Mo Physics Mo Problems

One of the goals of many new standards being proposed across the nation and globally from CCSS to NGSS and ISTE is to put students at the center of the learning experience. To "take ownership" over the learning. Katie Martin in her book Learner Centered Innovation lays out the 10 Characteristics of Learner Centered Experiences. If you haven't read her post highlighting the characteristics, read it here.  As I look to align my curriculum for the upcoming year, it is not as easy as it sounds. In a passion project situation student questioning leads them to new understandings that take them beyond content goals of my classroom. But when student questioning is supposed to lead to content (and skill) mastery it can become tough to guide that process. That is one of my biggest fears about our upcoming school year. When students ask questions, how can we honor them. In our new science standards every unit is guided by a real world phenomenon that addresses the content ou...

This week my physics students held our 4th Passion Project Expo. Since we’re on a block schedule we end up holding it twice a year. Students were given the option of following 4 different paths: Experimentation, Learning a new skill, Making something, or Deep research. Here are a few of the projects and products students completed. Experimentation   Learning a new skill Making Something     Check out c-ledge.co Deep Research It was a great way to end the year!

So, 4th block students have a rough question or goal. Now what?  Well, that depends on what type of project students are undertaking.  Over days 3 and 4, I set up a little list for my 4th block students.  But, just like the inquiry process suggests, it starts with finding resources and doing some research.  These are not prescribed steps, just suggestions for those who need the guidance. For those who are digging deep into content knowledge: Research: get background on your topic to refine your focus. Find “texts” Read “texts” Record relevant info. For those who are looking to improve performance of a skill: Research: get background on your skill and how you can improve? (record this!) What is your plan for improvement? How will you track data? For those who are looking to perform a specific task or create a specific product: Research: get background on what your product will entail? (record this!) What is your plan for c...

Today, my classes were in different phases of the inquiry project process. Once class was working on the brainstorming process another was  moving onto choosing one idea and molding it into a reasonable question or goal. The general framework we are using for this project is the inquiry process. So our focus was posing real questions or for some creating a real goal.  I formatted the questions from step 1 into a document so that we could go through the process of refining the idea into a strong driving question that was clear, focused, and complex.  I communicated that this question may change over time based on their research and that was perfectly fine.  And if they wanted to scrap a current idea for some reason, they could but needed to provide a reflection on why they were changing gears. After drafting an initial driving question or learning goal, students were to submit it for feedback.    For those still unclear about where th...

On Tuesday of this week, I was lucky enough to attend The Elmbrook Educational Foundation Circle of Friends Luncheon . The EEF does great work for our district awarding scholarships to high school graduates as well as innovation grants for learning within our district. At this event, several innovative educational practices were highlighted. One that tapped into something I've been considering was the incorporation of a Genius Hour at one our our elementary school. The poster below explains it better than I ever could have. It was exciting to see the work that these elementary students were able to accomplish from choosing a topic all the way to presenting their learning. The students were able to communicate eloquently about the process of learning. The idea that it is not always linear and that it can lead to bigger questions and new understandings. Sometimes I feel like when I teach a topic, the students are learning it because they have to and may not...