstice for various cultures
around the Globe.
                More
Do you know of a science unit for your
grade level that could be enhanced?
What resources are you using currently?
Can you think of a demo or experiment
that would make a difference?
Where can you go to look for a
collaborator?