Teaching Boxes SHARING

Maureen- ecology

• essential questions - what is biodiversity, what effects it, etc.
• find a space to grow some weeds on campus
• terrarium to model succession - start with a pond in a small aquarium, elodea, add a few seeds each day to make into forest.
  
• tell me about where you live, relate neighborhood or town to eco terms like species, population, etc
• check out biodiversity in weed patch
• two videos - rainforest's and SF bay
• what causes changes? two bottles with tops cut off, one is open, one has saran warp on top, measure temp
• Whats in the water? pony beads represent types of pollution in water. each color is different pollution, give them a "sample of water" (selection of beads) and graph amount of each
• online simulation about goldfish
• not native species - yellow star thistle, non native invading SF bay
• MIDDLE of unit on ecology

Ani and Geoff - Chemistry/dimensional analysis

• UNITS big deal, cancelling units, hard to teach!
• start in basic measurement mode
• take own food size and use as measurement to measure height - shorter person might take MORE of their own feet! Talk about need for STANDARDS in measurement
• metric balances - soda, tab up, clothespin on tab, middle of straw goes on clothespin, paper clip on each end, small dixie cup on each side - how many beans = one penny? how many beads equal 5 paperclips?
• 10 in. by 3 cm pieces of whiteboard, divide it to make their own ruler, directions for how they made their ruler, pass it on and see if the other group can do it
• then can teach set up for dimensional analysis problems, be really picky!

Tom -What is Science?

• Find out what they know
• film canisters - 32 with 8 different things, find someone that matches you - smells maybe? guess what the smell is! bottom of one is 103... 1+3+0 =4, match is 22... 2+2=4
• foot measurement again. If you are paying $2 for each foot of carpet, which foot would you want to use? Big foot or little foot?
• Making greeting card boxes activity, can do LxWxH to volume ratio
• box with foam shapes and marble in side, have to figure out the shape of foam piece - mystery box
• volume of fluids - 7 or 8 different shape jars, bottle, etc. Estimate how much liquid to fill up, guess then find out how accurate they are

David - 1st grade!

• measurement book - how big is a foot? grade level 1.9 by rolf myller
  
• need help sorting things, attributes
• measure length and width! Button Box
  
• have kids bring in collection

Tom - What Is Science?

• flexible for 6, 7, 8th
• video - "Minds of their own" - on misconceptions. On MIT engineering students who can NOT take battery, copper, and light and get it to light! Show students what NOT to do - think you know it all but you don't! ALWAYS ask questions
• Following Directions - last one says "don't do any of these!"
• Penny exercise - draw a penny to best of their memory, then project transparency with 15 diff. possibilities, they have to pick which is correct
• Establishing a theory - Checks activity

Shana - Conducting controlled experiments

• doing thesis on a handbook for doing a science fair
• need to focus on how to make controlled experiments
• Great Tomato Race - use ketchup packets, focused on figuring out variable, constants, etc. Students are asked to relate components to project, why repeated trials are necessary, etc
• Hot Solutions - add calcium chloride to water, how does adding more increase temp of water? learning about collecting data, transferring to calculation table to comprehensive data table, etc.
  
• diagram/chart of variables, etc
• practice problems, reading scenarios, fill out diagram for each story
• lesson on writing procedures and materials list

Brian/Tim/Alix - 8th grade astronomy

• focus on size and scale, phases of moon, looking at galaxy, sampling as statistical method (stars of universe)
• combining earth as peppercorn activity and using fruits
• hole punch earth activity
• toilet paper roll scale of solar system
• use overhead as sun, scale down others to compare with room sized light from overhead
• foldables - flipchart with each planet, each flap has facts and also scaled dot of planet

Bree - beginning of year review for metrics and graphing

• bowling ball ramp - have timer each 5 meters for 25 meters starting at bottom of ramp, release ball, time when pass each 5 meters, practice graphing
• practice massing using premade dixie cups, use square masses to practice weighing AND volume
• show on overhead what a good graph should have - units, title, labels, etc.
  
• graph straightening

Dorota/John/Galena - magnetism

• should already know static electricity, opposite attracts and same repels, know what current is (already finish electricity)
• Where is north with donut magnets we did with Paul at RAFT
• mapping magnetic field - use filings, magnet underneath, see how they line up
• link E&M - connect wire to both sides of battery, see how its attracted to magnet!
• spinning coil
• electromagnet - moving magnet makes electricity moves another magnet
• idea is not to SHOW but have them BUILD it in a lab (one per group)
• go outside, take lamp cord and spin around like jump rope, make light!

Amy - 10th grade bio, chem as it relates to bio

• beginning molecules
• atomic theory
• take a piece of paper, cut in half each piece until its very very small, well is it still paper?
• build an element with beads and pipe cleaners to show shells
• periodic table, elements, 4x6 cards with about 18 organic elements, each group has to do library research on it, and where they find it
• bonding, hydrogen bond, beaker of water, float a paperclip,
  
• wax paper, water on that, see water rolls around
• have them design own experiment for cohesion of water
• at the end, ask 5 key questions, ask them to answer it, don't even need to put their name on it!

Noel/Charles - 10th grade bio, polymers/monomers

• find polymer, beaded necklace, train, each bead is a monomer, the necklace is a polymer, what connects them?
• card game for polymers and monomers
• amylase and cracker activity, talk about starches breaking down,
  
• liver lab, denature it
• nutrients lab - test for all different types of nutrients
• act out polymers - separate from boys and girls, boys are purines and girls are pyrimidines, etc. "DNA Dance"
• Physical representation of amino acids to make something

Jane - genetics

• "Post modern mendelism"
• book - Garden Genetics: Teaching with edible plants
• light base for growing mechanism
• egg cartons for planters, fold newspaper in origami fold, put soil in, grow seedlings
• ORDER SEEDS weeks in advance!
• cucumbers - plant cucumber seeds. Have a gene that makes them bitter, some don't. Can taste in cotyledon right away if bitter or nonbitter! guess what cross is to make all of those babies
• tobacco seedlings, albino, not albino, also plant some in the dark - all ones in dark are white, but when put in light some will now turn green
• paper tabs DNA models

James - Physical Science/earth science

• plate tectonics
• plate tectonic maps, cut into plates, laminate, have to put in puzzle
• continental drift
• puzzle where pieces fit together to make Pangaea
• sea floor spreading, day 3
• two models
• +/- poles reversal, older material on outside, newer on inside
• combine into plate tectonic theory - convection currents in mantle
• take hot and cold water with food coloring, watch one mix and one not do anything
• playing with convection currents
• 5th day, list of long and lat for earthquakes, "graph" on map, will see edges of plates
• find how fast plates are moving
• get maps at USGS "Dynamic Planet Map"
• Book - plate techtonic history