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Grades 11-12 |
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Dr. Foti |
1. Activities and projects I worked on in this course.
~ Developed a personal electronic portfolio as a web page, which contained the following:
~ Developed Scope & Sequence with behavioral objectives for a 5th grade unit on Energy and Motion.
~ Wrote a mission statement for a school justifying their adoption of digital portfolios.
~ Reviewed a simulation (SimFarm) and discussed findings via a Powerpoint presentation.
2. How I might use one of the activities listed above as a template for a classroom activity.
The SimFarm simulation was particularly intriguing for its potential in the classroom. In addition to the applications we mentioned in our presentation (interdisciplinary unit for the entire class, individual station use, coordination with gardening project), I would use the simulation to introduce the students to the concept of functioning systems. The farming simulation would provide students with a complex model with many variables to analyze. Students could practice diagramming a flow chart with influencing factors effecting possible farming scenarios. They could compare and contrast the farming system to other systems.
With further investigations, students could also compare this farming system simulation with farming practices in other countries. Benefits and drawbacks could be identified for each different practice. To learn more about other farms and their operations, students would participate in an internet project called "Farms From Around the World." This project is based on the children's book, Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown. Stanley was a little boy who wanted to visit his friends in California, but it was too expensive for his parents to send him. But when Stanley was flattened by a bulletin board his parents realized they could now mail him to California. Students in the "Farms Around the World Project" (http://www.benicia.k12.ca.us/henderson/fawproject.htm) enlist farms to "host" their versions of a Flat Stanley for a period of 2 weeks. Students create a paper likeness of themselves, fold it up and send it by postal mail to the participating farms. They enclose a letter with information about their town and a personal journal for the "paper students". Someone at the farm would then make daily entries in the journal for the "Flat Stanley paper student" about the daily routine or other activities he or she "experienced." When finished the participating farm would then mail "the student", the journal and any souvenirs that the "student" collected back to the school to display in their classroom.
Finally, my students could enrich their SimFarm simulation by trying to pattern their simulation after one of the farms their "Flat Stanley" visited.
3. Identification of my philosophical perspective: Intellectual Traditionalist, Social Behaviorist, or an Experientialist.
As a teacher I must wear a number of different hats (i.e., "ship captain," "entertainer," "guide," "air traffic controller," "detective," or "judge") therefore my philosophical perspective has developed into a mixture of three perspectives. My mixture would breakdown as follows: 10% Intellectual Traditionalist, 45% Social Behaviorist, and 45% Experientialist.
Many of my activities require students to address a topic from each perspective. For example, in a unit on energy I begin it as an Intellectual Traditionalist by instructing students to explore the history of man's effort to understand energy. Next as Social Behaviorist, I require students to analyze how a society's needs effects energy production and consumption. Finally as an Experientialist, I allow students to freely explore their own interests on energy and report how their investigations have affected their personal growth.
4. Below is a learning module I constructed which addresses a specific theme.
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Grades 11-12 |
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A picture of Earth from space seems commonplace today but it has only been in the past thirty years that we have been able to view our world against the vast, black backdrop of space. The first astronauts not only explored the unknown, but sent back words and pictures of their impressions viewing the Earth seen from afar.
"Now I know why I am here. Not for a closer look at the moon, but to look back at our home, the Earth." Alfred Worden, USA
"After an orange cloud - formed as a result of a dust storm over the Sahara and caught up by air currents- reached the Philippines and settled there with rain, I understood that we are all sailing in the same boat." Vladimar Kovalyonok, USSR
In order to be better caretakers of the planet we need much more information about how our Earth system works. In this module, each group will address one of the following activities on the general topic of Weather Systems. Groups will decide on appropriate reporting procedures and present their findings to the class on a date determined by Mr. Jones.
Weather Module - Activity 1
Using the "Weather Channels' - Everything Weather" CD (see Mr. Jones for this resource, which is available from Sunburst), develop a webpage that reports on how hurricanes are formed and tracked. Incorporate videos, photographs and maps into your presentation. Provide tracking examples of historical hurricanes and the damage they caused to cities and the local ecosystems.
Weather Module - Activity 2
After exploring the Exploratorium's Learning Studio website, the How Things Work website, and "The Way Things Work" CD (see Mr. Jones for this resource, which is available from Sunburst), select five instruments that help scientists gather data on the weather and explain how they function and the basic science concepts underlying their operation. Your presentation should include several hands-on activities to aide the class in understanding the science concepts (the Exploratorium can help with this).
Weather Module - Activity 3
Your assignment is to make a multimedia presentation on the milestones in the history of weather measurement and forecasting. Include personal profiles of the scientists involved and any anecdotal stories. Describe how the "nature of science" is illustrated by the scientists and the process they completed. Identify the personal characteristics or traits that were key to the success of the scientists.
Weather Module - Activity 4
Our school is a member of the GLOBE Program (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment). The GLOBE Program is a hands-on international environmental science and education program. GLOBE links students, teachers, and the scientific research community in an effort to learn more about our environment through student data collection and observation. Your group will be responsible for collecting the necessary data to be transmitted daily to the GLOBE program via the internet. Measurement protocols can be found at the GLOBE homepage. Your instructor will provide you with the appropriate instruments and the key to the GLOBE weather station at our school. He will also double check your initial measurements for accuracy. At the end of the unit, your group will report on your collected data using graphs and other charts available from the GLOBE program. Your report must also include at least two comparisons of weather data from other GLOBE sites (with one outside the USA).
Weather Module - Activity 5
The GLOBE Program, described in Activity 4, relies heavily on satellite technology. Satellites are crucial in investigating Earth's weather system. They record photos in multiple radiation wavelengths, provide a global positioning system, communicate data around the world and much more. Your assignment is to first explain the physics of how satellites stay in orbit and why satellites are put in various orbits (check out The Satellite Site at http://www.thetech.org/hyper/satellite/). Second, explain how the Global Positioning System (GPS) functions and its implications to our everyday lives. The GLOBE group from Activity 4 might be able to help you, also view the GLOBE GPS site. Third, use a GPS unit (see Mr. Jones for the unit and its instruction booklet) to determine the position of several sites on our school grounds including: the GLOBE weather station, our classroom, and the school's flagpole.
Weather Module - Activity 6
Coupling the latest technologies of satellite imagery and computer modeling with advances in the chaos theory raise interesting questions on the implications of weather forecasting and/or control. Your assignment is to investigate the status of cutting edge of weather predicting and to find out what the technology gurus are predicting for the future. Include in your presentation internet sites that illustrate computer modeling of weather systems (visit the GLOBE Program website) and include sites that explain other applications of the chaos theory. Discuss the impact and implications of applying the chaos theory to weather systems or other dynamic systems (both large and small).
Weather Module - Activity 7
It seems in recent years our quest to predict the weather has taken on more urgent tones. Because of our growing population and our technology, it now seems we have actually begun to severly alter the climate of our planet. Your assignment is to report on the hot climate issues (pardon the pun) that scientists are investigating (i.e. greenhouse effect). Explore the issues thorougly and present a report that is supported by the latest data and studies. Discuss implications of an increse in global average temperature and what individuals and cities can do to help reduce contributing factors.
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