CAST 2010

CAST 2010 was held in our own very George R. Brown Convention Center. CAST is Conference for the Advancement of Science Teaching. It is held annually in various cities. This year Houston hosted over 4,000 participants, and had world reknown speakers. The photostory just highlights a few of of the cites from the conference. Next year, CAST will be in Dallas, TX, Nov. 3-5. Make plans now to attend or either present your science concept. If you have any questions, just ask. Scientifically yours,

Skype

I am now on Skype. If you are also on Skype, add me to your contacts. My Skype name is Dashawn Glover in Houston. Hopefully I'm the only one.

Back to School

Haven't posted in a while, so you know it's back to school. This is year is going to be exciting because of the new science TEKS for the state. You can start viewing the new SBISD curriculum at the following address: I:\Staff\Science or on Forethought.

If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail. I'm looking forward to a new year with Exemplary results.

Scientifically yours,

Mickelson Academy Photostory

Enjoy this short photostory about my trip to the ExxonMobil Mickelson Teachers Academy in The Woodlands.

After 11 Tools: Reflections

1. What are your favorite tools you now have in your personal technology toolbox?
I enjoyed the the image generators, the use of Jing (video storytelling), and the mobile apps.

Briefly describe a particular activity that you will plan for your students using at least one of these new tools.
I'd like for them to use the digital cameras to use their pictures to create a video storytelling. For example, the students would create an experiment where they showed how they controlled the variables. They would then voice over the parts to share with other students how they did it. I believe the students would eat it up because they'd like to learn from other students. In addition, teachers will see how well students are learning the content.

2. How have you transfomed your thinking about the learning that will take place in your classroom?
Our students are entering a fascinating world involving technology. At the ExxonMobile Conference I attended this summer, technolgy is allowing the world to become flat. That is, we can conference, research and talk to people on the other side of world with ease.
In addition, the tools, i.e. Jing, Google Docs/reader, allow for easier conferencing on topics.

3. Were there any unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?
What surprised me is the amount of "new" technology on the Internet.

Tool #11

I'd want our students to learn that they have the right to access the Internet and its resources, use the Internet as a good citizen, and understand that when you use information from the Internet that we give the site(s) their credit.

As we do projects, we can incorporate short mini-lessons on how to use technology; especially the components of citizenship. As our students will start to do more research, how to site and give credit to resources is important. We don't want our students to face the consequences of plagiarism.

In addition, we need to talk about we treat each other on-line. With the stories about cyberbullying, we need to create a safe digital world. We'll definitely have to include parents in working on this at room, so students get the message in both places.

Tool #10

I don't own an I-phone or I-touch, but this made me want to buy one. I borrowed one to review some of the free apps that are available on the I-touch. I explored the following apps:

Cold Spring Hardbor Lab 3D Brain
Free Spanish Tutor by 24/7 Tutor
NASA
Sight Word Flashcards by App-Zoo
Math Drills Lite

These were under the Education page as part of the Top Free apps for the I-touch. Each one was fun to research, and the images were nice. For a multi-sensory person, this piece of technology entertains them all. The Math Drills Lite is a fun way to review math facts. The "mixed" option allows you to review addition, subtration, division and multiplication. I enjoyed the 3D Brain because it allowed you to pull it apart and study the functions of that part of the brain. My son enjoyed the piano app. For some reason, he stated is was "funner" than the real one.

In the classroom, these would be fun. They are great for research, webquests or I-touch quests. I can also see this as a contest for students to race to see you could find the best app for research, or who can find the most relevant apps for research on a topic. I did get a chance to review the Art app at school, and it gave history on a piece of art or structure. It's a differentiated way of doing research and it's fun.

The "WOW moment" is the fact that there is a plethora of apps, and the varied topics and functions. I got on the I-touch, and didn't realize I spent two hours searching through apps; okay, a few minutes were devoted to Skee Ball. You will have to devote some time to explore because there is so much, but teachers can tailor the experience.

Almost Invisible Treehouse

Check out this feat of scientific fun. An almost invisible treehouse was built in Sweden. You'll need to copy and past it into your browser.

http://screencast.com/t/NzM3MTBk

Tool #9

Now this was pretty cool. I downloaded Jing and used it to send my wife a picture/link to a destination. It was easy to click on the "sun" and capture the picture. She got it, said thank you, but said she was already there. Well, I tried. The other opportunity I had was to send my cousin a picture of Hawaiian mountain boarding. She's planning a trip to Hawaii's Big Island, so I told her about it. However, my explanation wasn't enough. I captured a picture and sent a synopsis from the website.
We live in a visual world, especially with video games and the Internet. This way of elaborting your e-mails with pictures, videos directly from the website helps with understanding the content. It's a great way to show an experiment via Jing with a written description directly on the site. Also, it just looks cool. Below is the Jing link directly to the Travel Channel's page for the Extreme Hawaiian Escapes segment.

Tool #8 cont..

The second also came using Hulu and Channel 8's Nova series. This episode is titled "The Secrets of the Parthenon". Like the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Greeks built the Parthenon with precision. However, they did not have the technology we have today.
This video is useful because it shows how an earlier civilization mastered measurement and used it to create a historic structure that stands to this day. The video is also embeded to the left of this posting.

Tool #8

I used Hulu to choose the video, "The Great Robot Race". This story was shown on PBS Channel 8's Nova. It chronicles 43 teams that created a car completely run by computer codes; i.e. robot cars with no human drivers. It's fascinating because the robot car will make all the decision on how to navigate the terrain. Their human "creators" will follow them on the race, and can just watch. It shows exactly what we want our students to do...work on a team, have a novel idea, incorporate the content areas and present their research. It doesn't hurt that their is a million dollar prize for the successful team.
You can imagine the applications in the real world: Automatic pilot for our own personal cars, bikes, motorcycles, as quoted in the film, the ability to deliver crucial supplies to nations or our military on the front lines. It's perhaps another avenu for artificial intelligence.
It also shows how these scientists, computer programmers and engineers had to overcome failures. This is a great video to show how project based learning has impact for our technological advancement.
The video is linked on the side.

Tool #7 cont....

My Photostory is about my study trip to Enchanted Rock.

Tool #7

Photostory, or any digital storytelling, is great for making a video recording of a student's research to the final product. It also integrates our technology TEKS. This would be a great way to present a science project, i.e. the growth of two different types of seeds, and show each step of the process. In addition, the voice over allows for students who are afraid to present in front a group a medium to show their learning.
It's also fun. In our after-school program, our students used he I-books to create digital stories of their learning. They are quite technology savvy.

Tool #6

The wiki reminds me of a blog, but it is centered on a very defined topic. For example, I visited a wiki, research4children.wikispaces.com, that chronicled a first grade class's journey through research. The teachers and students built a wiki in order to share their successes and challenges. They also poste pdf. and word documents on how others can do the same research. They also posted pictures of their students doing the research and presenting their final projects. I also see it as a way to "publish" research.
The same first grade class/teacher did another wiki titled http://first-grade-science.wikispaces.com/.
My first inclination is to use this with teachers to "publish" their problem based projects, science or other content areas, so that it build a bank of resources for the school. It can work the same with students. It shows that research isn't just for a day or two, but can be year long; like true science, math, writing, history research. It's another way to build stamina in reading, writing, etc. The key is to pick topics that sustain this type of learning/research.

I can also see wikis as a way to practice working as a team; teachers and students. You will have to agree on what's posted and how it is organized.

Tool #5

Good Morning,

To keep it simple for myself, I decided to join and use Diigo. It is easier for me to use and I like how it is organized. This site, and probably other sites, has a wide array of resources. You can easily spend hours searching the different groups. I decided to join the project based learning group because of how our district is moving to integration. Our time is short so we need to find projects that allow students to see how the content areas work together, not separate. Here's a list of the sites I tagged and visited today. I organiezed the on Diigo under the tag "Science". I also added a short description of the website. The last one is a link that I received from the Mickelson Teacher's Academy this summer. It has a huge amount of information, so take your time. I'll hotlink them to my "Favorite Websites" on the side.

http://www.teachscienceandmath.com/2010/06/21/5-ways-to-integrate-science-process-skills-in-lessons/
http://geology.com/
http://www.watchknow.org/default.aspx
http://www.kineticcity.com/
http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm
http://livebinders.com/play/play/7370

Science, Technology, Engineering and Math

I have a question for my fellow bloggers and/or followers:

What do you feel the 21st Century students needs to compete in our chaning world?

Please chime in with your answers.

Phil and Amy Mickelson ExxonMobil Academy 6/23/10 to 6/24/10

We are on the last leg of the Academy, and it is still fun and packed with new and old ideas for the classroom. Today, we explored pendulums. It's not a new concept, but the lesson allowed us to use our previous days learning. The scaffolding technique was great because our table said, "We did this yesterday, so let's see if it'll workd today". We created a table to record data, we conducted the experimented, discussed our findings (i.e. were there any outliers, did we control variables, did we follow the procedures).
The class readily used patterns, relationships, asked for clarification, asked "what if?", and respectfully debated different viewpoints. The presenters lent time to discussion/reflection; both verbally and written.
I do recommend this experience for any teacher wanting more content/pedagogy lessons in math and science. If you are interested, discuss it with your administrator and/or department head. Then, visit the website at www.sendmyteacher.com. The deadline for registering is October 2010. It is designed for 3rd-5th grade teachers, but you still ask if you are a PK-2nd grade teacher. The worst thing they can say is "no".
I'm going to add some new weblinks, so please take the time to view them. It'll add to your classroom "toolkit".

Phil and Amy Mickelson ExxonMobil Academy 6/22/10

Today we explored Force and Motion. The Academy incorporated the use of recording data, graphic organizers, writing, defending your claims with evidence in a team atmosphere.
Our focus question was "what are the attributes of tasks that invite student engagement and exploration"? As we went through our lesson, we were to keep this in mind to reflect at the end. The concepts we explored were

*data collection
*use of notebooks in math and science
- their componenets
- effectiveness
*speed
*acceleration
*vectors
*inertia
*variables
*experimental design

My team was great and we worked cooperatively on our tasks. The team and its dynamics greatly increased the enjoyment, discussion and learning for the day.

Scientifically yours

Phil and Amy Mickelson Academy 6/21/10

Today was a busy day at the Academy. We were divided into our PLC's by color and further divided into teams. Today's session was essentially about what a student needs to succeed in the 21st century: Math and Science. We need to build learning problems that are challenging and allow students to use skills that are in math, science and reading. They were very point blank about how ExxonMobil, and other firms, are in need of qualified staff. They need to be able to work in teams, analyze abstract problems, and perhaps speak another language (Dual Language Program).
We also talked about how the world is becoming "flat". Through the Internet, information is easily accessible. In addition, an engineer in France can communicate, and work on projects with its African partners in cyberspace. Distances are being torn down due to technology; the 21st Century student is able to be more innovative.

Scientifically yours,

Phil and Amy Mickelson ExxonMobil Academy

Yesterday was the first day of the Phil and Amy Mickelson ExxonMobil Academy. It is taking place at the beautiful Woodlands Resort and Conference Center. It's a nestled in the "living woods" and next to the great Woodlands Mall.

This academy is dedicated to supporting the teaching of science and math in our classrooms. There are teachers from all over Texas and the United States: Beaumont, Dallas, Anchorage, Australia, Spring and many more. I'm here with a team of teachers from SBISD and it was a great atmosphere.

Today we start our courses, so I will blog about what's learned and post pictures. We've got a busy day, but I'm sure it's going to be fun.

Scientifically yours

Tool #4

I set up my Google Reader account to follow five fellow PLN's from Sherwood. When I went it in it automatically registered the blogs because I'm a "follower" of them. I also added to science websites. It's rather cool because it quickly adds the most updated information.

Google reader can be used to show students, and staff, some real news that affects them. It shows how what they are learning is purposeful to the world as well as to themselves. If we have a class blog we can share information that we find during research in all the content areas.

Are you able to link Google Reader or Docs to your blog page? If so, can anyone tell me how?

Tool #4

I just used Google Docs to share a 2010-2011 proposed lab schedule and a lab schedule template with my 3rd-5th grade teachers at Sherwood. I wanted them to add their names to the calendar as a way to see how Google Docs works. I also sent a proposed schedule I designed and asked for their feedback.
I was not able to send it to all teachers because they do not have google account, but when I see that they have a blog set-up, I'll add them to the share list.
This is an interesting tool. The one concern I have is that the cursor doesn't not respond as in a word document. I have to click below the word to get it to the word above it. This happened in a table I created in Word. The Excel spreadsheet I sent worked fine.
This is different, and will take some getting used to. I wonder if we'll ever have to use paper again.

Tool #2

I was able to comment on three other teacher blogs from my school, but it appears the Net is slow. It stated that it could not open the page after I clicked "Post Comment". I hope it posted.

I have to admit that I enjoy the discussions because of the honesty of using blogs. I've searched the Net, and it's definitely a new medium for communication. Facebook is a prime example of how people are communicating business and personal happenings in their lives.

Tool #3

I used the website wordle.net to create wordle regarding the 5th grade 2010-2011 science TEKS. I wanted to show how wordle can bring out the main points of a piece of literature/text. In wordle, the more time a word appear that larger it will be in the wordle. This is a great way to see what's important, what word a teacher/students likes to use in their writing, or the main focus of an article. Also, it was just fun to play with the different designs and color schemes.

I can see this being used in all content areas and art.

5th grade Science TEK Wordle

This is a wordle art of the 5th grade 2010-2011 Science TEKS. In wordle, when a word appears more than once it makes the word larger than the others. Take a look at the wordle and see what will be the focus for 5th grade. Try it with your respective grade level's science TEKS.


title="Wordle: Untitled"> src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/2105411/Untitled"
alt="Wordle: Untitled"
style="padding:4px;border:1px solid #ddd">

Tool #2

I just posted on another 11 Tools Constructor. I asked the question how their campus integrated science with literature and writing. She had a very interesting blog that show her love of reading and writing.

Science in the News: Space Shuttle Atlantis

The space shuttle Atlantis is making plans for its final descent back to Earth. Here is what Commander Kenneth Ham noted about Atlantis: "Atlantis is just a fabulous ship...If this ends up being space shuttle Atlantis' last flight, we've got an American flag here that we're honored to fly," According to NASA, this will be Atlantis's flight due to NASA tailoring back its program. Atlantis is scheduled to come home Wednesday.

You can read more about Atlantis at www.time.com. Part of the article at www.time.com was used to contribute to this posting.

Science Lab

It looks like the science lab will stay in Rm. 202. There are some new things I hope to add to the lab. For instance, we'll receive some shelves to organize science tubs. When doing a experiment, reading, etc., a student may think to use a different or not so conventional "science tool (i.e. glasses, packing peanuts, etc.). I'll have some of these items on a shelf for easy access to students. In addition, certain tubs and cubbies will be labeled.

The lab is always a working environment open to new changes and ideas. If you have any, don't hesitate to post an idea.

Scientifically yours,

Mr. Glover

Tool #1

Today I created a blog site and a Voki avatar. The blog is a way to talk with students and other teachers about learning, science and the other facets of education. For the blog site, we used blogger from Google. The site was extremely helpful on how to create a blog. It walked you step-by-step on how to create the site. I can see this as a tool in the classroom that allows students to share their ideas and works through the site. It's also a new way of communicating to other students.

The creation of the avatar was fun. It doesn't look like me, but it allowed me to have some fun creating the character. The other neat aspect is the voice creation. I'm able to send a message to anyone that visits my blog through the Voki avatar.

Stay tune for more fun!