Question 2 was What did you observe when testing various loads/blocks during your lesson about testing the motion of vehicles carrying a load?
I was disappointed with this weeks response rate. Only two students answered the question, and one of the answers was short and fairly generic. One student did discuss how the vehicle seemed to move less with the more blocks added. This student seems to get a lot out of the lessons because this is two weeks in a row that she has noticed something significant each time.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Blog week 1
Week 1 Question: What has been the most interesting thing you've learned about in science class so far and why?
I asked students to answer in at least 3 sentences. I was surprised that most of students who answered had fairly detailed answers, and they did not remain generic. I hope that as the weeks go by, more students will find time to answer and their answers will become longer.
I am, however, very concerned about testing coming up. Students may not have much free time for answering blogs, and this may be the last thing on their agenda.
I asked students to answer in at least 3 sentences. I was surprised that most of students who answered had fairly detailed answers, and they did not remain generic. I hope that as the weeks go by, more students will find time to answer and their answers will become longer.
I am, however, very concerned about testing coming up. Students may not have much free time for answering blogs, and this may be the last thing on their agenda.
March 4
On Thursday, March 4, 2010, I interviewed 6 students in Mrs. Elledge's class about blogging. I interviewed Karina, Jas, Khaliyah, Kerrigan, Presley, and Deztiney.These students were quite shy, and did not have long answers. I am hoping that they have more in depth answers to the follow up interview.
Monday, March 8, 2010
March 2, 2010
Today, I taught a lesson on blogging.
Here is my lesson:
SS will be able to:
describe the def. of blog
list blog's main components
view blog for lesson
introduce by creating KWL chart:
-includes reading an writing
it is a conversation
communication with a large audience
can be about any subject
portfolio of learning, feeling, creating
Tell ss the def. of blog-online way of publishing one's feelings by way of writing
Blogs or web logs are much like journals on the web where users post their thoughts on a regular basis. Entries are dated in listed in chronological order starting with the most recent entry.
We will be using blogs in your classroom for the purpose of science. Each week I will review the lessons that you will be learning with Ms. Elledge, and I will post an essential question that each of you will answer at some point during the week. You are expected to answer the question during your down time at some point during the week. There is no limit to how much you have to write, but it must answer the question. I will not be asking yes or no questions, so your answer should be longer than one or two words. The question will come from the lessons that you were taught in the previous week. It will begin next week and end the week before your Spring Break. Therefore, the essential question that I post next week will refer to the lessons being taught this week.
They seemed to draw a blank after the K part. They didn't know much about blogs.
After describing them, students decided that they wanted to know what we would be using them for, if they could communicate with each other on them, and how often they had to post.
I was disappointed that no one really knew much about them, or that they didn't speak up if they did, however, they seemed eager to learn more, and to get started with our class blog!
Today, I taught a lesson on blogging.
Here is my lesson:
SS will be able to:
describe the def. of blog
list blog's main components
view blog for lesson
introduce by creating KWL chart:
-includes reading an writing
it is a conversation
communication with a large audience
can be about any subject
portfolio of learning, feeling, creating
Tell ss the def. of blog-online way of publishing one's feelings by way of writing
Blogs or web logs are much like journals on the web where users post their thoughts on a regular basis. Entries are dated in listed in chronological order starting with the most recent entry.
We will be using blogs in your classroom for the purpose of science. Each week I will review the lessons that you will be learning with Ms. Elledge, and I will post an essential question that each of you will answer at some point during the week. You are expected to answer the question during your down time at some point during the week. There is no limit to how much you have to write, but it must answer the question. I will not be asking yes or no questions, so your answer should be longer than one or two words. The question will come from the lessons that you were taught in the previous week. It will begin next week and end the week before your Spring Break. Therefore, the essential question that I post next week will refer to the lessons being taught this week.
They seemed to draw a blank after the K part. They didn't know much about blogs.
After describing them, students decided that they wanted to know what we would be using them for, if they could communicate with each other on them, and how often they had to post.
I was disappointed that no one really knew much about them, or that they didn't speak up if they did, however, they seemed eager to learn more, and to get started with our class blog!
Science in Motion Observations
February 23, 2010
Today I observed a lesson plan taught by Andrea Elledge.
She discussed what a blueprint was and what it was used for.
She asked students to use words to describe what their perfect design for a car was based on their blueprint.
Students built standard vehicles with specific parts.
It was amazing to see how some of the students finished quickly, and how long it took others. Ms. Elledge explained to me that most of the students who were "book smart" and made above average grades seemed to be the ones who could not figure out the designs very quickly. She also pointed out that this made her relate with struggling readers. These designs were hard for some of the students to wrap their heads around and piece together.
This was a connection to if you would buy one of the cars designed? Not if the wheel was falling off like some of the cars!
This lesson caused students to ask questions about parts, or "would this work, too?"
February 25
I observed students using blocks/loads to see how fast their car would go. They added washers for each trial, and allowed cars to move slowly, then more quickly, then fast respectively according to how many washers were attached. They were supposed to keep up with the rate each time, and record their observations, however, several groups were so excited to see what would happen when they added the next washer that they forgot to record anything, and had to do the experiment all over again.
Today I observed a lesson plan taught by Andrea Elledge.
She discussed what a blueprint was and what it was used for.
She asked students to use words to describe what their perfect design for a car was based on their blueprint.
Students built standard vehicles with specific parts.
It was amazing to see how some of the students finished quickly, and how long it took others. Ms. Elledge explained to me that most of the students who were "book smart" and made above average grades seemed to be the ones who could not figure out the designs very quickly. She also pointed out that this made her relate with struggling readers. These designs were hard for some of the students to wrap their heads around and piece together.
This was a connection to if you would buy one of the cars designed? Not if the wheel was falling off like some of the cars!
This lesson caused students to ask questions about parts, or "would this work, too?"
February 25
I observed students using blocks/loads to see how fast their car would go. They added washers for each trial, and allowed cars to move slowly, then more quickly, then fast respectively according to how many washers were attached. They were supposed to keep up with the rate each time, and record their observations, however, several groups were so excited to see what would happen when they added the next washer that they forgot to record anything, and had to do the experiment all over again.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Weblogs and AUP
What is a Weblog?
A weblog is a website that allows someone to write entries which appear in reverse chronological order on any and every subject that they feel inclined to write about. It can be open to the public for discussion and response, or it can be open to specific set of people for responses, or it may be set to private so that only the owner can read its entries. They can be used as a social interaction tool, or for one's personal use of collecting thoughts and expressing them in order to reflect on one's own thoughts. Most blogs consist of texts, images, and links to other blogs.
How can I use a blog for personal and professional use?
Blogs can be used as a personal reflective device. It can be used to reflect on lesson plans, individual students' growth, or behavior management strategies. A blog of this nature would most likely be set to private so that only the owner could read, and later reflect on the entries. A classroom blog meant to keep other teachers, students, and parents up to date on what is going on in the classroom, upcoming events, and possibly even weekly assignments would be a good professional use of a blog. In addition, blogs can be good tools for communication from one class to another, or from one individual to others. Teachers could create a classroom blog to for communication purposes with parents and students, or the teacher could allow older students to keep an online blog for communication or online journal for individual use.
How are blogs being used in my area?
In the area of Florence, Alabama, blogs are being used in a variety of ways. Blogs have been created for selling real estate, keeping up to date on the weather, and local news reports. Educators have taken the blog world by storm, however. They have used blogs to keep an up to date calendar of events going on in their classroom or school, support fundraisers, and to promote reading programs.
Mrs. Hill from Lincoln, Alabama has created a blog in which she creates posts, to which any or all of her students may respond. She comments on what is going on in their classroom, and what they are learning. Each child has the opportunity to respond to the question or comment that she leaves. Her blog can be found at http://sites.epals.com/hill3rd/.
Another great set of blogs can be found at http://dme.kcsdschools.com/blogs. I found this set of blogs to be very interesting because every teacher in the entire school has their own personal blog that can be found at this website. The blog that I found most interesting was 5th grade thoughts by Angela McCall http://dme.kcsdschools.com/blogs/angela.mccall. Ms. McCall posts questions about what is going on in her classroom and each student and/or parents have the opportunity to reply or comment on each post. She even has the rules for posting on her blog listed. For instance, the students are required to stick to the topic, and have correct punctuation and capitalization.
What is an Acceptance Use Policy and why are they important?
An AUP is a guideline for schools, teachers, students, and other persons utilizing information technologies within a school system. It is a nine page document included in the student handbook sent home to every family in the school system. Some of the guidelines listed in the Florence City School's AUP include preventing copyrights without permission, ensuring that technology personnel are the only people installing any software programs on to school computers, and preventing modifications to any software. This policy also requires all students to have a signed consent form from a legal guardian ensuring that they have permission to access the Internet via their school and classroom. Florence City Schools monitor all Internet cites being used, and block those that show any inappropriateness. The primary use of the Internet via any Florence City School system should primarily be used for research and educational purposes. A list of guidelines for students attending a Florence City School are also included.
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