MacKenzie+F.

= = =APRIL 14th, 2011 =

//Teaching Tremendously: Science//
Day 1 of Teaching Tremendously was much easier than I thought it would be. The main thing I gleaned from going through my science lesson plan is the importance of adapting a lesson plan in real time for the class it's being taught to. While this is to make sure the lesson is accessing their prior knowledge and not going beyond what they can do or boring them, it is also about realizing that the questions you have planned to ask in your lesson might not be the ones you need to ask. In fact, the correct questions often present themselves based on what students say. Often, students bring things up or ask questions that directly lead you as the teacher in the direction the lesson needs to be heading. This ability to turn students' questions in your favor depends on how well you know your own lesson plan and how clear you are on the objectives of the lesson as opposed to simply being familiar with how much fun the activity you have planned might be. This monitoring and self-assessment is dependent on perpetually active formative assessment.

As for my lesson specifically, I needed to tailor it for a class of a real size (and not 6 or 7 people). The number of people that ended up in the room while I was teaching ended up working to my advantage but in a real classroom, the design needs to be different. I concluded that the class should still design the machine together on the board and then they could assemble it in small groups about the same size as the group I had on Tuesday. This way, they are scaffolded enough but are also collaborating to solve problems and make decisions as they are constructing the machine. Inevitably, the transition from 2D to 3D will be challenging so the more they're scaffolded, the better. If I was to actually use this lesson, I would probably record or find a video of someone who is clearly an amateur bowler to compare to the pro that we watch in the other videos so students can find ways to deduce the validity of what each person says.

//Teaching Tremendously: Math// Day 2 of Teaching Tremendously showed me the importance of appealing to multiple kinds of learners but also to a single learner in multiple ways. While teaching my Twister lesson, I did a lot of things I didn't necessarily plan on doing. Finally having access to the SMARTBoard through my computer changed my plan in ways that seemed simple but really made a big difference. As Padgett played Twister and Becky graphed her coordinates on graph paper, I followed along on a graph on the SMARTBoard, where the x-axis was color-coded and Padgett could simply look up to see where her hands and feet were placed. This made graphing real for her in a way I never fully expected and that I definitely want to be able to try in the classroom. I don't think there's a way for every student to be able to see their own movement on the SMARTBoard but maybe the whole lesson plan needs to change to make that happen. My hope is that watching it done once on the SMARTBoard is enough to fill the reality quota and students can then take it in their own hands their learning can be student-centered as it was originally written.

I realized through Teaching Tremendously that a lot of great things are inevitable in the lesson plan based on the way I wrote it that I never realized. While working on a team is collaboration, this activity asks students to call out their coordinates from the mat. This is in addition to them physically plotting the points with their bodies, plotting them on graph paper, and seeing them on the board. This activity is simultaneously appealing to auditory, kinesthetic, and visual learners. Also, they not only trace the path between points by looking at the progression of their graphs, but they also see it as they move their left hand from green to yellow. I engaged students by reviewing graphing on the Cartesian plane, because this will indeed be a review for my class. I graphed a point incorrectly, on purpose, so they would catch it. This definitely got their attention, but I wonder if it's a good thing to do. I like the short term effect but am unsure about the long term effects.

= MARCH 28th, 2011 = Stiggins' article argues that students would be far more successful in today's schooling environment if we were using assessment to guide and assist them, rather than using it to measure and classify them. He believes that we can design formative assessment so that it can be encouraging and a positive method for staying constantly aware of students' progress so that we can continually tailor instruction to meet instruction's ultimate goals.

According to [|cce.icbse.com], chart making is a good form of formative assessment. During my Twist and Graph lesson plan, a good way to formatively assess students would be to have students make a bar graph charting the frequency of each color circle in their group. They could be even more specific and chart specific circles to make sure they really have a grasp on the Cartesian plane concepts translating from the Twister map. This would ensure that students are not simply counting the number of times a certain color appears on their graphs. This is quickly charted if the charts are already printed out and labeled and the teacher could easily assess which of her students are keeping up.

Our literacy text //Classrooms That Work// describes a concept called Think Writes that could be implemented in this lesson as well. Think Writes involve students jotting down quick notes on scrap paper that the teacher can glance at and quickly assess where her students are. In this lesson, the teacher can ask students to draw the x and y axes and quickly assess what misconceptions she needs to eliminate and what might need more explaining.

In [|this article] Paul Black and Christine Harrison detail multiple methods of formative assessment. One that they found worked particularly well for many reasons was the notion of using stop lights. Whenever a student explains something to the class about an experiment, hunt for knowledge, etc., each student has to put up a stop light that is red, yellow or green. A green stop light means that the student explained their topic extremely well, yellow means they explained it well, and red means they did not explain it well at all. Students who chose red or green must explain and give examples of why they feel the way they do. This allows the teacher to sit back and not only observe the student presenting but making note of the questions students are asking and the comments are making to assess their understanding. I think this is a tool that can be used in a classroom all year but in my Twist and Graph lesson, students could use their stop lights once one of their peers explains the connection between the Twister map and the Cartesian plane and they can use them again after I try to explain it from a different perspective. I think this stop light system only works toward student learning if it comes with a promise that the teacher will do everything in her power to make sure all students are holding up green lights all the time.

A teacher could keep track of the charts by taking pictures of each students' chart on her smart phone. This information should be reviewed as soon as possible to see where misconceptions need to be addressed. The x and y coordinate think and writes should be assessed immediately. Common misconceptions could be photographed on a smart phone and stored in archives for teaching the lesson the following year. Teachers can use the [|OmniGraphSketcher] for the iPhone or iPad to keep track of the decrease in red lights and the increase in red lights over the course of the semester in order to gauge if the system is working and to show a correlation between students' understanding of materials, verbal skills and the stop light system. = = = **MARCH 24th, 2011** = When planning a field trip to the solar plant, I would make sure my students had enough background knowledge to appreciate exactly what they were getting see. We would first discuss alternate forms of energy as well as the pros and cons of using each one. We will look specifically at the two energy sources that are most relevant to the students- power plants and solar farms. We will begin by examining how they work and guessing what kinds of problems are associated with each one and why each one might be better than the other. We will use the following websites when discussing [|power plants] and [|solar plants.] Students will be divided into groups to research the pros and cons of these main two sources in order to quickly compile two pro/con charts. After discussing, students will go back to their groups to research the pros and cons of the remaining kinds of energy and when finished, will present to the class. Part of their research should include how much waste is involved in each particular method of energy generating so that each amount of waste can be compared.

Thus begins our math activity- students will write their amounts of resources wasted on the board in fraction form and as a class, we will order them to determine which is the most and which is the least wasteful energy generator. This will give the students a good context for what they will see the next day on the field trip and where it fits into the grand scheme of all things energy.

These are the NCSCOS standards to be addressed by our field trip and lesson plan the day before. 1.05

6.02 Relate how certain technological discoveries have changed the course of history and reflect on the broader social and environmental changes that can occur from the discovery of such technologies 6.06 Predict future trends in technology management that will benefit the greatest number of people
 * 1) Represent fractions concretely and symbolically (halves, fourths, thirds, sixths, eighths).
 * 2) Compare and order fractions (halves, fourths, thirds, sixths, eighths) using models and benchmark numbers (zero, one-half, one); describe comparisons

As for the field trip, my intent is that students will be able to 1. Describe the benefits and drawbacks of solar energy, 2. Explain how a solar farm works, 3. Predict how energy generation will work in the future. =MARCH 3rd, 2011= = "Connecting Music and Math" How can music help you teach math? = = = = CONTENT: Music is a great tool to use for auditory learners when teaching fractions. Not only can a song be broken up into parts of a whole, but it can also be broken up into many wholes and divided even more in order to teach improper fractions and mixed numbers. The teacher I'm currently observing actually used a rhythm for a few minutes to help students review their multiplication facts. For a fraction introduction, this song could be a good way to interest students- [|The Fraction Rock]. = = PEDAGOGY: I can see teachers using a consistent playlist in their classroom to their advantage. Once students have listened to the same music for a good portion of the year, they should be pretty familiar with it, and eventually be able to talk about time signatures and then even dividing parts of the song into sections and try to determine how many parts of the whole each one comprises. Students can create their own rhythms and represent them with different size paper squares representing the length of each beat. Teachers can assess students' understanding of fractions and rhythm when they clap out the beats they've represented with their squares. Read more about this lesson plan [|here.] = = TECHNOLOGY: This extremely popular [|fractions application] for the iPad and iPhone relates fractions to pizza and uses multiple visual representations. Maybe teachers could have their students work with this application while listening to their fraction music in the background, and hopefully allowing them to relax into their learning instead of worrying about how they don't understand. This is currently being taught in my third grade class and as it is traditionally taught, mixed numbers and improper fractions are proving to be extremely abstract for children their age. Some way to make this more enjoyable and applicable to their life would make this concept a lot easier. = = SUSTAINABILITY: This music integration would provide a great time to talk about digital citizenship and the importance of downloading music legally. What would happen to people who make music if we don't pay them for the music? Would we have any more music? Is this fair? = = = =FEBRUARY 3rd, 2011=

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 CONTENT: This question would force us to define what we think is healthy and talk about nutrition, exercise, sleep, and illness. Students could explore this website ([]) and from there, we can compile a class list of what counts as a part of being healthy. We could talk about how important it is to make sure we eat right, exercise frequently, sleep enough, and try not to get sick. From a class discussion and a number of students in the school, we could estimate a number we think counts as "healthy." ======

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 PEDAGOGY: From there, we can write a survey and have students in other classes take it and then we can total the responses. We can see how far off we were in our estimation and see why we think that was. Students can then survey other student in person, asking them "What does it mean to be healthy?" They can use this app ([]) called inClass to keep their notes in one place electronically as well as share them with the class and each other. After discussing what other students said, we can draw conclusions about where our discrepancy came from. Students can then write a new survey and each write a letter to the principal suggesting ways to make students at their school healthier. ======

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TECHNOLOGY: Students can use iPads, as well as smart phones to collect data. They will also use the computer (be it Microsoft Word or a survey making website) to create the survey. ======

SUSTAINABILITY: This exercise could be a lesson in sustainability as well if the survey could be administered electronically and we could do all of our estimating and calculating without paper. We could also talk about ways to conserve water by exploring this website ([]) and ways to keep from getting sick.

**JANUARY 25th, 2011**
Responses

Too much arrogance, Not enough talent. Too much homework, Not enough dining halls. Too many people, Not enough parking.

CONTENT: This survey on a school’s campus (with responses that are similar to ours) could spark a discussion about character and what makes someone a responsible citizen both of the school and the world. If faculty are giving responses to students who are merely recording them (using whatever technology is possible), then perhaps we need to discuss what certain words mean. Then an opinion survey can be sparked. What does arrogance mean? How many agree? If answers are split between the tangible and the intangible, we could talk about that difference, depending on the grade level. What are things that can be measured and what is harder? Which measurements are fact and which are opinion? We could read a book that talks about having too much of something and how your opinion might change with your perspective. An example of such a book would be //Too Much Noise// by Ann McGovern. []

PEDAGOGY: I think the best way to address this survey would be to have small group discussions as well as class-wide discussions to compare results and to other groups. Perhaps a blog would be worthwhile that allows all sorts of media to be incorporated. One blog that also has an iPad app is Tumblr. []

TECHNOLOGY: The blog could be worthwhile and maybe building a website would be as well. Could you make a powerpoint to appeal to the school to change things to balance out? Could this lead to more research about how a school works? This could also be another social studies exploration.

SUSTAINABILITY: Where are we wasting resources? What can we do to be more sustainable? These are questions we can ask and research. We can maybe make up a quiz to see where students think we are being sustainable and where we aren’t. Form questions in such a way that they can do whatever research they need (internet, in the field, etc.) and come back and take the survey again, this time filling in the information they found. []