Science Literacy and Life Hacks for School at Home

Years ago I received great advice from a teacher.  Since I have less time to read large volumes of biographies, histories, and other non-fiction sources, she reminded me to check the teen section at the local library.   Countless books exist for young readers that distill stories into shorter and easier to read excerpts.  Since taking her advice, I have gathered more copies of these books so that I can read them in one sitting when I need a break.  As much as I appreciate the broad access to ebooks, I love to grab a book from the physical bookshelf and learn something new.  Check your collections and read for at least 15 minutes!  Your brain will thank you!
 

Summer is a time for SCIENCE unplugged!!

I have been involved with some great activities with local kids this past week.  CSI Science Camp teachers hosted the Food, Fit, and Fun in the Park program for 130 kids and their parents in Burley.  The theme for the summer reading program is Fizz, Boom, Read, and we focused on Science and the Arts.  Our stations included da Vinci and his flying machine, colors, and the water cycle.  I appreciate the teachers and other sponsors like the 4H clubs and library volunteers.  It was a great day!

 

We made paper helicopters under a maple tree.  The samaras were great examples of perfectly adapted flyers in nature!  And they make great mustaches!

 

Another Busy Homeschool Science Workshop

We had another great group of students of all ages participate in a science class this week.  I decided to focus on Science Literacy since Dr. Seuss Birthday is coming up on March 2.  Since we made oobleck last time, we didn't get out the cornstarch again, but I reminded them of that experiment and the fun we had last month!

My friend shared a new book with me last week that is based on the fable, :Six Blind Men and the Elephant."  It is called Seven Blind Mice.  I use this story to introduce the power of observations, and how we try to understand the whole picture in science, and not just pieces.  Unless we communicate, investigate, and collaborate, we won't know the big picture that surrounds us.

So I read that story as well as the story of the man who learned how to photograph snowflakes.  It should really be winter outside, but it hit 60 degrees this week, so the snowflake story might have been a little too late to tell!

We returned to Dr. Seuss as we talked about Horton Hears a Who.  I always use a clip from this movie (either popular version) as I introduce microbiology.  Horton uses one of his senses to accept that there is something out there that exists even if he can't see it.  He spends the rest of the story trying to protect the Who's even if others don't believe they exist.

I taught the kids that an entire world of organisms exist right under our noses and we have to use tools and technology to learn about them.  I taught them about microscopes, the history, the parts, and the different kinds of microscopes.  And then I let them loose to investigate.

I think my favorite moment is when an older child came up to me and asked if he could take a dead wasp that he had found in a window sill and look at it under the dissecting scope.  Great idea!  A parent actually took pictures of some of the slides with her phone, so I have included one.  It was a good session, albeit a busy session.  Oh the places they will go with their brains and their feets!

Science Literacy article

Please, whoever is out there reading this blog that I never have time to write for anymore, take 10 minutes to read this great article.

A few years ago, I read "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks."  I really responded to the whole experience from the author's point of view.  It was very difficult to imagine what it would have been like for the Lacks's family, then and now.  I assigned the book to my college students who are on a path to biology majors, and I recommended it to my nonmajor students who are just as capable of understanding the relevance of this story.

I love teaching students of all ages.  But I am drawn to the adult population because the lessons I teach them can be immediately passed to other family members around the dinner table.  It can immediately impact their choices and knowledge base as they try to understand their medical histories and futures.  And I love it when a random comment or example in class turns on light bulbs in their heads.

Now, I recognized that this subject is important to me.  Others are just as passionate about history and politics, math literacy, economics, civil responsibilities and law, arts and philosophy, and all the wonderful areas of knowledge that exist.  Good for them.  May I be as willing to be literate in those subjects as I am asking my friends, family, and students to be in science.  It really does all matter.

http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/7810/

Here are a few images from an activity I do in Biology class called Iron Scientist.  The groups are given a topic and a secret ingredient to use as they demonstrate and teach the rest of the class.  For instance, balloons become the frame of a Punnett Square and they teach us a genetics cross.  By far one of my favorite days in class.