A Method to the Madness

I was searching around the internet the other day looking for a website that a heard about in class, teachertube.com. At first I thought Dr. Smirnova was joking when she said it because it sounded so funny, but when I made my way over the the website it was pretty amazing. It has videos, pictures, and even documents for teachers from all over just trying to help each other out. I decided to click on most popular videos just to see what would come up, and I was really surprised at what I found. A video popped up that simply said, "Pay Attention." The entire video is a black screen with white words floating across the page, but the information is incredible. After watching the video it got me thinking about the past week and why we were doing what we did in class. Why did we have to find an article about science in the news? Why did we create podcasts of our scientist interviews? Why do we have to make posts on our blog?

Even though I sort of already knew many of these answers, the video I watched reaffirmed everything I believed. We grew up in an age of exploding technology and instead of trying to beat it, we need to join it. At the beginning of this week, I have to admit I was beginning to get a little overwhelmed. Between the moon log and the chapters and the posts and the projects and the presentations, it all seemed to catch up to me very quickly. I mean I looked at the calender and it was 'week 5' already? I couldn't believe it. But between listening to Dr. Smirnova's former student and watching this video, everything became extremely clear. The work we are doing is for us, not for any one else. The fact the Dr. Smirnova sees that and helps us along the way, it's just really refreshing. I think the reason most of us felt completely overwhelmed at the beginning of this class was because we aren't used to having a professor who isn't concerned about just grades, but also our success. We have proven we can all be good students, but can we be good learners? It is a question I will continue to ask myself probably for a long time until I am able to find the answer.

In the end, this week was kind of a break through. Everything I do from now on will be for me, and my career. The blogs, the podcasts, the smart board, the research, the internet, the technology...it is all worth it. We are going to be teaching kids who have been born into a world of instant gratification and being constantly entertained. It is up to us, as future teachers, to do what we have to do and learn everything we can so we can reach and teach every child. I truly believe Dr. Smirnova is helping us make that happen.

The groundhog was right!

This morning I actually woke up to the sun shining in my bedroom window and the birds chirping. The weather today has been amazing and I am so happy to finally be seeing grass on my front lawn. As I was walking from class to class today, it was impossible to not to notice the affect the weather had on people. When it was freezing, people walked by themselves with their heads down trying to get to where they needed to be as fast as they could. But today, everyone was laughing and taking their time  and just enjoying being outside. It was truly invigorating. With everything melting, it is getting me extremely excited for spring. Yet I keep telling myself it's only February. I really hope the groundhog was right this year and spring does come early. I'm so ready for flip flops and I can't wait to put the uggs away! 

Interview with Dr. Moran

Interview with a Scientist

This link is for our interview with Dr. Moran. He was very kind and accommodating and Amanda and I really enjoyed speaking with him! However, it wasn't as easy as we thought to get the interview. When Amanda and I first walked in to Dr. Moran's office, he seemed shocked that we needed something from him on a friday afternoon. So we began explaining our project to him and he was a little less than enthused. Looking back, we probably should have e-mailed him before we went to his office, but we honestly did not think it was going to be an issue. Eventually Dr. Moran agreed to help us so Amanda and I set up the computer and we got the interview started. As the three of us were talking, the conversation flowed smoothly and he actually had some very interesting insights. I thought it was great that his family instilled a love a science in him early on. I truly believe he loves his job and he's doing it for the right reasons. He seems extremely passionate about wanting to help students love science and go on to have a successful careers. I thought it was a great interview and we were very thankful that Dr. Moran was able to give us a few moments of his time, especially on a friday!

Little Scientists

Knowing that you can't learn for you students is a hard concept to grasp. I mean I know it's impossible, but actually reading it proves a stronger point. Dreaming of being the education profession, I think I went into it with this feeling that I was going to be able to change the lives of all my students. Even though I still believe that, I am a little more realistic now that I am older. In no way have I lowered my expectations, I just think the quote made me realize not to take things personally if a few students don't learn every single lesson. I believe children have to be truly interested in what they are learning to get everything they can out of it. Even I am not interested in every single topic, so I wouldn't expect my students to be either. However, I wouldn't want my students to just give me answers because they think that's what I'm looking for. I'm guilty of it and I hope to change that. I think children try to use big words and add extra information to make their answers seem longer. I think children really want to impress their teachers, especially when they aren't comfortable with the material they learned.

I think it was awesome Mr. Wilson let his students explore the icicles in their own way. I feel it would have really discouraged the children if he stopped and corrected them. By letting them discover the melting for themselves, they were able to use trial and error. He created an extremely comfortable environment for them, in which one student didn't even participate in the project he planned. I think that takes an amazing amount of patience and flexibility, two important qualities teachers need to have. I think many teachers would have felt out of control in that situation because things didn't go according to plan, but Mr. Wilson was able to look past that and see what was truly important for his students to learn. He didn't ask them to memorize definitions and he didn't try to teach new concepts while they were exploring. He just let them be and become scientists. 

I chose to put in the cartoon above because I think it fits perfectly with this post and even blog in general. Our science class is like the "neighborhood" and this chapter was sort of about using things in your own life that can relate to science, just like the icicles. I think it's important for kids to use things that are familiar to you and your students because there is already prior knowledge there. Living in such a beautiful area, the Hudson Valley has unlimited resources. Trees, water, and even small animals are all around us and they are the perfect additions to any science experiment. 

Winter Wonderland?

Some icicles hanging outside my window!
They were so huge I couldn't even get them all in the picture!

The weather the past few weeks has been absolutely crazy. At the beginning of the year when we were having all of these storms, I thought it was great. I love watching the snow fall and I don't even mind shoveling. But lately, it has been out of control. The ice storms are so dangerous and my black car looks white from all the salt. If it was just white fluffy snow, maybe I would feel different but the ice is just making everything difficult. Thankfully its been a little warmer so everything has melted off the power lines and branches. I'm so ready for Spring! I can't wait for the day I can go to school or work without having to warm up the car! 

New Beginnings

Even though I'm already three posts into this blog, I neglected to talk about how this whole thing got started. A new year signifies a new beginning, much like the start of a new semester. While it can be a little scary, it can also be very exciting. A new semester is a chance to obviously learn new things and even improve on skills that aren't so great. 

When I walked into science methods for the first time, I was ready for a new beginning. I sat down next to a bunch of familiar faces and class immediately began with ice breakers. We were given pieces of construction paper and were told to simply write our names and we could even draw something that represented who we were. Even though it seemed like a minor detail, it was important to me because it showed me the professor actually cared who we were. Of all my five classes, science methods was the only one where we were given the opportunity to be creative. I also loved how we had to write down our science experiences and feelings about the topic. As much as it was for Dr. Smirnova to get a deeper understanding of who we are, it was also for me too. It forced me to think about science and answer questions I never even thought about. 

It was really important that we spent that first day thinking about ourselves as scientists, and even as students. As a teacher, I think it's extremely important to get to know your students. Especially in elementary school, hobbies and interests are the most important things in kids lives. Knowing what your students like and dislike can be a huge help when trying to make lessons and I think it can make a huge difference. Ice breakers are a great way to get to know your students, let your students know you, and even create a comfortable environment for everyone.