Genetics Foldable

Some years I am very successful at teaching the students through labs and projects but some years those tried and true tactics don't work as well. This year my students need more guidance and direction, they work and recall especially well when we do activities together and the students repeat information as they write it down. This has led to many spontaneous changes in lessons this year.

Last week we attempted a class trait lab but the students were not getting the abstract connection between traits, alleles, genotypes and phenotypes when attempting lab so I decided it was time to change things up. I sat at my desk for awhile that afternoon trying to decide what to do and then I came up with an idea. I created a "Genetics Foldable."

I used a shutter fold.
Front: On one side of the foldable are the father's alleles (written in blue marker) for traits we had in a previous activity, and on the other side are the mother's alleles
Inside: The inside of each flap contains basic genetics questions, the inside center section is information about the genotype and phenotype of the offspring (written in purple because red and blue make purple)

I provided the students with the questions, I had them use their notes and previous activities to answer the questions, then we went over all of the questions answering them together and repeating the answers as we went.

Pollinators

Today I participated in the Accessibility Fest in downtown SA, where we brought pollinator activities to share with the people downtown. The theme of our events is pollinators, so I created a game for the event.

For the game I purchased 4 serving platters shaped like flowers, 2 ladles that I added construction paper butterflies to, 2 large plastic serving spoons that I added construction paper bumblebees to, and a large bag of cotton balls.

There are 2 ways to play the game.:

1) A single child can play and race the clock. They get 30 seconds to try to get as much pollen as possible from one flower to the other in order to create new flowers.

2) two or more children can race against one another. Again they get only 30 seconds to try to move as much pollen as possible from one flower to the next flower. This can be played with 2-4 children.

This game is a good station to use with elementary students when teaching butterfly life cycles. Students could rotate and make the pasta life cycles,  color a life cycle, play this game, and do some reading and worsheets.

Walkabout Notes

There are many times in 7th grade science where we are introducing a new topic that the students have never seen before so we begin the unit with vocabulary and notes. Sometimes I go over the power point with the students and have them fill in their notes so that I can give them examples throughout the power point. Other times I put the notes on a Prezi, have the students fill in the blanks at home and then we have an in class discussion about them. When the unit is not as exciting to the students as they would like then I offer "Walkabout Notes."

For "Walkabout Notes" I print out the power point and then I put the slides up all over my room. I do not put the slides in order but I often group certain like concepts together in sections of the room. I provide the students with the fill in the blanks notes and I let them walk about the room to find the words that they will use to fill in the blanks. I also put up ten questions with the notes that range in Blooms level. The students answer the questions in their notebook on the page where they will glue their notes, then they glue down the notes so they can flip them up and see the questions underneath. I will then discuss the notes and the questions with the class. I also have a few copies of the power point printed as slides (3 per sheet) in case students cannot find something or if they are struggling with proper class etiquette.

Here are some pictures of how I arrange the notes:

Lab Safety brings in supplies

This post is extremely late since I did this project at the very beginning of the year. Unfortunately, I continue to struggle with my career this year and the October death month has been even more difficult for me than usual. However, I do continue to push forward, I assign projects (even though fewer and fewer students are completing them) and then I assign alternate projects and alternate, alternate projects. I must say though that with this project I had an ulterior motive, I wanted more tissues for my classroom because allergy season and cold and flu season are no joke  in a classroom. I thought I would combine the project with a blatant push for supplies in order to get a few of the tissues I need.

Basically I asked the students to provide me with a tissue box that had lab safety information on 5 sides of the box. On the short opposing sides they had to write and draw or paste a picture about the do's and don'ts of lab safety then on the long opposing sides they had to write and draw or paste a picture about what they can and cannot wear in lab. On the bottom they had to write all of the lab safety rules from their lab safety contract. I made an example that I had in the classroom and on my school website. Here are some pics of my project:

Year 5 begins

I am afraid I have reached a "7 year itch" in my teaching career (even though this is only my 5th year teaching). I am normally the peppy, excited, rah-rah teacher who is rallying everyone to be pumped up about the new school year but this year I don't have it in me. [I struggle with depression that can be quite tough to cope with but since so many other people have begun to talk about their experiences with overcoming depression I am going to catalog mine as well. So posts may seem dark at times but that is a nasty bugger inside of me and not a reflection of anything else.] I feel like I should be excited because this will be my first chance to teach a GT (gifted and talented) class. I feel like I should be excited because it seems that each year I know a little bit more about what I am doing. I felt like I should have been excited because I was going to get 2 Pre-AP classes. (I only ended up getting 1) I feel and feel but none of my feelings are what they are supposed to be. Instead I just feel sad everyday when I wake up and when I get to school I sit in my car and feel sad that I have to go in. Mostly, I feel tired and I miss the students I used to have and I wish I knew what was wrong with me. [Well, let's face it I do know what is wrong with me, I have depression issues, but what I mean is I don't know how to push past the depression cloud to find the me who does not feel this way.] I never let the sadness show though, I just keep smiling. I keep pretending to be me because I know I'm in here somewhere.

Smiling and smiling and the first week of school arrives. I met the students and some of my fake excitement turned into despair. This year is going to be a struggle, by day 3 I had students literally turn their backs to me to ignore me and for the first time ever I had students making fun of me. I keep looking each day for reasons to be excited again about teaching but I am finding it difficult to find my way. I know I will and I will make the connections I normally make and I will make the differences I should make but for now it is difficult to see those things.

With the Eeyore cloud that is following me this year I want to be sure to share good things at least once a month, so for now I would like to share a fun thing I did in my classroom. I found some really interesting inflatable organs from Oriental Trading that have facts printed on them. I blew them up and used binder clips and fishing line to hang them from the ceiling. The students have been quite interested in them so far.

Classroom fun thing #1:

Next time I'll show you some good things my students have done.

This is why I teach

I had an interesting experience the other day that made me both sad and glad at the same time: One of my students from last year came to my room, he was crying and couldn't tell me why but just nodded when I asked him if he needed to stay with me for a few minutes and then he went and sat at my desk. My 7th grade students had an exam that day so I reviewed with them, passed out tests and pencils and started them working. I went to talk to my former student, first asking who his teacher is and calling her to let her know he was with me and needed some time. He proceeded to tell me he was feeling very stressed and overwhelmed with athletics, academics (all Pre-AP classes) and home life, he continued to cry. I hugged him and patted his head and told him it was okay to feel that way and I told him about how I struggle sometimes with those same feelings and we discussed ways he could deal with how he felt and the stress in his life and how sometimes just talking about it helps lift the burden. I checked on my students who were testing and answered their questions through all of this while still being there for my student who needed me. When he and I wrapped  up our conversation I reminded him how wonderful he is and how loved he is. He wiped his tears and told me thank you and he loved me (in a mom kind of way) I told him I loved him back (in a mom kind of way) and we both giggled and I wrote him a pass and he went to class. I then saw him after school in another teacher's class for tutoring laughing with his friends and he gave me a "thumbs up" I was so sad by his tears and his pain, because I truly do care about him because sometimes our students become like our personal children. I am glad though that I was there, that I am there every day letting the kids know that I care and I feel that they are important. I not only showed him that I cared that day but I also showed the class of 27 who were there that day to witness the interaction between us. I hope I can always continue to be there for the students when they need someone to care about them, because that is why I teach.

Valentine cards in the science class #2

So I gave out all of the Valentine cards on Friday (except to 7th period I totally forgot them but they will get theirs on Tuesday) I wanted to share this with everyone so you can use it next year if you would like to.

This year I worked with the ELAR teachers, who gave me the foursquare that I put on the back of the assignment.

Here is the prompt I created:

Adaptation Expository Essay

READ the following quotation

“Only those who are able to adapt to changing scenarios will continue to survive and prosper.” Vishwas Chavan

THINK carefully about the following statement.

Organisms must be able to adapt to their environments or they will become extinct.

WRITE an essay explaining what type of environment your monster comes from and how they had to adapt to survive in that environment.

Be sure to –

• clearly state your controlling idea

• organize and develop your explanation effectively

• choose your words carefully

• use correct spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, and sentences  

 The foursquare on the back is a writing tool that allows the students to brainstorm before writing. I can provide that to anyone who requests it.

Here are some pictures of how the assignment looked with the cards:

I will post an update once/if I start getting them back. Last year I received about half of them back but the assignment was much simpler, so we will see.

Valentine Cards in the Science Class

I find that it is especially important to me to make my students feel safe and loved. Since I am in a Title 1 Texas school I teach many students who have at least one parent that is MIA, in prison, unknown or unwilling to participate in their lives. That being said I feel that above and beyond teaching science I am there to show these students that there are people in this world who care, who can be there consistently and who have a certain level of intelligence and professionalism. That being said I try to build in fun activities that allow them to learn while showing them that I care for them.

In February we have Valentine's day which is largely important to children,even middle school children. Last year our scope and sequence was such that Valentine's day landed right near the end of our biomes unit so I was able to purchase Valentine cards with animals on them and have the students answer biome related questions about the animal card they received in order to receive a 100 in place of their lowest daily work grade. I got over half of those cards back. This year however we are just about to begin succession and we just wrapped up stimulus and response, so I struggled to locate cards that I felt fit into the surrounding lessons, so I searched for something else.

In Texas our 7th grade students have to successfully complete a writing state test and they struggle with writing, so I found some cute "monster" valentine cards and I am going to provide the students with a card and have them write a short expository assignment about the monsters environment and their adaptations to that environment. I am going to get with the ELAR teachers on Monday and see if we can work together and let the students replace a low grade in both classes. Once I have the prompt finished and have talked to the teachers I will expand on this and I will let everyone know how it goes. Let me know your thoughts or suggestions.

Biomes

Last year I required all of my students to create a biome model in a shoe box. This year I allowed the students to have more freedom regarding the project that they turned in. This was obviously more difficult to grade but I received more projects from my non Pre-AP classes than I had in previous years. I only took pictures of the shoebox projects because unfortunately I had a spill on the other projects before I was able to take pictures.

I am including the rubric and instructions for this project, in case you would like to use them:

Student Name:_________________

Class Period: _______________

Biome Project

Your biome project will showcase one biome of your choice. You may choose from a land biome or a marine biome.

Your project is due on Wednesday December 17th. You will be given two days in class to work on your project (Dec. 11th/12th) so be sure to bring your supplies to class. If you think of another way to showcase the information, such as creating a website, please come and talk to me and we can review your options.

Your project will need to include the following information: (much of the information can be located in your notes on page 58 of your journal)

• Name of the Biome:
• Climate of the biome:
• Soil type:
• Length of the growing season:
• Plants of the biome (list 5):
• Animals of the biome (list 6):
• Adaptations of the organisms in the biome (list 3):
• Describe if the organisms go through natural selection or selective breeding in the biome:
• Human Impact and Natural Disasters that occur in the biome(list 1 of each):
• Two Unique facts about the biome:

In order to showcase the information you will need to create one of the following: diorama, travel brochure, power point presentation, scrapbook, board game or written report that includes 1 page of illustrations.

Each project type has a specific set of instructions that must be followed:

Diorama: Box must be no smaller than a Kleenex box and no larger than a shoe box. Organisms need to be 3D. Information needs to written or typed and can be pasted in or around the box. (worth 10 extra points)

Travel brochure: Travel brochure needs to entice the audience to want to come and visit the biome of choice. The travel brochure needs to be in color and should include hand drawn pictures or pictures from magazines. The brochure must include all of the information either typed or hand written.

Power point presentation: Presentation must include a minimum of 12 slides, including one bibliography slide. Each slide must contain information and a minimum of three relevant pictures.

Scrapbook: Scrapbook must contain at least 12 pages. All information must be handwritten or typed. Each page must contain at least one picture that is drawn or cut from a magazine. (worth 10 extra points)

Board game: Board game must have a board, game rules, and game pieces. All of the information above must be included in the game. For example, they could be used as trivia questions, or chance cards for monopoly, etc. Information can be handwritten or typed. Game pieces must be 3D. (worth 10 extra points)

Written report that includes 1 page of illustrations: Written paper must be a minimum of 12 paragraphs and should cover all information listed above. The illustrations page must have hand drawn pictures or pictures from magazines.

	25 points	20 points	15 points	10 points	Total points
Neatness	The project is very neat and shows effort.	The project is mostly neat and shows some effort.	The project is somewhat neat and shows little effort.	The project is not neat and shows little effort.
Creativity	The project is very creative and cannot be found on google.	The project is mostly creative and cannot be found on google.	The project is somewhat creative and can be found on google.	The project is not creative and can be found on google.
Following directions	All directions were followed for the project type that was chosen.	Most directions were followed for the project type that was chosen.	Some directions were followed for the project type that was chosen.	Few directions were followed for the project type that was chosen.
Information	All information is included on the project.	Most information is included on the project.	Some information is included on the project.	Little information is included on the project.

Levels of Organization

I prefer to use project based learning for my students because I feel that when they have to create something they think about what is in front of them and they tend to recall the concepts better and understand them better than if they simply read or work on a worksheet......so keeping that in mind I try to turn many of the science concepts into projects.

One concept that I think they learn best through a project is Levels of Organization. I place the students in groups of 4-6 and I provide them with pictures that represent each level. The students then have to use the pictures to create a large poster using the pictures and butcher paper or they have to create a mobile. The students in the Pre-AP classes are required to create a mobile and the other students are provided with extra credit for creating a mobile. I also have the students provide an analogy to other levels of organization such as: letter, word, sentence, paragraph, page, book, library, etc.

Cell Model Project

Every year I teach cells and organelles I look for new ways to introduce projects into the lesson, so students will take an in depth look at cells, so they can recall the organelles and their functions. This year I decided to have the students create cell models. I provided the students with directions and a rubric and the projects were turned in. You can find the directions and rubric in this post, if you would like to use it.

Cell Model Project

Project Assigned:  09/15/2014                                                       Project Due:   09/26/2014

Objective:  By making a model of the cell, the student will become aware of the various organelles and structures which make up a plant or animal cell.

Guidelines: 

-  Your cell must be a model of either a plant or an animal cell.  The model must accurately represent the chosen cell. Your plant cell must be rectangular or your animal cell must be circular. The model can be no larger than an 11X17 sheet of paper and no smaller than an 8X10 sheet of paper. If the model is drawn the highest possible grade is a 90. If the model is mostly 3-D, which means created by gluing appropriate items to paper them the highest possible grade is 100.

-  All organelles must be labeled clearly and must include a short description of their function in order to receive credit.

- The cell should be as accurate as possible. The cell parts should be located where they belong. For example, the nucleus should be bigger than the mitochondria or the chloroplasts should be green.

Materials you may consider using:

• Styrofoam
• Craft foam
• Beads
• Yarn
• Pipe Cleaners
• Felt
• Pom Pom balls
• Uncooked Pasta

Extra Credit: You may choose to turn the project in early, you can receive up to 10 points extra credit on your project. OR For 10 points of extra credit the cell model must be truly 3-D. This means it needs to have a front, back, and sides. It cannot be a piece of paper with things glued on it. 

Name:_______________________ Period: ______

Date:_________________  Number # __________

You will use the rubric to see what is required in order to receive a good grade on your project.  You will need to turn in your copy of the rubric when you turn in your project.

	25	20	15	10	Total
Neatness	The project is neat and shows that the students put effort into the project.	The project is mostly neat and shows that the students put some effort into the project.	The project is marginally neat and shows that the students put little effort into the project.	The project is not neat and shows that the students put no effort into the project.
Creativity	The project is 3-D and includes use of various materials.	The project is mostly 3-D and includes use of some various materials.	The project is not 3-D and includes use of very few various materials.	The project is not 3-D and includes use of no various materials.
Organelles Labeled	All relevant organelles are labeled: Cell Membrane, Nucleus, Mitochondria, Vacuole, Cytoplasm, Cell Wall (P), Chloroplast (P)	Most relevant organelles are labeled: Cell Membrane, Nucleus, Mitochondria, Vacuole, Cytoplasm, Cell Wall (P), Chloroplast (P)	Some relevant organelles are labeled: Cell Membrane, Nucleus, Mitochondria, Vacuole, Cytoplasm, Cell Wall (P), Chloroplast (P)	Few relevant organelles are labeled: Cell Membrane, Nucleus, Mitochondria, Vacuole, Cytoplasm, Cell Wall (P), Chloroplast (P)
Organelle functions included	A short function description is included with all of the relevant organelles listed above.	A short function description is included with most of the relevant organelles listed above.	A short function description is included with some of the relevant organelles listed above.	A short function description is included with few of the relevant organelles listed above.