KLEIN's
GUIDE TO
SCIENCE EDUCATION
PHOTO CREDIT: Nadene Klein at Tuolumne Meadows Yosemite National Park
Student scientists need to develop skills. However, they get bored with lecture, rote practice, worksheets and the like. To engage my students, I use a skill progression that is part gradual release, a dash of the 5 Es, and a bunch of hands-on/authentic/inquiry based learning experiences. I begin with a discussion or demonstration as an introduction and to elicit background knowledge. Teacher led practice comes next. This is followed by small group guided practice. The last step is for students to engage in the application of their new skill independently. Here are a couple of examples straight from my classroom this month. ZOOLOGY EXAMPLE: (1) We had a discussion on the difference between observation and inference and why knowing the difference is important when doing an animal behavior study. (2) I read a variety of statements and students identified if they were observations or inferences by moving to two different sides of the room. (3) The next day, students worked in small groups through a station rotation whey they practiced taking observations of animal behavior using various techniques. They completed this Animal Behavior Stations record sheet (see preview image below). They recorded tally marks to document swim patterns of a fish in our aquarium, made a bullet pointed list of monkeys interacting with enrichment from this video, drew a sketch or diagram of the movement of a giant grasshopper that a student caught on our campus, and wrote a journal type description of the behavior of our class gecko. (4) After the previous practice, students were ready to do their own animal behavior study by selecting an animal to observe in person and then choosing the technique from the four they had practiced OR selecting an online citizen scientist project. Either way, this culminated with the writing of a summary/conclusion in which they used their observations as evidence to draw inferences about the behaviors they witnessed. PHYSICS EXAMPLE: This example has two layers. Students had to learn the 6 different simple machines and the be able to calculate mechanical advantage. (1) We began by discussing what students already know about simple machines, why humans make and use them, and what the definition of mechanical advantage is. (2) Teacher led practice consisted of looking at pictures and identifying the simple machine being used and doing sample mechanical advantage calculations using real life examples. (3) Next, students enjoyed running around the school doing a simple machine scavenger hunt. They used this handout (see preview image below) to record their findings and also took photos on their phones and emailed them to me for extra credit. In their table groups they took measurements with a force scale while using a simple machine of their choice to calculate the mechanical advantage. (4) Students designed and executed their own experiment of the mechanical advantage of simple machine(s) and wrote a full lab report. Students were able to make real world connections in both cases. They were fully engaged and could easily see the purpose in what they were learning. The big secret...this was way more fun for me too!!!
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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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