Another misconception....

Male animals are always bigger and stronger than female animals.  This was a quiz question that I thought mine have a lot of misconceptions associated with it.  As a true or false question, I answered "false" only because it said "ALWAYS" and I knew that couldn't possibly be true.  From the website http://science-at-home.org/men-bigger-than-women/  I found out that:


"Ironically, mammals and birds are backwards to most other organisms.  We’re just biased because they are the ones we see the most, but in insects and sea creatures (and even some plants) females are almost always bigger than males.  This has a very practical reason – females produce the eggs for the next generation.  Eggs are much bigger and more energy intensive than sperm, so females need to be able to get more energy to put into producing and protecting them."

Again...it just goes to show that we have to be careful what we say to children even in general statements like "the male is the bigger and stronger animal".  It's not a false statement to say that about animals and birds, but it's incorrect to suggest that ALL male animals are bigger than females.

Snips and snails and puppy dog tails?

Today I started a new job at a daycare just for the summer months.  First days at anything are a little unnerving in general, but my "thing" is working with kids, so it doesn't take long for me to feel like I'm in my groove.  I was lucky to have only 7 kids today so I got to know them pretty well in a matter of hours.  I could tell which little guy was going to test me today from the second that he walked in and I could tell which one was going to be my special helper.  The little boy that took one look at me and thought "umm...you aren't Ms. Sondra" warmed up to me and was chatting away by lunch time did wonders for my self esteem. My new job is different, but I can tell that it's going to be fun and I'm excited to kick it into full swing June 2.

So in the classroom I was subbing in today, there was a plastic box with a lid full of dirt in the science center and I asked the kids what it was.  It's worms!  They have a box of worms in the classroom for the kids to just check out whenever they want.  Absolutely brilliant!  I only wish that I would have thought of that this last school year.  Contrary to what you might think...it was not the boys that were digging in the worm box, but the girls!  I was loving every minute of watching these precious five year old girls with perfect curls and bows in their hair, digging in a box of dirt and pulling out worms and squealing with delight as the worms wiggled about on their hands. A common misconception that some teachers may have...girls don't enjoy science or that science related careers are jobs for men.  As teachers, we need to do encourage both boys and girls to get dirty, explore and discover in a field that has many opportunities for both men and women.

Plant or not?

I have  few misconceptions to investigate, the first being what is a plant.  Out of the choices tree, flower, mushroom, fern and moss, the one that I didn't indicate as a plant was a mushroom.  According to the definition of plant via Dictionary.com,

plant

/plænt, plɑnt/ Show Spelled [plant, plahnt] Show IPA

noun

1.

any member of the kingdom Plantae, comprising multicellular organisms that typically produce their own food from inorganic matter by the process of photosynthesis and that have more or less rigid cell walls containing cellulose, including vascular plants, mosses, liverworts, and hornworts: some classification schemes may include fungi, algae, bacteria, blue-green algae, and certain single-celled eukaryotes that have plantlike qualities, as rigid cell walls or photosynthesis.

2.

an herb or other small vegetable growth, in contrast with a tree or a shrub.

3.

a seedling or a growing slip, especially one ready for transplanting.

4.

the equipment, including the fixtures, machinery, tools, etc., and often the buildings, necessary to carry on any industrial business: a manufacturing plant.

5.

the complete equipment or apparatus for a particular mechanical process or operation: the heating plant for a home.

 

According to the definition, a mushroom is a plant.  I knew that it fell into the fungi category and if I had thought about it a moment longer I would have realized that I knew the answer and was merely second guessing myself, because I know that a fungi IS a plant.  It's clearly NOT an animal or a mineral.

I think this is another key as to why science is so difficult.  At times, what seems like the logical answer isn't and others, what you perceive to be a "trick question" is very obvious. This is the reason why we have to build safe communities in our classrooms where kids are comfortable sharing their thoughts without judgment in at atmosphere where it's okay to be wrong.  I think it was Socrates (pronounced So-crates if you ever watched Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure) that said "I know enough to know that I know nothing".

 

To the Moon and Back....

The model of the phases of the moon that we did in class was the coolest thing...even for your little guys in pre-k and up.  All you need is a flashlight, a Styrofoam ball, a pencil and a dark room.  You are the earth, the ball is the moon and the flashlight simulates the sun.  It's cool just to watch, but to get the full effect, everyone really needs to take a turn to be the earth.  This is a great explanation to young children why the moon looks different every night and when we see the moon in the sky, you know exactly what you are seeing.  I was amazed! 
The diagram below is basically what we looked at in class, but the Styrofoam model really makes the most impact.  In fact, for your younger elementary kiddos, the diagram is really a little too abstract, but the will get the model.
I am mentally planning a unit on the phases of the moon.  It would be really fun to have THE MOON be a theme for all subjects for a couple weeks...journaling about the moon phases, books with a moon theme, how the moon effects the tides on earth, moon related art, calculations about gravity on the moon and distance from the earth, folklore and myths regarding the moon.  Maybe even start with a KWL to see what the kids want to learn?  Totally brainstorming....

Does a broom really stand on end during the Equinox?

I have to admit, I totally fell for this!  But thanks to this website, http://urbanlegends.about.com/b/2012/03/07/how-to-stand-a-broom-on-end-on-the-equinox.htm, that was totally debunked!  Of course, had I just thought logically about it for a few minutes, I probably would have realized that it didn't really make any sense.  Some other misconceptions about science that I have, thanks to Dr. Kat's quiz..

Darwin did NOT suggest that man evolved from apes, but that man and apes had a common ancestor.

SOS does NOT mean Save Our Ship (although it could, right?), it doesn't stand for anything.  It was used because it wasn't easily mistakes in Morse code, with the 3 dashes, 3 dots, 3 dashes.

Toilets don't flow in different directions in the southern hemisphere.

Penicillin merely stops bacteria from multiplying, it does not kill it.

Moths fly by navigation of the stars!  What? yep...read this http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question69625.html

But I did get 20 out of 25 correct so I guess that's pretty good. ;)

So...just goes to show, that everyone has misconceptions about science and even though you may not remember where you heard them, they do stick with you.  Kids coming into our classes will have misconceptions as well and it's difficult to get them to let go of those without some serious debunking!

How Do Children Learn?

So my question for the day...how do children learn?  As a teacher of preschool children for the last eight years, this has been a question that I ask myself all the time.  When I started at the school I was working at, we used a curriculum that was very scripted with lots of worksheets (I know, I know...it was horrible!).  This curriculum was very vocabulary rich, I will give it that much, but as far as being age appropriate, it wasn't even close.  Kids between the ages of 3 and 5 are very active, have short attention spans and have a need to be creative and "color outside of the lines".  In the last eight years, with continuing education and the benefit of having an employee in grad school (me!), the school curriculum has been changed to a more child driven, teacher directed, play centered curriculum.  It's still high quality, we still do the same kids of things, more actually, and it works!.  Children are engaged, excited and learning!  The reason that it works...because it is age appropriate.  Pre-k kids aren't meant to sit in little desks and do worksheet after worksheet coloring all the stars yellow, because it's outlined in yellow.  They need to play, explore, touch, experiment, question, be encouraged and make a mess in order to create meaning from their environment.  Check out this article.  Great information not only for the little guys, but for every age group.

  http://www.stanford.edu/dept/bingschool/aboutbing_philosophy_learn.html


 After our Lit Circle discussion last night in class, what I took away from it is that passive listening = BORING.  Children need to be active, they need to see relevance and be able to make real connections, and build on their prior knowledge in order to really learn.

I was thinking this morning how much I'm looking forward to the summer...long, warm days, sitting outside at night. One of my favorite things to do is listen to the cicadas and watch the lightning bugs at night.  I'm not really a fan of bugs, but I don't mind them.  I guess that's a good thing, because the warm climate in TN is ideal for lots of bugs...in comparison to what I grew up with in Oregon.  A few years ago, I did a summer camp for Pre-k kids and our theme was bugs.  We did bug crafts, read bug books, went outside and investigated bugs and made bug themes snacks for every day.  The kids loved it and the possibilities are really endless.


Can't wait for summer!


Some cool pictures that I've collected from my Pinterest board...Enjoy!