Home > Archive by tag 'Kindergarten teacher or Hands on Science Boot Camp or fun science'
Tag - Kindergarten teacher or Hands on Science Boot Camp or fun science
November 7, 2008
Our workshop team always enjoys a trip to Dallas… especially when the workshop is at the Gaylord Texan. By now you’d think that the hotel would understand that velvet table cloths and brightly colored liquids probably are not a good mix. Nearly 250 teachers attended the Dallas Hands-on Science Boot Camp ranging from early childhood through high school (but the vast majority of teachers fell into the pre-K through 5th grade range). Before the workshop starts, I make it a point to talk to as many participants as possible and ask them what they expect to take away from the workshop. The Dallas teachers shared a common response… “I want to find ways to get my kids excited about science and engaged in their own learning.”
Shanna Morris from Little Elm, Texas attended the workshop because she wanted to find a way to make teaching science more fun for herself. “After 22 years in the classroom, I want to find a way to re-ignite my own spark for teaching science. If I’m having fun and learning, I believe that it will rub off on the kids. …
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September 24, 2008
We are honored to periodically host the Carnival of Education. Hats off to our good friend Jane Goodwin for all of her work on the latest Carnival. - editor
It’s time to put on our thinking caps and experience the 190th Carnival of Education, right here at Steve Spangler’s blog!
All learning is scientific, you know. The world is a giant laboratory, and every day, we are all, regardless of our ages, making discoveries never before known to mankind.
Perhaps some of you will make some discoveries right here at the Carnival of Education!
Remember now, we don’t all necessarily have to agree on everything to appreciate it, or realize that it has a value.
Let’s begin with some Games for the Brain. That will make us alert and ready for some educational action.
Over at Three Standard Deviations to the Left, there is some discussion about low expectations. Mr. IB lets us know, in no uncertain terms, that HIS expectations are high.
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Tags: adapting, anti-teacher sentiment, apostrophe, artificial turf, Asperger's, autism, brain games, Brainpop, cafeteria food, Carnival of Education, childhood obesity, classroom politics, classroom technology, collaborating teachers, democracy, differentiation, discoveries, educators, electoral, English, equinox, expectations, failures, field trip, foreign language, General, Genuine, giant soap bubbles, Hands on Science Boot Camp, homeschool, humble man, humility, internet dating, Jane Goodwin, John Wilkes Booth, learning style, Links, Mamacita, middle school, moron monday, National Punctuation Day, notecards, Obama, parent-school relationship, paying students, politics, printer, public school, public service messages, quiz, racism, risk, schools, skipping school, steve spangler, students, study hall, stupid, Teachers, technology, toasted pumpkin seeds, video podcasters, wall street bailouts, worksheets, writer's block
Filed under: Hands-on Science Boot Camp, In the News, Podcasts, Science in the Media, Teacher Spotlight, Teaching Moments
May 8, 2008
We just wrapped up the final leg of our teacher boot camp tour with workshops in Pittsburgh and New York. While everyone on the team is exhausted, the one thing that keeps the energy high is meeting other teachers who are truly making a difference. I met teachers in both cities who paid to come to boot camp on their own - no funding from their schools or the district. I asked the same question you’re probably asking, “Why did you do it?” One self-funded teacher in the Pittsburgh workshop described answered with this…
I’m a professional who believes that training is important. I think that teachers who isolate themselves to their classroom never grow. I really enjoy teaching science and I came to the workshop to find new ways to get my kids fired up. Once my Principal sees the results, she’ll support more and more. I know it.
It’s tough to believe that we work in a profession where our leaders don’t believe in or support professional staff development, but I can’t help but be inspired by her dedication to teaching and to her students.
I also …
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September 12, 2005
A hot topic with new teachers, especially primary teachers right now is how to set up a Science Center.
Kindergarten teacher extraordinaire Julie Gintzler from Maywood Elementary in Indiana has 18 years in teaching. 18 years ago they didn’t have centers, just a bucket of toys and a nap.
Julie does Science Centers in two different ways.
First, there are Subject Centers which focus on projects we have done already, the things the kids would like to revisit, and the living creatures we would like to experiment on.
Julie also does Theme Centers, like a Snow Center that has instant snow in a tub, a center for books about snow, and a center where kids are making polar bear paws. Centers are a great way to expose children to various forms of thought to see these items in different settings.
There is a difference between guided inquiry and self-directed inquiry. When we teach, kids we give them guided inquiry “” the steps to achieve a particular goal.
Self-guiding is when a child can play and learn by making and doing. There are always times that guided instruction is necessary, but there is some wonderful learning that can take place when the teacher steps outside of that …
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Tags: children, kids, Kindergarten teacher, primary teachers, Science Center, science for kids, Subject Centers, teach, teacher resources, Theme Centers
Filed under: Podcasts, Teaching Moments
September 6, 2005
You’re in for a treat today, because I’m posting my very first podcast interview.
Listen in on my discussion with Julie Gintzler, kindergarten teacher extraordinaire and instructor at the Hands-on Science Boot Camp as she shares one of her secrets to teaching science.
Julie doesn’t do diagrams on the board or long dissertations. Her secret is her lab coat. After 18 years of teaching, Julie has finally found something that sparks the kids’ imagination right off. The first time she introduces a science experiment, she wears her tie dyed lab coat. From it she pulls out a gem of the day. It might be a test tube. It might be a magnifying glass. It’s a great way to introduce the tools in a fun and exciting way. The kids know the minute her lab coat goes on, science is just around the corner.
Most lab coats are white. One of my teachers in high school had one with burns all over it. Julie tried a plain white one and the kids were frightened. They thought “doctor”? or “nurse”?. So Julie’s is tie dyed from head to toe in primary colors.
Not only is it a cue that it is time to …
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Our workshop team always enjoys a trip to Dallas… especially when the workshop is at the Gaylord Texan. By now you’d think that the hotel would understand that velvet table cloths and brightly colored liquids probably are not a good mix. Nearly 250 teachers attended the Dallas Hands-on Science Boot Camp ranging from early childhood through high school (but the vast majority of teachers fell into the pre-K through 5th grade range). Before the workshop starts, I make it a point to talk to as many participants as possible and ask them what they expect to take away from the workshop. The Dallas teachers shared a common response… “I want to find ways to get my kids excited about science and engaged in their own learning.”
