I will be concluding the TeacherTalk blog as I finish this project, but I still need your help!

As part of this project, I am collecting information about blogs in relation to collaboration. In order to get your opinion about this type of technology, please take a few minutes to complete the short 10 question survey at:

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Thanks for sharing and participating in this project!!

Sincerely,
Angela

P.S. The picture is me with some of my most entertaining high school students on our field trip to Disney's Animal Kingdom!

Science Inquiry Resources

Talk about a can of worms! The idea of teaching science inquiry in the classroom can result in a heated discussion. It may involve teachers talking with other teachers, teachers and school administrators, or teachers and state administrators. The main concept of science inquiry is to help students to ask thoughtful and meaningful questions and then follow through with an experiment or activity to find the answer. Teacher involvement can vary, but teaching the steps of science inquiry is integral to student understanding.

Some school districts have embraced science inquiry in the classroom, while others continue to discount its proven success. In the current education climate, choosing the best way to teach students is becoming a highly contested concept. Science inquiry is a form of active learning and can lead to everlasting knowledge.

So, here are some ideas and resources that have supported my teaching of science inquiry in the classroom. Check them out and share some of your favorites!

Local Resources

-State Fish and Wildlife education programs (I have taken 2 classes: The Ecology of Fire, and Project WET/WILD)

-Science Center Teacher Education Courses (My first experience with inquiry)

-Teacher courses at the Zoo or Aquarium (Good for background information useful in teaching science inquiry and their website may also have inquiry activities!)

Web Resources

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/

-The National Geographic website is one of my favorites! It has videos, pictures, and current research info.

Teaching Inquiry:

http://www.lesliepreddy.com/Inquiry/inquiry%20index.HTM

-Good website explaining inquiry process and assessment ideas

Inquiry Activities:

http://www.science-house.org/learn/index.html

-The Science House associated with NC State University and full activities for all grade levels that are interactive and fun

http://www.nsf.gov/news/classroom/

-The National Science Foundation has a resource page of links relating science concepts and education, also the Home website has funding information that may help you with funding your inquiry

http://www.ciblearning.org/teacherresources-exercises.php

-Center for Inquiry Based Learning has some good ideas and activities

Other

http://www.nsta.org/about/positions/laboratory.aspx?lid=hs

-NSTA (National Science Teachers Association) Great article that points out the benefits of teaching science through inquiry and could be useful for supporting this program in your school

http://www.exploravision.org/teacher-resources/

-Toshiba ExploraVision program is a competition where students work in teams to write and solve a problem

Ideas for teaching the appreciation of nature

How do you teach an appreciation for nature? For most, an appreciation for nature comes from having experiences with animals and plants in the wild or at zoos. This can be difficult to "teach". In addition, it can be tough to find the time to inspire students with the amazement of nature when you have curriculum to cover and tests to prepare for?

When I taught Kindergarten, we spent a half hour outside in the morning and a half hour in the afternoon on our playground. Though the playground was covered in fake grass, there was a border of dirt and mulch with a few small trees outlining the area. I wanted to design an activity that was interactive with nature and learning. So, one day when we were lining up at the end of recess, we walked around the outlining area and I asked my students to observe natural things around them. Several students were interested in the large amount of pinecones that accumulated, so we decided to take some with us and try to identify the tree they belonged to. We all really enjoyed the activity and my students learned how to stop and observe and about local flora. What I didn’t expect was how they would continue this activity throughout the year! As winter faded, my students constantly pointed out natural life that they observed when we went out to recess. They found ants marching one behind the other. They watched digger bees fly in and out of their ground nests, and follow their travels to different flowers. This activity showed me that I didn’t need to design some elaborate lesson plan to share the wonder of nature with my young students, and I am hoping that they carry this experience with them!

What activities have you done with your students to inspire an awe of nature?

No Child Left Inside

We see it everyday, students spend their days in school and then once they go home they spend their evenings on the computer, in front of the television, or playing video games. A new grassroots movement called ‘No Child Left Inside’ wants to get children to experience more outdoors and learn more about the environment. Richard Louv is the author of Last Child in the Woods where he presented the idea of “nature deficit-disorder” and the need to reconnect children to nature. He advocates that children have lost touch with the outdoors and this has led to increased health and learning problems. (http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/240/) As teachers we see this missing relationship and its impact. Students who live close to the beach but have never experienced it, or those that live in amazing mountainous areas but have never been on a hike. (Check out Louv’s site at http://richardlouv.com/)

Many of us who grow up to work in the science or environmental field developed a connection with nature as children. I remember collecting bugs and following bird tracks down by the pond, and I feel that it was these experiences that led me to a career in science. Developing an appreciation and a love of nature when young seems to never leave you. Several large cities are starting to embrace the goals of No Child Left Inside and make efforts to draw children outdoors. For example, the San Diego Zoo is hosting October as the month to get kids outside. They are offering free entrance to kids 11 and under in addition to kid activities with a nature focus throughout the Zoo.

With my high school students we looked at wild birds as one of our research focuses in a project that incorporated opportunities to increase students’ outdoor experiences. Students were split into teams and given 3 species of wild birds to learn more about. Each student was required to conduct and log three 20-minute bird observations a week on their own time in a variety of habitats. Then in the classroom they used reference books to research natural history information about their species and put the information into a fact sheet in PowerPoint. The group of students would then present their three bird species to the class. Students said that the observation helped them draw connections to what they saw and what they read. I saw my students observing nature and starting to appreciate the natural world around them.

What are some of your favorite resources that can help you with No Child Left Inside activities? Do you have a great lesson or outdoor game to share?

P.S. If you haven’t completed the short 10-question survey yet, please do. This is where most of the data for this project is coming from. You can find the survey at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7WWHD2Z

The Main Goal

Hey everybody! I started this blog to create a forum for discussion of teaching ideas and for sharing activities and resources. As many of you know I am currently in a MAT program at Miami University in Ohio, as are many of you. As we try to learn more, we also want to share the new things we have found. In my experiences as a teacher I found it hard to find time within my busy school day or life to collaborate with other teachers. When I made the time, I learned so much more about how and what to teach and the best ways to make my students successful. Talking with my mentor teacher or just chatting in the hallway with another science teacher really gave me valuable insight. During our summer courses when we travel with other teachers, I really see the results of collaboration with other teachers; despite their discipline. Maybe we have the same challenges in our district that we solved different ways or whatever the situation, there is always valuable information to be shared.

This blog is a site for you to give feedback about different education topics and share what you have learned with others. Maybe you have a favorite activity for teaching about the needs of plants or a favorite book you like to read to teach about recycling, these ideas are new to someone else. Also, discussing opinions on educational topics helps others think about how their thoughts affect their daily teaching. For example, inquiry in science is a great discussion topic that plenty of teachers are being introduced to or have years of experience with.

Before starting this blog, please complete this survey anonymously. This will help me research the effectiveness of this blog and identify the importance of teacher collaboration. Also, I will be posting it on Facebook and sending it to you via email. When we have topic changes, about every 2 weeks, I will send you an email update letting you know.

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Let's discuss.