Rants. 9 Science Demos That Will Leave Your Students Begging For More. For the last couple of years I have done an elaborate science demo day in my class for Halloween. This is one of those experiences that students will remember when they look back on their middle school experience. I encourage you to dig deep and really put some thought into the presentation.
It will go a long way in making this something students will talk about forever. Mad Science Lab Setup I have always done a science demo day on or around Halloween, but it could be done at anytime throughout the year. The theme I’ve used in the past has been a mad scientist testing out his latest experiments in his laboratory. Let’s first talk about the costumes. Last year we were able to fit all of our classes into a flex space (teaching theater). At the front of the class we pulled out a lot of glassware and setup our pretend lab. Something is Different Today In order to set this day apart from any other day you are going to have to sell it. The Demonstrations Demo #1 – Wine Glass Pendulum Supplies: We Teach High School: First Day. As this is year number 10 or 11 for me, I don't expect any day to go perfectly.
But I also have "my act" down enough at this point that I am not overly stressed about the first day. Crisis #1: I Heard a Velociraptor My kid still sounded like a velociraptor when he coughed ... and it was his first day of kindergarten. He has bad allergies, after antibiotics (for bug bite), breathing treatment and Benadryl I was needing to leave the house to get to school. My husband was very concerned about the teacher sending the kid to the nurse, and asked me to send an email when I got to school.
Crisis #2: The Wind I always wear a skirt on the first day of school (the explanation of why is lengthy enough to be another blog post, and is not important for this story). Crisis #3: The Internet is Down Seriously? Crisis #4: It's Hot in Your Room. We just got a new computer system to control the air conditioners in the school ...and my room was 81 degrees ... Crisis #5: Can you Pass These Out? So classes start. A Better List Of Ideas For Project-Based Learning.
A Better List Of Ideas For Project-Based Learning by TeachThought Staff At TeachThought, we’re huge fans of project-based learning. While there is no magic bullet of practice, program, or framework that automatically produces progressive and effective learning, what makes project-based learning exceptional is its flexibility. As it is, first and foremost, simply a curriculum planning tool, so much other “good stuff” that can support learning (game-based learning, learning simulations, place-based education, self-directed learning, etc.) can all be “embedded” in project-based learning. With PBL, there is no “either/or” proposition: anything from open-ended, play-based learning to data-driven, research-based instructional environments can all use PBL effectively. Below, we’ve shared dozens of ideas for projects, and we’re going to constantly update the list with new ideas, suggestions from our community, resources, etc. 6 Posts To Get Started With Project-Based Learning 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Project Search. Oskar Cymerman (@focus2achieve) | Twitter. Cool Cat Teacher Blog - Be a Better Teacher. Live a Meaningful Life. Jamie's Chemistry Blog: Cherry Coke Distillation Lab. Speed Up Grading with Rubric Codes. Do you have a mountain of student writing to grade? A pile of extended responses that have been sitting in your passenger seat for a week? Do you wish you had more time to give students better feedback? This video shows you how to use rubric codes—a small twist on grading student writing that keeps the feedback but cuts way down on the time. If you’re getting way behind on your grading, this may be just what you need. If you thought this was helpful, stick around.Join my mailing list and never miss another post. You’ll get weekly tips, tools, and inspiration — in quick, bite-sized packages — all geared toward making your teaching more effective and joyful.
To thank you, I’ll send you a free copy of my new e-booklet, 20 Ways to Cut Your Grading Time in Half. December 2015. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus tells Scout, “You can never really understand a person… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”* I’d say this is true not only for understanding people but also for understanding experiences. Think about things that you only understood as a participant. A magical moment while traveling in another country. What it’s like to lose a loved one. The first year of parenthood. We have ideas and expectations of what these experience will be like based on what we know from our own lives or have observed from the lives of others.
We think, “This is how I would feel,” or “I would do it this way,” or “I would never react the way so-and-so did.” Teaching is this way, too. I went into teaching thinking I already had it figured out. Within three weeks of my first year I had begun to understand what I would realize over the course of that first year: teaching was nothing like I thought it would be. So here’s my idea: let’s start a conversation. (Maybe not.