The teacher works to apply the classroom ideas to real world situations, facilitating learning through questioning assumptions and approaches in order to solve problems in local and global contexts. Through creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration, the 21st century skills, the teacher will connect these concepts to further the students problem solving skills.
Hands on Experiments & Experiences
I implement a number of hands on experiments into our science lessons to allow students to see physical representations of the concepts we are learning. One example of these experiments was looking through microscopes at plant and animal cells. A second example of this was my celery experiment implemented in our vascular or non-vascular lesson on classifying plants where students used food coloring to progressively change their plants over the period of days before pulling the celery apart to see the colored xylem. Further, aside from experiments I use 3D models in small group setting to allow students to have a kinesthetic interaction with the materials in order to help my students understand the smaller and more difficult to see portions of objects that are being studied. Through all of these hands on experiments students are able to creatively explore concepts while applying critical thinking skills in order to deduce the outcomes of experiments.
Manipulatives & Sorts
Students are able to use a variety of hands on manipulatives and paper sorts to visualize content. In the image to the right students are sorting science vocabulary terms with their definition, pairing the two together. Sorting and categorization in a physical form was also implemented for word study through the usage of Words their Way word sorts and accompanying activities. These manipulatives and sorts require that students use critical thinking skills in order to categorize the terms and pair the vocabulary not only with their definitions but also with similar terms (ex. grouping vascular & non-vascular together, grouping the parts of a flower together, etc. during unit vocabluary sorts).
Collaborative Small Groups
In my classroom students are encouraged to work in group settings and at least twice during the standard week students will be paired into small groups for cooperative learning opportunities. During group rotations students are able to have more one-on-one or small setting attention of the instructor and also allowed to work collaboratively with their group mates to solve problems and address content in a collaborative manner. Through this collaboration students are sharing thoughts, ideals, and demonstrating the ‘collaboration’ portion of the 21st century student skills.