Our teachers and volunteers sometimes tell the stories better than we do. The following post was written by middle school science teacher LeAnn Strate.
Like most educators, I love finding new and interesting ways to engage my students in my curriculum. Not so easy to find, when you’re trying to teach Earth Science to a bunch of 13 to 14 year old 8th graders who figure they already know everything there is to know about it because after all they live on it, right? How do you excite students who think they already have it all figured out? You put them right in the middle of it up to their knees, literally, with the General Motors GREEN program. Read the rest of this entry »
To start off 2010, we are still working on our Solar Energy unit that I blogged about in my last post. In this post you saw examples of the circuits and housings for the solar panels that the students had designed and constructed. Now, those circuits are being integrated into everyday products in order to give use to portable wireless power. Read the rest of this entry »
Well, it’s just before winter break and we are only halfway through our physics unit. I had wanted to be finished with physics by now so that we could move on to chemistry in January, but no can do. The unit is easily taking twice as long as I expected, but it is ok since my students are learning a lot about physical laws. Most of the unit uses pipe insulation, marbles and measuring devices such as meter sticks and stopwatches. My students use these materials to develop experiments to answer questions about motion. The unit is taking longer because it only allows one day per question and my students have needed two days per question. Normally the first day is planning the experiment, while the second day is implementing the plan, gathering results and forming conclusions. I usually have my students post their conclusions online on our message board. After posting their results, they compare their results to other groups and respond to another group’s posting. Ultimately, each student forms an answer to the original question and writes it in their journal. In looking at my students’ quiz scores, it seems to be working. They average about 75% mastery, which for this population is a huge improvement from my first two years teaching this same subject. Read the rest of this entry »
I really wish I had some more exciting, colorful photos to show you, but the world of electronics and circuitry is not always as aesthetic as hydroponics. As I mentioned in the beginning of the year, our high school students are learning about how to harness the power of the sun in order to charge battery powered devices like phones, ipods and PSPs. While anyone can go to the store and by a solar powered charger for just about any one of these devices, they are extremely expensive. And what about students who want to use solar energy to power devices that they have designed and built themselves (e.g., purse lights or car dashboard LEDs)? Such devices have variable power needs and require individual custom chargers. Read the rest of this entry »
Well, the lettuce sprouts have died, for the most part. I did not have enough fish in the tank to supply water and nutrients to the sprouts. So, I have added 5 more fish and plan to double their feeding schedule. I have a new round of sprouts that are nearly ready to plant. I am going to grow them a bit bigger this time before I transplant them into the hydroponics system. As soon as we get some plants that are growing well, we can begin collecting data for students’ experiments. Read the rest of this entry »
Our teachers and volunteers sometimes tell the stories better than we do. The following post was written by Lowell Bailey, a high school science teacher who shares his classroom experiences learning about water quality and the local watershed in his area with GREEN.
I’m in my 25th year in the classroom and I teach 11th- and 12th-grade environmental science and earth science at Bedford-North Lawrence High School just outside Bedford, Indiana. I am the Science Club sponsor and our Envirothon team has gone on to the state level of the competition four of the last seven years. I love doing anything outdoors, like hiking and camping, and I enjoy collecting rocks, minerals, and fossils. Read the rest of this entry »
In this video, we briefly explain biodynamic farming using aquaponic techniques and tour a classroom with various systems in place for hydroponic and aquaponic farming – both forms of sustainable and predominately organic biotechnologies.
Thanks to everyone who [virtually] attended the live Webcast streamed from the Harvard-Westlake School assembly with the Chevrolet Volt. Dozens of middle school classrooms from around the country tuned in to learn about the science behind some of the advanced technologies driving the future of transportation like electric vehicles.
Problematic peanut plants, batman. We are having some issues with rodents consuming our plants. We had to pull most of the plants inside. There are a few plants that need to be outside because it is part of that group’s experimental design, but most are inside now. The plants that are outside are surrounded by chicken wire. I am hopeful that the little rodents cannot get to the plants. Because of this setback, we have to extend some of our experiments a few more weeks. Read the rest of this entry »
It’s time to get your students charged up about the electrification of the automobile! And on Monday, Nov. 30, Weekly Reader and Chevrolet will provide schools across the U.S. with an excellent opportunity.
