Upper+Elementary

This is a page for the Upper Elementary educators (Third and Fourth Grades). Before our meeting, this would be the ideal page on which to post questions/topics specific to Upper Elementary for discussion on April 18.


 * //I believe we are the only school not departmentalized at this time; however, this may be changing next year. Therefore, I'm curious to know more details about how science is taught in fourth grade - - how often and for how long and the units covered. In addition, I'd love to know more about the experiments the other schools are doing and any materials they have found to be most helpful.// (from Brenda Wilder, Fourth Grade, ESD)

//I myself am interested in ideas to develop process skills and meet national standards with some sort of large scale, science-related school presentations...like Invention Convention, Science Fair, Science Expo, etc. I want to do something different, but since we have a split campus, I don't know that I can count on grades 1 and 2 to lay the foundations, so I also need ideas that can stand alone if they need to.// (Lisa Fuchs, Parish)
 * //I'll be happy to share any ideas you need...I teach science to 5 sections 6 out of 6 schedule days, and I think Greenhill's coverage is similar.//

April 18th Discussion Notes ESD: Don't use a particiular program, they are a good place to start but not a place to stay. Develop to student needs as they change. Hockaday: Want to know the process of science, how to record data, work with a lab partner, make discoveries. Science is about guessing and being wrong, work on getting away from answers and getting into the process of DOING science.

Grades: Hockaday: don't do grades, Not yet/Developing/Mastery about how child has progressed, rubrics Parish: 4th = checklists (B, D, S) in first & third quarter, third quarter grades combined with checks to see how one affects the other, learn about how managing selves and time affects grades before middle school, third and fourth quarter get comments only, in-house study skills program starting in third grade, step up homework, Blackbaud, all parent access middle and up Good Shepherd: Grades and tests in science, Blackbaud, no access Lakehill: numeric grades, Ren Web acessable on line 4th and up St John's: Start Grades at 4th, Blackbaud not accessable, numeric grades end of third ESD: start letter grades in 4th, First class, not accessable Greenhill: no grades until 5th, end of 4th start putting ratios on the grades, rubrics

Divisional Teachers: How do you get away from paper? GS: smartboard, hands on, class discussion, study sheet Hockaday: WkSheet but put on smartboard and do on board with whole class, in-class discussion documented by teacher and sent home Parish: Study cards done as the unit goes along, add to study materials on their own, must study every day, tests unnanounced, if they are doing what they are supposed to be doing they will do fine. If they follow study program they will be prepared, open-ended questions and high-level. Very successful. Can buy program which she has copyrighted. Classroom teachers implement in the classroom. Graphic organizers, all use same terminology and color-coding.

What are some of the most innovative lessons you have done? -jousting peeps to teach excited molecules -fry and egg on the sidewalk -make their own agar from bullion & knox, swab areasin home, predict what grows the most germs: toilet, handle, sink drain, own choice -bones mysteries (forensic science) have to figure out different things about the victim and all kinds of info to figure out what had happened to the person, high level of thinking, applied info about learning about bones -disections; big specimens for little kids -cow heart dissection, red and blue pipe cleaners to show how they were intwined

Science Field trips: -water program: doing water testing at white rock creek, partner with another school, coming back and recording -human body: bones and muscles, trip to scottish rite and study prosthetics

How do you determine your unit of study? Parish: coordinated curriculum with a progression of study, three years is a good break between specific topics [|www.coreknowlege.com]

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