Post date: Sep 22, 2012 6:6:40 AM
Dear Parents and Students,
Our daily and weekly class schedules have steadied into solid routines and most of the kids are doing great work in science. During most class periods there are a variety of activities occurring simultaneously as well as in sequence. With each activity, the students progress at different rates and with varying levels of autonomy and intensity, and my priority is to keep each engaged, productive, and challenged. Some students get right to work and are fairly independent, and others take a bit more time and prodding to get onto the tasks at hand -- which is usually fine. One concern that I have, though, is that with the relative autonomy of 8th grade comes a need for a high level of follow-through on the students' part. The "Day-to-Day" grid on the back wall, the website, and my many verbal reminders should keep the students aware of and accountable for all assignments, but I'm getting concerned that some are slipping. The fact that the grades feature on PowerSchool is now up and running will help you and I and the students to keep close tabs on their progress and areas for possible improvement. The first few weeks served to start their engines, and now, as I slowly let out the clutch, the motor can strain a bit, but forward motion is the desired result!
The First Science Unit Ends: Since the beginning of school, much of our attention in science has been focused on learning how science does its job and experiencing the attributes and benefits of good experimental design. The kids got some practice with tools for measuring mass and volume, analyzing the increments, and discerning the appropriate degree of accuracy. The other science lessons covered measurement, reading various scales, and showing them how/why to do dimensional analysis to convert units. I was very encouraged yesterday and today to hear the "a-ha" moments descend upon some of the kids as they began to see the power, simplicity, and versatility of cross canceling units using equivalent ratios. Although the skill is quite mathy, it will be a well utilized skill for us in science all year (and hopefully beyond). During two days this week I gave them experiences that involve observing a set of objects and finding common traits. They can hopefully describe for you the "Attribute Activity" that they constructed. I glanced through the ones that they turned in and it seems apparent to me that I have a "bi-modal" group -- there are some kids that invest great effort and thought into an open-ended activity like this, and others that give it only cursory attention, planning, and execution. I'm hoping to push each kid into a different level of personal challenge.
The test for this unit will be on Monday, and it will asses their understanding of material covered in class, homework assignments, and the content of chapter 1 in the science textbook that the students have at home.
Fall Simple Experiments: Almost all of the students have gotten one of their project proposals approved by me which gives them the go-ahead to start a materials list, procedure, and data collection plan with me next week. Most of these actual experiments will take place at/near home and I'm really looking forward to hearing how things went and how the data comes out. You can monitor their progress (please) via the "control sheet" that they should have already created and filled in.
One surprise lesson occurred yesterday afternoon when one of the foreman of the construction crew working on the Anderson field gave an impromptu lesson to the class in my room. He explained various aspects of the project, the machines involved, and a bit of the science behind it all. He brought the self-leveling laser that has guided the monster machines as they excavate and grade the field-to-be. When the concrete crew comes next week, I hope to sneak onto the field again and coax them as well into coming to class to give the kids great lessons on the integration of science into the trades.
I'm hoping that next week will be another solid and fun week of engagement and productivity. The next science unit will begin (Forces and Motion) and I'm looking forward to seeing many of you at Parent 102 night Tuesday. Until then, please write me a note to let me know how things are going for your student and/or you regarding science. I appreciate the dialog -- the parent-student-teacher connection is certainly a crucial nutrient in life blood of DCS!