KLEIN's
GUIDE TO
SCIENCE EDUCATION
PHOTO CREDIT: Nadene Klein at Tuolumne Meadows Yosemite National Park
So it's nearing the end of the school year and students have a tendency to check out with the attitude that they're already done. Teachers annual struggle with the internal debate to throw their hands up and give in to the inertia of their students or challenge themselves to find the THING that will hook students back in. I choose to find ways to keep students engaged.
At the beginning of the quarter, I surveyed my students to find out what topics they are interested in. I saved the one that got the most votes for our last unit. This year the winner was archaeology. Technically it is not part of my curriculum. However there are strong enough connections, that I have students identify, that make it work for our class. Hands-on is always the way to go in science. Instead of lectures and videos (more passive learning), I brought two labs to the students that we did back to back. Talk about high levels of engagement! The first lab required some prep on my part, but it was fun. I dug in the clay dirt at home and filled 5 aluminum pans. I buried, with intention, a variety of artifacts. Each pan was different. In class, students played the role of archaeologist. Not only did they have to dig out the artifacts unknown to them, they had to take measurements and observations using this data that they acquired to write a summary of the history of their archaeological site. The second hands-on experience required the students to make artifacts. They were given a clay flower pot to paint in a way that represented their given ancient culture. They were provided with a brief synopsis that they embellished to further the identity of their culture without sharing that with any other groups. What they didn't know is that after school, I busted up their art project and gave it to another group to reconstruct the next day. After reconstructing the broken pots, they had to reconstruct the story of the civilization it represented. Hooking students with what they identified as a high interest topic and using hands-on activities engages students through the end of the school year. Bonus: students who are engaged are much less of a discipline issue!!! Scientifically yours, Nadene
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AuthorNadene Klein, M.Ed. has been an educator for over 25 years. She brings a passion and love for science to the classroom and through this blog to you. Archives
March 2024
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