Lab Safety and Online Safety for STEAM (3rd Day of Class)

 Teaching of safety to our students is not a highlight of the class and it can be boring....so I used a variety of teaching platforms to make learning about safety as seamless as possible and exciting. The class was start with gathering Flip Grid video on the students thoughts about lab safety. I would love to add my Flip Grid mixtapes but I am going to restrain...😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔

All the students in my 6th, 7th, and 8th grade class submitted Flip Grid videos explaining the what is lab safety, 3 rules, and why it is important. I watched every video and gave feed back for students to incorporate into the next Flip Grid video. List of major issues with the videos:

1. Moving hands like they in Ricky Bobby

2. Moving around the camera

3. Speaking so low I can hear without closed captions

4. Recording with class going on in the background 

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The feedback is meant to be a feed forward so they can incorporate into the next Flip Grid videos and just want better videos especially the next video focuses on the first Maker Challenge. 

Next, thing in class was utilizing the OneNote notebook and BrainPOP to go over important aspects of lab safety in-person and digital citizenship for online safety. The use of OneNote notebook allows students to work on the classwork at their pace as well as a missing assignment area for students with connectivity issues or not feeling well t the moment. 

Overall, a mix of these platforms gives students the flexibility to learn and work on things in and out of class. 

Just keep going! 🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️🖥️

Second day of classes and use of Jamboards for classroom norms

     In my STEAM class, I want student to incorporate the 4 C's 21st century skills of critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity. The challenge how these skills are expressed in a 100% virtual classroom and how to start students on this pathway. A great way to get students to start using the 4 C's by setting up classroom norms via Jamboard.  Below I examples of my students work from 6th, 7th, 8th grades and I want to highlight the best aspects of the 4 C's in my class. In-class activity for the students used Jamboard as the platform for students to break into groups of 3-4 students for expressing their norms on the board. Then students added backgrounds, images, drawings, and writing to mold the boards into their individual self expression. 

Creativity

Classroom norms from my 6th graders and the unique drawing of student at a desk shows a lot of creativity when using simple paint tools. Also, the creativity in use of sizes and colors of sticky notes to write messages. Also, students were able to express themselves during the in-class activity. 
 

Critical Thinking 

7th grade students classroom norms and this board utilized images to illustrate their norms and best practices for the virtual classroom setting. The students use the features of Jamboard to create a cohesive board and clear set of classroom norms. 

Communication 

Interesting way of communication between this 6th grade group focusing on kindness and respect as the central stance of their classroom norms. 

Collaboration 

8th grade students utilizing shapes and grouping to create a cohesive board about classroom norms. Students brought their ideas to board and use of collaboration with students in the bottom left corner working to make norms together. 

Free flow thought for planning for STEAM week 3!

 Firstly, I teach a STEAM course and this course is 9 weeks for all grade levels 6th thru 8th. Each grade has different curriculum, once we cover the class introduction, safety, scientific method, and engineering design process. So, I am just going to make a list for each class so I can get my ducks in a row!!!🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆

Already, I am going to start with 6th grade. 

6th grade I am thinking climate change. First thing is to create a PBL question board relating climate change and natural disasters so I can link all of the topics together. 

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Day 1 

menti.com on what is climate change?

watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srBWLI0HBlg 

Driving question board on Jamboard for the whole class and have student write these hypotheses. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_change

BrainPOP climate change, quiz, concept map

Supplemental reading 

Day 2

I want to make a hands-on activity and project for the students. Thinking of students do a SWAY on make an interactive website on why they oppose or support climate change. Have a presentation in the next class.  

7th grade will be working allergies. This is timely topic since its August and the rain season is starting with transition of summer into the Fall. 

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Day 1

Start off with a menti poll with a word wall so I can get SEL!!!

Here is an excellent video on allergies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YrKVobZnNg 

Explain the immune system on how allergies work with B cells, mast cells, antibodies, histamine, and granules. 

Think of a way to make allergy puzzle into online system. I wonder if I can make this with Jamboard and include the discussion about parasites since mast cells were created to attack parasites. 

Talk about food allergies and asthma complications. 

Students will be shown how to check the pollen counts on weather apps. 

BrainPOP videos on Allergies and Asthma since the concepts on interlinked.

Day 2 

The students can pair up to make a project how to combat allergies in Atlanta and give a variety of steps on how to personal fight allergies as well as ways cut down in Atlanta. I personal feel there needs to be something down with the ridiculous high pollen counts!!!!

8th grade is will start their journey of 4 major molecules of the body with DNA then move to Protein, Lipids, and Carbohydrates. 

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Day 1 

Menti poll to start getting some pre-testing and SEL from the students then jump into talking about the intricacies about DNA after a BrainPOP video. 

BrainPOP video, quiz, concept map

Introduce some history about DNA with Rosalind Franklin and how women and minorities were ignored for their work. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiME-W58KpU

Do some model creation of DNA on jamboard!!!

Day 2 

Explore issues in human and animal bodies when DNA doesn't work and results in diseases and conditions.  

Phew....that was alot but it's out of my brain!!!!

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Reflection of First Days of Class

 

    First days of class has been mix bad of emotions with the class year being different in it's set-up, classroom management, and technical requirements. 

Bad thoughts about the first day are more focused on the use of early release and students bumbling through on finding the virtual classroom. Also, the connectivity issues and lack of computers for many students especially the 6th graders. SUPER Frustrating and disheartening! 🤐🤐🤐🤐🤐🤐🤐  Next, frustrating thing is all the email for student attendance, which is a necessary evil for warm body count. 🙉🙈🙊

Good thoughts!!! My virtual classroom has been relatively productive and engaged. Just a list of applications used by mine class include: Google classroom, TEAMs, Flip Grid, Google Forms, and menti.com. My STEAM class is heavily laced with technology from start to finish and the students follow my lessons closely or they will get lost. 

Best thing is the use of menti.com to describe the kids expression of describing STEAM. The word walls allows the students to use creativity and critical thinking with this simple activity. These word walls are quantitative with frequency being expressed by the size of the words. In other words this simple activity is engaging both the right and left hemispheres of the brain. 

The participation was captured in both of my small and larger classes. In general, I was very surprised on some of the answers being generated by the kids and especially the talk about mini computers raspberries. Hopefully, I can turn this work into a paper of new interactive tools for a science classroom! I am really starting to turn my gears!!!!

Good, Bad, and Ugly of Professional Development

 These past 2 weeks has been a eye opening experience for the good, bad, and ugly professional development. For me, I actually like to improve and gather new resources and tools to grow as educator, BUT I can not stand terrible professional development. This past summer, I have done tons of professional development to get up to speed on virtual learning. Some of the training include: 

• ISTE Summer Learning Academy
• STEM/STEAM Forum from Georgia Department of Education
• Common LIT
• Discovery Educators Network Summer Institute (DENSI) 
• Sphero training's 
• NSTA webinars
• Google certification (SO Hard to read through....still working on it)
• Microsoft Innovator Educator trainings 
• Simple K12
• Adobe Education Summit
• PBS Anti-racist series 

Of course the DeKalb district professional learning institute (PDI) and I really mixed feeling about the training. Information for the modules was okay, but the delivery and planning time was very inadequate for everyone. I did like the intense review of high impact teaching strategies and I gained the most information from these modules.  

I was even part of professional development for STEAM project based learning. That training was able to educate about 25 faculty at Chamblee Middle School on the importance of STEAM and also start getting online PBL units created for Unit 1 for 6th, 7th, and 8th. There are hopes to finish the PBL units and a launch date of end of September. I really enjoyed this training and being part of the leadership for the training. 

Overall reflection on professional development is that feeling PD can be like a 💎 in regards of being very bright or super dull. I just need make a professional development growth plan and outline learning goals for my teacher toolbox. 

  

Best way to start classes this year!

    I am scratching my head on how to start my STEAM classes for 6th thru 8th! I want to make progress towards moving to content my class and making project, but also not overwhelming my kids. 

So.....hhmmm 👀  

I am just going to start jotting some ideas down then make my first week in my notebooks. Firstly, I need to finish a syllabus that is updated for the virtual learning area with community norms and standards. Secondly, I am realizing that my scientific method and engineering design will be more like 2 or 3 week!

Just want to get to some fun activities for the class......going over rules is super non-exciting. 

Ideas:

1. Using a menti poll to gauge the room -> Get in the social emotional learning and start building my community with students!

2. Must go over syllabus, community norms, Google classroom, etc. 😒😒

3. Technology goal is introducing Menti, Google classroom, Adobe Spark, OneNote, FlipGrid, and classroom platform

4. What platform to do the lectures for students? (Zoom or Teams....such awesome choices 🙈🙉🙊)

5. Summer project with Adobe Spark 

Start of 2020-21 School Year: Goals

I have several thoughts about starting a new year and hope all the professional development can come to use. I feel this class setting is going to full of tears and grit from myself and the students, but keep this message for myself on to keep going and growing as a teacher. Now, my goals for this year our just stay sane and just take 9 weeks at a time since I get new students every 9 weeks as the STEAM teacher.  Other goals for my teaching include:

1. Professional development each month (Sphero, PBS, DE, BrainPOP, etc.)

2. Finish the weebly  website for Cognia certification 

3. Creation of mini-PBLs or STEAM challenge for students each month for 6th thru 8th grades  

4. Write 3 articles for Science Scope  

5. Present at a education conference either in-person or online  

A reminder for myself in these upcoming hard months with my kids (Jennasia, Jayden, and Jacory) this summer break!

 List of accomplishments (so I can remember.....so much going on): 

• BrainPOP Certified Educator
• Flip Grid Ambassador
• Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE, STEM I, STEM II, so many more)
• Adobe Creative Educator
• STAR Discovery Educator
• ISTE Summer Learning Academy 2020 
• Culturally and Historically Relevant Pedagogy
• Anti-Racist Pedagogy 
• Applied to be a Sphere Hero
• Working on Google Certified Teacher Level 1 and 2

List of apps using for class: 

1. Flip Grid
2. Sway
3. Jamboard
4. Menti
5. Google classroom
6. Google Forms 
7. OneNote

Make it an interesting year!