Why do we only find coal in certain regions?
THINK: The environment for the production of coal is more conducive in some areas than in others.
The changing in the level of ground due to earthquakes and the movement of plates causes an uneven distribution of minerals and resources.
RESEARCH: Coal is made up of carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur which come from decomposed living things. Many years ago the areas that now possess coal were covered with swampy wetlands that had many living things. Coal is simply stored sunlight.
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Saturday, February 6, 2016
Sweater
When students come into class with convictions, it can be incredibly hard to change those preconceptions even if true evidence disproving those ideas is presented. I really appreciate the way that Ms. O'Brien greeted her students misconceptions and had her students write in a journal about their "best thinking so far". This idea sets the children up to know that we all have ideas and we are all trying to make sense of the world with the current information that we have. I like the idea of the magic words in science, "Let's find out!" I think that being aware of our students misconceptions is incredibly important. If we are not aware of what the students are clinging to internally, they may slide through life thinking with a mishmash of fact and fiction in their minds and simply parrot what the teacher told them when it is convenient or with 'get them the grade.' Introducing journals and self reflection at a young age will help these students to be able to reflect on their ideas and defeat misconceptions while investigating the truth. As a teacher, I need to practice what the article suggests, infinite patience and a willingness to let children swim upstream to investigate the truth.
Finally, I really cling to the idea that science as inquiry is a process of uncovering rather than covering. I know that there is a lot of pressure to "cover" the curriculum, but I'm continually learning that its more important for students to uncover their misconceptions and uncover the truth, than it is to "cover" a year's worth of curriculum.
Monday, January 25, 2016
Misconceptions Die Hard
Science is an area where misconceptions can grow faster and wider spread than pesky dandelions. I know that personally it is hard for me to abandon misconceptions and I can often think I am abandoning a misconception while I am really just turning it into a different misconception. As a teacher, misconceptions can hit me out of the blue and be really hard to overcome in a classroom. I agree with the sentiment in the article that it is important for teachers to try and find misconceptions before they even present ideas to their students and use what they have found to help foster true understanding in their classroom.
As this article points out, I think it is important to be aware of ideas that we might think are common sense such as a flat piece of aluminum foil weighs less than that same piece crumpled into a ball. We have to be prepared to encourage thought in students and help them get rid of some of these common misconceptions.
Last semester in Biology Methods, while working on lesson plans using the NGSS, we were required to think of some common misconceptions that students may have on our topic. This helped me to feel more prepared for my lesson and helped me to be ready for questions that my students may have.
As this article points out, I think it is important to be aware of ideas that we might think are common sense such as a flat piece of aluminum foil weighs less than that same piece crumpled into a ball. We have to be prepared to encourage thought in students and help them get rid of some of these common misconceptions.
Last semester in Biology Methods, while working on lesson plans using the NGSS, we were required to think of some common misconceptions that students may have on our topic. This helped me to feel more prepared for my lesson and helped me to be ready for questions that my students may have.
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Solar System
What are your best understandings about?
1. How the phases of the moon occur:
The phases of the moon are directly related to the positions of the earth, the moon, and the sun in relation to one another.
2. What causes the seasons?
Seasons are caused by the proximity of the earth to the sun and the position of the earth towards the sun.
3. What causes a lunar eclipse?
A lunar eclipse happens when the earth's position causes the sun's reflection on the moon to be blocked creating a shadow over the moon.
1. How the phases of the moon occur:
The phases of the moon are directly related to the positions of the earth, the moon, and the sun in relation to one another.
2. What causes the seasons?
Seasons are caused by the proximity of the earth to the sun and the position of the earth towards the sun.
3. What causes a lunar eclipse?
A lunar eclipse happens when the earth's position causes the sun's reflection on the moon to be blocked creating a shadow over the moon.
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Diffendoofer Day
1. What does it mean when someone knows how to think?
Everyone "knows" how to think, but sometimes, we choose to be lazy and we allow our thoughts to have little substance. Someone who "knows how to think" chooses to chase after thoughts and spend time on the thoughts that are high quality and then tries to do something bigger with their thoughts like write about them, tell a friend, or create something out of their thoughts. Someone who "knows how to think" doesn't just wait for someone else to answer a question, they mull it over and try to come up with logical (and even illogical) ideas on their own and then ask for help.
2. How does a teacher teach a student how to think?
A teacher who is teaching their students how to think does not hand their students everything on a platter and expect them to remember those things forever. A teacher who teaches students how to think guides them on learning expeditions and allows the students to ponder over ideas and come to conclusions on their own to enforce personal thinking. A teacher who teaches students to think doesn't expect their students to know everything, but expects students to make mistakes as they are learning and through those mistakes the students are thinking about what went wrong and how they can problem solve.
3. Have you ever been in a class where you really had to think?
In Biology Methods, we weren't given all of the answers on a platter. We were often given a scenario and had to figure out what was going on and how that related to our science topic. I had to use background knowledge to fill in some of the blanks and I had to make educated guesses in some areas and tweak my ideas later when more information was given to me. Seeing that method of teaching science eased my nerves about teaching science in the future and made me realize that I don't have to know everything about science but I do need to be inquisitive, prepared, and ready to think along with my students.
Everyone "knows" how to think, but sometimes, we choose to be lazy and we allow our thoughts to have little substance. Someone who "knows how to think" chooses to chase after thoughts and spend time on the thoughts that are high quality and then tries to do something bigger with their thoughts like write about them, tell a friend, or create something out of their thoughts. Someone who "knows how to think" doesn't just wait for someone else to answer a question, they mull it over and try to come up with logical (and even illogical) ideas on their own and then ask for help.
2. How does a teacher teach a student how to think?
A teacher who is teaching their students how to think does not hand their students everything on a platter and expect them to remember those things forever. A teacher who teaches students how to think guides them on learning expeditions and allows the students to ponder over ideas and come to conclusions on their own to enforce personal thinking. A teacher who teaches students to think doesn't expect their students to know everything, but expects students to make mistakes as they are learning and through those mistakes the students are thinking about what went wrong and how they can problem solve.
3. Have you ever been in a class where you really had to think?
In Biology Methods, we weren't given all of the answers on a platter. We were often given a scenario and had to figure out what was going on and how that related to our science topic. I had to use background knowledge to fill in some of the blanks and I had to make educated guesses in some areas and tweak my ideas later when more information was given to me. Seeing that method of teaching science eased my nerves about teaching science in the future and made me realize that I don't have to know everything about science but I do need to be inquisitive, prepared, and ready to think along with my students.
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