21st-Century Topics and Tools

The physics topic that I chose to explore was Galileo’s principal “showing that (ignoring air resistance) heavy and light objects accelerate at the same constant rate as they fell” (Stern, 2006).   I found a very simple yet amazing website that allows the students to explore this principal with and without air resistance.  This website can be found at http://www.planetseed.com/node/20129.   Even though this website seems very juvenile I think it is very effective. 

This website helps the students to become 21^st-century scientifically literate students because they will be able to fully understand how objects accelerate at the same rate.  In class we are limited to the things that we can show our students and no matter how well we explain it the visual learners will not grasp the concept.  With the advances in technology we are able to show the students things that cannot be easily demonstrated. 

After introducing this concept with an interactive PowerPoint, we would do an activity that was similar to the one we performed the first week of this class.  The following day I would have the students explore the interactive websites.   The students will keep notes of what objects they chose to drop and the result for normal mode.  They will also have to keep notes on vacuum mode.  After they are done with the activity they will have to summarize their findings. 

The challenges that I might face that are very typical when I work with technology are, old computers, low batteries, and the internet going down.  That is why it is a must for me to always have a back-up plan. 

References:

SEED (2012).  Galileo drops the ball.  Retrieved from http://www.planetseed.com/node/20129

Stern, David P. (2006) The way things fall. Retrieved from: http://www-spof.gsfc.nasa.gov/stargaze/Sfall.htm

The Heat Is On!

In my experiment, I covered my mugs in aluminum foil, a wash cloth, plastic wrap, and a bounty paper towel.  The results of my experiment are listed in the data table below.   I discovered that the best insulator of heat was the aluminum foil and the worst was the plastic wrap. 

	Original Temperature	Final Temperature	Temperature Change
Aluminum Foil	94o F	89o F	5o F
Cloth	94o F	88o F	6o F
Plastic Wrap	94o F	84o F	10o F
Bounty Paper Towel	94o F	86o F	8o F

If I were to repeat this experiment, I might try other things such as glass, wood, metal, cardboard, rug, etc.  I think using materials such as these would also make it more interesting for my students.  I believe that by using out of the box materials such as these, my students will have to think critically about the outcome of the experiment.   I would assume that glass would be a good insulator since “it has many small air spaces” making it difficult for the molecules to move through (Tillery, Enger, & Ross. 2008. pg 86).  

 I also like the idea of trying to have the students keep food warm.  This would be a great real world scenario.  The question that I would pose to the students is, “The only thing you have for lunch today is a hot dog and you want it to stay as warm as possible.  What would you wrap it in to ensure that you had a nice warm lunch?”   I think some items such as water have the potential (when left uncovered) to cool faster than the food because of its state of matter.  Since water is a liquid, the particles are free to leave the mug allowing the water to cool faster.    

References:

Tillery, B. W., Enger, E. D., & Ross, F. C. (2008). Integrated science (4^th ed.). New York:

McGraw-Hill.

Exploring the Physical World: Week 2 Blog Post

The problem that I chose to test was how different surfaces would affect the momentum of marbles.  In order to explore this problem, I first set up a ramp that would allow the marble to roll down and gain momentum.  I then measured an additional three feet for the marble to roll on the selected surface.  I placed a barrier at the end of the three feet so I knew when to stop my stopwatch. 

The first surface that I tested on was a low rise carpet.  I completed three trial runs and then found the average time, which was two seconds (see data table 1 in reference section).  Next, I moved onto a wood floor.  After completing the trial runs, I discovered that on average, the marble rolled the total distance in 1.5 seconds (see data table 1).  So far it looked as if my hypothesis, the smoother the surface the longer the marble could maintain its momentum, was correct.  To truly determine if my hypothesis was correct I wanted to test on a rougher surface.  The final test that I performed was on very rough carpet.  I was not shocked when the marble stopped completely a few feet before reaching the barrier.   See results below. 

Data Table 1: Small Marble

	Trail 1	Trial 2	Trial 3	Average
Low Rise Carpet	1.9 seconds	2.0 seconds	2.1 seconds	2 seconds
Wood Floor	1.5 seconds	1.6 seconds	1.6 seconds	1.6 seconds
Rough Carpet	Did not make it to three foot barrier

The inquiry experience made me curious about the other concepts that I had read. 

Data Table 2: Large Marble

	Trail 1	Trial 2	Trial 3	Average
Low Rise Carpet	1.8 seconds	1.7 seconds	1.8 seconds	1.8 seconds
Wood Floor	1.4 seconds	1.4 seconds	1.4 seconds	1.4 seconds
Rough Carpet	2.4 seconds	2.5 seconds	2.4 seconds	2.4 seconds

To ensure that the experiment worked out, I completed a few test runs before actually recording any data because I wanted to make sure I pushed the marble and started the clock at the same exact time.  I quickly learned that if I listened for the marble to hit the barrier, rather than looking at the marble, I received the most accurate results.

 I think this experiment is very fun for the students if you allow them to pick their surfaces that they can test on and design the steps of the experiment.  The only problems that I might encounter is bringing in different surfaces for the students to test on.  I could relate this experiment to their lives by asking them when different surfaces have affected their lives.  For example, riding a bike on ice roads verses dirt roads. 

The goal of this experiment is for my students to understand the concept of momentum and how different surfaces can affect momentum, as well as different masses.   

Meiosis Lesson Plan

Last week I began writing a lesson plan that would help my students understand the process of meiosis.  This lesson was an introductory lab that would allow the students to simulate the process of meiosis.  During the lesson, the students observed that the parent cell started out with 4 chromosomes and just like mitosis divided into 2 cells.  They continued the process of cell division even further than mitosis, resulting in four gamete cells with half the number of chromosomes as the parent cell.  They were then able to explain why it is important for the gamete cells to only have half the number of chromosomes as the parent cell.   

After observing the students and grading their labs, I was very pleased with the outcome.  I also used this information to help me plan the lesson on the following day.  The students were able to correctly identify the process of meiosis and also could identify the similarities and differences between mitosis and meiosis.  Out of 24 students in the classroom only 5 students earned a grade of 79 or below.  Although I wish everyone was in the A or B range, with such a low number of students below a 79, it gave me the opportunity to work with these students in a small group setting while the rest of the class completed the extension microscope lesson. 

I was not sure how to add the lab and work samples to this page so I attached it as a word document in the question and answer section of the course home posted under Group 5 Blog: Lab and Work Samples for you to view.  Sorry for the inconvenience!!   

Melting Icebergs

After performing the melting icebergs experiment I can conclude that if the icebergs melt the water level will rise.  How much it will rise and how fast will depend on many factors.  Some factors to consider are, how much of the icebergs are melting each day?   What is the total percentage of ice that currently exists?  Are the oceans and seas at maximum capacity or does it have room to raise if the icebergs melt? 

After performing this experiment I had three main questions that I wanted to further investigate.  The first question was what would happen if I repeated the experiment again but this time added more ice to the bowl?  Just as I hypothesized, the more ice the quicker and easier the water flowed out of the bowl.  The next question that I had was what would happen if there were strong gusts of wind for a long period of time?  Sure enough, when I blew onto the water it pushed the water out of the confinement of the bowl.  The last question I had was what would happen if there was a long period of rain?  Any additional water that was added to the bowl overflowed, which showed how quickly lands could become flooded.  I also observed through my experimentation that if the icebergs quickly shifted as a unit or one iceberg slide off of another it caused a wave like effect and the water overflowed. 

Week 2 Reflection of my STEM Lesson

The STEM lesson that I chose to do was on viruses and germs. The science portion of the lesson was a lab activity.  Every student is given a Petri dish filled with flour except one person has baking soda in their Petri dish.  This person will represent the person with the contagious cooties virus.  They pretend that they are at an end of the year pool party and begin sharing their "drinks" (Petri dishes) with each other.  To share drinks the student’s combined the substances in their Petri dish and then divide it back up.  They share their drink with a total of three people.  The students then go back to their seat and are given an eye dropper filled with baking soda.  If their Petri dish fizzes they caught the virus.  They are then placed in cooperative learning groups to answer the question and analysis portion of the lesson and try to trace the path of the virus.  

The technology (and engineering) portion of the lesson involves displaying their group’s virus path map on the video flex.  They also have an extension project with their collaborative group where they have to research the historical perspective on current sanitary practices.  The students can create a model or experiment for their project.  

The math portion of the lesson has the students trying to figure out how many people would be infected in certain situations.  For example: If two people are infected and they each share their drinks with two people and then those two people share with two people, how many total people are now infected?  

The 5 E's strategy was very helpful in planning my lesson however, the lesson format was very time consuming.  If this was how my district required lesson plans to be done I feel like I would spend all my time writing lesson plans and no time practicing and preparing.  With that being said, I do feel like I should be familiar with other lesson formats so I am glad that I am being exposed to it now.  

If I were to implement this lesson, I believe that it would run very smoothly, the only portion that would require extra thought is the extension project.  This would require a large portion of class time and the students would also have to dedicate a large portion of their own time to the project.