Hello! My name is Zachary Hanks, and I'm thrilled to say this is my 5th year teaching at JP Elder. I grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Houston. I began my teaching career in the Houston Independent School District's Outdoor Education Center. I also have worked in the outdoor recreation, hospitality, and oil and gas industries. This year, I will be teaching honors and on-level science.

Currently, I live in Fort Worth with my wife, Amy, and two boys (Evan and Corbin).

I enjoy hiking, camping, youth sports, watching movies, and spending time with my family.”

I believe an engaged learner is a successful learner. I strive to provide a structure where students ask questions to satisfy their curiosity. All lessons will work through the 5 Es - Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate.

ENGAGE

The activities in the Engage phase are designed to help students make connections between past and present learning experiences, expose prior conceptions, and organize thinking toward the essential questions and learning outcomes of the learning sequence.

EXPLORE

Once students have engaged in activities, they need time to explore ideas. Explore activities are designed so all students have common, concrete experiences which can be used later when formally introducing and discussing scientific and technological concepts and explanations.

EXPLAIN

The Explain phase consists of two parts. First, the teacher asks students to share their initial models and explanations from experiences in the Engage and Explore phases. Second, the teacher provides resources and information to support student learning and introduces scientific or technological concepts. Students use these resources and information, as well as ideas of other students, to construct or revise their evidence-based models and explanations. In engineering, students design solutions to problems based on established criteria.

ELABORATE

Once students have constructed explanations of a phenomenon or design solutions for a problem, it is important to involve them in further experiences that apply, extend, or elaborate the concepts, processes, or skills they are learning. Some students may still have misconceptions, or they may only understand a concept in terms of the exploratory experience. Elaborate activities provide time for students to apply their understanding of concepts and skills. They might apply their understanding to similar phenomena or problems.

EVALUATE

It is important that students receive feedback on the quality of their explanations. Informally, this may happen throughout the learning sequence. Formally, the teacher can also administer a summative evaluation at the end of the learning sequence. The Evaluate phase encourages students to assess their understanding and abilities and allows teachers to evaluate individual student progress toward achieving learning goals and outcomes.

Students Responsibilities

During all five phases the student's responsibility is to be receptive to new ideas, work to the best of their ability, ask questions only after reading or listening to all instructions, and add to the learning process. Students who try to take away from this learning process by intentionally being disruptive or not trying their best will be counseled and if the behavior continues disciplinary action appropriate to the disruption will be given.