https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo en-us 2019-11-26 20:26:08 UTC 2026-02-13 00:02:01 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Apple.png smgust81 https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo/wish/416892914 During this class I gave my lesson on force for the whole class. After doing a vocabulary worksheet, the students were asked to split into groups of three to do a lab on force. The students used force by blowing through a straw to push a paper ball across the floor. The purpose of the lesson was for the students to observe how more force would make an object move faster. This lab went very well overall. I gave each student a task to keep them from not paying attention when they weren't the ones blowing the ball. This worked because while one student was the "racer" (applying the force), the other two were the "time keepers" (watched the stop watch to record how long it took to move), and the "finish line" (told the time keeper when to call it based on when the ball got to them). The students had a lot of fun because I treated it as a race to make it a little more completive and interactive. I found that this type of lab was much better for 2nd grade because they were able to release some energy and move around. Knowing that if they did not act correctly I would just demonstrate the lab instead of them doing it themselves, they were good about behaving. ]]> 2019-11-26 20:30:19 UTC https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo/wish/416892914 smgust81 https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo/wish/416893193 On this day, it was the 50th day of school so every lesson that was taught that day had to do with the 1950s. The main subject that they used on this day was Social Studies. For Social Studies, the students were learning about what life was like during this decade. One thing that they mentioned was the popular past times and trends, such as root beer floats. During this Social Studies unit, the teacher used root beer floats to incorporate science. The root beer floats were a great idea because it fit the theme, and the students got to observe the states of matter first hand. The teacher started the lesson by having me scoop the ice cream into each students' cup. The students would come up 3 at a time to watch me pour the root beer into the cup. The teacher allowed the students to first observe. She did not tell them the topic of the lesson, or the purpose. She wanted them to just watch it and come up with their own ideas of what was going on. The teacher then asked the students what they saw. She allowed the students to discuss their thoughts and opinions. After this discuss, she told the students the difference between solid, liquid, and gas. She then asked the students which components of the root beer floats would fall under each state of matter. The students were able to observe their root beer floats and make their own discoveries, then by the end they could distinguish between the ice cream being a solid, the root beer as liquid, and the bubbles as gas. ]]> 2019-11-26 20:31:05 UTC https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo/wish/416893193 smgust81 https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo/wish/416893346 I learned some interesting things about science instruction during my practicum this fall. First, I learned that it is often overlooked in the younger grades. In my 2nd grade class, I did not see as much science as I would have liked, while in my practicum last semester in a 5th grade class, I saw it every day. When we did do science, I noticed that the students found it to be boring. They viewed it as a very dull subject because they associated it with the textbook handouts that they had to do for most lesson. Whenever I was able to do a hands-on lab for Science with them, their entire attitude on the subject changed. I found that students in these grades need to be interactive with their learning for them to fully comprehend, retain, and enjoy the material. I had done very well with helping them see that the science topics they were learning about was all around them. For example, when they would have problems with understanding force or matter, I did good with showing them real life examples to show them how simple the concepts could be, such as pushing a pencil and asking what moved the object. I struggle with remembering the exact words and vocabulary that the text would want us to use for explaining the content. There were some topics in the science lessons that I either struggled with pronouncing or remembering exact definitions that I knew they should hear for the test. This is something I need to work on. ]]> 2019-11-26 20:31:31 UTC https://padlet.com/smgust81/zcrepssyyowo/wish/416893346