Sarah Sejzer

Classroom Management: Setting Up the Classroom for Learning

Sun, Jul 03, 2011 6:16 PM
Tips for conducting good classroom management

Here's what I learned from reading this journal article: -Make sure your environment is not too glitzy or cluttered. It should be organized. -Try not to be at the short end of a long room. Students pay attention better when you are closer to them. -Students should not have their backs to you. -Lab safety rules should first be signed by parents. -When students enter the room, they should know what to do, not just get ready. -Use closure activities.

Genetics of Sesame Street^TM Characters

Tue, Jun 14, 2011 7:03 PM
Using Sesame Street Characters to Explain Genetic

This author used five Sesame Street characters to explain how genetics works. She had her students write out the phenotypes and genotypes of characters like Grover, Elmo, and Zoe. For example, there were the easy to identify traits of amount of hair (hairy or bald), nose shape, and body color. These traits are different from humans, of course, and that was the whole point. The author wanted to make it interesting for the students; she figured using characters with funky traits would be more fun than regular human traits. I found this idea fascinating. I would never have thought to do something like this with my future students, but it would be so much fun for them. Also, by using Sesame Street characters, students won’t be so self-conscious about any abnormalities that they might have inherited. The author provided all of the activity sheets to make it easy for me to duplicate and use in a classroom.

Science Shorts: Action Figures

Tue, Jun 14, 2011 5:40 PM
Action Figures and the Human Body

These teachers did something I thought was really cool. They used action figures to demonstrate how the human body moves. They asked their students, “In what ways does your action figure move?” The teachers made a chart with all the ways the students found their toys could move. The students found that their action figures could twist, bend, and spin. The teachers explained the three different types of joints: ball and socket, hinge, and sliding joints. They played a game in which the students would go outside and the teachers asked them to name a sliding, hinge, or ball and socket joint. Then the teachers would have the students practice moving their bodies with that joint. At the end of the lesson, the teachers concluded with their KWL chart that they had used at the beginning. Finally, they played another game where the teachers would call out the names of one of the joints: ball and socket, hinge, or sliding joint. After a joint was called out, a student would call out a body part that fit that category. I thought this lesson was effective and creative, and it definitely gives me some creative ways to teach about joints.