Photo Credit: NASA STEM Education is sweeping the nation. As a Boilermaker however, I'm a big fan of STEAM. The added benefit is ART. Art, really? I'm not an art teacher. I can't include art in my class. I teach math. I teach science. I teach high school. They already have an art class. I barely have time to teach the standards as it is... How many of these excuses did you just go through in your head? Well, I have a resource for you! It can be used at ANY grade level and ANY content area. I don't have the power to add time to your day, but this resource takes minimal time to set-up and adds quality to your lessons and classroom. Intrigued yet? What's my secret? VTS. If you google the acronym, you'll find it's a real estate service and way to convert visual files. VTS in our education realm however, stands for Visual Thinking Strategies. It is research-based and has been around for over 30 years, but hasn't quite become a staple in the classroom, yet! My Experience with VTS Indiana has an awesome art museum, the Indianapolis Museum of Art. It is better known as the IMA - I know, another acronym! Last summer, I attended a 2 day introductory workshop. I got to participate in VTS, learn about it and lead my own. I integrated it in my classroom as part of the Viewfinders Program this past year and my students loved it. If you're looking for a way to engage that invisible student, voila! At first, they were a little timid and unsure about something new and unfamiliar, but after a couple sessions, they were pros and really wanted to share their ideas. We culminated our year with a wonderful field trip to the IMA for my kiddos to showcase their skills! www.imamuseum.org/events-programs/schools-universities/pre-k-12/viewfinders What exactly is VTS? VTS is a tool that turns a student's natural power of observation into a class discussion. Through a series of research-based questions, the teacher facilitates an open-ended discussion. It can be used at the beginning of the unit to gauge students' prior knowledge. It can be used at the end of the unit as an assessment to see what students how learned. It can be used in the middle of a unit to spark questions to continue to investigate. Check out VTS in action and get an introduction: https://vimeo.com/9827533 What are some of the benefits?
VTS Research -Based Questions -> Let's take a quiet moment to look at this image/object. 1. What's going on in this image? 2. What do you see that makes you say that _________________? 3. What more can we find? Bold Words In question 1, the words going on open up the floor for students to create a story and figure out what is happening. After question 1, you listen to the student and rephrase what was said. Be careful to use the words that the student provides. In question 2, notice that it says see and say, not see and think. The word see makes students support their statement with evidence. The word think is wrapped up in the idea of intelligence, which can be construed as right and wrong. Choose something the student said that you would like to elaborate on, to fill in the blank. In question 3, the word more gives the impression that there is more to be found. It stays away from the term else, which can make students think that you're looking for another, more correct answer. Now, what? LOOK at my image above. Try out VTS. Notice I did not include a caption. I would strongly encourage you to attend a workshop, so that you can confidently implement it in your classroom!! For more information, check out: vtshome.org/ Fun fact: It's the most popular feature in the New York Times Learning Network blog! vtshome.org/highlighted-projects/#new-york-times vtshome.org/highlighted-projects/#vts-in-science To use in math, take a picture of a student's answer or show their work under the document camera. Keep the name anonymous. It could be an example of the work you expect, showcasing different ways to correctly answer a problem or dissecting an answer to determine why it's incorrect. Peace, love and space exploration,
CAPCOM Conrad
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Despite what you may think, Indiana did not have a blizzard, nor did I create my own snow. So, how is sledding possible in June? Well, SLED is an acronym that stands for Science Learning through Engineering Design. It is a program through Purdue University, funded by a targeted Math Science Partnership NSF Grant. It was first implemented in intermediate classrooms in 2011. My alma mater is AWESOME!!!!! **If you're an NSTA member, you can read about the program for free. The article is called "Shedding Light on Engineering Design" . It was published by: Brenda M. Capobianco, Chell Nyquist, and Nancy Tyrie in the Science and Children Journal in January 2013. If you're not a member, it's only $1 to read. ** My binder and design notebook. You can see my individual plan and my group's plan for our solar tracker. I attended the 2017 SLED Summer Institute. It was a fantastic full-day PD, targeted by grade level (6th Grade). I'm excited to be teaching 6th Grade Science and Social Studies this fall, a change from last year!! Man, was it useful! I walked away with so many resources that I can implement in my classroom and wanted to share. What exactly is SLED? The purpose of SLED, as the name suggests, is to support science concepts using the engineering design process and hands-on tasks. It makes the science concepts more meaningful with a real-world connection and creation of a physical prototype or product. It also gets away from the idea that there is only one correct answer or way to solve a problem. It encourages problem solving and creativity. It is targeted for 3rd - 6th Grade students, but there are extension activities that would allow use in older grades as well. What is great about all of the tasks is the ease of cross curricular connections; math and literacy. It is a great structure for an interactive science notebook. Rubrics are also available to grade design notebooks, collaboration, redesigns and activity wrap-ups. What did we do? We started the day with Candy Bag, an activity focused more on the process and less on the science content. I plan on using this in my classroom at the beginning of the year as a way to build classroom community, encourage collaboration and explain the procedures and expectations for these activities the rest of the year. For Candy Bag, students could measure height, length, and width, calculate volume, surface area and cost of their bag. Students could also write a letter persuading a company to purchase their bag. It would also fit well with Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory by: Roald Dahl. What's the Space Connection? We spent most of the afternoon doing Solar Tracker, a design task focused on building an apparatus to collect solar energy throughout the year. This is a great way to assess student understanding of seasons, direct and indirect rays, and positioning of the earth. Like all of the SLED design tasks, math (measuring angles) and literacy (Secrets of the Seasons: Orbiting the Sun in Our Backyard by: Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld) are easy to incorporate. ****AMAZING RESOURCE ALERT!!!***** I would like to thank the Astronomy Education Department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for creating these Astronomy Simulations, Animations and Interactives. -> Specific Simulation used for Solar Tracker http://astro.unl.edu/naap/motion1/animations/seasons_ecliptic.html Able to change the view (sun or side of Earth), position on Earth, and date. All Animations and Simulations, grouped by topics: http://astro.unl.edu/animationsLinks.html An entire activity list for student practice, grouped by concepts, is available here: http://astro.unl.edu/interactives/ How can YOU use this in your classroom?
1) Go to stemedhub.org/groups/sled 2) Create a FREE account. *Don't forget to confirm your e-mail. 3) Click on the Design Resources tab on the left hand side. 4) Browse the List of Design Activities, separated by Grade Level *Each activity listed shows has the key concepts and brief description of the design task. 5) Click on the name of the activity. 6) Download for FREE! Peace, love and space exploration, CAPCOM Conrad No, I have not been selected to be a 2017 astronaut candidate. Let me clarify, this is not very surprising, since I didn't apply, but I didn't want to confuse anyone with my announcement on the same date. Let me take a second however, to send a huge Congratulations to all of the #NewAstronauts ! Big kudos to Loral O'Hara, fellow Purdue grad!! JSC is awesome! I support you and can't wait to see what you accomplish on this amazing adventure and of course share what you learn with my kiddos! I am also still awaiting my purchase of Lego's newest debut, the Saturn V rocket. It's making history as the tallest and highest number of elements set! Any. Day. Now. Last, but not least, I want to give a huge shout out to my earthly exploring brother and all of those who embarked on the TransAmerican route of their Journey of Hope. It's a cross-country cycling trip raising awareness and funds to support The Ability Experience . Read on to find out my BIG news. Above is the spaceship I designed for the Star Fleet exhibit created by artist Kiel Johnson at Space Center Houston in February. I chose a backpack with pencil rocket boosters to represent a Teacher's Year in Space. Now, on to My Big Debut... I am officially on TeacherspayTeachers. My store is called CAPCOM Conrad's Creations. I doubt the name is a shock to any of you. The Hidden Figures Young Readers Edition Unit Overview is available for a FREE download by clicking on the link below. **This is an updated version from my previous post.
www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Capcom-Conrads-Creations Check my store for the following documents available to purchase. All are referred to and described in more detail in the Unit Overview. Comprehension 1) Comprehension questions - separated by chapter and heading for the ENTIRE book Assessments 2) Summative Assessments Study Guide - Open Book and Reader's Response 3) Open Book Comprehension Assessment 4) Reader's Response Assessment 5) Performance Assessment Directions 6) Performance Assessment Rubric 7) Performance Assessment Gallery Walk 8) Book Cover Design and Rubric Supporting Activities 9) Runnin' by: Pharrell Williams - Song Lyric Analysis 10) Activity to accompany the Spaceflight video on Brainpop 11) Activity to accompany the History of Computers video on Brainpop I would LOVE to hear from you! Comment and/or question on my blog or my TPT store. Peace, love and space exploration, - CAPCOM Conrad Signing Off |
AuthorApollo 13 fan. Educator. Lifelong Learner. Third generation Boilermaker. Space Exploration Enthusiast. Collaborator. Click Subscribe to stay updated!Archives
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