The Science Leadership Team began their meeting by going on a ‘10 minute field trip‘ . The focus of the field trip depended on the focus of the teacher. Teachers who taught:
- Life Sciences focused on looking for evidence of all of the activities between plants, animals and other organisms
- Earth Science focused on looking for evidence of erosional surfaces
- Chemistry focused on looking for evidence of chemical changes (i.e. rust)
- Physics focused on collecting data about friction on various surfaces
These 10 minute field trips were examples of ways to engage students and show them how what they learn in the classroom can be found in the world around them. The teachers each had a worksheet to help focus their observations and collect data. They shared how the experience could be used in their classrooms and discussed edits to the observation sheets that would help tailor them to their units of study.
In addition to these field trips a plan was on each grade level (k-5) and in each subject area (6-12) for transitioning to the new NYS Science Standards. Teachers had the opportunity to plan with teachers of other grade levels when these changes would take place. It was important for those grades that were taking on new topic previously taught in other grades to start to plan and shift these units. Teachers were able to coordinate the transition with one another so there are no gaps in curriculum for students, while also sharing resources with one another for those topics. Middle School teachers were given time to look over their new science program which will roll out in September. They also explored the online component and all that it has to offer. High School teachers discussed possibilities for meeting the new Engineering standards within the science classrooms instead of just in the tech classes and beginning to research programs that can better meet these standards.
Written by:
Samantha Levine, Instructional Science Coach
