Classroom Observations
Science Classroom Observation
![Picture](/uploads/8/9/4/2/8942504/6800072.gif?305)
Rock Cycle Worksheet (given to me by Tom Kelly)
As a requirement for Professor Larry Fegel's geology class (GEO 203), we were to observe a science classroom setting. I chose to observe Tom Kelly's science classroom at Grandview Elementary School. The first half of the time that I spent there was mostly just observing how Mr. Kelly ran his sixth grade class and tried to catch on as quickly as possible. The second half of my time there was with a different sixth grade class of his which he had me take over and teach (the same stuff that he did with the first group). Both of these classes were working on the rock cycle. He started each class by introducing me and having them ask me questions about myself. I thought this was a good idea because everyone was interested in why there was a new face in the classroom and kept asking him who I was and why I was there. The students were then instructed to get the assignment that they had been working on for the past couple of days. This was a piece of paper with the outline of the rock cycle. They also had a color copy of the actual rock cycle on a separate sheet of paper (in the picture to the left). Mr. Kelly had them choose a couple different crayons (with no paper on them) of their choice to represent igneous rock. He then had them shave the crayons into little pieces smaller than the originals to represent sediment. Students then used their fingers to press the pieces of crayon together to form a sedimentary rock. Mr. Kelly then helped them use a hair dryer for heat and applied pressure to turn the sedimentary rock into a metamorphic rock. They would then melt this all the way to represent magma. Once the magma cooled, they could see it was back to an igneous rock again. He had them tape down part of each stage of the crayon that they formed to represent the different types of rock in the rock cycle. It think that this was a great idea so that students could look back at what they created for a visual example. He also had them fill in what happened between the stages (erosion, weathering, heating, cooling, pressure, etc.) to show how each rock is formed and what can happen between stages (to show that it is not just a strict cycle). This showed students that a metamorphic rock could turn back into sediment through weathering and erosion, for example. This was an overall great demonstration of a real-life process. I also like how Mr. Kelly gave students the choice of crayon colors that they wanted to use because it made them more interested in what they were doing by having a choice in their learning. As I walked around and observed students working, they all seemed to understand what they were doing. I knew this by asking questions. I would ask them questions such as: "How would a sedimentary rock turn into a metamorphic one?" "Why does this one look rough, and this one look smooth?" Students were able to explain to me what was going on in their own rock cycle which was evidence to me that they were actually understanding what they were doing.
The following semester I took another geology class (GEO 201) with Professor Larry Fegel where we were assigned to observe another science classroom. I chose to observe Tom Kelly's third grade classes. The students in both classes were towards the end of their lesson on the life cycle of mealworms. Each student had their own mealworm in a plastic container that were all in different stages of the life cycle. Some were still in the larva stage (a mealworm), some were in the pupa stage, and some were in the adult stage (a beetle). Some students also had ones that had died (which Mr. Kelly described as mortality). I really like how Mr. Kelly had the children explore the life cycle of a mealworm by actually giving them the chance to watch it happen in real life. By providing each student with their own mealworm to start out with, they were able to experience it going through the stages of the life cycle until it was a beetle. I will do something similar to this with my students because it seemed to really capture their interests and desire to see and understand what was happening with their worm. This was also a great real world application that I think is important for students to grasp the importance of any content. I also like how Mr. Kelly tied this lesson in with other curricular areas. He tied in mathematics, for example, by having the students create a human bar graph of their results (the different stages that their worms had progressed to on that day). Children counted the number in each stage and helped create the bar graph on the board. He then had them compare their results with the other group. I will make sure to tie in as many subject areas that I can when teaching because there is so much content that needs to be covered in a year and a lot of it intertwines with other areas. It is also more relatable for students that struggle in a particular area but exceed in others (and this will help them make connections).
The following semester I took another geology class (GEO 201) with Professor Larry Fegel where we were assigned to observe another science classroom. I chose to observe Tom Kelly's third grade classes. The students in both classes were towards the end of their lesson on the life cycle of mealworms. Each student had their own mealworm in a plastic container that were all in different stages of the life cycle. Some were still in the larva stage (a mealworm), some were in the pupa stage, and some were in the adult stage (a beetle). Some students also had ones that had died (which Mr. Kelly described as mortality). I really like how Mr. Kelly had the children explore the life cycle of a mealworm by actually giving them the chance to watch it happen in real life. By providing each student with their own mealworm to start out with, they were able to experience it going through the stages of the life cycle until it was a beetle. I will do something similar to this with my students because it seemed to really capture their interests and desire to see and understand what was happening with their worm. This was also a great real world application that I think is important for students to grasp the importance of any content. I also like how Mr. Kelly tied this lesson in with other curricular areas. He tied in mathematics, for example, by having the students create a human bar graph of their results (the different stages that their worms had progressed to on that day). Children counted the number in each stage and helped create the bar graph on the board. He then had them compare their results with the other group. I will make sure to tie in as many subject areas that I can when teaching because there is so much content that needs to be covered in a year and a lot of it intertwines with other areas. It is also more relatable for students that struggle in a particular area but exceed in others (and this will help them make connections).