Identify Desired Results
The key idea for my ImagineIT project is to implement Engineering into my 8th grade Life Science Curriculum. The big idea is to have students achieve a better understanding of Life Science concepts as they create 2D, 3D and/or computer generated models to convey their understanding of concepts throughout the unit of study throughout the school year. A final product will be for students to be able to create a prototype of an artificial heart valve using everyday materials. These desired results will meet the Next Generation Science Standards of Middle School Life Science to develop and use their models to explain and describe the practice, crosscutting concept and disciplinary core idea.
Developing models is key to conveying the thought process of the developer. The students will be able to develop their skills of the Engineering Design Process as they continue to test and redesign their models when new information is learned throughout the unit of study; therefore, it is essential to the Engineering and Life Science discipline. These disciplines exists because it is crucial for students to learn about the study of life to make healthy choices as a state of being proactive rather than reactive. Furthermore, the crosscutting concept of structure and function in Life Science can cross over to other disciplines, especially Engineering: Structure is determined by it's function. Therefore, students will make models explaining why the structure is the shape it is, while they are connecting it to the function to prove how structure and function affect one another.
Every teacher's goal is to create productive self-sufficient citizens. As a teacher, I need to facilitate students to make mistakes, discoveries and reflections. These reflections should allow the students to learn from their mistakes and rethink their steps and ideas. The key to engineering is problem solving which can be used in all aspects of the students every day lives and their futures: Desired results would definitely be students having the confidence to problem solve, think critically, and enter high school with a STEM career goal.
Determine Acceptable Evidence: Performances of Understanding
Throughout the school year students will be given a variety of assessments. A pre-assessment for their understanding of concept will be to create a model. Students may create a 2D, 3D, or computer generated model to convey their initial understanding. Then, as students make modifications, assessments will be made on these changes throughout unit of study. Finally, a final post assessment will be given for students final models at end of unit of study. Some students may have more assessments than others; therefore, I will confer with students as another form of assessment. Student conferences will assess their explanation of their model, how their model can be used to prove concept. For example, the connection of vocabulary use, other disciplines, and students being able to defend their explanations with evidence from their models.
Plan Learning Experience and Instruction
The TPACK Framework will be used to plan the students learning experience and my instruction of Engineering in Life Science for my 8th graders this school year.
Context: I am entering my twentieth school year at Peck Elementary in the West Elsdon community in Chicago, IL. I have been an 8th grade teacher for the last eleven years, and teach five Life Science classes of about 30 students each. Peck is a Title 1 school with 86.2% Low Income, 9.9% Diverse Learners and 34.2% Limited English. It's school population is 97.6% Hispanic, 1.5% White, .6% Black, and .7% Other. My classroom has eight tables; therefore, my students are in eight groups of 3 to 4. Students are grouped heterogeneously and diverse learners have peer tutoring. These tables allow students to manipulate many materials and conduct their group experiments. I have a tv for my SEPUP Curriculum VHS videos, an Elmo, projector, 30 classroom laptops, 20 microscopes, Lenovo laptop for my desk and printer, 1 cart for my demonstrations, and 2 tables for science materials available to students for experiments. The groups have roles and getters are responsible for getting and returning materials in an orderly fashion.
Content: I want to implement Engineering in my Life Science Curriculum. I want students to be able to learn and develop the Engineering Design Process at the beginning of the year so that they will begin creating 2D, 3D or computer generated models to convey their understanding of the LIfe Science concepts throughout the unit of study throughout the school year. With the developing and explanation of their models, students will be able to convey their understanding of the content by whether they use appropriate vocabulary and accurately explain structure and its function. An area where students really struggle, and usually leave blank in their lab reports, are developing hypotheses. With this in mind, a challenge might be students struggling to create their models.
Pedagogy: I will begin each class with a World of Wonder to get students thinking and engaged at the beginning of the school year, and this will also, allow me to identify any misconceptions. I will continue my SEPUP Life Science inquiry based curriculum, but I will slow down pacing and allow students to create models from a variety of materials to use to convey their understanding throughout units of study. Students will conduct lab experiments, collect quantitative and qualitative data, analyze, and record their conclusions in their science journals. Students in their groups will pair up and will use the Think-Pair-Share strategy to share and discuss their lab conclusions. The step further will be on the plan of creating an interactive virtual classroom to allow students to enhance their learning; therefore, implementing Visible Learning as having students create not only models of their understandings of concepts, but also to create videos using Stop Motion Studio, i-images, i-videos and memes as an enhancement to convey their understanding. As the school year moves along, I want students to be able to apply their Engineering skills of using their scientific knowledge to solve problems in the real world and to be able to create a prototype of an artificial heart valve from every day materials.
Technology: The big idea of technology will focus on modeling and computerized simulations, but will also include the use of our 30 classroom laptops for meme creations at the beginning of the year to build a sense of excitement for all the various means of communicating their learning via video, photo, music, and art creations to share with others.
The key idea for my ImagineIT project is to implement Engineering into my 8th grade Life Science Curriculum. The big idea is to have students achieve a better understanding of Life Science concepts as they create 2D, 3D and/or computer generated models to convey their understanding of concepts throughout the unit of study throughout the school year. A final product will be for students to be able to create a prototype of an artificial heart valve using everyday materials. These desired results will meet the Next Generation Science Standards of Middle School Life Science to develop and use their models to explain and describe the practice, crosscutting concept and disciplinary core idea.
Developing models is key to conveying the thought process of the developer. The students will be able to develop their skills of the Engineering Design Process as they continue to test and redesign their models when new information is learned throughout the unit of study; therefore, it is essential to the Engineering and Life Science discipline. These disciplines exists because it is crucial for students to learn about the study of life to make healthy choices as a state of being proactive rather than reactive. Furthermore, the crosscutting concept of structure and function in Life Science can cross over to other disciplines, especially Engineering: Structure is determined by it's function. Therefore, students will make models explaining why the structure is the shape it is, while they are connecting it to the function to prove how structure and function affect one another.
Every teacher's goal is to create productive self-sufficient citizens. As a teacher, I need to facilitate students to make mistakes, discoveries and reflections. These reflections should allow the students to learn from their mistakes and rethink their steps and ideas. The key to engineering is problem solving which can be used in all aspects of the students every day lives and their futures: Desired results would definitely be students having the confidence to problem solve, think critically, and enter high school with a STEM career goal.
Determine Acceptable Evidence: Performances of Understanding
Throughout the school year students will be given a variety of assessments. A pre-assessment for their understanding of concept will be to create a model. Students may create a 2D, 3D, or computer generated model to convey their initial understanding. Then, as students make modifications, assessments will be made on these changes throughout unit of study. Finally, a final post assessment will be given for students final models at end of unit of study. Some students may have more assessments than others; therefore, I will confer with students as another form of assessment. Student conferences will assess their explanation of their model, how their model can be used to prove concept. For example, the connection of vocabulary use, other disciplines, and students being able to defend their explanations with evidence from their models.
Plan Learning Experience and Instruction
The TPACK Framework will be used to plan the students learning experience and my instruction of Engineering in Life Science for my 8th graders this school year.
Context: I am entering my twentieth school year at Peck Elementary in the West Elsdon community in Chicago, IL. I have been an 8th grade teacher for the last eleven years, and teach five Life Science classes of about 30 students each. Peck is a Title 1 school with 86.2% Low Income, 9.9% Diverse Learners and 34.2% Limited English. It's school population is 97.6% Hispanic, 1.5% White, .6% Black, and .7% Other. My classroom has eight tables; therefore, my students are in eight groups of 3 to 4. Students are grouped heterogeneously and diverse learners have peer tutoring. These tables allow students to manipulate many materials and conduct their group experiments. I have a tv for my SEPUP Curriculum VHS videos, an Elmo, projector, 30 classroom laptops, 20 microscopes, Lenovo laptop for my desk and printer, 1 cart for my demonstrations, and 2 tables for science materials available to students for experiments. The groups have roles and getters are responsible for getting and returning materials in an orderly fashion.
Content: I want to implement Engineering in my Life Science Curriculum. I want students to be able to learn and develop the Engineering Design Process at the beginning of the year so that they will begin creating 2D, 3D or computer generated models to convey their understanding of the LIfe Science concepts throughout the unit of study throughout the school year. With the developing and explanation of their models, students will be able to convey their understanding of the content by whether they use appropriate vocabulary and accurately explain structure and its function. An area where students really struggle, and usually leave blank in their lab reports, are developing hypotheses. With this in mind, a challenge might be students struggling to create their models.
Pedagogy: I will begin each class with a World of Wonder to get students thinking and engaged at the beginning of the school year, and this will also, allow me to identify any misconceptions. I will continue my SEPUP Life Science inquiry based curriculum, but I will slow down pacing and allow students to create models from a variety of materials to use to convey their understanding throughout units of study. Students will conduct lab experiments, collect quantitative and qualitative data, analyze, and record their conclusions in their science journals. Students in their groups will pair up and will use the Think-Pair-Share strategy to share and discuss their lab conclusions. The step further will be on the plan of creating an interactive virtual classroom to allow students to enhance their learning; therefore, implementing Visible Learning as having students create not only models of their understandings of concepts, but also to create videos using Stop Motion Studio, i-images, i-videos and memes as an enhancement to convey their understanding. As the school year moves along, I want students to be able to apply their Engineering skills of using their scientific knowledge to solve problems in the real world and to be able to create a prototype of an artificial heart valve from every day materials.
Technology: The big idea of technology will focus on modeling and computerized simulations, but will also include the use of our 30 classroom laptops for meme creations at the beginning of the year to build a sense of excitement for all the various means of communicating their learning via video, photo, music, and art creations to share with others.