My first project as a SEEC Crew member was the Hidden Figures Unit that I created over my Spring Break almost a year ago, which is hard to believe! I really enjoyed creating the unit and teaching it to my kiddos. I also saw the value and interest that my students took in it and enjoyed sharing the journey on my blog. When I created the unit, I just taught it to my homeroom students at first. I was not trying to keep it from others, but I wanted to wrap my head around it and see how it all worked before sharing it with others. It was like a pilot program and I made changes throughout the unit as I found more helpful resources. I've been excited to hear that other teachers have been sharing the Hidden Figures Young Readers Edition book with their kiddos too. A few teachers at my school are actually reading it with their kiddos right now. A couple weeks ago, a teacher asked if there was an audio recording of the book. I thought I had found a lot of the resources available and I have to admit that a recording was not something that I had ever searched for during this process! In case you're curious, an audiobook does exist. We thought that it be a great project for students though; creating their own version of an audiobook. We wanted it to be more than just a recording however. So, each group is assigned a chapter and they're focused on identifying the characters and key vocabulary. They will also write a chapter summary and create a wordle to represent the chapter. All of this information will be typed in Google Slides. Using the resources available to students, their Chromebooks, we decided the best tool for them to use was Screencastify. Tech Tool Feature: ScreencastifyScreencastify is an extension for Google Chrome. You can add it to Chrome for free by using the webstore. What's great about Screencastify is that it's easy to use and with the free version, you can record videos up to 10 minutes. I'll be honest, I found that out because I reached the limit! Screencastify allows you to record your voice over your desktop or if you have a webcam, you can also record a video. Since Screencastify is a Chrome extension, it creates a folder in your Google Drive and automatically stores all of your videos there! It acts like any other files in Google Drive, so you are able to share it too. I've been using it to record my desktop and create demonstration videos to teach students how to do something (like create an action plan in Google Sheets). It's a great way to meet the needs of your visual and auditory learners. They are able to watch the video at their own pace and pause it, if need be. It allows students who have been absent to catch up and allows teachers to save their voice from repeated directions. Book Shout OUtA Hidden Figures picture book was released in January and it's great! It's by the same author (Margot Lee Shetterly) and is titled Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women in the Space Race. It's a good way to build background for students before reading the Young Readers Edition, as a way to share the story with younger students or you don't have time to tackle the Young Readers Edition. I would highly recommend it. The illustrations by Laura Freeman are eye-catching and full of color and the book is informative and entertaining. You may know that Scott Kelly has a book for lifelong learners called Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery. I haven't read it because I'm currently engrossed with Riding Rockets - The Outrageous Tales of a Space Shuttle Astronaut by: Astronaut Mike Mullane . You may not know that Scott Kelly also has a picture book called My Journey to the Stars. It's a great combination of illustrations by Andre Ceolin and pictures that connect with a younger audience. In the book, Scott talks about events as a kid and his life as an astronaut. See what he says about the book, in his own words below. The students are in the midst of this Hidden Figures Podcast Project. As they progress, I'll be sure to share!! In my true fashion, I have created resources and a rubric, of course, that would allow you to create your own project in your classroom. As soon as formatting is complete, I'll be putting it in my Teachers Pay Teacher store. Tinkercad resources will be added soon as well. Students are using Screencastify to create a virtual tour of their solar system!! This week, I'm co-teaching what we're calling, Mission Days. We've adapted the NASA & PBS Design Squad Touchdown lesson to incorporate the Purdue SLED (Science Learning through Engineering Design) structure. I've been thrilled to continue to also share space exploration outside the classroom as I embark on my second year in space. A few teachers have been showing the PBS Documentary, A Year in Space , that chronicles Scott Kelly's journey, to their classes. One teacher asked if she could borrow it to take home because she had been talking about it and her husband really wanted to see it. A couple of nights ago when I went out to dinner, the host stopped me. I was wearing my Crew jacket and he asked what my patch was. I explained that I was a teacher who was working on lessons to teach space exploration. His response was "dope". From a teenage boy, I would say that's a pretty big compliment! I can't wait to update you more on all of these awesome space happenings! Until then... Peace, love and space exploration,
- CAPCOM Conrad
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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 Picture above is one of the first things I saw when I walked into Space Center Houston. I was absolutely amazed and in that moment, I knew I was in the right place! I'm thinking of John F. Kennedy's famous speech in Rice Stadium at the University of Texas on September 12, 1962. If you're not familiar, these words gave life to the space program. They challenged the country and forever changed history. "We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too." I thought about these words as we finished our unit and I was grading their final projects. (I know I'm a space geek. I also dreamed about the James Webb Telescope the other night. ) At first, I was underwhelmed. To be completely honest, I was frustrated. I had designed a rubric and the projects were not scoring well. Several questions came to my mind. I wondered:
After pondering, I realized that I was expecting the work of high schoolers. I had envisioned a project that I had done my sophomore year of french class. I also needed to remember that my students didn't have experience with this type of project. I gave them a lot of choice and didn't provide any examples. So, I took a step back and revised the rubric. Every project wasn't stellar and some students didn't even complete a project, but learning took place. I learned that I need to provide examples, visuals and review expectations. I learned that the end of the year may have also not been the best time for this major project. I learned that I need to create more learning opportunities like this student centered project, so that they can show growth throughout the year and be able to produce a high-quality creation by the end of the year. I learned how the growth mindset can help you, regardless of age or job title. I did sneak in an assignment that I hadn't planned when mapping out the unit. I was inspired by our field trip to the Indianapolis Museum of Art and am trying to provide more art opportunities in my classroom. So, I asked students to create a new book cover for Hidden Figures, the Conrad's Class Edition. We looked at the covers for the hardcover and paperback. They had to include the title, author, edition and New York Times Bestseller. It had to be a full page design related to the book and include color. The rest was up to them! Ms. Shetterley, if you're looking for a new design, let my kiddos know! Check out these awesome examples: Another amazing experience at Space Center Houston was Rocket Park. This is the Saturn V rocket. I repeat...this is the SATURN V ROCKET. This took men to the moon!? Walking into this building blew me away and the engines weren't even on! To give you an idea of the size, if you can't tell from the panoramas, this rocket takes up an entire building. The small brown cone-shaped piece is the capsule. That's where the astronauts were. You can see it in the photo above. At the opposite end of the rocket is the engine. For good reason too.
Pictured above is the F-1 Engine, a cluster of five total engines. Each one weighs about 16,000 lbs and provides a thrust of 1.5 million lbs! In other words, a powerhouse! This rocket had a huge impact on the space program. Seeing this had a huge impact on me. I hope that the Hidden Figures unit had the same impact on my students. We finished reading the book, all 23 chapters! We did it! I'm so pleased with how it went. We wrapped up Friday with 2 summative assessments. 1) Comprehension test - Matching people and description - Multiple choice events and vocabulary - Fill in the blank 2)Written response test - Students could chose 2 questions to answer from a list. - Each question was related to a major topic or theme from the book. - Students had to answer using the RACE strategy. - Each answer is graded using a rubric. * RACE is an acronym and it's a great step-by-step way to answer questions with evidence from the text. I will focus a future blog post on this strategy alone.* Monday, students are turning in their 2 performance assessments. 1) Book Cover Re-design -> Conrad's Class Edition 2) Hidden Figures Project - The format was student choice. - They had to answer our unit's central questions in a creative way: What does it mean to be a Hidden Figure? How am I/can I be a hidden figure? Stay tuned for pictures of student's book covers and projects! Peace, Love and Space Exploration, - CAPCOM Conrad #HiddenFigures #SpaceCenterHouston #RocketPark #SaturnV #studentimpact I wanted to update you on how the Hidden Figures unit is going. In a word, GREAT! Despite state testing changing our schedule, we've been able to fit in our reading each day. Yesterday, the first day after completing 8 days of testing and an altered schedule, we had the best reading time so far this year!!
We're about halfway through the book and here's what I've learned. 1. You can't anticipate everything. I thought planning out comprehension questions on each chapter and related articles or video clips would cover it. I thought I'd be able to reach my diverse group of students with a book that focuses on African American women. I was wrong, but that's okay. Our discussions have not been what I expected. I have to say though, they've been AWESOME! I have really been enjoying the richness of the conversations; watching them learn how life was different and some parts are difficult to come to terms with today. I am fortunate to have a diverse group of kiddos that are able to talk about segregation and come to the realization that it wasn't fair and doesn't make sense. My curious and inquisitive fifth graders have been asking about what it was like for Hispanics at the time. They wonder if Hispanics would have to follow the white rules or "colored" rules. I had to tell them that I honestly don't know. I've been searching for more information to give them, but haven't found it quite yet. This is a constant conversation in the book about segregation; focusing on the divide between African Americans and whites. It didn't occur to me that there were several groups of people who were not discussed. 2. Students are the real teachers. I knew that this book would be a challenge, but I am thrilled with how my students have conquered it. The Lexile rating is 1120, which corresponds to an independent reading level of a mid-year 8th grader. According to reading assessments, the data is telling me that this isn't a "good fit". This could still be argued, even though we've been reading it aloud, which was my plan and provides them with instructional support. I wanted to mix it up a little bit, so yesterday I asked if anyone wanted to read aloud. I was so happy to have several volunteers. In case you're wondering, they weren't all of my kids who "should" be reading this book. Despite challenging terminology and constant introduction of unfamiliar words, they tackled the text. My class was focused and supportive of their peers. 3. I need to slow down. This may be obvious and I'm not sure why it took me so long to figure out, but it did. We were reading the whole chapter and then they would answer the questions. Yesterday, we stopped after each section within the chapter for a few minutes for them to answer the questions. It has given them more focus, purpose and accountability throughout our daily reading. Does every student understand everything I read? NO Is every one of my kiddos gaining something useful from this book? YOU BET! *On my own, I'm really enjoying the book An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth by: Chris Hadfield (Canadian astronaut). Stay tuned for more updates as we progress through the unit! - CAPCOM Conrad signing off I was absolutely thrilled when the movie Hidden Figures came out. I will begrudgingly admit, I had NO idea of the roles behind the scenes. I had explored the history of spaceflight; the astronauts, the missions, and the patches. I knew about the Space Race, but I had not considered the tumultuous times and struggles occurring in the US at the time. As the credits rolled and on the screen appeared the words "Inspired by the book", I knew I had to read it. Upon further investigation, this teacher was ecstatic upon learning of the Young Readers Edition of the book and I knew I wanted to use it in my classroom. So, I purchased a class set of Hardcover books. Why hardcover? you ask. I mean I want the books to last and I teach fifth grade! I wasn't sure what I wanted to do exactly, but decided to read the book and see where it took me. Learning about new things, collecting resources from a variety of places and creating units is one of my favorite things. In my true fashion, I scoured for resources and ultimately decided to create a lot of my own. See Author's Note below. The book is targeted for 8-12 year olds, but the Lexile Level is 1120. This corresponds to ~8th grade reading level, depending on your students. I know that I have some kiddos who are ready for this, but many who are not there yet. I still want them to be able to experience this awesome story and all the benefits reading it provides though! In order to do that, my plan is to read the book together, either whole group or in small groups. Also, the historical context will definitely need to be discussed as my students are unfamiliar with this time period and it is not specifically covered in my standards. To provide them with the necessary background information, I found other (mostly multimedia) resources. I have attached my unit overview as a pdf to download at the end of this post. Resources that align well with the book:
Things I love about the book:
Thank You:
Authors note: There are targeted resources already created that are available for purchase on teacherspayteachers.com . From what I gathered, they were mostly supplemental readings, activities and a lot more of a focus on the movie than the book. Stay tuned readers for more updates on what my unit entails and how it's going in my classroom!
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AuthorApollo 13 fan. Educator. Lifelong Learner. Third generation Boilermaker. Space Exploration Enthusiast. Collaborator. Click Subscribe to stay updated!Archives
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