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Cynthia Malcolmson
Severn Elementary School - teaching assistant
MD

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I am a grad student at UMBC. I am taking the Instructional Strategies for Teaching Elementary School Science course.

Public Collections
Recent Public Collections by Cynthia

water cycle - two week unit

5 Resources

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weather - two week unit

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Forum Posts
Recent Posts by Cynthia

Sun, Mar 31, 2013 12:36 PM in aligning assessments with objectives

I am a preservice teacher and am writing a two week unit for first grade on the topic of weather. My first class is devoted to reading the picture book "The Watcher" about Jane Goodall's scientific observations. It is a very good picture book, that discusses the importance of careful observation. Unfortunately it doesn't have anything to do with weather. I am not sure if I should use it. Also...

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Sat, Mar 30, 2013 3:26 PM in open or full inquiry

Tina and Carolyn Thank you for the suggestions! I will look into all of them. Appreciate the guidance. Cindy

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Mon, Mar 25, 2013 11:04 AM in open or full inquiry

I am a preservice teacher planning a two week unit on weather. I have the unit just about mapped out completely. Our professor assigned to us a reading on open or full inquiry lessons where you begin with a student's question. How does one plan for that type of lesson? For example, my two week unit consists of the students evaluating and recording the weather using homemade weather instruments...

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Reviews
Recent Reviews by Cynthia

Scope on the Skies: And then there were eight

Sat, Mar 09, 2013 11:21 AM
11 planets?

I throughly enjoyed this article and its explanations of terms such a dwarf planet.. It made Pluto's new designation easy to understand. The idea of 11 planets in our solar system is an interesting one. Lots of things have changed since my science project on Pluto in 1976! The dynamic nature of science is an excellent point to make with students and this article would help with that.

Podcast: Are We Alone?: Geography of Mars

Sat, Mar 09, 2013 10:57 AM
blueberries on Mars

THe podcast Geography of Mars starts rather abruptly. This is understandable given it is only part of a larger discussion. It takes a minute or two to get one's bearings but in the end this podcast is well worth the time needed to listen to it. Its title is a bit of a misnomer because only the "blueberries" and their relationship with water on Mars are discussed. I wish the host had explained what hematite is as it seems crucial to the discussion. The discussion shows that blueberries on Mars are caused by water in the distant past and not impacts from space. Very interesting stuff. This podcast would definitely help a teacher's understanding of the topic.

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