EDEL 158

Joe Abruscato and Russell Agne

Texts:

The major textbook is Teaching Children Science, 5th edition.
Additionally, a series of handouts will be distributed to you as needed, and are to be retained in the binder. Additional reference books related to science methods and activities may be borrowed from the instructors.

Related Costs:

You should expect to obtain supplies on your own to create teaching materials to support your science experiences in the schools that are part of EDEL 155. Expect to spend $10.00-$20.00

Projects and Due Dates:

	Respond to the "Real Teachers Talking" section of the first nine chapters of Teaching Children Science. Due: February 6: Ch 1-3; February 22: Ch 4-9
	Prepare two science demonstrations and present one Due: February 22
	Develop an instructional unit outline which focuses on science, but which has strong linkages to other areas of the elementary school curriculum. Due: April 10
	Keep all handouts, notes you have taken from class labs, discussions, science activities, presentations, etc., in a well organized loose-leaf Resouce binder. Due: April 26

"Real Teachers Talking"--The Teaching Children Science Chapters 1-9 Reflection Paragraphs

Overview

Russell and Joe will be creating the foundation for your progress toward becoming a wonderful science teacher for children. Since we will be moving at a rapid pace it is very important for you to get the background for what we will be doing by reading the assigned chapters in Teaching Children Science. Actually, we desperately need you to read and think about the chapter content so that our classroom work fits into the knowledge you gain from the book and of course your experiences at the schools.

Obviously we want you to read and think about every part of every chapter from 1-9; however, we will only ask you to respond in a concrete way to one part of each chapter. The part that in fact captures the real life conversations of two teachers about some aspect of the chapter content --"Real Teachers Talking."

Guidelines/Documentation

Read the chapter assigned for a day and then go back and re-read the "Real Teachers Talking" section.
Think about the conversation and reflect on your experiences in the classroom as a child, tutor or observer. Then respond to the "Points to Ponder" side heading by writing a paragraph or in some cases a two short paragraph response. Please try to shoot for a half page or less (less than 125 words).
You must have this prepared before the date on which we will deal with the chapter. Note 1: The dates for discussing the chapters are shown in Appendix 3 "Science Time With Russell and Joe." Note 2: There will be some slippage in our coverage of chapters depending on how long it takes us to discuss each so don't be frustrated if you are prepared on a particular date and we are a little behind in our chapter coverage.

Due Dates: February 6 Be ready to turn in the "Real Teachers Talking" responses to Chapters 1, 2 & 3.

Note 1: We may have you share them with others during class on that date as well.
Note 2: You may have others prepared by that day but the only ones we want turned in on this date are Chapters 1, 2 & 3.
Note 3: You will be turning this in to Russ.

February 22 Be ready to turn in the "Real Teachers Talking" responses to Chapters 4 through 9.

Note 1: We may have you share them with others during class on that date as well.
Note 2: You will be turning this in to Russ.

Science Demonstrations: Preparation and Practice

This project will help you:

Increase your awareness of the National Science Education Content Standards K-8.
Practice an essential science teaching skill-the Demonstration.
Provide feedback on your ability to do a demonstration.
Practice a demonstration with peers before doing it with children

Background Reading and Research:

Teaching Children Science, pp. 82-83 (Demonstrations); p. l0 top para (NSE Standards); pp. 473-476 (the NSE Standards); and the "Demonstrations" subsections of all B chapters
Additional Optional Resources to locate Possible Demonstrations:

Any science activities book
Whizbangers and Wonderments
The following WWW sites:

WWW search engines using key words such as "science," "demonstrations," "children," etc

Special Important Note: Demonstrations you locate regardless of source will not always work even though they work for the developer. You must try the demo and make the modifications needed in order for it to work for you.

What will you do?

Prepare 2 demonstrations to submit with the format described below Demonstrate just one of the 2 demonstrations during our in-class Science Demonstration Days

How do I complete and document the Project:

Guidelines

One demonstration must respond to a standard selected from: Content Standards B, C or D (Physical or Life or Earth/Space)for K-4 or K-8
One demonstration must respond to a standard from Content Standards E, F or G (Science and Technology, Science in Personal and Social Perspectives, History and Nature of Science) for K-4 or K-8

Documentation

Demonstration Idea Sheet

One sheet of paper that includes:

Your title for the demo
Your name
An identification of the standard to which it responds
A list of materials and/or equipment needed
A rough drawing or diagram that shows how the materials or equipment are organized for the demo
Three or four sentences that tell how to do the demo

Note: This is not a complete demo write-up. We want your peers to do some work if they do the demo in the future!

Demonstration Write-Ups

No longer than two pages with attachments if needed
Presented with the following side headings in this order:

Your Name
Title: You may change original title to fit your needs and/or any adaptations you may have made
The Standard(s): The NSE Content Standard or Standard to which it responds. See "Guidelines."
Citation: Give the original source for the demo. It is acceptable to use the demo as you found it or adapt it
Adaptations: Statement(s) that tells any adaptations you made
Objective: The specific objective of the demo i.e., what are children going to be able to do as result of observing the demo
Directions: List of directions for a teacher who might do the demo
Content: Two or three sentences that explain the science content included in the demo. Hint: Do some book or web research with respect to the content
Drawing/Diagram: Labeled drawing or diagram that shows how the materials/equipment are positioned.

Attachment(s): If appropriate you may wish to attach a handout for a child to use during the demo i.e., a sheet for observations, drawings or questions etc.

Due Date: February 22, 2001 (For all demonstration writeups)

Science Instructional Unit Outline

Guidelines/Documentation:

The unit will follow the format included elsewhere in this syllabus. Note: This is the same format required for Seniors and Post Bac students during their internship.
Citations from Vermont's Framework of Standards and Learning Opportunities (Spring, 1996) are required. These are available at: http://www.state.vt.us/educ/stand/page3.htm
A suggested length is 4-6 pages; the unit should be designed for 5-10 lessons; include detailed lesson plans for the introductory lesson and the culminating (last) lesson.
This project will likely provide major evidence of your science curriculum development ability. It can thus have an important place in your emerging professional portfolio.
Any supporting materials you locate and references you identify can be compiled in your science resource binder and thus be available for use during your internship.

Background Reading: Read pp. 57-64 of Teaching Children Science and the "Unit Plan Starter Ideas" in Chapter 10, 13, and 16.

Due Date: April 10, 2001

Loose-Leaf Science Resource Binder

Guidelines/Documentation:

The intent of this project is for you to produce a science resource binder of EDEL158 materials that will help you in your teaching. If you take pride in what you put together here and include course handouts, notes, lab sheets, then this assignment will have pay-off in the classroom as you seek ways to sharescience with children. This binder should reflect an ability to organize diverse materials so that they are easily accessible as resources.
This project can be a source of component pieces for your professional portfolio, and will be examined by the instructor before the end of the course. It will not be graded per se, but will be briefly examined to check for completeness.
An index with tabs to identify categories of science teaching resources is expected.

Due Date: April 26, 2001