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.