Stimulating Science Simulations

I would like to welcome my colleague Emily Hine as a guest blogger. Emily is a 5th grade teacher at New Century International Elementary School.  I have asked her to share her experience flipping the classroom using Edpuzzle.  Neither of us receives any compensation for endorsing Edpuzzle.  This post is representative of her personal experience. Looking for a way to incorporate videos into your classroom, and still hold students accountable?  Forgot to print the paper that goes with the video?  No problem, Edpuzzle is an awesome tool if you want to flip the classroom and still hold students accountable.   Edpuzzle    allows you pull videos from other people or include your own videos.  If you are looking into flipping the classroom and want to spend most of your time in small group, or even differentiate your learning with different videos,  Edpuzzle    allows you to spend more time in small group then giving a lectu...

5.L.1.1  Explain why some organisms are capable of surviving as a single cell while others require many cells that are specialized to survive.  What will you find in some pond water?  Pond critters of course. We had already completed an initial lesson in the classroom.  I had scooped a bucket of pond water from my neighborhood and we examined the unicellular and multicellular life of the pond. In fact, this lesson was taught almost two months ago but then we had some signs of spring.  The rains came and with it, outdoor recess became a festival of science!  My kiddos found a puddle and were completely enthralled with the life of a puddle.  They begged me to bring out the microscopes and slides for RECESS!! Of course, being the teacher who wants to make the kids happy, I gave them exactly what they wanted.  Combined with a little mobile technology and we were identifying the organisms in the puddle in no time.  We found that one of the ...

Alright, I admit it.  I have been chomping at the bit for the April Currently to surface. I thought, this month I am going to move up in the links.  No more linking up as #100+ So what happened?  While I was busy finishing a paper for my current doctoral course, Farley decided to get a jump on April.  I think I still caught the wave earlier than usual but definitely not as close to the top as I wanted to be. Silly - I know.  Maybe next time.  For now, here is the April Currently.  If you want to join in, check out Allow me to elaborate.  I have been listening to the movie that my kids are watching.  Yes it is late, but hey ... we're all on Spring Break!  Which is exactly what I am LOVING!!  We often head to the beach for spring break, but this year we did not.  I'm thinking it would be nice to spend at least a day or two at the beach before returning to school, so I am stalking our vacation points re...

NC Science Essential Standard 4.E.2.3  Give examples of how the surface of the earth changes due to slow processes such as erosion and weathering, and rapid processes such as landslides, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes. Open any science book and you'll find plenty of ideas for modeling erosion and weathering.  One of my favorite things to do is take students outside after a heavy rain and look for signs of erosion, weathering, and deposition. But, none of this makes the STEM and career connections I want to afford my students.     I specifically wanted to stay away from the typical, "let's make a volcano" that isn't really a volcano but more of a chemical reaction (vinegar/baking soda) experiment.  So I went looking for something specifically geared toward an interactive simulation of an earthquake. I found just what I was looking for (and then some) at Teach Engineering . I have a feeling I will be referencing this website a LOT!  They have ton...

Yes, there is a story here.  Our district professional development day in February was dedicated to science.  Exploding things in the name of science sounds like fun - right?  Wait a minute!  This explosive professional development didn't happen in February.  It happened at the March 8th, professional development for language arts and math.  As Paul Harvey would say... here is the rest of the story... 1 cold unopened diet pepsi can + 1 LCD projector (turned on and projecting away) = explosion an hour and a half later Our presenter placed her cold diet pepsi can on the cart next to the LCD projector.  Heat caused the molecules to move more quickly and finally popped the top clean off the top of the can.  A picture is worth a thousand words so here you go.  Well... that was one way to get our attention. The moral of the story... don't leave your soda can next to an LCD projector.  They put out a LOT of heat!!! BTW - no LCD proje...

5.L.2.2  Classify the organisms within an ecosystem according to the function they serve: producers, consumers, or decomposers (biotic factors). Last year, I purchased the "Follow That Food Chain" series.  These non-fiction adventure books are set up like a game.  Students begin by reading the introduction and then choosing a tertiary consumer from the ecosystem featured in each book.  From there, they read about the animal and continue to make choices that result in either survival and continuation along the food chain (which really becomes more of a food web) or a "dead end". Although my students can learn plenty from reading and interacting with this book, I was looking for a way to document their learning.  I decided to create a guided reading focus sheet for this purpose.   You can get a copy of it here.   Basically, students record the tertiary animal they chose. Then they read and respond with 3 facts they learned about the animal.  N...

K.P.1.1  Compare the relative position of various objects observed in the classroom and outside using position words such as: in front of, behind, between, on top of, under, above, below, beside. Interactive website - great for a SmartBoard or other interactive whiteboard Positional Word Bingo - requires an account but you can sign up for a free standard membership Looking for some active learning. Try these games and activities from ehow Pathways lesson   Positional Words Practice Game from lilbookchompers    Assessment worksheet   .

When we return from the winter break I give every student a die cut footprint. This is a tradition that began with my 4th grade classes about ten years ago. I ask each student to set a goal and write a statement that explains very specifically how they will achieve that goal.  These are written on the feet and turned into a great hallway display with the title "Put Your Best Foot Forward in (new year) 2013". As I encourage my students to put their best foot forward, I thought I would model the practice here.

I have just added a brand new simulation unit that matches NC Essential Standard 5.P.1 Bowling Ball Basics  is a 13 page unit with fun characters and scenario cards. It is a hands-on/minds-on simulation that works best when students are given plenty of time to test their theories using some basic supplies as models of a bowling alley. Check out the cute scenario cards. If you can use it, download it. If you know someone else who can use it share it with them. Pin it, blog about it, share it on facebook and twitter. In other words, you have my permission to spread the word so that many people can benefit from this fun unit. It would be greatly appreciated if you would take time to submit the feedback form after you have had a chance to try it out.

I love using Edmodo with my students. It has many benefits. I am seeing more and more people using it all the time and thought maybe I should share some of my tips and ah-ha moments. Tip # 1 Using Groups - The group feature is great for differentiating student assignments. I have a group called 5th grade. Within that group students are re-grouped into groups A, B, and C. This enables me to post assignments specific to the needs of each group of students. I also work with a group of students competing in Science Olympiad. These are 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. I created a Science Olympiad group and gave them each the join code. There are 18 events and only 2 students participate in each one. I use the group feature to create small groups under the Science Olympiad group and am able to send information specifically to each partnership based on their event. Using the grouping feature allows for a wonderfully customized experience. Especially when combined with other tools like the libra...

The North Carolina Association of Elementary Educators annual conference begins today.  I will be presenting two sessions tomorrow. Here's the info. if you are going to be at the conference I hope you'll stop by and visit with me in between sessions. Don't forget to tweet about your experiences to! #NCAEE12 Date:  Monday November 5 2012 Time:  10:30am-11:45am Room:  Pebble Beach max 64 Your Session Title: Stimulating Science Simulations Session Abstract: Does teaching science scare you? If you don’t absolutely love teaching science but find yourself stuck teaching it anyway, this session is for you. Inquiry based science instruction is a key component to the Essential Science Standards. This session provides resources for the reluctant science teacher. Date:  Monday November 5 2012 Time:  4:00pm-5:15pm Room:  Colony A max 60 Your Session Title: All Teched Out Session Abstract: Make technology work for you. This session focuses...

Last week it finally happened! The wireless router's were installed throughout our building. "Oh the places we can go and the thinks we can think" now! I am just giddy.  I don't even no where to start.  How about with the wireless laptop cart? First things first, a sign out calendar is a must since we share one cart with the whole school.  As soon as I made the calendar, I signed up. (of course) Now, how to put this tech to good use? We had already used it with jump drives and Vernier probes prior to going wireless. With wireless, we can make good use of Edmodo to differentiate instruction and increase independent learning. This really couldn't have come at a better time.  Fifth grade is working on 5.P.3.1 and 5.P.3.2 Since students come to my class in a team blocking schedule, investigations that take longer than 30-45 minutes to observe changes are less than ideal and we're seriously limited in the types of heat sources allowed in our elementary classro...