Tag Archives: science

by | October 15, 2022 · 8:21 am

Classroom Discussions

What are classroom discussions?

group of multi-ethnic students engaging in a discussion outdoors at school.

Remember: Discussions can occur outdoors!

Classroom discussion can be defined as an oral activity where teachers and students develop together a specific curriculum content or competency through each other ideas. “The purposes of a discussion are to build collective knowledge and capability in relation to specific instructional goals and to allow students to practice listening, speaking, and interpreting, agreeing and disagreeing” (Teaching Works, 2022, May 2). In this sense, students use the ideas, words, explanations, and interaction with their teacher and peers as a resource for their own learning.

Classroom discussions are not merely to help students answer a question but to establish a conversation. This conversation may begin with a provocation, have a beginning, a sequence of processes, and an end or closure. What happens during the process is essential to developing the content and competencies of the curriculum and achieving teaching goals. Differing opinions, moderating interaction, taking turns, etc, are essential to developing student competencies and helping students to deeply explore content. Therefore, classroom discussions are a teaching and learning process that believes that students will accomplish curriculum goals together, through the process of sharing ideas (Teaching Works, 2022, May 2). Well-designed and orchestrated class discussions can help build classroom community.classroom community (links to post in this blog).

Classroom discussions can occur in both synchronous and asynchronous contexts. When planning an asynchronous discussion, teachers should consider the ability of students to self-regulate and manage the discussion. When discussing critical issues, the teacher may need to monitor and help guide the discussion. The Bell Foundation provides some suggestions for how to improve classroom talk that can improve students’ ability to participate in synch and asynch discussions.

Why are classroom discussions important?

Classroom discussions are important because they develop both academic and non-academic skills in students. Communicating is essential to living in the current society and developing a healthy democracy. Being able to share, justify, defend, listen, and understand diverse perspectives and ideas is one of the most important competencies that human beings use in our current world. Hence, students need to learn these skills to be successful in their adult life.

Moreover, classroom discussions support student development during their school years. Through classroom discussions, students can learn to make sense of complex ideas and organize their thoughts. Students can also develop the confidence to present their views and use evidence to justify them. Finally, classroom discussions can support teachers to reveal students’ conceptions and misunderstandings about a topic, helping them to identify contents and concepts that need to be better explained in a lesson.

However, developing rich classroom discussions is a complex task that may generate several problems if teachers do not conduct the process well. Teachers should know how to value different views and pay attention to each child’s needs. Therefore, the challenge (and secret) is to be conscious of all micro details involved in classroom discussions, as we will show next.

What are elements of a rich classroom discussion?

The Teaching Works Team (2022, May 2) from the teacher education program of the University of Michigan defends that teaching practices should be unpacked in chunks or elements to support novice teachers to develop these skills. In this sense, they divide the task of developing classroom discussion into several parts and elements, detailing what teachers should pay attention to in each part. In the next sections, we will details these steps and elements as well as complement them with additional resources and orientations.

Source: (Teaching Works Team, 2022, May 2)

Preparing for a discussion

1. Selecting a task:

Teachers should choose tasks, texts, and materials that allow multiple views, discussions, and solutions for a topic/question, encouraging students to explore different possibilities and arguments. Teachers may need to adapt a task to support multiple views and disrupt inequalities.

2. Anticipating student thinking:

Teachers should think about possible questions, mistakes, or understanding that students may have about the topic. This means both activating previous knowledge but also anticipating problems that may deviate students’ attention from the curriculum goals in that classroom discussion.

3. Setting up the task:

Teachers should select the purpose of the activity and prepare the orientations to support students’ work. In this sense, teachers also should plan the moments for students to work independently, in small groups, or with the whole class as well as the resources needed to develop the discussion.

Conducting the Discussion in class

1. Launching the discussion:

2. Orchestrating the discussion:

Teachers should pay attention to a couple of elements and tasks that will create thinking routines to explore and deepen their understanding of a topic. The following elements may happen in a different order but, according to Harvard’s Project Zero, they should be part of any Thinking Routine (links to Harvard’s Project Zero) chosen by teachers:

    • Eliciting the discussion: teachers should state the multiple ideas that their students are bringing, helping them to see several points and arguments during the discussion.
    • Orienting students’ attention: teachers should ask to students pay attention to specific ideas and contributions of their peers, encouraging them to learn with each other.
    • Encouraging student participation: teachers should encourage all students to expose their ideas and control who ideas have been highlighted or ignored. It helps that classroom discussion not only become richer since diverse ideas will be developed but also supports decreasing inequity among students.
    • Probing new questions: teachers should put new questions that support students to explore and deepen the topic, move to the next learning step process, or summarize what they have discussed.
    • Making contributions: teachers should make contributions or introduce ideas/ concepts that were not brought by students but are essential to achieve the purposes of the discussion. If possible, teachers should connect these new ideas/concepts with what has already been discussed validating students’ contributions and establishing connections with previous knowledge.

3. Concluding the class discussion:

    • Supporting summary: teachers should support students to summarize and remember what has been discussed, helping to establish the most relevant points worked during the class and issues that they will develop in the next classes.
    • Acknowledge student contribution: teachers should highlight, with examples, how students’ ideas were essential to developing both content and competencies during the class.

4. Evaluating (after the discussion)

The final step is to reflect on what has happened in the classroom discussion to evaluate what works (or not) and how to improve future discussions.

Elements to consider as you plan, conduct and reflect

1. Maintaining a focus on the instructional objectives: teachers should always direct each student’s intervention to build some knowledge or example that will help to achieve content and competencies goals.

2. Monitoring students’ work: teachers should pay attention to what students are discussing in their groups and which ideas/ people are been highlighted. In this sense, teachers will be able to use students’ work to develop the content and prevent inequalities or bias in the discussion.

3. Seeing and disrupting patterns that reproduce inequalities: teachers should make interventions to stop patterns that may generate inequalities. These interventions do not need to be explicit. For example, teachers can use the work of a student who may not always be recognized as one of the more advanced or capable students in the class to exemplify a topic, helping to improve student status among his/her peers.

4. Recording the representation of content: teachers might record (on the board to the whole class or just to themself) what students are saying during the whole process because it can support the teaching and learning process. Students might also take notes as the discussion ensues. The notes can be used for formative assessment to help teachers understand students’ struggles and misconceptions, or to help with review to demonstrate student thinking or rationality and understanding of an issue. Teachers might find strategies to make student learning visible (Project Zero). Recording could take the form of a digital whiteboard (link to post in this blog) for all to see or for future reference, sorting & classifying ideas, etc.

Strategies to increase classroom engagement

There are many ways to design and lead a discussion to support more active classroom engagement. Teachers should also consider context including the age, background, needs and preferences of their students.

  • In her blog, teacher Jennifer Gonzales also provides some suggestions. You might also listen to the Cult of Pedagogy #28 Class Discussion Strategies podcast (see embed below).
  • Liberating Structures provides a menu of varied activities for discussion and group work.
  • Harvard’s Project Zero offers Thinking Routines that teachers can implement across grade levels and across the curriculum.
  • The Teaching Works Team from UMichigan, offers an open library of Curriculum Resources that include strategies to support teaching in specific aspects of the curriculum and for more interdisciplinary approaches.
  • The Bell Foundation is a charity that seeks to . The Bell Foundation website contains frameworks for discussion including video demonstrations and lesson plans for structures including ‘Information Gap’ activities such as JigSaws.

How might challenging or high-stakes topics be addressed?

Classroom discussions about challenging or complex topics need extra teachers’ attention because unexpected reactions may appear and some rules should be established to guarantee respect. The University of Michigan has prepared a specific orientation on how to conduct classroom discussions about challenging or high-stakes topics (UMich). Moreover, Edutopia discusses how classroom norms can support teachers during challenging discussions.

What can classroom discussions look like in each content area?

Teaching Works Team (2022, May 2) from the teacher education program of the University of Michigan has many specific tips and classroom resources for different subjects:

Additional Resources:

 

 

The courses below bring many classroom videos as examples of how to conduct good classroom discussions. They break down real situations and show how teachers dealt with these, conducting rich classroom discussions:

University of Pennsylvania (Coursera):

University of Michigan:

References:

Project Zero (2022, April 30). Project Zero’s Thinking Routine Toolbox. Harvard Graduation School of Education. http://www.pz.harvard.edu/

Liberating Structures (2022, April 30). Liberating Structures Menu. https://www.liberatingstructures.com/ls-menu/

Rochester Community Schools (2022, April 30). Think from the middle. Discourses Strategies. http://www.rcsthinkfromthemiddle.com/discourse-strategies.html 

Teaching Works (2022, May 2). High-Leverage Practices. Teaching Works. https://www.teachingworks.org/work-of-teaching/high-leverage-practices.

Guest post by Peer Tutor Ariane Faria dos Santos (Ph.D. EDCP), May. 2022; edited Y.Dawydiak April 2024

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by | March 29, 2021 · 2:22 pm

Storytelling for STEM Subjects

Using the art of storytelling to teach STEM subjects.

“Maybe stories are just data with soul”

– from TED Talk “The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown

Storytelling can be an effective method for engaging students with STEM subject areas – and this has been shown to be the case for girls especially (1, 3, 4). According to an article by Catalyst.org, Women in STEM (1), a gender gap in STEM persists across the world. This is a problem because the same systems of bias that push women and people of color out of STEM careers, also influence the products and services created by STEM organizations.

Some female students do not further pursue the STEM subjects, and enrolment in math, computer science and engineering programs can become lop-sided, as a result. This creates many issues, such as the creation of AI and other technologies that do not include women’s perspectives in the algorithms. The use of storytelling is therefore important for developing technologies such as AI products because it engages female students at a higher rate with computer science and engineering-related subjects. This way, females stay in the field and later contribute their perspectives and ideas to AI technology development. Females also tend to care about the environment, and might consider this when developing new technologies (2).

The references below explain some approaches & resources to support you in developing your own stories in the classroom. According to a blog article by Scientific American (3), stories and art can be used to help teach math and science subjects. You might also consider how Indigenous perspectives and first people’s principles of learning are supported through a storytelling approach (links to post in this blog).

Storytelling to Teach Math & Science:

  1. Math teachers can analyze the intricacies of M.C. Escher’s artwork with their students or read “Behind the Beautiful Forevers” by Katherine Boo in order to take into account different perspectives. (3)
  2. Science teachers can read aloud the poetic observations of Dr. David George Haskell, and biology teachers can share the story of the HeLa cells. In other words, they can incorporate some interesting and odd facts into their science teachings that are very memorable. (3)
  3. The National Council Teachers of Math website has some excellent resources to support storytelling in math. Use the search box at the top right to search for storytelling and to find a plethora of articles on this subject including: Trigonometry Comes Alive through Digital Storytelling and Storytelling + Origami = Storigami Mathematics. The nctm.org website also includes articles involving strategies and benefits of math discussion (refer to refs 9, 10).

Computing Science and Storytelling:


For computer science related subjects, it can be especially encouraging to hear that there have been many great female computer scientists all throughout history, who have contributed much to this subject area. This 2015 article by The Guardian (4), is mostly focused on Ada Lovelace, known by many as the first computer programmer, and presents interesting ideas to incorporate STEM (2015 article). You may wish to include some of the fun ideas below into your cross-curricular storytelling!

  1. Create a historical timeline or a collection of curious facts
  2. Demonstrate some science tricks
  3. Solve some mysteries
  4. Create a DIY model

A 2019 article by Edutopia explains how the teachers used a story about dragons to help engage their students with science content. In this case, the content was about anatomy and characteristics, such as bone structure. According to the article, “lessons like these help students make connections between what they’re learning and their prior knowledge.”

Some tools for coding for storytelling:

There are various options for students engaging in coding stories with many being accessible for even younger students due to the ‘drag and drop’ nature of some block coding languages. There are even many unplugged or more kinesthetic opportunities to practice computational thinking as they make their stories! A few tools that might help you get started:

  1. Scratch is a simple drag and drop programming language that allows even young learners to create animations, stories and games.
  2. Twine can be used to create interactive digital stories and support the development of literacies including computational thinking skills. Likely best for upper intermediate and high school.
  3. Ozobots are little robots that students can code to tell stories that can be physically ‘acted out’ or ‘enacted’ by the robot on a drawn story map or other surface in the classroom.
  4. Unplugged coding activities support a range of activities including storytelling.

For more information on why it is important to incorporate storytelling into computer science subjects, please refer to the BC curriculum. In particular, you can look to the Applied Design Skills & Technologies (ADST) and computer science curriculum.

  1. Critically analyze how competing social, ethical, and sustainability considerations impact designed solutions to meet global needs for preferred futures
  2. Evaluate impacts, including unintended negative consequences, of choices made about technology use
  3. Analyze the role technologies play in societal change
  4. Examine how cultural beliefs, values, and ethical positions affect the development and use of technologies

Storytelling: Indigenous Perspectives & First People’s Principles of Learning

Incorporating story in teaching & learning, provides students with opportunities to engage in the first people’s principles of learning (FNESC has a wonderful poster) and can support a deeper connection to place, content and varied perspectives. Inviting elders into the classroom to share story or accessing authentic voice via digital stories published online is one approach.

More recently, digital storytelling is being employed to help preserve cultural knowledge and language.

Incorporating storytelling into classroom studies is an important part of the current BC curriculum across subject areas. Within the computer science curriculum, for example, there are standards related to being culturally aware, and recognizing the impact that technology can have. Storytelling can also help create a greater awareness of other cultures, the environment, and gender-based issues.

 

Guest Post: Jacqueline Boivin, Project Assistant 2021; Edits, Y. Dawydiak, Learning Design Manager, TEO

References:

  1. https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-science-technology-engineering-and-mathematics-stem/
  2. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/06/eco-gender-gap-why-saving-planet-seen-womens-work
  3. https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/budding-scientist/to-attract-more-girls-to-stem-bring-storytelling-to-science/
  4. https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/oct/05/six-creative-ways-inspire-girls-science-lessons
  5. https://www.edutopia.org/article/dragons-and-fairy-tales-science-class
  6. https://www.banffcentre.ca/indigenous-arts
  7. https://fullcircle.ca/full-circle/about-us/vision/
  8. https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst
  9. https://www.nctm.org/Research-and-Advocacy/Research-Brief-and-Clips/Strategies-for-Discussion/
  10. https://pubs.nctm.org/view/journals/tcm/14/4/article-p206.xml
  11. https://blogs.ubc.ca/scarfesandbox/drag-and-drop-programming-scratch/
  12. https://blogs.ubc.ca/scarfesandbox/computational-participation-creating-interactive-digital-stories-with-twine/
  13. Simone Hausknecht, Shannon Freeman, Jenny Martin, Carrie Nash & Kelly Skinner (2021) Sharing Indigenous Knowledge through intergenerational digital storytelling: Design of a workshop engaging Elders and youth, Educational Gerontology, 47:7, 285-296, DOI: 10.1080/03601277.2021.1927484
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by | September 23, 2020 · 7:02 pm

iNaturalist

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A joint initiative of the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society, iNaturalist creates an online and global network of naturalists, biologists, and plant-enthusiasts. With the goals to connect people with nature and to create a repertoire of biodiversity data, iNaturalist is a potential entry point for students (and teachers!) into the world of Citizen Science.

Seek by iNaturalist is a tool teachers might consider incorporating in their classrooms, school yard explorations, field trips or home learning opportunities. Seek by iNaturalist utilizes the database of observations from the iNaturalist community and is more geared to students (especially younger students) with a gameified approach to species identification. (No sign up is required to use Seek)

All users need is a mobile device with camera to log observations. With iNaturalist, you can share observations and instantly connect with other community members who are ready to help with species identification or you can record observations offline and upload when you have wifi. With Seek, you can instantly check you ID skills by taking a photo of the plant or insect and compare it to ‘hits’ in the database.

Some cool features of iNaturalist include:

  • Free of charge
  • Android and iOS apps available for mobile devices
  • Cellphone reception and wi-fi coverage are not necessary for iNaturalist observations
  • Powerful search functions that allow users to browse identifications based on broad classifications and specific species
  • Automatic identification suggestions that match an uploaded observation with the 10 most visually similar species
  • Crowdsourcing identification from the iNaturalist community
  • Available in 35+ different languages
  • Protection of privacy (users can choose to share an obscured/general location or no location at all); Important for teachers to help students develop their digital literacy by showing them how to turn off location services.

Why is it Relevant?

Outdoor education has been increasing highlighted in the BC curriculum (Visit the outdoor learning opportunities blog post on our site). iNaturalist encourages students to to take an active role in their learning through exploring nature at their own pace, uploading their observations, and joining an online community of citizen scientists. Given that iNatualist can be installed on individual mobile devices, students have a lot of freedom with the species they choose to observe and can even take iNaturalist into their backyards, neighborhood walks, and hiking trips.

As well, students can develop their digital citizenship skills through using iNaturalist. There are many learning opportunities within the iNaturalist platform, including but not limited to learning how to take an identifiable photo, improving academic research skills, and engaging with the online community in a safe and responsible manner.

Teacher candidates are invited to check out the teacher’s guide on iNaturalist. Specific protocols and tips address how to maximize the educational potential of the platform and how to responsibly share/store class data. At the bottom of the page, you can find an extensive list of exemples and lesson plans detailing how iNaturalist can be used in the classroom.

 

Getting Started

  1. Download the iNaturalist app
  2. Sign up for a iNaturalist account with your email address
  3. To explore local sightings, click on the “explore” icon to access the map
  4. To upload and share your observations, click on the “observe” icon

 

How to make an observation on iNaturalist

Seek by iNaturalist from iNaturalist on Vimeo.

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by | August 13, 2020 · 8:32 pm

Learning about and through Food: podcast resource post

Food is an interdisciplinary concept that intertwines through a wide range of subjects: home economics, science, math, arts, and many more.

In Episode 5 of our recently launched Thinking outside the Sandbox podcast, Dr. Kerry Renwick, Dr. Susan Gerofsky, and Dr. Lorrie Miller share their ideas and experiences with respect to food and the development of interdisciplinary learning experiences.

Below are a few resources that might be used to support each of the main points discussed in this episode:

1. Home Economics and Interdisciplinarity

Dr. Kerry Renwick shares how the concept of food could be intertwined with biology, chemistry, as well as issues of race and class.

The topic of food could be used as an entry point to discuss many topics and disciplines. Various interdisciplinary food-related activities and lesson plans are available at Teach BC:

  • Our Animal Neighbours; this unit identifies how animals were and continue to be relied upon and an important part of the lives of First Peoples; furs and skins for clothing and shelter, meat for food, bone, and antler for tools and weapons, etc.
  • Forced from home; this unit explores refugees’ experience with finding food
  • Mock Advertisement: Sustainable Community Lesson Plan; introduces marketing and advertising tactics aimed at children and youth, including those involving food and supplements.

Other resources are available at Teach BC that teach about food in relation to other cultures and geographic regions.

2. Learning from and in School Gardens

Dr. Susan Gerofsky spoke of her experience of the UBC Orchard Gardens where teachers could experiment with teaching outdoors. Check the UBC Orchard garden blog for more ideas on teaching, learning, and growing in the outdoor classroom.

  • Growing your own food helps you eat fresh fruits and vegetables, helps you choose which fertilizers and pesticides come in contact with your food, and control when to harvest your food, thus having more nutrients in your garden-grown vegetables, as highlighted in this Harvard Health Letter.
  • Engage your students with gardening their food in the school garden, or in one of the nearby community gardens.
  • Encourage your students to learn about gardening through the various activities and lesson plans provided by Kids Gardening.
  • Another interesting interdisciplinary idea in relation to gardens would be to encourage students to share their inspirations and reflections through writing poems. Explore this learning experience with the garden as a co-teacher where teacher candidates wrote their poems from the garden.

3. Food Literacy

Dr. Kerry Renwick elaborated on “food literacy” highlighting topics as food choice and responsibility when buying food, as well as seasonality and harvesting options/decisions.

Food literacy is knowledge, attitudes, and skills about food. This includes understanding the connections between food, health, and wellbeing; knowing how to select nutritious foods; and understanding what constitutes a healthy diet, as explained by Healthy Schools BC.

4. Engaging with Aboriginal Knowledge and Understanding

Dr. Kerry Renwick spoke of the importance of incorporating Aboriginal ways of learning about food specifically on sustainable ways of dealing with food.

FNESC  (First Nations Education Steering Committee) provides various resources that highlight food in relation to First Nations Knowledge.

    • Science: Traditional Aboriginal cultures used natural resources for transportation, shelter, and food gathering.
    • Social Studies: Aboriginal peoples developed distinct foods, medicines, and clothing.
  • For Grades 5-9, there is a teacher resource guide titled  “Science First Peoples”, which highlights First Peoples’ connection to the land for food. Examples include:
    • Science grade 5: How does Traditional Knowledge about body systems help First Peoples prepare and store food for the winter?
    • Science grade 6: How does Traditional Knowledge about life cycles help First Peoples harvest food in their territories?
    • Science grade 7: How did/do First Peoples use their knowledge of organisms’ survival needs- including food-to modify the environment for harvesting? (e.g. clam gardens, controlled burning, herring roe harvesting ), as well as other resources and activities.

5. Creative ways for sustainable engagement with food consumption

Dr. Lorrie Miller spoke of creative ways to make use of food scraps, one of which is food dyes.

  • More ideas on creating natural dyes from food waste could be found here.
  • Review these tips on how to compost kitchen scraps.
  • Check this teacher’s guide by the Alameda County Waste Management Authority & Source Reduction and Recycling Board, San Leandro, California, for activities on how to bring compost into the classroom as a valuable teaching tool.
  • Inspiration on ways of growing vegetables from kitchen food scraps is available in this blogpost by the UBC Orchard Garden.

Guest Post: Nashwa Khedr, EDCP graduate student, project assistant 2020

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by | July 28, 2020 · 11:20 pm

Digital-Tech Integration: podcast resource post

Digital literacy is a critical element as we look to enhance teaching and learning in today’s classrooms. In Episode 2 of our recently launched Thinking outside the Sandbox podcast, Dr. Jennifer Jenson, Dr. Marina Milner-Bolotin, and Dr. Sandrine Han share their ideas and experiences with respect to digital technology integration and the development of digital competencies in K-12 and pre-service teacher contexts.

Download Podcast Transcript: Transcript_Ep 2 Technology

Below are a few edtech tools or resources that might be used to support each of the main points discussed in this episode:

1. Computational Participation

"Hello World", first thing that anyone who is learning programing writes!

Dr. Jennifer Jenson shares the value of offering students the opportunity to learn to code and emphasizes the learning value of learners engaging in collaboration, communication and learning by doing. This active approach affords the opportunity to develop build competencies including algorithmic and computational thinking. Visit this link for a more comprehensive resource about learning to code. Below are just a couple of suggested tools/activities:

Scratch is a drag and drop programming language (aka visual programming as noted in the Gr. 6/7 ADST curriculum). It is designed with younger learners in mind but could be used by anyone wanting to get started with coding and learn the logic behind it!
Twine is an open source tool for creating interactive ‘pick a path’ and other stories.
Ozobot is a small and smart robot designed for kids to learn about robotics and coding that allows for scaffolded learning using ‘line and colour’ commands, visual programming block commands and even Java or Python script writing.

2. Integrating Video Games in the classroom to learn STEAM-based competencies

Below are examples shared by Dr. Jennifer Jenson about learning algorithms as well as analyzing racist, sexist content through Video Games:

Breakout EDU provides standards-aligned games that are played collaboratively and encourage creative problem-solving.

ARIS allows students to create location-based games, tours, or stories.

Twine is another great example of the possibilities for creating story through code (as is the case when designing a digital game!).

For more examples of game design applications including low and no tech, read the Sandbox Blog post about Scavenger hunts & other Edu Game Tools!

3. Using Technology to share knowledge with students in Science classrooms

Dr. Marina Milner-Bolotin explains how technology serves as an important tool in science education, especially with the handy tools on smartphones, where it could facilitate data collection, present abstract experiences, record slow-motion videos to observe (E.g: oscillations). She also mentions the use of Camtasia to share experiments with others.

Other useful technological tools that could be used in science education include:

Analytical Chemists

Science Journal: Without access to a physical classroom, Science Journal allows students to make many science experiments without specific measuring tools, but only a mobile device.

Phenomenal Physics & Astronomy at Home: Check out the challenges shared by the UBC physics and astronomy outreach program. Each challenge includes self-guides activities that consist of a general introduction, summaries of physics concepts, videos, and online experiment simulations to support students’ learning experience.

For more science & tech integration ideas, please visit the following blog posts:
– Secondary Science Tech Integration
– Secondary Chemistry Tech Integration

4. Use of Virtual Worlds for interdisciplinary projects

Dr. Sandrine Han proposes the use of Virtual platforms to encourage students to solve real-life problems through an interdisciplinary approach!

– Webcams and Virtual field trips could be used to bring about real-life experiences in the class.

– Augmented and Virtual Reality could be used to engage students in a certain place that would set the stage for an inter-disciplinary project in a real-life setting.

– Minecraft is a virtual world building application with which many students across grade levels are familiar. A variety of resources available freely only provide suggestions and lesson plans for interdisciplinary learning.

5. Intertwining Art in Science projects

Solar systen

Dr. Sandrine Han also shares an example of intertwining Art in a Science project, solar systems! Check these blog posts for detailed examples of lesson and unit planning that integrate Art:

– Intertwining art in each of the following subjects; Mathematics, English Language, and Science

– Creating an interdisciplinary unit that includes Art, Science, and Social Studies.

 

Continue reading →

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by | July 9, 2020 · 10:27 am

Science Journal

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Science Journal is a free app developed by Google that allows mobile devices to record and document experiment results. A phone is no longer just a pocket-size device but also a compass, accelerometer, magnetometer, and so much more. With its easy-to-use features and extensive resources for educators, Science Journal is highly accessible and can be a great tool for classroom activities and lesson plans.

Some cool features of Science Journal include:

  • Ability to accurately measure and record light, sound, movement, and many more using built-in device sensors
  • Personal customization of projects with photos and notes
  • Compatible with multiple platforms such as Android, iOS, and most Chromebooks
  • Over 70 free activities available for students and teachers, organized by levels of difficulty and specific features such as “outdoors friendly” and “do at home”
  • Ability to sync with Google Drive which encourages students to collaborate in groups and continue the learning outside the classroom

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Science Journal is a valuable resource for educators as it makes many science experiments possible without the need for specific measuring tools. All you need is a mobile device that can download the app and a curious mind! Especially at this current time when many students do not have access to a physical classroom, Science Journal fills the gap by allowing students to conduct experiments at home and share the results with teachers online. As well, Science Journal encourages outdoor learning since students can take their mobile devices outside and run a science experiment.

Furthermore, Science Journal has a specific “For Teachers” page that has over 70 experiments designed by experts including California Academy of Sciences and Playful Learning Lab. This can be of special interest for teacher candidates going on practicums. Whether you plan on choosing an experiment from this extensive list or decide to make your own, the possibilities are truly endless. You can even submit your own experiment and have it featured on the site!

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  1. Download the Science Journal App (also available in App Store)
  2. Sign in with Google account or continue without signing in
  3. Allow Camera and Photo Access
  4. Add a new experiment (look for the + symbol at the bottom right of your screen)
  5. Start collecting data

Below is a video demonstration of how to use Science Journal to create an exoplanet light curve. This activity is a part of the Phenomenal Physics and Astronomy At Home series developed by the UBC Physics and Astronomy outreach team.

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by | June 30, 2020 · 8:54 pm

Phenomenal Physics & Astronomy… At Home!

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Throughout the summer, the UBC Physics and Astronomy Outreach team will be introducing physics and astronomy activities that can be easily done at home and adapted for online teaching & learning. Accompanied with extensive tutorials and detailed instruction guides, the Phenomenal Physics & Astronomy at Home program is an ideal resource for teacher candidates to explore and potentially incorporate into curriculum planning. This blog post will provide an overview of this exciting outreach initiative and highlight two specific challenges that have been shared so far.

Some physics and astronomy concepts you can expect to encounter in the activities:

  • Conversion of potential energy into kinetic energy
  • How to build momentum
  • Transmission of vibrational energy in sound waves
  • Structure of the solar system (e.g., the Sun, planets, comets)
  • Gravitational force

Where science meets technology… digital technologies featured in these activities include:

  • Scratch
  • Science Journal (resource post coming soon)
  • And many more

 

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While many classes and summer camps may not be held in-person at this moment, the commitment to providing high-quality education does not waver. Evolving with the current situation, the UBC Physics and Astronomy Outreach program provides an excellent array of ideas for teacher candidates to facilitate experiential and play-based learning. Given that so much teaching is conducted across a screen, more than ever can students benefit from applying learned concepts to hands-on activities. For more information about play-based learning and the integration of digital technologies, check this blog post written by Yvonne Dawydiak, Learning Design Manager in the UBC Faculty of Education.

In addition, the Phenomenal Physics & Astronomy at Home program engages students in challenge-based learning. Known for its interdisciplinary approach, challenge-based learning promotes collaboration between teachers and students and invites learners of all levels to tackle real-life problems through designing, articulating, and implementing their own solutions. Rather than focusing on whether their work meets certain standards, students can unleash their creativity and build connections across different subject areas — something that’s not always inherently evident in content-specific learning. Not only can students deepen their understanding of the course content and develop problem-solving skills, they also have the opportunity to showcase their work! The UBC Physics and Astronomy Outreach Team loves to hear from participants and regularly features project submissions on their website and social media platforms.

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  1. Check out Phenomenal Physics & Astronomy at Home
  2. Select a challenge that you are interested in.
  3. Browse through the selection of Youtube videos and online interactive activities for inspiration!
  4. For teacher candidates, the “build your own” section might be of special interest as it outlines specific physics and astronomy concepts related to the activity.
  5. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the outreach team! Your questions will be answered by a team of dedicated physicists and astronomers.

 

Activity Spotlight: Build a “Rube Goldberg Machine”

This fun activity allows students to integrate different physics concepts (e.g., levers, pulley, momentum) and design a unique machine! Yes, that’s right – a unique machine. From a dog treat dispenser to a complex machine serving cake, the possibilities are endless.

Suitable for all grade levels, this activity invites students above grade 8 to complete independently, students in grades 3-7 to seek some guidance from the activity worksheet, and those under grade 3 to coollaborate with parents/teachers.

For more information, please visit the “Build a Rube Goldberg Machine” activity page. Here is a video of Alex showing how his dog treat dispenser works!

Activity Spotlight: Build your own solar system

It’s time to build your own solar system! While we love using those colorful fruits to represent Mars and Venus, we are also excited to share with you how to create a virtual simulation of the solar system. For teacher candidates, this activity can be a wonderful opportunity to introduce students to the basics of coding. Scratch is a simple programming language that enables students to design their own projects and experiment with different features. From adding a few comets to altering each planets’ orbital period, each student can create a unique solar system.

Similar to the challenge above, the Physics and Astronomy Outreach team has prepared activity worksheets accomodating various age levels.

For more information, please visit the “Build you own solar system” activity page. Below is a video demonstration of setting up a solar system on Scratch. Details on how to get started with Scratch can be found here.

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