What science did we put to use for this project?  Let’s hear what you learned…

View our Heat Technology Projects

The heat technology presentations were very impressive.  While the students were given some choices, they designed projects that were original and innovative.  Students made their own computer graphics or used their artistic skill to draw intricate diagrams.  They made podcasts, movies, Power Points, and cartoons.  We were able to share projects across the class periods and we were able to appreciate the unique differences between our projects. 

What types of projects do you prefer making?  What types of projects do you prefer watching?  I would like us to try to make our projects more interactive.  Any ideas how to make a project that the viewer interacts with?  Share your ideas!

Some interesting appliances are the toaster (how does it know when to pop the toast out?), the thermostat (why does the heater turn on and off throughout the day?), the refrigerator (will leaving the door open cool the room down?) and the coffee maker (my favorite!) 

I thought it would be fun to research these together and then share what we learn using some kind of online tool.  Our options are as follows.  Share by making blog comments, add to a mind map on Thinkature, or create a new Pageflakes page.  I can’t wait to work together on this.  Check out the links and leave me a comment. 

A student is making a podcast while her group performs a lab experiment.

Our podcasts are up an running!  Here are some things I have learned.  Windows media files need to be converted before they can be uploaded to the server but there are free online tools to solve that problem.  Movies have to be small in order to upload them – which is good in a way since long movies can get boring. 

I’m so proud of all the students who created movies, uploaded pictures, and made Power Point presentations for their online science fair projects!  One student even made a Voice Thread!  Cool!  Look for these projects to be featured on our wiki in the near future!  In the mean time, enjoy some of our podcasts from this year and last.  http://podcast.qcsd.org/users/mrslaguna/

Here is one example that was really amazing.  During my prep period I was working on getting the students grades on my computer when Greg came into the classroom.  He wanted to collect some more data for his last experiment so that he could revise his lab report (completely optional by the way.)  I said, “sure!” and Greg got to work.  I didn’t really talk to him again until he left. 

In that time he started the Data Studio software, assembled and connected a pressure sensor to the computer,  conducted an experiment, organized the results in a data table, reformatted the graph for printing, and made a color printout of the volume and pressure graph…without any help.  Wow.  My students rock! 

Sometimes we are told what to do and how to do it so often that we forget to take the initiative and take charge of our own learning.  I think learning is really only fun when it is self-directed.  What do you think?  Can you share an example of a time when you learned something on your own?  Was that a good experience?  Or do you prefer being guided by a teacher when you learn something new?

Well, it sure beats dieting!  Mike’s ingenious experiment confirms it!  Objects weigh less when they are submerged in water!  We used the Pasco force sensor to measure the weight of an object above the water and again after it had been submerged.  Here is a challenge for you.  Can you explain why the object weighs less under the water?  Don’t forget to use the term, “buoyant force.”

What do carbon fiber, hybrid cars, and spiders have in common?  You’ll have to ask Kush.  He did his independent research project on composite materials!  Slide show. Game.

One student was able to get an A on the pre-test for Chapter 2.  He has been working independently on a project about composite materials.  There are so many more project options now than when I was young.  Instead of a poster, model, or written paper students can create a podcast, movie, voice thread, power point presentation, or wiki.  Wow!  Kush decided to make a power point with a computer game follow-up.  To make it more interesting he animated and narrated his slides.  The funny thing is, his teacher (that would be me) didn’t know how to narrate a slide show.  So guess who was the student this time (again me.)  Now I know.  If you want to add narration to your slide show, I can now help with that but only because Kush taught me how!  Have you ever taught your teachers? 

I don’t think I would ever have attempted to use so much technology in my classroom if the kids were not so helpful.  Can you imagine if the kids grumbled each time something went wrong in one of the lessons where we used Data Studio, the Airliner Smart Board, or the podcast kit?  I would have given up long ago.  In the past few days I learned several helpful lessons from my students.  First, you can change the font size on the Pearson Algebra I online quizzes so that the whole group of students can see on one computer screen – Thanks, Monica!  Brandon found out that we can change the line colors on Data Studio to make our graphs more effective.   Keep the tips coming!  Your teacher needs all the help she can get!

For example, the VoiceThread we created in Science today took the effort of all three classes.  When I have trouble explaining a concept to a student, I will try to remember to look for help from our team of students and I hope that the students will also remember to look for support from other people in our class (including me!)