Brain breaks - high school edition

What is a brain break?

Well, that concept is a bit foreign to us in secondary education. But for the little ones (you know, those screaming balls of energy that elementary teachers like to teach), brain breaks happen all the time. Basically, a brain break is something that students do whenever they start to get jittery and bored from sitting for too long.

Brain breaks come in a lot of different forms, depending on the teacher's preference. I have seen students do yoga or some other form of stretching. I have seen students play a quick game that has nothing to do with whatever academic subject they are studying. (Or, better yet, learning in disguise.)

I really don't know why high school teachers don't do brain breaks. Do we really expect that students will be able to sit still for 40-90 minutes? Really? No stop. Reconsider that. Could YOU sit still and listen to someone talk for 40-90 minutes straight? Why do we expect teenagers to be able to do it, if we can't?

But isn't it more effective to work longer? No, not really. Need some research? That's okay. I brought some.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/17/jobs/take-breaks-regularly-to-stay-on-schedule-workstation.html?_r=0
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3132583/?tool=pubmed
http://turbinehq.com/2013/benefits-of-taking-breaks/



My coworker recently showed me a brain break website that is pretty awesome: https://www.gonoodle.com/

Gonoodle has a bunch of short videos (about 2 minutes) that take the students through some silly movement routine. The videos seem very elementary, but high school students love to be silly too! At the beginning, they will probably scoff at you. Come on, they are high school kids. They scoff at everything. You could bring them ice cream and they would complain that it's too cold.

The students that have used this find the videos to be very fun. They have even been caught showing their friends the moves at lunch time, and have requested brain breaks whenever they start to get stressed.

Whatever you're method, brain breaks are totally worth it. Try it out!

Relax already!

I know what you are thinking. It's the end of the school year (at least for those of us in the USA). State testing is coming. Summer is coming. Students are starting to bounce off of the walls. You, the teacher, are more tired now than ever. Summer break seems to be coming slower and slower, even as the days go by.

For example, this week I have a lot to do. I have IEP meetings. I have staff meetings and committee meetings. Our teacher packet is due. (It's a thing that we have to do in our first few years.) My portfolio justifying our honors courses is due. We are also having a meeting about those portfolios.

Parents need to be called. Grades need to be done. Lessons need to be planned. It is getting to that time of the year where an outside lesson would be great, because it fits with the curriculum and we are actually on pace this time. (And, again, the students are bouncing off of the walls.) Outside lessons require even more planning. In a way, they are like a mini field trip.


Would you like to know what I am doing on this lovely rainy Saturday?

Nothing.

Nothing?!?!?!

 That's right, nothing. This morning I slept in until 11:00. I walked across the street and got myself some coffee at the coffee shop. Then I online shopped to use up the rest of a gift card that I have. It's now 3:00 pm, and I haven't even considered school work.

How will you ever be ready for next week!?!?!?!? 


I know that I will be ready. I have faith in myself. I know my content. I know my students. I know that we will get it done. But let's move away from me.

Stop and think -- Does stressing out really help you to be a better teacher? Does working yourself 24/7 really help?

No, but I can't be prepared otherwise!!!

Yes you can. The key is to work smarter, not harder. Can you reuse things from last year? Can you ask a coworker for help? Can you check TeachersPayTeachers? Can you Google it? Can you put more work on the students, and less work on yourself?

The point is this - it is absolutely okay to borrow from other teachers. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Do you really need a worksheet on multiplication? Fine, Google "multiplication worksheets". There you go. That took 3 minutes, as opposed to 15 to type one out yourself. Do you really need a lab activity for acceleration? Fine, go on TpT and look one up. Spend the $3. That took 5 minutes.

Saving yourself some time here and there leaves you a lot more time for more important things. You can focus on student learning and lesson planning, instead of on how to think of 20 practice problems.

As teachers, I know we feel the need to be "perfect". We have to be the stellar teacher that someone will make movies about someday. However, stressing yourself to the point where you are burnt out is just not helping you.

A fellow teacher said this to me last week. "I am so glad I don't have the internet at home. I couldn't plan lessons or put in grades, even if I wanted to. I am forced to work outside or read a book. It has been so relaxing!"


Lest you think "Oh, you're one of THOSE teachers that the politicians are so worried about," allow me a moment to gloat -- My students have consistently had higher test scores, and an independent company that was observing us said that I was one of the best teachers in my school.


Seriously now. RELAX. Just stop. Take 10 minutes to yourself. Take a nap. Go for a walk. Go read a book. Put the school stuff AWAY. Really, away. Don't even think about it. R-E-L-A-X.

Your students will thank you.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/6e/c6/76/6ec67638305b5d1be0a38daa3335ef65.jpg

Second semester blues...

Oye... second semester really hits you hard, doesn't it?

I apologize that I have been absent for so long. This school year has been particularly rough. But, now we are on spring break (woo!) and I have some time to post!

I have a lot of news coming next week. For now, I will just update you on my TpT store. New products include:

The Amazing Dissolving Lollipops -- A lab activity on factors that affect dissolving

Phase Changes of Water lab -- Students learn what really happens when water goes from solid, to liquid, to gas

Bacteria in Yogurt lab -- Always a crowd pleaser! Students use plain yogurt and methylene blue to view bacteria cells with a microscope.

Transcription and Translation practice -- This worksheet contains 5 different DNA strands for students to decode. Students must first write the mRNA strand, and then the amino acid strand. There are 10 codons each, for a total of 50 practice problems!


If you need a specific handout or lab activity, feel free to message me and I'll see what I can find!


Cheers!
- S :)

Of Students and Testing

My school had their end of semester state exams last week. Yes, because my school does semester classes instead of whole year classes, we get to enjoy the fun of testing twice each year! Can you feel that sarcasm?

Here is how testing goes in my school, at least from what I have noticed:

• Teachers end their curriculum five to ten days early so that they can review.
• Students get inundated with worksheets and review games.
• This test counts for 25% of their final grade, so students are stressed out.
• Teachers are stressed out.
• The whole school stops for testing. Teachers don't get planning or breaks. Students get a small break before they must go back for more tests.
• Then, following the test, is a long week of anticipation and stress as we wait for the almighty state powers that be to send us back the scores.
• And teachers lose another week of work trying to discuss test scores with students, parents, guardians, and any other generally outraged member of society.

This testing thing is supposed to help, right? Then why is it such a negative experience for everyone?

The government is so worried about testing and accountability. Do they realize what they are doing? In whose mind is it okay to lose ten or more days to test review? Those days could be used for student learning, or student mastery of concepts. Instead they are full of stress and confusion. 

Why is it okay for one test to equal 25% or more of a grade? I know of several students who received A's in their classes. These students are amazingly hard workers. Their parents do everything they can to help their children. The students worked and worked to achieve that grade. Then, testing happens. If the student gets a low grade, that student's final grade is a C. How is that fair? One test knocks them back two grade levels? Do you think that shows learning?

Well, politicians would say that means that the teacher is bad. The teacher obviously let that kid slide, and now we can tell when we see the exam scores.

Do you even understand how infuriating that is? 

Imagine working for months to achieve a good grade at something. Then, one test, designed by people who don't know you or your school, takes away all of that hard work. It is demeaning. Why work hard, if everyone wants you to fail?

This fight is about teachers, yes, but it is also about so much more than that. It is about our children.

Do you want to know why some children don't like school?

It is because of all powerful adults who try to prescribe learning to them. When the child fails, and gets labeled as a failure, the child stops learning. Even more importantly, the child stops ENJOYING learning. Why would you enjoy going to a place that leads you to failure?

What of those students who want to go to college? Some colleges want pristine transcripts from high school. Let's say our child above, the one that got the C because of testing, wants to get into a college like this. Now that child's dreams of college may be gone. Scholarship donors don't care why the child got a C. All that they see is a child with a C, or a child with a low GPA. Never mind that this child can work hard and achieve A's. According to the government, hard work doesn't matter. Testing matters.

I want to find these politicians who are so worried. I want to tell them how sorry I am that their education was terrible. Clearly school must have been such a burden on them that they now want to punish the whole system and all who will belong to it.

I can't think of any other reason why this madness continues. We all need to open our eyes. They are killing learning. 

Instead of complaining about how bad education is in America, why not fix it, instead of making it worse? 

I guess that is too simple.

New semester, new ideas

Well, I procrastinated all weekend, trying to make this last longer, but it is here....

TEST WEEK.

Since my school does semesters, we have our end of course state tests this week. For teachers, this means that our planning time goes out the window because they need all hands on deck to administer or proctor tests.

May the odds be ever in our favor.

After that, we have some teacher work days, and then.... SECOND SEMESTER. Ugh. Not ready. I get a whole new group starting on the Thursday after MLK day.

One thing I do to keep myself from getting bored or losing my marbles is try out new ideas. I always have a whole bunch of ideas saved on Pinterest and other places. Last week, in preparation for the new semester, I was searching for ideas and found this:

http://www.teachingthecore.com/article-of-the-week-assignment/

This is a blog about one teacher's use of Kelly Gallagher's "article a week" idea. I really like this idea, especially for science. Students have a lot of exposure to literature and historical texts (at least, I assume they do) but very few science teachers have their students read informational science texts.

I can't say that I blame those teachers. After all, it is incredibly difficult to find good science literature that is on the reading level of our students. Everything seems to be elementary or university. There is no "10th grader" reading set for science. If there is, I haven't found it yet.

My plan is to try regular articles online. There are many websites that offer articles for current science topics:

• http://www.livescience.com/
• https://www.sciencenews.org/
• https://student.societyforscience.org/sciencenews-students

And those are just on the first page of Google!

Here is my plan to implement this into my classes. I am looking for a way to "jazz up" my bell ringers. Right now they are just bland questions and students have no engagement in them. I will do "article of the week" Friday. The student's homework on Thursday will be to read the article and respond according to Gallagher's form. (See the first link for an example of that.) Then on Friday, we will discuss the article at the beginning of the class. 

I will keep you updated on how it goes!

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree...

... Why does winter break always end so quickly?! I feel like I just cleaned up the classroom and ate my last workroom cookie.

Now, to be fair, technically I don't start again until January 5th. I have August syndrome. You know in August, when you feel the excitement/dread of the school year starting to sink in? That's what I have right now, but in December. I feel like I need at least another month of sleeping time. Don't even remind me of prep time.

My school does semester classes instead of full year classes. This means that I have two weeks left with my fall classes, then we start a new semester with new classes after MLK day. I will have two new preps.

I am trying to approach this like I would approach a new school year. In a way, that is what is happening. New classes, new students. (Technically I've had most of these students before, but you know what I mean.) But I always feel like I am worse in the spring semester. I think it's because I am tired and not as peppy as I am in August. I am more likely to adopt the "good enough" mentality.

This spring, I am going to try to turn that around. I am going to do my best to approach this semester as if it is a new school year, at least mentally. New lessons, new classes, new decorations, new seating arrangements, etc. Maybe that will get me out of my funk!

I hope you all had a great break! Good luck with the remainder of your school year!


Cheers!
- S

Differentiated projects for high school chemistry

Hey. How is everyone? It's been a while. I promise that I haven't fallen off the earth. It has been a really crazy start to the school year, and I haven't been able to post as much as I would like.

This semester I teach honors chemistry. It has definitely been a challenge for me. I know that chemistry is already an honors level class, just from the content material alone. However, I also wanted to make it more than just a hard academic class. I want to expand it to really differentiate for high level kids. I have at least five students who are classified as AIG (academically and intellectually gifted) and several who used to be in the program but are not anymore. 

I can't say that I've been successful every day. We all fall into the comfortable trap of worksheets and textbook problems, and sometimes that really is the best way to teach. Especially in the holiday season, it is so much easier for teachers to just find a worksheet and leave it at that.

But we all know better. We know our kids need more than that. So, as I was glancing over my state standards, I found this one:

"Describe macromolecules and network solids: water (ice), graphite/diamond, polymers (PVC, nylon), proteins (hair, DNA) intermolecular structure as a class of molecules with unique properties. " (NC chem 1.2.5)

It hit me -- what a perfect opportunity for a project! I quickly came up with some guidelines. (I took what the state says students should know and incorporated it into this standard.) I put together a rubric. I also decided to provide my students with some links to help them when researching.

Because I have so many advanced students, I purposely made this project vague. I gave the students specific items to research, but I did not tell them how to write it or how to present it. My only guidelines were that their final product had to include technology, an oral presentation, and a visual presentation. They could do it all in one (like in a video), or they could break it up.

A lot of my students too this project and ran with it. I got some awesome green screen videos with animations! I think they appreciated the opportunity to work on something more creative than a worksheet.


Find this product here in my TpT store:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Molecule-Research-Project-1551296


I hate to ramble on for too long, but if you have questions about this project, please ask!

Cheers!
- S :)

"Sockase" enzyme activity

Hello everyone! :)

I would like to share an activity that I did in my classes for the last few years. It's called "sockase", and it only requires a few materials.

Students often have a hard time understanding enzymes. They are impossible to see in real life. Enzyme activities, like that one lab where students use peroxide and liver, fall short with many students. They are unable to think abstractly, and they cannot understand what is really happening.

In "sockase", students role play as enzymes. Their job is to assemble a "molecule" -- two beads on a pipe cleaner. This activity takes the students through five trials:

1. A fully functioning, single enzyme (one student assembling products)
2. Many fully functioning enzymes (whole group assembling products) 
3. One "socked" enzyme (denatured)
4. Many "socked" enzymes
5. No enzymes at all (the enzyme is completely absent)

Click here to get the activity from my TpT store.

What do students learn?

They find that a denatured enzyme cannot work. It is nearly impossible to string beads with socks on your hands! They find that many enzymes work better than just one enzyme. And, they learn that having no enzymes means that no product gets made. 

This activity is student approved! They always love it (especially the boys, since it is a small competition to them) and they have learned a lot about enzymes. I think this activity really drives the point home, in a way that is concrete and fun. 

I hope you will give this activity a try in your classes. If you do, let me know how it goes!

Cheers!

- S

Beginning of the year hello!

Hi all :)

I haven't fallen off of the earth. I have been super busy since school started (pshh, haven't we all?!) and I have had medical issues that have pushed it all back farther. I will be back online to post more soon. So far my classes are going great! It's the grading and the phone calls that have me down. I have some great classroom management techniques that I have discovered, interactive notebook tips, technology uses, and TpT products to share....... as soon as I have the time! Ha!

How is your school year going so far?

Cheers!
- S

Meme rules!

Like most of you, I have been hard at work getting my classroom ready. I am moving into a new room and at the same time the previous teacher is moving out, so I'm still all over the place. I haven't even picked up my technologies (projector and all that) yet.

What I did today is something I have wanted to do for a while - made a meme rules wall.

By the time kids get to high school, they know the rules. They've been over it. Doing the same old rules taught with the same old activities won't phase them. That does not mean that we should abandon the idea. Instead, we just need to do it a bit differently. Some high school teachers make this very severe and serious. I used to be one of them. Rules are important for teenagers, after all. I have found that approach didn't really help me. It just made for a boring first day.

I have 3 rules - Respect yourself, respect others, and respect our school. That is both specific and vague, which high school kids can handle. There are obviously a ton of other rules and procedures that fit in those categories. To try to write that all out would be boring, and every teenager alive would outright ignore it.

Enter the memes. (I found them all on pinterest. If you've been on the internet - which, obviously, you have - you've probably seen these.)

Disclaimer - I'm not sure who made these memes. You know how things spread on the internet. They belong to whomever it was that created them. If you are that person, please let me know so that I can give you credit.

I think the memes serve two purposes:

1. The rules and procedures for my class are explained. Students have an idea of what things are acceptable. For example, my school allows students to have cell phones, but they cannot have them out in class. Teachers are allowed to take phones if we see them. Under the "respect our school" rule, I have the Darth Vader meme - "Your teacher took your phone? Mine took my legs." 

2. I incorporate all of these rules and procedures with humor in a way that engages my students. Would any average teenager stop and read a list of rules? (I mean really read them, not just glance at them and pretend.) No way! Would an average teenager stop and look at a wall of internet memes? You bet!

I'll be interested to see how this works out for my students. I have seen it work with success in other classrooms. I will update you later!

Cheers!

- S

TpT Blast Off Back to School Sale!!!

On August 4 and 5, Teachers Pay Teachers is having a site wide sale! Make sure to log on and get all of your supplies ready.

My store (Happy Cat Science) will be having a 20% off sale, in addition to the TpT sale! Don't miss it! Click the button below to find out more.

Custom grade book freebie

Hello all!

As a secondary teacher, I often find regular grade books frustrating. The blocks are way too small. Imagine trying to write "photosynthesis and cellular respiration lab report" in one of those teeny, tiny little boxes! It never works. Last year I got frustrated and stopped trying to record grades on paper. I recorded them once in our virtual grade book (powerschool), and that was it.

It does make me nervous to put in grades that way. What if the system crashes? What if I forget to hit "save"? Ahhh so many things can go wrong. This year, I've decided to go back to using both. Instead of struggling with those teeny store bought grade books, I made my own.

Here is a screen shot of what the top of the grade book looks like:

And here is the second page:

There are enough rows for 32 students. On the first page, there are 10 grade columns. On the second page, there are 14 grade columns, for a total of 24 assignments. Because I have trouble looking at all of those rows, I grayed out every other column and also the date and points rows on top. I think that will make it easier for me to read.

Those of you who are interested in this might be thinking "gee, I wish I had something like that". Well, it just so happens that I have this custom grade book on my TpT for free! It is completely editable as well, so you can format it for your own classes.

Click here to get this custom grade book on my TpT!

When you go to copy these into your own grade book, make sure to do it front and back. That way each page opens like a book, just like in those store bought grade books.

Happy grading!
- S

Organization!

I have four weeks left until the official start of the new school year. My mind is on so many things, and I know I have a whole lot of planning to do (one old prep and one new prep). Instead, I have decided to whip out my colored pencils and decorate.

Who says that secondary teachers can't have pretty binders too?

[Sorry, I'm not sure why the individual images are showing up sideways.]

I have had many coworkers who have put all of there materials from a year/semester into one big binder. The idea always seemed kind of restricted to me before, but I get it now. I have taught biology a total of 6 times, including twice as a long term sub. Naturally I kept EVERYTHING. I am finding now that I don't ever use half of the really awesome materials that I spent so long trying to save. They are only dust collectors on my bookshelf.

Here's how I plan to change that. As I use materials, I will print them out and/or pull them off of the dusty shelf. They go straight into the big binder, in order. Then, when next summer comes around, I can clean out whatever I didn't use. As a bonus, I'll already have a nice, neat binder ready for the next time I teach these classes. In case you were wondering, I already had the big binders sitting on my shelf (another dust collector). But, sometimes you can find them for cheep at yard sales and such. Don't buy those big binders if you can prevent it - they can be very pricey. The covers I made with some colored pencils, some white card stock, and a lot of free time.

 Well, now that that's done, I suppose I have to go plan...

 Cheers!
- S

Back to school sales - take 2

Alert friends!!!

 Walmart is having a teacher appreciation sale July 25-31. All K-12 teachers can get 10% back on purchases made in the stationary and craft departments! Here's how you do it:

 1. Go to walmart and purchase your materials. Remember this only counts for purchases in stationary and crafts!

 2. Register your receipt at walmart.com/teachers before August 15 (link below).

 3. Receive a 10% gift card via email within 2 weeks.

 *** Please note - I do not know how they will make you prove that you are a teacher. I expect they'll tell us when the sale starts on July 25.

Click here for all of the information on the sale!

Prepping for a new school year

Raise your hand if you're already preparing for the new school year.

Don't lie. I know you are doing it too. This is the only time we really have "vacation", and all we can think about is the next school year. Don't worry; it's completely natural. (I am a biologist and I can confirm this.)

Did you know that back to school sales are happening ALREADY? Dang, back to school is becoming like Black Friday. Every year it just gets earlier and earlier! Here are some of the ads that I've come across. I don't know about you, but I will be taking all the sales I can find!

Please note that I don't work for any of these places. I just like to pass on deals to my fellow educators because I know how much we are all struggling. If you are one of those lucky teachers who does not have to worry about school supplies, pass this information on to a friend, please. 

Click the links below to go to the sale websites (I shortened them to make it easier.) Please note that these sales are for the week of July 13-19, 2014.

• Staples
• Walmart

:) Cheers!

-- S

Welcome to Adventures in Secondary Science!

Hello all!

Welcome to Adventures in Secondary Science! I am excited to begin this new blogging adventure!

I teach high school science. The subjects change from year to year, so I kept my title very generic. As of today I have taught biology, chemistry, anatomy, AP biology, and earth science.

Here's what you can expect from Adventures in Secondary Science:

• Technology - I will profile a technology that I use in my classroom. I will only show technologies that I have personally used, and I will tell you my personal pros and cons of each one. I am considered a "digital native", and I pride myself on my use of technology in my classroom.
  
• Best Lessons - I will post one activity, lesson, or lab that worked very well each week. If nothing else, this is a lesson in being grateful for the things that go well in my class!
  
• Science news - Sometimes things happen in science that I just have to share with the rest of the world. When some awesome science news comes along, I will link it here for you (with permission, of course!).
  
• Thoughts and Feels - I do have strong opinions on teaching and learning. Occasionally they might be typed for your viewing pleasure. 

Thank you for your visit! If there is ever any way that I can help you, please contact me!