Last Tuesday was a district professional development day, which I attended. It was really interesting, as it seemed to not only serve as professional development and teacher education, but also a chance for staff to bond and get to know each other.
The first part of the day was devoted to talking about the issue of gays being bullied, and we watched a video about a particular boy who, after being heavily abused at school, and the administration doing nothing, sued the school and won. This hit pretty close to home, as I went to a pretty rough high school, and had a very close friend there who was gay. The result was bullying directed towards both of us, as our friendship was perceived as a relationship, and some of the instances the boy in the movie experienced mirrored some things I had gone through. It's good that school districts are making sure staff know about this, and the repercussions of doing nothing when it is brought to their attention.
Following that, we split into groups and discussed a bunch of teaching methods, some of which I talked about in the previous post about learning tools- card sorts and flip books. The other two were on explicitly teaching how to take notes and summarize, which was good information. Following that, we had lunch and I got to get to know the staff better, which was great.
After that, we talked about effective ways to teach boys, which more or less boiled down to, "If you don't use that energy, it gets used on you." Good advice.
Then people from the district showed up and analyzed test scores. I was working on some of the lab work from the water purity test, so I didn't really get much of that, but that was fine. Give me a task, lab goggles, and plenty of cool chemicals, and I'm in my element.
By the end of that day, I was just exhausted. Maybe I didn't get enough sleep the night before, or maybe the 3 day weekend was just evil for my sleep schedule, but the overall effect was that of me being simply exhausted by the time I got home, leading to me getting a good amount of sleep before Wednesday, which was a big day.
Anyway, this type of thing is something I hope they do at whatever school I end up working at, as it's beneficial to occasionally take a step back and analyze teaching practices and issues.
-P.
My misadventures in science teaching
Thursday, February 24, 2011
I am an idiot.
So, yesterday was my first day of full teaching. As I said to a teacher during lunch, "I know I'm going to make mistakes, but I'm really worried about the ones I don't know I'm doing."
Before first period, my cooperating teacher had some chest pains, and had to be taken to the hospital. She's quite alright, but I was tasked with running the classroom. Awesome. Because I don't have my teaching license, they had to have roving substitutes in the classroom, or staff on their planning period. That's fine.
First period was pretty chaotic. I didn't have her lesson plan, and I didn't know how to use a lot of the tools to successfully run the class. Plus, that class is fairly rowdy, but it managed to go over well enough. There was a quiet sub, a graduate from the K-8 certification program at the same university I'm in. A lot of subs I've met are from that program, which makes me very glad I'm in the secondary science program, from my understanding we get snatched up very quickly, and those that aren't are usually pining to work at a specific school.
Second period was planning. I got a text from the teacher explaining where all the lesson plan stuff was, and I understood what I needed to do.
Third period, a staff teacher on planning came in to watch me. He had a huge pile of tests to grade, and asked if I was comfortable teaching the class. That moment was very empowering, and I said I was. Awesome. So, I ran the class, and we got everything we needed to done, although we ran VERY close to the bell. Still, a massive success in my eyes.
Fourth period came along, which is a math/science block. Another staff teacher came in, and I told her that I was comfortable teaching this class, and she could grade papers.
That was a mistake. She went in thinking that she was going to co-teach, and I told her, in earshot of students, to grade papers. I did not mean to be insulting in any way, it was a miscommunication. I was stating to her that, "Hey, I've got this, don't waste your planning period on account of me!" She heard, "I don't need your help. Grade papers." Students apparently heard the same thing, and told another teacher about the incident, and it got around and ended up in an email from my cooperating teacher, stating she needed to talk to me about the incident in 4th period and how I spoke to Michelle.
But back to the day! Not knowing what I had done wrong, I moved to 5th period, where a substitute teacher worked on her laptop while I had the students do a math test, which lasted all period. Mean ol' Mr J making them do an horrible test.
6th period was the engineering class, which was pretty hard to control, but went fine. By the end of the day, I was exhausted, and had a crazy drive home through the snow, only to find that my afternoon grad school class had been canceled. I went home and read that email, and spent most of the evening worried.
So, I emailed my placement coordinator about the situation, she helped me put it in perspective and told me to email the offended teacher an apology, and CC it to my cooperating teacher. I just did that, and I just received a reply from the offended teacher, explaining her perspective.
So, the lesson learned here is this: If you have a teacher that is watching you, realize that they might actually want to co-teach. The thought had never even crossed my mind, and I was so caught up in my excitement to actually be running a day that I wasn't even thinking about anything aside from what was going to happen in class.
So, I'm currently okay with that teacher, which is good. My cooperating teacher understands my perspective, and now I need to find out what teachers were told about me 'telling off' another teacher. While this is something I will have to atone for in some way or another, it was just a learning experience in which I learned to communicate with teachers. I assumed she would want to sit and grade papers for her own classes, and I was completely wrong.
So, hooray miscommunication nearly giving me a panic attack.
In the mean time, I'm snowed in, so I probably won't be back to the school till Monday, where I'll have to bring some sort of apology gift to the teacher. A nice bag of French Roast is probably a good idea, although if she doesn't like coffee, that could be a problem.
Anyway, that is a huge weight off my shoulders. Now I can focus on my classwork. And, aside from that one issue, the day went fantastically. I was so grateful to get a full day of teaching in, and according to all who saw me, I did a pretty good job. I did have the lesson laid out for me, so that was useful, and the kids are conditioned to respond to a signal, and there is a solid behavior plan and expectations in place, so I am walking on the shoulders of giants, but I still feel I really did well.
And it was good to have a real scare. I've been getting close to burn out for a while, as the exhaustion of a full time classload, part time job, and teacher observation take their toll on me. But this managed to energize me and make me realize that I'm too lucky with my placement to go moping about.
Anyway, all's well that ends well.
-P.
Before first period, my cooperating teacher had some chest pains, and had to be taken to the hospital. She's quite alright, but I was tasked with running the classroom. Awesome. Because I don't have my teaching license, they had to have roving substitutes in the classroom, or staff on their planning period. That's fine.
First period was pretty chaotic. I didn't have her lesson plan, and I didn't know how to use a lot of the tools to successfully run the class. Plus, that class is fairly rowdy, but it managed to go over well enough. There was a quiet sub, a graduate from the K-8 certification program at the same university I'm in. A lot of subs I've met are from that program, which makes me very glad I'm in the secondary science program, from my understanding we get snatched up very quickly, and those that aren't are usually pining to work at a specific school.
Second period was planning. I got a text from the teacher explaining where all the lesson plan stuff was, and I understood what I needed to do.
Third period, a staff teacher on planning came in to watch me. He had a huge pile of tests to grade, and asked if I was comfortable teaching the class. That moment was very empowering, and I said I was. Awesome. So, I ran the class, and we got everything we needed to done, although we ran VERY close to the bell. Still, a massive success in my eyes.
Fourth period came along, which is a math/science block. Another staff teacher came in, and I told her that I was comfortable teaching this class, and she could grade papers.
That was a mistake. She went in thinking that she was going to co-teach, and I told her, in earshot of students, to grade papers. I did not mean to be insulting in any way, it was a miscommunication. I was stating to her that, "Hey, I've got this, don't waste your planning period on account of me!" She heard, "I don't need your help. Grade papers." Students apparently heard the same thing, and told another teacher about the incident, and it got around and ended up in an email from my cooperating teacher, stating she needed to talk to me about the incident in 4th period and how I spoke to Michelle.
But back to the day! Not knowing what I had done wrong, I moved to 5th period, where a substitute teacher worked on her laptop while I had the students do a math test, which lasted all period. Mean ol' Mr J making them do an horrible test.
6th period was the engineering class, which was pretty hard to control, but went fine. By the end of the day, I was exhausted, and had a crazy drive home through the snow, only to find that my afternoon grad school class had been canceled. I went home and read that email, and spent most of the evening worried.
So, I emailed my placement coordinator about the situation, she helped me put it in perspective and told me to email the offended teacher an apology, and CC it to my cooperating teacher. I just did that, and I just received a reply from the offended teacher, explaining her perspective.
So, the lesson learned here is this: If you have a teacher that is watching you, realize that they might actually want to co-teach. The thought had never even crossed my mind, and I was so caught up in my excitement to actually be running a day that I wasn't even thinking about anything aside from what was going to happen in class.
So, I'm currently okay with that teacher, which is good. My cooperating teacher understands my perspective, and now I need to find out what teachers were told about me 'telling off' another teacher. While this is something I will have to atone for in some way or another, it was just a learning experience in which I learned to communicate with teachers. I assumed she would want to sit and grade papers for her own classes, and I was completely wrong.
So, hooray miscommunication nearly giving me a panic attack.
In the mean time, I'm snowed in, so I probably won't be back to the school till Monday, where I'll have to bring some sort of apology gift to the teacher. A nice bag of French Roast is probably a good idea, although if she doesn't like coffee, that could be a problem.
Anyway, that is a huge weight off my shoulders. Now I can focus on my classwork. And, aside from that one issue, the day went fantastically. I was so grateful to get a full day of teaching in, and according to all who saw me, I did a pretty good job. I did have the lesson laid out for me, so that was useful, and the kids are conditioned to respond to a signal, and there is a solid behavior plan and expectations in place, so I am walking on the shoulders of giants, but I still feel I really did well.
And it was good to have a real scare. I've been getting close to burn out for a while, as the exhaustion of a full time classload, part time job, and teacher observation take their toll on me. But this managed to energize me and make me realize that I'm too lucky with my placement to go moping about.
Anyway, all's well that ends well.
-P.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Teaching tools.
So, here are a few teaching tools I've observed, things that I really like and want to use in my teaching.
QoDs: Question of the days are great. They get students to get out their notebooks and start writing right away, and it gives you time to take roll. If they are occupied from the moment they step in from the hall, that definitely helps in keeping you from losing control right away.
Science journals: I can't emphasize how important these have been to students. Each student has a class journal that they use to put all their work in. It gives them a central location for all their notes, worksheets, project information, and everything else they may collect.
Flip books: These go inside the science journal. I can't really describe them well without a picture, but they consist of construction paper folded... hamburger/taco style, with one side cut into small tags. Another way to do it is to cut it in two along the hamburger line, then fold one, then scaffold the other along it, and staple it. The end result is a flip book of sorts where you can write a name, then pull away and see a definition. This is AWESOME for people who need hands on learning, and really feeds into that multiple modalities thing. Plus, it's explicit, and good for quizzing yourself. Very cool method for science stuff that requires a lot of memorization, such as cell organelles.
An attention getter: My teacher uses 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... The kids are conditioned to be quiet when they hear that. Whenever I teach, I use it, and it works wonders. Once I start teaching, that's going to be one of the first things I do, get that early conditioning, as it makes running a class so much easier when you have the ability to make it quiet in 10 seconds.
Standards based grading: Just grade to the standard. My school does this, and enforces mandatory retakes for failing grades. While this causes a lot of problems, I definitely like that students can be explicitly tested on standards knowledge. It makes things just... A lot easier. It's a bit hard to implement initially, but once you get the hang of it, it saves time. An example of this is, if you only grade tests, have each section of 3-4 questions based on one standard, and explicitly state what standard that is. Then, when you are grading, break up the test into the standard parts, so you know what areas the student needs to improve on. It's not perfect, but it makes a lot of sense.
Now, for something that we discussed in class, and by and large, we disagree with. In my practicum class, the teacher pointed out that, if we don't know, offer to have the student figure it out on their own, and reward them if they found out.
We all disagreed, for the most part. Students don't really want to do the work to find out something they don't know- that's the teacher's job. While it is a good idea for students to try to figure things out on their own, they are most likely going to either A: Go straight to their parents, who might not know, and then B: Go straight to google, which will probably give them an incomplete or completely wrong answer. They then report an answer that is not quite correct to you, who might not have had the time to do the research yourself, and you say, 'okay, here's your candy bar.'
Instead, what I heard some teachers do, and I agree with this, is write the question on the board. That might inspire other students to ask tough questions. Then, that night, take a bit of time to try to find out the answer. As science teachers, we are quite capable of determining good information and making sense of complex concepts. If the concepts are things we don't actually know and beyond our comprehension, then that's okay too. But I feel that teachers should put in a good effort to figure out the answer, then, the next day, report it to the class. That way, you retain your position as the teacher, the expert, while students get some degree of ownership over their learning. I'm not saying that I am going to let students derail me every day with questions like, "What does the edge of the universe look like?" or something, but if a student asks, during an anatomy lesson, 'how do neurons talk to muscles?' that would definitely be something I'd take a little bit to learn.
Thoughts? Any other cool teaching tools?
-P.
QoDs: Question of the days are great. They get students to get out their notebooks and start writing right away, and it gives you time to take roll. If they are occupied from the moment they step in from the hall, that definitely helps in keeping you from losing control right away.
Science journals: I can't emphasize how important these have been to students. Each student has a class journal that they use to put all their work in. It gives them a central location for all their notes, worksheets, project information, and everything else they may collect.
Flip books: These go inside the science journal. I can't really describe them well without a picture, but they consist of construction paper folded... hamburger/taco style, with one side cut into small tags. Another way to do it is to cut it in two along the hamburger line, then fold one, then scaffold the other along it, and staple it. The end result is a flip book of sorts where you can write a name, then pull away and see a definition. This is AWESOME for people who need hands on learning, and really feeds into that multiple modalities thing. Plus, it's explicit, and good for quizzing yourself. Very cool method for science stuff that requires a lot of memorization, such as cell organelles.
An attention getter: My teacher uses 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... The kids are conditioned to be quiet when they hear that. Whenever I teach, I use it, and it works wonders. Once I start teaching, that's going to be one of the first things I do, get that early conditioning, as it makes running a class so much easier when you have the ability to make it quiet in 10 seconds.
Standards based grading: Just grade to the standard. My school does this, and enforces mandatory retakes for failing grades. While this causes a lot of problems, I definitely like that students can be explicitly tested on standards knowledge. It makes things just... A lot easier. It's a bit hard to implement initially, but once you get the hang of it, it saves time. An example of this is, if you only grade tests, have each section of 3-4 questions based on one standard, and explicitly state what standard that is. Then, when you are grading, break up the test into the standard parts, so you know what areas the student needs to improve on. It's not perfect, but it makes a lot of sense.
Now, for something that we discussed in class, and by and large, we disagree with. In my practicum class, the teacher pointed out that, if we don't know, offer to have the student figure it out on their own, and reward them if they found out.
We all disagreed, for the most part. Students don't really want to do the work to find out something they don't know- that's the teacher's job. While it is a good idea for students to try to figure things out on their own, they are most likely going to either A: Go straight to their parents, who might not know, and then B: Go straight to google, which will probably give them an incomplete or completely wrong answer. They then report an answer that is not quite correct to you, who might not have had the time to do the research yourself, and you say, 'okay, here's your candy bar.'
Instead, what I heard some teachers do, and I agree with this, is write the question on the board. That might inspire other students to ask tough questions. Then, that night, take a bit of time to try to find out the answer. As science teachers, we are quite capable of determining good information and making sense of complex concepts. If the concepts are things we don't actually know and beyond our comprehension, then that's okay too. But I feel that teachers should put in a good effort to figure out the answer, then, the next day, report it to the class. That way, you retain your position as the teacher, the expert, while students get some degree of ownership over their learning. I'm not saying that I am going to let students derail me every day with questions like, "What does the edge of the universe look like?" or something, but if a student asks, during an anatomy lesson, 'how do neurons talk to muscles?' that would definitely be something I'd take a little bit to learn.
Thoughts? Any other cool teaching tools?
-P.
Field trip!
So, yesterday I helped run a field trip that was one of the coolest super-relevant citizen science things I had ever seen. The teacher found out that one of the student's father runs a u-fish down the road. Since she had connections with the Nisqually Institute, an environmental science research group that encourages student participation in real science, she was able to get a bunch of water purity testing kits.
I really didn't know much going into the trip, as we had been focusing on other things, but there was another teacher there to help, which was very useful, as she left halfway through to go to a textbook adoption meeting, leaving me to handle her batch of kids. We wandered around the u-fish, collected water samples, and got out hands dirty. Jim, the proprietor of the u-fish, was kind enough to give me a pair of work boots, as I had stupidly come in dress shoes, so the entire experience was pleasant.
After the other teacher had done the hazardous duty of collecting water from ice cold streams, we all went back to a cabin where we did the tests. For the most part, these were student led- I would read off the instructions, but they had already done water testing before, so this was all familiar to them. They took down data, and I took photos.
After the data was collected, we cleaned up, ate some donuts, and headed back. The entire experience was exhilarating and exhausting, (There was a moment of panic when I realized that the DO kit had sulpheric acid, something that, on principle, 13 year olds shouldn't be touching) but ultimately very positive. It was local, relevant, real science, and used a cool bit of basic inquiry by asking students to identify if they thought the water was pure before testing it, then going back to that to lead conversations on water purity. Very cool stuff.
What was depressing was hearing how hard it was to make this type of thing happen. There is a lot of political resistance due to funding issues, safety issues, and standards relevance (this took place during a life science unit), but the experience is so meaningful for the kids that I think it is entirely worth it.
So, that was cool.
I also have been really working on building relationships with the kids. The more I talk to them and figure out where they are coming from, the more it seems like I will be able to motivate them to learn, either by finding ways to make it relevant to them, or simply by having a good rapport with them. I need to make sure I'm staying in the professional range and not being too nice, but at the same time, I think they're getting the idea that I really do care about them and want to help them learn. That's important.
One student said, "Mr J, you're a nerd." "Your point?" "It's not a bad thing, you just are..." I then proceeded to continue enthusiastically explaining a concept she had been asking about, and I think she really got it. She had been curious about it, and it felt good to help a student understand.
I really enjoy this teaching thing.
-P.
I really didn't know much going into the trip, as we had been focusing on other things, but there was another teacher there to help, which was very useful, as she left halfway through to go to a textbook adoption meeting, leaving me to handle her batch of kids. We wandered around the u-fish, collected water samples, and got out hands dirty. Jim, the proprietor of the u-fish, was kind enough to give me a pair of work boots, as I had stupidly come in dress shoes, so the entire experience was pleasant.
After the other teacher had done the hazardous duty of collecting water from ice cold streams, we all went back to a cabin where we did the tests. For the most part, these were student led- I would read off the instructions, but they had already done water testing before, so this was all familiar to them. They took down data, and I took photos.
After the data was collected, we cleaned up, ate some donuts, and headed back. The entire experience was exhilarating and exhausting, (There was a moment of panic when I realized that the DO kit had sulpheric acid, something that, on principle, 13 year olds shouldn't be touching) but ultimately very positive. It was local, relevant, real science, and used a cool bit of basic inquiry by asking students to identify if they thought the water was pure before testing it, then going back to that to lead conversations on water purity. Very cool stuff.
What was depressing was hearing how hard it was to make this type of thing happen. There is a lot of political resistance due to funding issues, safety issues, and standards relevance (this took place during a life science unit), but the experience is so meaningful for the kids that I think it is entirely worth it.
So, that was cool.
I also have been really working on building relationships with the kids. The more I talk to them and figure out where they are coming from, the more it seems like I will be able to motivate them to learn, either by finding ways to make it relevant to them, or simply by having a good rapport with them. I need to make sure I'm staying in the professional range and not being too nice, but at the same time, I think they're getting the idea that I really do care about them and want to help them learn. That's important.
One student said, "Mr J, you're a nerd." "Your point?" "It's not a bad thing, you just are..." I then proceeded to continue enthusiastically explaining a concept she had been asking about, and I think she really got it. She had been curious about it, and it felt good to help a student understand.
I really enjoy this teaching thing.
-P.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Day 2, TEACH!
So, I taught another full period. Actually, over a full period- I am slowly taking over the science portion of the 4/5th period science math block, and yesterday, I taught over an hour of science.
Last time, I was disorganized, nervous, and clumsy. This time, I planned smart, instead of creating an ordered list of things to do, I made a list of things that would contribute to student learning, and that made all the difference. That, and not freaking out. The overall result was 100% better, and the teacher commented that I did really well.
It feels great.
Yesterday, in my Culture of Secondary Schools class, a number of recent graduates of the program came in and talked about their experience. They all had jobs, so that was very promising, the only one who wasn't a full time teacher was doing subbing, and was in the Army, so he had no interest in doing long term teaching at this point. The rest of them were all employed relatively locally, and all seemed to be doing what they wanted. What was weird was seeing a few dopplegangers of people in our current cohort in last year's- there were around 4 people who really reminded me of people in my cohort, including a guy with a lot of my mannerisms and similar appearance. That was a little spooky, but at the same time, rewarding to see what I might be in a year.
On the more somber side, they all outlined what is to come- Student teaching will leave you exhausted. Your first year of teaching will leave you half dead. But they also gave us a lot of advice- Seek out help. Collaboration is key. Self care, self care, self care. Be humble with parents. You can get a lot of free stuff from the community if you are a teacher. Don't give up, and if you work hard, your hard work will pay off. Don't make mountains out of molehills. Drink beer. Make a support network. Use the internet to your advantage.
It was great to meet some graduates, and see that, hey, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Right now is a really hard time to be a teacher, especially with the financial crisis Washington is facing, but they all seemed to be swimming, not drowning, and the overall experience was one of hope, something that I think a lot of our cohort has needed lately. I see a lot of bags under eyes, a lot of exhaustion, and in a few people, trace signs of depression. It's hard to witness that happening to people who I've been together with extensively since last summer, people who have become like family to me, but at the same time, I hope that they have a good support network. I think I've been pretty lucky in that respect, I have a lot of friends who cheer me on, and they have been really understanding. I don't really get to thank them all that much, but their support has been one of the big things keeping me from going off on the deep end.
In any case, I'm going on a field trip this Thursday with my class to test water purity. This should be really cool, and I'll post about it later. I really should get a camera, so I can actually document some of this.
-P.
Last time, I was disorganized, nervous, and clumsy. This time, I planned smart, instead of creating an ordered list of things to do, I made a list of things that would contribute to student learning, and that made all the difference. That, and not freaking out. The overall result was 100% better, and the teacher commented that I did really well.
It feels great.
Yesterday, in my Culture of Secondary Schools class, a number of recent graduates of the program came in and talked about their experience. They all had jobs, so that was very promising, the only one who wasn't a full time teacher was doing subbing, and was in the Army, so he had no interest in doing long term teaching at this point. The rest of them were all employed relatively locally, and all seemed to be doing what they wanted. What was weird was seeing a few dopplegangers of people in our current cohort in last year's- there were around 4 people who really reminded me of people in my cohort, including a guy with a lot of my mannerisms and similar appearance. That was a little spooky, but at the same time, rewarding to see what I might be in a year.
On the more somber side, they all outlined what is to come- Student teaching will leave you exhausted. Your first year of teaching will leave you half dead. But they also gave us a lot of advice- Seek out help. Collaboration is key. Self care, self care, self care. Be humble with parents. You can get a lot of free stuff from the community if you are a teacher. Don't give up, and if you work hard, your hard work will pay off. Don't make mountains out of molehills. Drink beer. Make a support network. Use the internet to your advantage.
It was great to meet some graduates, and see that, hey, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Right now is a really hard time to be a teacher, especially with the financial crisis Washington is facing, but they all seemed to be swimming, not drowning, and the overall experience was one of hope, something that I think a lot of our cohort has needed lately. I see a lot of bags under eyes, a lot of exhaustion, and in a few people, trace signs of depression. It's hard to witness that happening to people who I've been together with extensively since last summer, people who have become like family to me, but at the same time, I hope that they have a good support network. I think I've been pretty lucky in that respect, I have a lot of friends who cheer me on, and they have been really understanding. I don't really get to thank them all that much, but their support has been one of the big things keeping me from going off on the deep end.
In any case, I'm going on a field trip this Thursday with my class to test water purity. This should be really cool, and I'll post about it later. I really should get a camera, so I can actually document some of this.
-P.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Youtube time.
So, like a lot of teachers, I see the value of using youtube every now and then in a classroom. Here's a few educational-ish science videos that I might end up using at some point in my classroom. If you know of any good ones, feel free to share.
MIT lectures:
MIT has put a number of lectures on youtube. They're amazing to watch. This one is on electromagnetism.
Feynman videos:
Feynman's way of describing physics is poetry.
Doodling in Math:
This girl, through simple doodling, points out mathematical patterns and concepts in a way that is approachable and fun.
Nurdrage:
This chemist does cool little chemistry demos.
The Sounds of Space:
The Voyager probes listened in on the radio signals coming from the various planets it passed. Weird, semi hypnotic noises are the result.
The Khan Academy:
This guy made thousands of ms-paint lectures from his closet, and now has Bill Gates throwing money at him. I've actually used a few of these videos to cram for the WEST-E, so while I don't think they are a suitable substitute for classroom teaching, they might be a useful resource for certain, select kids. This is his intro to motion video.
Biovisions:
This animation company teamed up with Harvard Biologists to create what can only be described as porn for cell biologists. And eye candy for the rest of us. It's a beautiful inside view of the inner workings of a cell, and is incredibly useful for understanding certain functions.
Cordyceps Fungus:
One of the creepiest things I can think of, this fungus takes control of ant's brains, then uses them as a spore distributor. Straight up x-files. Probably good for a fun end on a lesson on fungus.
Now, for more humorous/not quite as relevant, but fun stuff:
World of Chemistry:
This humorous video from the UK features people as elements at what appears to be an office party, reacting accordingly to each other. It does slightly hint that Carbon and Hydrogen are gay for each other, so I don't know if it would be ultimately appropriate for certain classrooms. Still very funny.
Symphony of Science:
Auto-tuned Carl Sagan. 'Nuff said.
Filming Earth from Space:
A couple of grad students sent a video camera up on a balloon. It captured the curvature of the Earth. All for under 300 Euros. Very cool citizen science.
Look Around You:
Spoofs of British Educational videos from the 90s. Hilarious.
And a bit of a personally inspirational one, Taylor Mali on what Teachers Make.
Slam poet on teachers.
Anyway, if anyone reading this has any suggestions of cool or useful channels, I'd be glad to hear from you. Also, any online tools that are useful not only for science demos, but general classroom aides (flash card makers, etc.) are appreciated as well.
-P.
MIT lectures:
MIT has put a number of lectures on youtube. They're amazing to watch. This one is on electromagnetism.
Feynman videos:
Feynman's way of describing physics is poetry.
Doodling in Math:
This girl, through simple doodling, points out mathematical patterns and concepts in a way that is approachable and fun.
Nurdrage:
This chemist does cool little chemistry demos.
The Sounds of Space:
The Voyager probes listened in on the radio signals coming from the various planets it passed. Weird, semi hypnotic noises are the result.
The Khan Academy:
This guy made thousands of ms-paint lectures from his closet, and now has Bill Gates throwing money at him. I've actually used a few of these videos to cram for the WEST-E, so while I don't think they are a suitable substitute for classroom teaching, they might be a useful resource for certain, select kids. This is his intro to motion video.
Biovisions:
This animation company teamed up with Harvard Biologists to create what can only be described as porn for cell biologists. And eye candy for the rest of us. It's a beautiful inside view of the inner workings of a cell, and is incredibly useful for understanding certain functions.
Cordyceps Fungus:
One of the creepiest things I can think of, this fungus takes control of ant's brains, then uses them as a spore distributor. Straight up x-files. Probably good for a fun end on a lesson on fungus.
Now, for more humorous/not quite as relevant, but fun stuff:
World of Chemistry:
This humorous video from the UK features people as elements at what appears to be an office party, reacting accordingly to each other. It does slightly hint that Carbon and Hydrogen are gay for each other, so I don't know if it would be ultimately appropriate for certain classrooms. Still very funny.
Symphony of Science:
Auto-tuned Carl Sagan. 'Nuff said.
Filming Earth from Space:
A couple of grad students sent a video camera up on a balloon. It captured the curvature of the Earth. All for under 300 Euros. Very cool citizen science.
Look Around You:
Spoofs of British Educational videos from the 90s. Hilarious.
And a bit of a personally inspirational one, Taylor Mali on what Teachers Make.
Slam poet on teachers.
Anyway, if anyone reading this has any suggestions of cool or useful channels, I'd be glad to hear from you. Also, any online tools that are useful not only for science demos, but general classroom aides (flash card makers, etc.) are appreciated as well.
-P.
Relationship advice.
So, a few weeks back I interviewed a principal for a class project. I had promised the interview would be 5-10 minutes, but we ended up really hitting it off, and the talk lasted a good half hour. Plus, he made the mistake of giving me mountain dew, and as someone who avoids high fructose corn syrup, I was in a state of hyperawareness and hyper-everythingelseness.
One of the core values he said he sought out in teachers was the ability to build relationships with students, creating a framework for learning. That really jived with me. He told me that he could go into a German classroom, not knowing a word of German, and still be able to teach it if he was able to build a relationship with students and use that as a scaffolding for the learning process.
For the longest time, I had been hyperfocused on external factors in learning, such as high levels of content knowledge, interesting lesson plans, and incorporating technology into the classroom. Him flat out telling me that the bottom line is the students was a nice wake up call, and a reminder to me of why I'm doing this.
Following that, a parent came into our class to tell us about her experience with schools, and she pointed out the value of teachers that genuinely care about their students, and make an effort to change their lives for the better. She referenced several teachers she stayed in contact with over the years, and the impact they made on her throughout her life.
I think that is a really important part of teaching that gets shoved under the carpet, especially due to boundary issues. Still, I have had a few teachers that changed my life, and I have since stayed in touch with them, occasionally meeting up for lunch or exchanging emails. They were role models, mentors, and helped me grow as a person, not only in the classroom, but in my life. Sadly, I think a lot of teacher programs are discouraging that due to boundary issues, and I completely understand why. Still, it was good to finally hear one person state the importance of building those lasting relationships.
That's not to say I want to have a lasting relationship with every one of my students. I want to build good relationships with them in order to help them learn. But if I manage to really make a difference in a kid's life, it would be an honor if s/he let me know when s/he got into a college, made it into grad school, or did something amazing. Teachers put a lot of time and effort into kids, I think it's only right that they occasionally hear back on their investments. Hell, I think moments like that are what would keep me sane as a teacher, hearing back from students 5 years down the line to find out that they've been accepted into MIT, and I helped inspire them in that direction. That would feel amazing.
Still, I completely understand the reason for teaching programs not really encouraging, or even bringing this up. Due to all the sexual abuse, everybody is terrified of the idea of a female student emailing a male teacher about personal things, and rightfully so. Bad things do happen. But I think it is important to use prudence, and, when appropriate, be willing to keep in touch with students.
In closing, I am reminded of Jeff Howell. He was a teacher that changed my life forever, and has inspired me to become a science teacher. In some ways, it could be said that he had boundary issues- he always touched people when he was talking to them, something my profs have told me never to do. Still, it was never inappropriate, it was always a hand on the shoulder, and given that he was a wrestling coach, it somehow worked. I never, ever felt uncomfortable with it- rather the opposite. As someone who was bullied regularly, it was the only physical contact I got that wasn't painful. He encouraged me to follow my passion for astrophysics, and would listen to my weird theories about black holes and subspace during lunch and after school, where I was a regular in his classroom. He once told me that, in the teacher's lounge, I was brought up as a weird kid, and he told them that he thought I was brilliant.
That moment changed my life. I was vindicated. After studying astrophysics and astronomy for so long, and never being acknowledged, someone finally recognized me. I madly pursued theoretical physics from that point on, and developed a life long passion for science, thanks to that moment where an amazing teacher put his hand on my shoulder and told me he thought I was brilliant. He built a relationship with me, and thanks to that relationship, I learned more in that science class than any other class, and decided to further pursue science afterward.
I ran into his cousin a few weeks ago. He's also becoming a science teacher through the program. After seeing his last name, we both shared that Jeff Howell was our mutual inspiration for becoming a teacher. I told him how much he changed my life, and he later shared that with Jeff, who, upon hearing them, was fighting back tears. I later called him and we talked a bit, although due to poor reception the conversation was awkward, but we agreed to meet up during the summer, as teachers and friends, and share lunch and classroom management tips.
Mr. Howell was not my friend when he was my teacher. He was a teacher who, through building a relationship with me, got me into science and helped steer me in a really positive direction for my life. Now that I am an adult, I consider him a friend, and someone I owe an infinite debt to for helping me find the wonder in science. I can only hope to be that for my kids.
As a teacher, I want to not only teach kids the content matter, I want to teach them how to be better people. I want to be a role model, a mentor, and an ally. And through this, I hope they'll find a passion for science too, as I did. And honestly, I think most teachers want this. It's probably what they find the most rewarding part of their job- hearing back from an ex-student to find out how much their classes meant to them. One letter like that probably makes up for 200 angry parent calls.
It's been good to remember why I want to do all this.
-P.
One of the core values he said he sought out in teachers was the ability to build relationships with students, creating a framework for learning. That really jived with me. He told me that he could go into a German classroom, not knowing a word of German, and still be able to teach it if he was able to build a relationship with students and use that as a scaffolding for the learning process.
For the longest time, I had been hyperfocused on external factors in learning, such as high levels of content knowledge, interesting lesson plans, and incorporating technology into the classroom. Him flat out telling me that the bottom line is the students was a nice wake up call, and a reminder to me of why I'm doing this.
Following that, a parent came into our class to tell us about her experience with schools, and she pointed out the value of teachers that genuinely care about their students, and make an effort to change their lives for the better. She referenced several teachers she stayed in contact with over the years, and the impact they made on her throughout her life.
I think that is a really important part of teaching that gets shoved under the carpet, especially due to boundary issues. Still, I have had a few teachers that changed my life, and I have since stayed in touch with them, occasionally meeting up for lunch or exchanging emails. They were role models, mentors, and helped me grow as a person, not only in the classroom, but in my life. Sadly, I think a lot of teacher programs are discouraging that due to boundary issues, and I completely understand why. Still, it was good to finally hear one person state the importance of building those lasting relationships.
That's not to say I want to have a lasting relationship with every one of my students. I want to build good relationships with them in order to help them learn. But if I manage to really make a difference in a kid's life, it would be an honor if s/he let me know when s/he got into a college, made it into grad school, or did something amazing. Teachers put a lot of time and effort into kids, I think it's only right that they occasionally hear back on their investments. Hell, I think moments like that are what would keep me sane as a teacher, hearing back from students 5 years down the line to find out that they've been accepted into MIT, and I helped inspire them in that direction. That would feel amazing.
Still, I completely understand the reason for teaching programs not really encouraging, or even bringing this up. Due to all the sexual abuse, everybody is terrified of the idea of a female student emailing a male teacher about personal things, and rightfully so. Bad things do happen. But I think it is important to use prudence, and, when appropriate, be willing to keep in touch with students.
In closing, I am reminded of Jeff Howell. He was a teacher that changed my life forever, and has inspired me to become a science teacher. In some ways, it could be said that he had boundary issues- he always touched people when he was talking to them, something my profs have told me never to do. Still, it was never inappropriate, it was always a hand on the shoulder, and given that he was a wrestling coach, it somehow worked. I never, ever felt uncomfortable with it- rather the opposite. As someone who was bullied regularly, it was the only physical contact I got that wasn't painful. He encouraged me to follow my passion for astrophysics, and would listen to my weird theories about black holes and subspace during lunch and after school, where I was a regular in his classroom. He once told me that, in the teacher's lounge, I was brought up as a weird kid, and he told them that he thought I was brilliant.
That moment changed my life. I was vindicated. After studying astrophysics and astronomy for so long, and never being acknowledged, someone finally recognized me. I madly pursued theoretical physics from that point on, and developed a life long passion for science, thanks to that moment where an amazing teacher put his hand on my shoulder and told me he thought I was brilliant. He built a relationship with me, and thanks to that relationship, I learned more in that science class than any other class, and decided to further pursue science afterward.
I ran into his cousin a few weeks ago. He's also becoming a science teacher through the program. After seeing his last name, we both shared that Jeff Howell was our mutual inspiration for becoming a teacher. I told him how much he changed my life, and he later shared that with Jeff, who, upon hearing them, was fighting back tears. I later called him and we talked a bit, although due to poor reception the conversation was awkward, but we agreed to meet up during the summer, as teachers and friends, and share lunch and classroom management tips.
Mr. Howell was not my friend when he was my teacher. He was a teacher who, through building a relationship with me, got me into science and helped steer me in a really positive direction for my life. Now that I am an adult, I consider him a friend, and someone I owe an infinite debt to for helping me find the wonder in science. I can only hope to be that for my kids.
As a teacher, I want to not only teach kids the content matter, I want to teach them how to be better people. I want to be a role model, a mentor, and an ally. And through this, I hope they'll find a passion for science too, as I did. And honestly, I think most teachers want this. It's probably what they find the most rewarding part of their job- hearing back from an ex-student to find out how much their classes meant to them. One letter like that probably makes up for 200 angry parent calls.
It's been good to remember why I want to do all this.
-P.
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