Twitter in the classroom

So I have decided that since I'm doing fifth and sixth science next year (meaning I will have my last years fifth graders again in which I have built a strong relationship with many of them) that I want to incorporate more ways for my kiddos to contact me (other than school email... something they use more of.... meaning social media!) or message me with their opinions and ideas or just their kind words (hopefully haha).

I've created a "teacher" twitter account that I plan on using for reminders for homework, exciting things in the classroom, retweets of scientific knowledge, and school reminders as well. This will also be a great way for parents to see upcoming tests, homework, and activities too if their child never brings home the weekly newsletter. 

I've decided on a vague twitter "handle" as they call them because being in a small district I could become a math, reading, social studies, second grade, fourth grade, heck even HS with the proper previous testing in the future. I also decided that one day my last name/email for which ever district I work in may change so I decided on @TeachOpenMinded which also goes along with my philosophy and this blog name. Consistency seems to help with many things in life.

If you are new to the twitter vocab here is a great resource THE TWITTER GLOSSARY!

Scientific Method on the show The Big Bang Theory

Big Bang Theory!

One of my favorite shows used in the classroom. As soon as I heard the sentence while watching the show I immediately went to YouTube to find the scene!

Tide Teaching Moment

I am staying right on the beach in Homer, Alaska where it is said to have one of the most drastic tide differences. I have decided to do a little daily record for myself. I am just truly amazed! I have taught about tides but I have never seen it myself. I can't wait to teach about tides with my own pictures : )

I took these pictures with HDR turned on, on my iPhone and then used a text in picture editor app to add the time on top. I'm a little obsessed with this app now... It's so fun and you can keep your original picture clean without the text as well in your photo library! 

I started to take these on 6/10/13

It is officially 6/11/13 now and I'm still watching the tide!

I can only view on my phone so anyone viewing on a desktop or laptop may be able to see it better but it was about as dark as Alaska gets at this time of the summer. 

More pictures from this day and the tide to come!

Vacation In the classroom

This glacier ice is not from Ruth's glacier but rather from another glacier we viewed after a boat ride from Seward out to resurrection bay which is in the Kenai Pennisula. Glacier Pictured below 

Ruth's glacier is below

I am currently on a FABULOUS trip in Alaska and have been thinking about science and teaching about 50% of the time! So many things tourist guides have told me, multiple Alaska children's books, and beautiful pictures and videos I have captured can be used in the science classroom. I am in heaven for many reasons! I have decided that I want to visit every biome possible and take pictures because it will be so fun to teach about the tundra and glaciers considering I have now not only touched glacier ice but landed on a glacier in a plane! 

This is a picture of the plane we rode around Mt McKinley (the first picture below) and eventually landed on Ruth's glacier(the picture above).

4 pictures 1 word in the classroom

So I have seen many people posting on Facebook about these 4 pictures and saying help and not knowing what the heck it was really... I began to think how I could use this in the classroom with vocabulary and I'm not sure if I was asleep and dreaming or if it was one of those morning where I couldn't sleep and thought up this idea.

I finally decided to ask someone what the name of the game was and they told me that it was called four pictures one word. I downloaded the game from the App Store and started playing it. It was super fun and kind of addicting.... ha who would have thunk it... A game that is an app on the iPhone that's addicting.

Here is my first one I created (I am still working out details on how to separate te pictures and mine is more than 4 pictures and the answer is more than 1 word) using pic jointer which is also a free app from the apple app store and don't forget it is for fifth grade science... I plan on starting easy and this being kind of a bellwork idea possibly and after they figure out the word they think mine is from the four pictures they will have to create their own with different pictures but using the same vocabulary word.

I hope to have a few more up in the next few days and maybe better quality with actually 4 pictures and 1 word. This was just a quick one I thought up to get my mind rolling.

Hope you enjoy this and can maybe use this in your classroom.

Science/Reading correlation with Dr.Seuss book!

Watch our reading garden grow! With my partner teacher in reading my students listened to The Lorax being read to them. They then planted different seeds inside a plastic cup. They are going to compare and contrast the rate they are growing. Yay! Science tek in reading... Go Mrs. Jackson!
Later we talked about how the book actually has A LOT to do with science and the effects if change on animals and their environment and even the scientific method in the book!

Since we were learning about the CO2 cycle I thought it would be great to put our model CO2 cycle of respiration and photosynthesis around the reading bulletin board. Each student is going to add a petal to their stem each time they read and take an AR test on a book.


Up on the wall also was a song we learned. I got the last part if the song from another blog and then added the beginning and adapted it a little myself.

Here it is....
(We whisper) "RESPIRATION is when animals (breathe in big) absorb oxygen just like you (point to people) now let's conclude the cycle of CO2!
I soak up all the water
My roots are like a straw
I absorb CO2 the animals give it off
I hold out my leaves the sun gives me a kiss I make my own food it's photosynthesis!"

Enjoy : )

Songs, songs, and more songs

I taught my kids a song last week for transformations!
I got the idea from a fellow teacher of mine and elaborated on it... It's to the Cupid shuffle!
Tell your students to grab a partner.... (Some of mine chose a partner that was as close to congruent as possible.... I was one proud teacher!)
You can choose to tell them to grab a congruent partner if you'd like.
Here is the song!

Translate to the right, to the right, to the right (motion: slide to the right)
Translate to the left, to the left, to the left (motion: slide to the left)
Now reflect your partner, now reflect your partner (motion: put your arms out like a T and face your partner)
Now rotate by yourself, now rotate by yourself (motion: turn in place.... ((Explain to kids Like the earth rotating on its axis **science tek!**))
Down, down translate down
Down, down translate down (motion: twist down to floor/get low)
Do your transformations, do your transformations! (Motion: Let them be silly and free dance)
--second verse--
Translate to the right, to the right, to the right (motion: slide to the right)
Translate to the left, to the left, to the left (motion: slide to the left)
Now reflect your partner, now reflect your partner (motion: put your arms out like a T and face your partner)
Now rotate by yourself, now rotate by yourself (motion: turn in place)
Up, up translate up
Up, up translate up
(motion: jump and raise hands to the sky)
Do your transformations, do your transformations! (Motion: Let them be silly and free dance)


Next week I plan on teaching another song with my median, mode, range lesson! Here it is short and sweet!

Home on the RANGE where the deer and the antelope play
Where subtraction is neat
From greatest to least
And the skies are not cloudy all day!

This not only teaches them that range is greatest number - smallest number but hopefully is normal subtraction too that the bigger number is first!

Hope you and your students enjoy!