Let their questions guide your future planning! Maybe Bobby is ultra-intrigued by the idea of plastic-eating caterpillers… could this be a future anchoring phenomena for a unit on synthetics or the basis for a project-based learning assignment? Maybe Olivia wonders how elephants are able to ‘hear’ through the adipose tissue in their feet… could this question ground a future unit on the behavior of sound waves? This process is like climbing a rock wall– your ascension path changes as you find different grips and attain more stable footing. Ask them to keep writing their ‘What If…?’ and ‘I Wonder…?’ questions. After they consider that the building heats specific points to extreme temperatures, the students could draw a model of what they think is going on… they’ll revise the model as they progess through the lessons in the unit.ĭuring the lesson or unit, refer back to that phenomena so that your students continue to mold their understanding of the science behind the issue. To begin a unit on waves/light, you could show a picture of this London skyscraper that’s been nicknamed the ‘Walkie Scorchie’ and explain how it has melted cars parked in the street near it. Have students draw a model of what they think is going on… they’ll revise the model as they progress through the lessons in the unit. To begin a unit on chemical reactions, you could show this video of a Match Burning in Slow Motion (by the way, any physical phenomena shown in slow motion is amazing for helping students to consider the physics!). To begin a unit on matter, you could show this video of a Railroad Car Collapsing. To begin a unit on water properties, you could show this video of Wringing Out Water on the International Space Station. Here are some Anchoring Phenomena examples: (I call this a measure of their ‘I.Q.’ or ‘Inquiry Quotient’!). Try having your students make a list of as many ‘What If…?’ and ‘I Wonder…?’ questions as they can think of about the phenomena that they’ve been asked to consider. I recommend reading this article on the Atlas blog to learn more about how to choose good lesson-level and unit-level anchors!Ĭreate a quick Powerpoint slide to showcase a neat phenomena that you find in order to instigate an engaging whole-class or small-group discussion on the concept. Spend some time looking for the ideas and stories that pique your interest. I have compiled a list of websites that contain rich ideas and real-world issues that are useful for finding the phenomena that can ‘anchor’ lessons and units aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards. Now, “How the heck are we busy, overwhelmed teachers supposed to have our fingertips on the pulse of every awesome and interesting thing going on in science in order to structure these phenomena-based units?” Find Freebie Content and Follow Your Curiosity! I’ve realized that the NGSS burst open a door that I’ve always tried to keep a foot in– getting my students to authentically care about our planet and to have a genuine interest in the wonderful operations of our universe. They are asking us to learn with our students and to adopt the mindset that new theories can always surface and paradigms do indeed shift. The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) ask us as science teachers to provide anchoring phenomena, opportunities for real-world application of concepts, and flexibility to allow students to follow their own curiosities while learning science.
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