Lost Generation - Simply Looking at Things a Different Way

I am inspired by this video. I think it demonstrates how quickly our perspective can change when we look at something differently. It could also serve as a template for a challenging writing assignment I was thinking around Earth Day...Thoughts?

Making Ice Cream: A Lesson in Thermal Energy Transfer.

A hot summer afternoon can leave my body craving ice cream!....Currently my favorite flavor is Mint Patty from Golick's Dairy Bar in Dover NH. My husband is more a Strawberry Cheesecake fan at the moment.

While it is simple to order a cup or a dish from a local stand, it is more fun to make your own! If you are baby sitting for the summer or have younger siblings, you can even make an afternoon out of it! Be sure you are ready for the vigorous shaking, it can be a real work out....

So here is how making ice cream is science! (View the video provided for instructions and recipe)

The outer container is used to house the ice. Ice melts naturally because thermal energy (heat) likes to move from "hot" to "cold" places (high to low concentrations). So the thermal energy from the environment wants to transfer (move) to the ice which has less thermal energy. When heat is added to the ice it breaks the bonds in the ice and causes it to change state, from a solid to a liquid (melting). Salt is added to the ice in the outer container to depress, or lower its freezing point.....making it even colder and the melting process slower!

Another transfer of energy occurs simultaneously. The yummy mixture in the inner container has more thermal energy than the outer container, so again, heat transfers from the inner container to the outer container. When heat is removed from the inner container the mixture changes phases from a liquid to a solid! Yum!

Finally by shaking it with you hands, you are adding even more energy into the universe and speeding up the process!

Enjoy!

Is Connecting with Nature...The Same as Science?

Is Connecting with Nature....The Same as Science?

After attending two out of four days of Google Week at the SPDC in Exeter, NH, I have realized how interconnected our teaching community truly could be! How exciting! Amy Catone (a teacher in our district/fearless instructor), suggested that we use Blogger just to see how it worked...

We were also introduced to Google Reader. What a great way to quickly follow pages that are interesting! I soon became a follower of the NSTA blog and came upon an article which summarizes my thoughts when naming this blog: Science is Everywhere!

Often times I am asked to teach a curriculum which is specific, diverse and challenging, however a lot of students have questions about things that we think they already know.

"What is my food made up of? You mean plants have ovaries?! Are trees alive?".... (All from my eighth graders this year).

It's so easy to say, " Didn't you learn that last year? Or we are learning about _______ now, so now is not the time. Or the ever so popular, didn't they teach you anything in __ grade?!" I found one day it was easy to get caught up discussing electrical energy, when during the lesson I discovered that one student's take away message was: that weight loss in its simplest explanation is using more energy to do work with their bodies than is consumed through the calories of their food.

I think connecting with nature is science, at any age! Observing the world, becoming curious, asking questions, doing research, making predictions and creating fact based conclusions are all things that can happen with or without a book. If students are given a chance to ask these questions in a safe learning environment, then the transfer of energy, etc will make much more sense down the road...whenever that may be.

So the goal of this blog is to address the seemingly simple questions we generate in the back of our brains each day and relate them to science. This will reinforce that science really is everywhere!