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| Classroom Learning Center at Warfield Elem. --- an Internet Photo |
A classroom learning center is a place where one or several students at a time can conduct activities independently using materials and directions found at the center. The center must be organized so that the students can choose at least some of the activities and work at their own pace and learning level. Open-ended experiences usually will serve best for these purposes. (
Science in Elementary Education, p 163). Learning Centers are the mainstay of the EC-6th grade classroom environment, providing students the opportunity to explore and inquire--- really learn something in a purposeful setting. Chapter seven in
Science in Elementary Education, pages 137 - 142 has provided an extensive backdrop of how to design a learning center: purpose and objectives, activity cards and worksheets, materials and their re-supply, record keeping and evaluation, the physical setup (p. 137).
You have recently been charged to prepare a five-day integrated lesson plan thematic unit incorporating a narrative describing a learning center using the theme. Post at least a 400-500 word (you may include your narrative from your thematic unit) narrative describing your learning center. Include how you would use the center in the lesson(s), if or how the center has been/is being used in your PDS 1 rotation placements.
Post your responses individually. Note: For larger postings (more than 500 words), break them into two and post a first and second part. Don't forget to spell/grammar check your posting in Word first, then copy/paste it to this blog.
28 comments:
With a unit that focuses on space, I decided to choose a space center to use throughout my lessons. Throughout my unit, students will learn many things about space: the moon’s characteristics and phases, scientists and astronauts who have made history and information about space feasible, what foods are eaten in space, and how space impacts their every day life. My goal for this center would be to use it as a KWL chart. At the beginning of the unit and every lesson, I would ask my students to draw or create something that they already knew about space or the topic of the new lesson. For example, one of my lessons is over moon phases. At the beginning of the lesson, I ask my students to draw the moon they have seen it. These drawings would be placed in the center not only as a reference during that particular lesson, but also throughout the whole unit. The class and I would then continue to fill in what the students would like to know and what they learned throughout every lesson. The idea is to have my students draw their understanding rather than write it down. Another way I would use the center is by making it an example of the knowledge each student can learn in a short period of time. Often times, students are not confident they can learn hard material. Giving them a visual of their success can help them build confidence. A third way I would use this center would be for my ESL students. Having consistent visuals with correct labeling is very helpful to the students who are learning the English language alongside of everything else. Additionally, giving them a visual of what they have accomplished academically, can increase their confidence maybe even more so than the other students. Learning another language is hard, but being required to finish tasks in the language you’re learning is even harder. ESL students need as many modifications and accommodations they can get – this center would aid not only in that way, but like stressed above, would aid in their self confidence. Finally, at the end of the unit, the center would be a huge collage of all the students’ knowledge that would be displayed in the hallway for other students, teachers, and administrators to see. Not only would it be beautiful to look at, but it would also be something that the students would be proud of.
A science center can help improve student’s engagement in their lesson. When students are in the science center they develop vocabulary, observe, predict, experiment, discover, and problem solve. The students also learn to compare and contrast. In addition, the students also get to experience sensory activities. The center also allows the students to explore an area of high interest independently and to develop a background that they may use in a variety of ways. In the classroom, only 3 students can use the center, and they will rotate with other students, so they can all experience the science center.
The science lesson that I did in the classroom was about balance and stability, the students could use a science center with this lesson by having different ways to form balance and stability. They would have pictures, balance scale and they would show us different weather patterns that could affect the balance and stability. Also, a weather book could be used, which contains blank pages on which students can draw and color the weather each day. I got this idea from the science book Science in Elementary Education (pg.137). One other lesson would be about the different kinds of landforms. I would have different kinds of landforms presented to them in the center and they would get to make their own as a group. There would be posters, such as hills, plains, mountains, and valleys. The students can draw, write about what they have seen, what they would like to see and what is their favorite type of landforms and why. This lesson will go on for a week. I believe having centers in the classroom is very supportive, engaging and necessary for the students to learn. It is important for there to be a science center because the students will get to visualize and touch and experiment while they are learning. The third grade classroom that I am observing, has a science center but does not use it as much as I would like it to be used, so for my lesson plan I requested to use the science center and I believe it turned out to be more fulfilling than I thought. Having the science center brought more inquiry based learning to the classroom, students were actively engaged in their learning environment and they looked to be having more fun learning about the weather and about landforms. Furthermore, having the students moving around and experimenting makes for a great inquiry based learning day.
My Thematic Unit was over cycles in nature and the world. My first lesson plan was about the water cycle. With this lesson, I will have a center set up to make a “Water Cycle Bracelet”. The students will follow a pattern show. This center can be used after learning the water cycle. The bracelet will be a reminder of what order the water goes in. There will be different colored beads to use for the bracelet. The first light blue bead represents the rain, the green bead represents the grass, the dark blue bead represents a puddle, the yellow bead represents the sun, the clear bead represents the evaporation, and the white bead represents a cloud. Visuals can be a good reminder when remembering a process or cycle something goes in. To incorporate writing at this center, I will instruct the students to write a narrative about a raindrop and the journey it goes on through the water cycle. To include math, I would include probability questions about the water cycle.
For my food chain lesson plan, I can have a center that allows the students to create their own food chains. I can have pictures of different animals and plants and let them create their own food chain. They will glue the chain in order on a piece of paper. Having this extra hands-on practice at a center will help the students remember the sequence of the food chain. To incorporate writing in this center, I will have directions for the students to write a paragraph explaining what would happen if they left one of their animals or plants out of their food chain. To incorporate math in the younger grades, I would have the students identify what number each animal is along the food chain and how many animals would be affected if one were left out.
For my lesson on recycling, I will have a center where I scatter materials on the table so that all objects are visible. The materials will include a variety of glass, plastic, metal, and paper/cardboard objects. I will include in each category both objects that are recyclable and some that are not. I will place a blue bin and a trashcan by the table. The students will sort the objects into which container they think it belongs in; either the blue recycling bin, or a trash can. There will be a writing activity involved that explains to the students to write about ways to reuse each item before recycling or trashing it. To incorporate math, I would have the students make a graph of the items that should be recycled, or thrown away.
Having centers in the classroom is important to my philosophy as an educator. I believe anything that is hands on, helps the student learn more. Being involved with a center after a lesson helps the student get a more in-depth understanding of the objectives. I believe centers in the classroom are motivating and help make learning fun.
My thematic unit was about weather. Weather is important in everyday life and it’s important that students know about different types of weather.
My Day 1 lesson allowed students to go outside on a weather walk, and while walking outside they were to make observations about the current temperature and weather conditions. Students had the opportunity to track the weather in two different cities and had to compare the weather in both cities. For this lesson my weather center would allow students to write about weather. They will be given a beginning, middle, and end of a story. Their job will be to choose one part (beginning, middle, or end) and write/make up the other 2 parts of the story.
My Day 2 lesson allowed students to create their own rain gauge. Students were able to create their rain gauge however they wanted with the supplied materials. For this lesson my weather center would allow students to complete and an activity and observe the how drops of water join together. This will help students understand the cause of precipitation.
My Day 3 lesson allowed students to act out different types of weather disasters. They weren’t allowed to touch the classroom furniture and they had to use their body to make the motions. Students then had to research those disasters and find important useful information. For this lesson my weather center Students will choose one of many weather or cloud pictures. They will have to work together to write a Haiku describing the scene in the picture.
My Day 4 lesson allowed students to learn about tornados and the effects they had. Students learned that tornadoes are dangerous and that you have to take shelter. Students then got to create their own tornado in a bottle. For this lesson center students will choose a weather term from a hat and illustrate it completely. Students will be instructed to use the entire piece of paper, give a title to the page and color it neatly.
My Day 5 and last lesson allowed students to learn why thermometers are useful. Students also had the opportunity to make a thermometer and recorded the temperature of the ice in the cup. After adding hot water to the ice students had to record the temperature again. For this lesson center students will create their own weather song. Students will have to use at least 5 vocabulary words in there weather song.
Each center is designed to incorporate the other subjects such as social studies, math, and language arts.
After searching a few websites, I decided to use this Science learning center that was previously included in my 5E thematic unit. Keeping the 5E thematic unit in mind, I decided the materials used in this center would not only be beneficial to the lessons I provided, but also for many other science lessons. Without the use of centers in my current 4th grade elementary school classroom, I thought this would be a beneficial resource for students. This hands-on center is ideal not only for visual learners, but kinesthetic learners too. The resources and material that are included in this center would be of value and use for the lessons presented to my 4th grade classroom over energy. The center includes thermometers, which are necessary to complete a couple different lessons included in my thematic unit. Density blocks, measuring spoons, goggles, mirrors, timers and flashlights are also included. These materials are beneficial to all the lessons included in my thematic unit over Systems 20th Century and Energy. Not only would these materials included be beneficial to these lessons, but could be used for integrated lesson plans that include math with measuring cups and rulers being included for example. Language Arts could be integrated in this center as students must read with the “center stage science” resource and would write notes down for lab experiences. According to Science in Elementary Education, learning centers allow students time to work at their own pace and they can do several activities independently. This creates an inquiry-based learning experience for students in the classroom. The materials in this center are beneficial according to Science Learning Centers (p. 137). It provides materials for students to work with that reach out to all learning types including visual, auditory and mostly kinesthetic. This interactive center is engaging for students and probes them to learn more based on the things they observe. Things to consider in regards to centers are: the purpose and the objectives, the physical setup, materials and their resupply and ways to evaluate. The first task in making a science learning center is to decide its purpose. It could be used for enrichment or to complete an instructional unit. This center could be used for either purpose and could be used cross-curricular with other subjects. Observing children in the learning center is one way to assess students learning and observation of students with this center is simple and the best way to observe what they can do.
With these things in mind, I believe the center I chose is of quality and ensures the students are engaged and most importantly learning. This inquiry-based learning center would be beneficial at my elementary school because of the resources it includes.
The materials would be resourceful for many other science lesson plans for 4th grade based on the TEKS and materials included in this center.
My theme for this thematic unit was interactions. The center I came up with for this unit involved activities where the students could explore different earth processes such as erosion, weathering, deposition. One station would allow the students to pour water down an incline full of sand to observe the affects of water erosion. Another area of the center would involve the students looking at rock samples to observe how rocks undergo weathering. The rock samples would hopefully represent a variety of weathering features involving wind, ice, and water. The center would also include the clay balls that were set in sunlight and put in the freezer to demonstrate the effects of ice on rocks. Each of the lessons in the unit involves experiments similar to what will be set up in the learning center. Students would first have the opportunity to explore each concept through activities in the daily lessons and the students would have the chance to revisit these concepts in the learning center. The students have limited time to explore each of the concepts during the lessons so having a learning center set up throughout the unit allows students the opportunity to review the concepts and explore on their own time. This exact center was not used in my PDS 1 placement classroom however we did have something similar. We set up 2 stations in the back that were available for students to work with when they needed to. Because we did the demonstrations as a class during the actual lessons it was good to have a place for the students who may not have had the best view to see what happened. We also used rock samples and allowed the students to pass them around to observe the kind of weathering that the rocks had undergone. Students learn best when they are able to do hands on activities and incorporating a learning center into the lesson plans ensures the students have that opportunity. During our lesson over weathering we could have shown a variety of pictures showing weathering of rocks, but having actual rock samples for the students to touch and look at takes their learning to the next level. We also utilized the activity cards from the lessons for the learning center so the students could recreate the same situations as were used in the lessons. We also encouraged students to take their science journals with them when they were in the learning centers so they could write down their observations. The major goal of learning centers is for the students to be able to learn and explore at their own pace and learning level.
Inquiry based learning is very important for teachers to support in their classrooms. Students in EC-6 need the hands on learning at this age. With centers students get to explore the information the way they want and at the pace that is best for them. The students are creating their own opinions and ideas about all the new things they are learning. Centers are not only great for science but are very beneficial for all subjects.
My thematic unit was over Earth and Space, which covers a lot of standards. While learning earth and space a center would be a great idea because there is so much exploring to do within this topic. My learning center would start out with the students learning about the different types of landforms. To engage the students I would tell them that we are going on a class trip and I want to know what landform would be the best to go visit and why. I would have them build with colored clay what they think the landforms look like. Then another station could be for them to research to where they can find these landforms in the United States and elsewhere. The students will record their findings on a map that you have printed out for each student. Another assignment they can do at the center would be to make their graphic organizer drawing the landforms and then writing facts about each. At this center there would be books on the landforms and I would give them permission to use computers for research if available. The last part of the center would be for the students to write a letter on what landform they chose and why. They could also include what we would do at the place they chose. I would make sure to make the center look fun an interesting, so that the students are excited to learn. At the end of the week the students would share their letters on where they chose to go and then as a class we could choose where we wanted to go most.
There would be a folder at the center with each student’s name on it and this is where they will file their work that they have done for the day. This way you can keep up with the students learning and progress through the lessons. I would also have a paper in their folder where they would check off the activities they have completed so by the end of the week they should have all them done. I would do this type of center for all the different topics we are learning about. I think the students would really enjoy this way of exploring and teaching themselves. I made the learning relatable to the students and meaningful for them, which I have learned to be the best way to engage your students.
A learning center is a self-contained section of the classroom in which students engage in independent and self-directed learning activities, as discussed in our textbook (p.137). Another benefit of learning centers is to give teachers the opportunity to focus on specific areas of study.
At science centers, students work alone or interact with one another using instructional materials to explore and expand their learning. Learning centers are usually designed to offer a variety of materials, designs, and media through which students can work by themselves or with others to operationalize the information learned in the classroom. Centers are designed to enhance the learning of concepts, skills, themes, or topics. Science learning centers can have any number of designs, each limited only by the students’ creativity and imagination.
Most teachers will agree that there are three different types of learning centers: enrichment centers, skill centers, and interest and exploratory centers, all of which can be actively engaging for students learning about science. Enrichment centers are designed to offer students a variety of learning alternatives as an adjunct to a common unit of instruction such as science. These centers are typically used after the presentation of important materials or concepts and are designed to provide students with opportunities to enrich and enhance their appreciation and understanding of the topics through individual experiences in the center. Skill centers are similar to enrichment centers in that they are used after the initial teaching of a concept or skill. Their difference lies in the fact that students are assigned particular areas in the center as opposed to having free choice of the topics they want to pursue. This type of center is set up at the school I’m student teaching at. Thus, after introductory instruction on a particular concept has taken place, you can assign students to various parts of the center to help reinforce the information presented; here will be a variety of materials to optimize knowledge over the content. You must be aware of the various skill needs of your students to effectively assign individuals to the areas in the center through which they can strengthen and enhance these skills. Interest and exploratory centers differ from enrichment and skill development centers in that they are designed to capitalize on the interests of students. They may not necessarily match the content of the textbook or the curriculum; instead they provide students with hands-on experiences they can pursue at their own pace and level of curiosity, these types of centers can be set up throughout the classroom. These centers allow students to engage in meaningful discoveries that match their individual interests.
For my particular thematic unit it was most beneficial to have the learning centers as an introduction, creating an inquiry based lesson. I did this through my lesson over energy, where the students first had to sort items that use energy to work and not work. The centers are revisited after, for more engaging activity, this is in correlation with our textbook (p.163).
The purpose of the center I created is to allow students to explore Earth and Science through hands on interaction, engagement, and inquiry. My thematic unit was over Earth and Space. During this unit, students will learn about planets, natural resources, landforms, the Earth, Moon, and Sun interactions, and how the Sun affects the Earth’s water cycle. I would incorporate a science center in which students can make their own terrarium out of soil, plastic bottles or other containers and plants. This activity goes along with the Light, Heat, and Action lesson plan and will enable students to see the water cycle in process.
I also think it would be beneficial to have books on Earth and Space at the station for students to read. They will be able to read about different discoveries in history, incorporating Social Studies. To incorporate writing, I would have paper and envelopes for students to write to NASA’s astronauts. Students are highly motivated to do this because they want to see if they will receive a response. They can ask about the planets, what it is like to travel, etc. I would also include model shapes of the planets. By having the different planets at the station, students will be able to observe their different sizes and characteristics, and even put them into the correct order. They can also model the relationship between the planets, the moon, and the Sun. They will learn math skills by demonstrating the distance between the planets.
I would also include natural and man-made resources at the station for students to explore, categorize and organize in a graphic organizer if they desire. This gives them the opportunity to see the relationship between man made resources, where they came from, and how we use them and can reduce our use of resources.
This center would incorporate parts from all of the lessons in the thematic unit. It is important for there to be lots of room for the students to make choices and explore. For that reason, I would place this center in the common area for my room and the room across the hall and allow students to explore during center time and extra science or other time. This is where my mentor teachers have placed their centers and it seems to work well because students have ample choices of exploration and room to freely explore.
The materials needed are:
• Terrarium
o Soil
o Plastic containers or bottles
o Plants
• Books on Earth and Space
• Natural resources and man made resources
o Graphic organizers
• Planets, moon and Sun models
I would evaluate this center by monitoring student’s work, and guiding them throughout their exploration, assisting and teaching any misconceptions.
Centers are important in my philosophy of education. I believe that students need opportunities to work with real objects in their learning. Through exploration, they are able to build their own knowledge of Earth and Space and gain insights that a worksheet would not provide support for.
Learning centers are used in elementary school classrooms to extend a student’s understanding of material. Since the student can do hands on activities, they are able to create their own knowledge and ideas of the concepts being presented. Teachers need to make sure that there are enough materials available for all students working in the center and that he/she introduces the center to students. Also, help should be provided for students with special needs.
The learning center that I would create would be for a thematic unit over adaptations. This center is designed to enhance learning about animal habitats. Students are able to explore characteristics of animals, such as feathers on their bodies or if they have wings and categorize them accordingly. Magnifying glasses could be used to look closely at animal pellets when discussing the food chain lesson or even the survival lesson. To connect the theme of adaptations, students could use the animal cards and chart provided in the center.
This purpose of this learning center would be for enrichment of the concepts gained through the inquiry lesson. At this learning center, I would present materials and tools that represent food and bird beaks to extend the lesson over bird adaptations. Students would experiment with the different tools to see which ones work best with the types of food presented. They can chart their results. This is beneficial to students because it appeals to math (by charting) and language arts, by explaining their results in their science journals.
In order to keep track of which students are participating in the centers, I would have a checklist of which students were at which center and even the time that they completed it at. This would help for record keeping, if I had to do assessments of progress of my students. To meet the diverse needs of students, I would include a listening station that recited important information once they initiated the start of the center. This would help students who have trouble reading or need help following along. Also, I would provide clear instructions of the goal that students should have, but not instruction of what to do exactly. I feel that they should experiment with the tools and figure it out independently or with partners.
Other centers that could be related to my theme of adaptations would be an art based center where they construct their own animal that depicts the characteristics that were discussed in the lesson. Students will be able to have a hands on 3D visualization of an animal to create, instead of just drawing it on paper. Also, some of the centers could include a supplementary video that supports their research and discovery.
Students have the ability to explore and master science concepts using a learning center in the classroom. I have not had the opportunity to experience a learning center first hand in the classrooms that I have observed this semester. I believe that if these teachers I observed would use a Science Learning Center, the students might better grasp the concepts being taught by allowing a classroom environment that gives them the freedom to explore on their own. Learning centers also foster the students to independently discover material and also focus on specific area’s that students may need help learning.
I provided an example that students will use in my classroom as a Science Learning Center. As an extension activity, the students will have time to work in the Science Learning Center to reinforce topics that are covered in the lesson for the day. I chose a complete center-based learning environment for life, earth, and physical science that includes 18 NSE Standards based on explorations and experiments. This center encourages students to work collaboratively while building knowledge and skills. One of the subjects in this center includes Earth’s changing surface and weather, which is what my 5-day thematic unit is about. I will allow different partners to use this center the week I would be teaching the 5-day thematic unit so that every student has an opportunity to expand their knowledge on the subject.
This learning center coincides with my philosophy of teaching. I have learned this semester that I want students to be given the opportunity to use their own critical thinking and explore concepts as described in the inquiry-based learning. Students can use active learning by developing their experimental and analytical skills instead of assessing a student by how much knowledge they possess. As a teacher, I would like to guide the students with their learning instead of telling them the answers and requiring them to memorize answers for a test.
Integrating other main content areas is something I believe is important to carry out in the classroom. The different content areas can be used in the Science Learning Center by incorporating different aspects such as graphing which corresponds with math, or writing which corresponds with language arts. By using these extra factors, students not only will develop their practice in science, but also in math and language arts.
In the next semester of student teaching, I hope to see more examples of Science Learning Centers in the classroom. It might be useful to the students to possibly suggest or even create a learning center for the students based on what they are learning week to week. This will help the students in my classroom learn to explore on their own and discover what science has to offer aside from what they are learning in the classroom.
PART 1:
My students would be working on a thematic unit over balance and stability. This unit has a lot of different lessons that all connect by the end of the week. Students will be learning how to construct actual buildings that are balanced, find the balance between salt and fresh water, learn about the balance fish need in their environments, discover the need for balance in the food chain for the world to remain stable, and then at the end develop an understanding for how all these parts of the Earth work together to keep balance and stability in the world. This thematic unit is perfect for the use of a center, due to the multitude of activities available for the students. With this center being part of a thematic unit, its purposes would be to enrich learning as well as present the entire unit and would contain three activities. To build on the first lesson where students were to construct a bridge out of various materials, the center would host an activity of students creating towers out of cups and cardboard. This activity would have “challenges,” where after the student had created the tower the student would be challenged to make the tower more stable, build a tower as tall as themselves, and to have their tower with stand a “wind-storm” (the child blowing on the tower). This activity would be completely inquiry based, where all of the learning and ideas on how to complete these challenges would up to the students participating at the center. Another activity that would be available for the students would be a record sheet of the class fish aquarium that relates to the fish environment lesson. Students would have to observe the beta fish, and record the beta fish in its natural environment, how it reacts when you feed him, how he acts when he is hungry, and how he responds to a new item being introduced to his stable environment. This will make students become the center of their learning, and make them critically evaluate what about this environment is necessary, and what about it maintains the balance. The third activity would be a further exploration of the differences between fresh water and salt water. The students would have wax paper, cups with each type of water in them (but not labeled), liquid dropper, and toothpicks as materials available to them. The students would have to place one drop of water from each cup onto the wax paper and try to “roll” or move the water across the wax paper. The students will have worksheets to complete to describe what they saw between the two types of water drops when trying to move them. The students will then have to decide on their own which drop was salt water and which was fresh water, and justify their reasons through what they have already learned; enriching their understanding they gained during the lesson.
PART 2:
Each potion of the center will be described at the end of the lesson from the previous day, and then would consist as apart of their rotations for the next day. A poster board backdrop will display pictures of balance and stability and will have directions for each activity displayed as well. Although I have never seen a center created or completed in my PDS 1 placement, I believe that this center for my thematic unit plan would be very inquiry based and would help assist students in their learning of all aspects of the unit. Students need time to explore what they are learning past just the lesson. When students can explore on their own and research things at their own pace, a teacher can be reassured that the standards have been taught in an authentic and genuine setting to the students.
The theme for my unit is weather and I chose this because it has a huge impact on our every day life and students can easily identify with the theme. In addition all students have background knowledge or have experienced weather. I chose to use to create a weather center because it allows the students the opportunity to use the tool of inquiry to learn about the weather.
During this unit students will have the opportunity to investigate the weather, causes and effects of the weather, how it impacts their lives and the world around them. Weather is an essential concept and a prerequisite for many other science subjects. In addition the weather theme can be integrated into other subjects. In social studies students can identify catastrophic events in our history, which is also taught in the “Tracking the Weather” lesson. I integrated literacy and other content areas in all lessons within my unit in order to assure the most authentic learning.
Centers are not used in the 3rd grade classes in my elementary school, but I believe a weather center would be a perfect learning center in the classroom that will allow the students to do activities with independently and cooperatively. I would display this center in a designated area during the entire unit. It will be visible for all students but still far enough away so the students will not be distracted during class. I will call it the Weather Center and it will be used every day to record and track the weather. I will introduce the weather center to the students and explain each activity to make sure the students understand. I will set my expectations of the student’s behavior and appropriate practices while using the weather center.
Each day the students will go to the weather center and choose an activity that they will record their answers in their journals. This center will be used though the entire unit. In this center the activities will involve recording the temperature, wind speed and direction, precipitation, cloud types, and make predictions about the weather. Each of these activities covers the concepts taught in my lessons including temperatures, precipitation, clouds, and wind. This center will allow the students to extend their knowledge of weather and apply it in different situations. Using this center in the 3rd grade classroom will allows students practice the concepts taught through out the unit and understand the importance of the weather.
It is important for teachers to incorporate multiple content areas and strategies when teaching lessons to their students. Teachers are only given seven hours a day to cover multiple topics, and when you put the time students spend at lunch, recess, and in specials in consideration, you are only given five to six hours to complete required material and make sure that your students comprehended it all. This is why you need to overlap content areas and ensure multiple things are being covered. As well as provide opportunities for your students to practice the content in different open centers around the classroom. Providing open centers gives your students a chance to implement what you have taught and what they have learned in a casual, no pressure environment.
The thematic unit for my science lesson week is Interactions, so for the first science lesson during the Interactions theme, I would teach a Separating Colors lesson. This lesson is simpler than the other lessons and would serve as a good introduction to how interactions work and what the concept is. I would also want to do this lesson the first day, so that the students would have an opportunity to go to the open center all week and experiment separating other colors. During this lesson, the students would not only learn science concepts, they would also learn English language arts concepts.
It is important for the students to practice what they have learned, so that they can apply the knowledge themselves. Science is an inquiry-based content area for students to explore new concepts and discuss what they observe. So, for the center in the classroom, I would have a separating colors station. This will be an open center so that the students will have the opportunity to experiment with other colors in their free time. In this center, I will provide the students with water-based markers, coffee filters, cups, and observation sheets with the directions and columns to write down the original color they put on the coffee filter, what colors they hypothesize will fade out from the dot, and what colors they observe fade out during the experiment. When they complete the experiment in the center, they can experiment with more colors, or put the observation sheet they filled out in the science folder that I grade. I will be able to informally assess what the students have completed, and if they are properly hypothesizing and observing the experiment.
The classrooms I have been observing in do not have open centers for the students to implement their learning in their free time. From my learning experience this semester, I have seen the importance of providing students with multiple opportunities to informally gain more knowledge in content areas. I will definitely provide learning centers for my students when I have a classroom.
Science centers can be very beneficial for a teacher to have in their classroom. That gives an opportunity to the students to explore the content of the lesson on their own. This is good because it makes the lesson more meaningful for the students and it allows them to have ownership for what they are learning and exploring in that center. In a center directions for activities must be as simple as possible so students can have a complete opportunity for independent learning. If they need to ask a teacher for assistance on a lesson than the directions are too hard for the students and the lesson and directions must be redone. Also, keep in mind the materials that are left in the center they should relate to the current lesson or unit.
For instance, in the kindergarten classroom that I was observing we were teaching an integrated science and social studies unit over systems. The teachers sent home letters to the parents asking them to donate any type of old technology piece that the students could explore and take apart. I thought this was great because not only did it allow for the parents to have ownership in what their children were learning in the classroom in gave the students the ability to see firsthand the way that technology too is a system. The students really enjoyed working in their science center because they each had an opportunity to take apart a piece of technology and discover all the components and how they work together to form a working cohesive piece. I think that this was a smart way to include systems into the science centers for the children because it was a lesson that needed very too little explanation and the students understood that they were learning about systems.
In my science unit I decided to include a science center that involved various adaptations. I would set up the center to include various examples of animal and plant adaptations. There would also be refresher definitions for the students set up at the station with the worksheets that I would have placed for them to work on. I would want the children to create their own animal or plant with some adaptations that their plant or animal had to have in order to live in their environment. The students would also have to describe why their adaptations are beneficial for their specimen to live.
Our thematic unit covered adaptations. We chose to focus on adaptations because there are many aspects of survival that students can both relate to and be exposed to when learning more about their basic needs as well as the needs of animals and organisms in their environment. There are different adaptations that help organisms survive better within their environment and giving students the opportunity to explore, observe, record, and compare how the physical characteristics and behaviors of animals help them meet their needs will help students gain a better understanding of the importance of adaptations.
Day 1: Survival of the Fittest- This lesson introduced students to what adaptations are and how they are used to survive. Students were able to assume the role of an animal and its interactions in different environments. This activity allowed students to interpret similarities and differences of surviving animals in four different environments. Students began to see what happens to animals that cannot adapt to changes in their environment.
Day 2: Fun with Food Chains- This lesson focused on how living things depend on each other. Students were introduced to the food chain and food web and were able to discover what happens when part of a food chain disappears.
Day 3: Fetching for Food- This lesson focused on adaptations that help animals get food. Students were able to learn more about what birds eat based on the type and shape of beak they have.
Day 4: Two of a Kind? - This lesson focused on how the adaptations of closely related animals differ when these animals live in different parts of the world. This activity helped students understand that although animal species may be similar, the way they adapt or behave can differ depending on their habitats.
Day 5: Animal Hunt- This activity concluded the unit by including what they previously learned and using what they know about adaptations to complete this activity. Given riddle cards that include what they already explored in our adaptation unit, students were able to move to the next station they needed to complete. At the stations each student recorded what each adaptation is and how the adaptation helps the animal. By deciding what need it fulfills (food, shelter, protection etc.)
Learning centers provide students with the opportunity to practice content area skills and extend their learning by building on what they already know. My center for my adaptations unit will include photographs and descriptions of animals in their environment that students will need to match and identify what adaptations the animal in the photograph has to help the animal survive in its environment. I will use photographs as an aid for English language learners. This science center will also integrate literacy. This center will provide students with books on adaptations and a class science journal that students have to write entries in when they arrive at this center. Each student that participates in this center will write a journal entry in our class science journal given a prompt or sentence stems to help guide their writing. I think that a keeping class journal for this center will be a great way for students to record and reflect on their experiences.
In my field placement, my third graders have an IC (integrated curriculum) journal that students write in every day. My mentor teacher instructs students to write information of what they are learning such as definitions on the page on the right of their journal and allows them to apply what they are learning on the left page. My mentor teacher explained that she sets-up journaling this way based on research and theories of the right and left brain thinking. Math is also involved in my center because students will have to calculate, record, and graph their data when exploring the different adaptation activities. This science center has multiple filing pockets that include extension activities and projects that students can choose from to work independently. The extensions that were provided during the unit will also be at this center for those that did not have extra time to do it. Those that have started on an activity in the center but have not finished it yet, can place that activity in their WIP (work in progress) folder and finish it later before moving on to a different activity in the center. Although students will be given the chance to choose which activity they would like to complete in this center, all activities will include some sort of integration of one or more content areas. I would use this center to assess students’ understanding of the overall unit and individual concepts of the unit and use this center as support for students that are struggling with the concepts presented.
The learning environment is the key to a successful classroom. Letting students explore and discover new topics or ideas in one class time, is a way for students to gain knowledge of different topics using a similar theme within the lesson.
Using centers in the classroom is beneficial to students in the following ways; students can use their inquiry skills to be able to study different things and learn by a way of motivation. Many teachers believe that centers are for younger children and should not be used in the older grades. Studies have challenged that discover. Students learn through using their five senses and this should be added into because of this reasoning. Centers can be created and formed by understanding what the students are learning at the time.
Using learning centers is going to be placed in my classroom using the theme of the lesson. If I were to describe a learning center using one theme, I would use a scientific strategy engaging students on the study of weather. Before class starts, I would arrange five different centers that the students would take turns discovering each one. There will be directions by each center, showing step by step instruction of what that center does and how to do it. There will be a time limit of 4 minute discover and each group will consist of three to four students (depending on class size).
The first center that I would have would be called, Sunny Days. This would include objects that look like the sun. Materials would include an actual display of the sun, a heat lamp that the students can feel the different types of sunlight. There would be a display of pamphlets showing students the dangers of having too much exposure to sunlight overtime. The second station would engage students’ inquiry skills by showing them a simulation of how rain evaporates after falling. The students will have a clear plastic box filled with soil from the earth. The students will have a chance to pour water into the soil and they will begin to see it drying (students will have to see the end results later). After, the students will explore water and ice. The students will have materials including a clear plastic box filled water and an ice tray filled with already frozen ice. They will read how this occurs on the paper, but can feel and understand the ice melting when they touch the ice to their skin; they will actually see the ice turning back into water. Finally, the last station to explore is the wind and clouds. A fan already and set of to blow will simulate the idea of wind outside. Students will need to answer the questions listed, as a whole. These might include senses questions about wind: can you see the wind? Can you feel the wind? Can you touch the wind?
Students will learn and discover new ideas about the weather by using inquiry skill through learning with centers. I believe that at any age learning centers are appropriate in the classroom and I will be implementing centers in my own.
Using a learning center in the classroom provides an area for students to go to discover, learn, make hypothesis, explore and master the concepts of science. I believe that the use of different centers in the classroom helps the children better understand and grasp the concepts being taught. Since the students are able to work hands on with the various materials at their individual pace and different learning levels I feel that a learning center is beneficial to every grade level of students. All students learn differently and allowing the students to work with the centers under minimal instruction gives them the opportunity to makes their own discoveries and create learning.
My five day thematic unit is over weathering, erosion and disposition. I created a center that would allow for the students to hands on explore the different weathering techniques with engagement, interaction and inquiry based methods. During this thematic unit the students are learning about the changes weathering has on the Earth’s landforms and its surfaces. The center will consist of an area for the students to use soil to construct their own mountains. Within the center there will also be water to create rain, ice cubes to demonstrate hail, snow, and freezing affects as well as materials to produce wind. The area will have digging tools for the students to work with during the molding of their mountains.
We will begin the first lesson of the five day thematic unit over weathering and erosion with a KWL Chart. We will fill this chart in together, as a class, during class discussion in which all students will be participating. I feel that it is important to understand what the student’s previous knowledge is on the subject so the teacher is aware if the lesson needs to be modified. What the students would wish to learn about the subject is included so the teacher can get them further engaged. The KWL chart will also be filled in with the information that made an impact, stuck with them, and they learned during the unit.
The center is used to have the students learn in detail how weather such as rain, wind and hail or snow has affects on the Earth’s surfaces. Children will mold mountains and then use the materials to create weathering affects to the mountains. They are able to visually see what happened to Earth’s various landforms and surfaces after different types of weathering have occurred.
Center Using Theme
My theme is space and beyond. I wanted to ensure that my students are being surrounded by space related objects and materials during this thematic unit. The centers will incorporate different content areas throughout the centers. I provided a picture of a classroom that I would want to have during this unit. I selected this classroom because there are not specified centers for each subject located around the classroom. I would include material one, space food, because I would be able to bring in different artifacts for students to explore after the lessons or to observe over time. I would include space food and a component from each lesson in each box. With the space food, I would have the students explore the food using their five senses. They would fill out a graphic organizer with each sense that they could write information about their discoveries. The students would then be asked to write a menu for their space mission. They would be asked to explain why certain foods were added or not added to the menu. I selected material two, a flip chart; because I want, the students to connect what they are learning during science to also connect with writing. This flip chart provides information for students to refer back to after the lesson has been taught. Material three has been chosen to be in the space center in my classroom because I want the students to make connections visually with the planets. This printable is a great way for students to use when feel like they are behind or if they missed a day, it is a great way to connect with visual learners. The fourth material I selected is a life size representation of a few astronauts. I think this would be a great way for students to compare and contrast themselves to the astronauts. The students could measure themselves and objects around the room that would equal the same height as the astronaut. The students would log what they used to reach the astronauts height. All the materials that were remaining after each lesson would also be added to the space center. I would add these materials to the center because I would want to provide extra support for students that need further exploring with the materials after the lesson.
‘Our World’ Learning Center
The purpose of this science learning center will be to let the students explore more of their world, as well as extend their knowledge of shelter, animals, landforms, nonliving and living, and maps. The learning center would be presented after the lesson to reinforce knowledge gained through the themed lesson as well as extend their knowledge through inquiry.
The activities would include:
1. A map of the United States will be provided for the students. The students will then be give a worksheet that has the outline of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, New Mexico, the Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, and Colorado. The students will be expected to color and label the states, as well as add a compass rose. On the next page of the worksheet the student will have to answer questions that include: which state is east of Texas?, which body of water is south of Texas?, which country is south of Texas?, which state is north of Texas?, which state is north of Oklahoma?, which state is west of Mississippi?, etc.
2. A plant will place in a jar that is sealed tight and placed by a window. The students will need to record every day, what the plant looks like by drawing and writing a sentence about it. After day five, the students will write and draw their last entry and they will need to come up with a conclusion of why the plant did not survive. (it did not have air to live)
3. The students will have a stack of books that they can either read or listen to books about landforms. While they are listening or reading, the students will be expected to write something about each landform that they did not know, or they can draw a picture of each landform that shows something they learned about the landform that they didn’t know before.
4. The students will be given a nest and an aquarium and the students will be asked to list what type of animals would live in these habitats. Have the students put water in the nest and record what happened. Then have the students put a feather in water and record what they observed. Students will find that the water will not hold in the nest and the feathers will be wet a limp, and therefore feathers would not be suitable for water. The students will then need to record why a bird would not be able to live in a fish tank and why a fish would not be able to live in a nest. Students will also need to explain why.
At my school my teacher has some activities that she incorporates in her stations that deal with the science theme, but that is not always the case. I think that the schools should incorporate it more, whether it is before, after, or during the thematic unit because I really feel like it would
A center allows an in- class area where something can be explored and learned. Centers give children a great opportunity to observe and make new connections with what they are doing in class. The theme I focused on for my thematic unit was different cycles in nature. The idea of having a terrarium center would give students the opportunity to see different cycles throughout nature. A terrarium is basically a mini ecosystem. Within this ecosystem the can observe the cycles, as well as many other things that occur in nature. They could use their journals to journal about the different cycles they see. They could also draw pictures and make connections on what they see in the terrarium and what they see outside. One lesson was about the plant life cycle. Before the terrarium is built I could have the students plant the seeds in the terrarium and watch them grow as part of the plant life cycle. The class could come throughout the week with their science journal and journal about the growth of the plant, what parts they see, and what stage they are in. The class could later introduce bugs to the terrarium as well such as centipedes or butterflies. They could see the bugs go through the different life cycle changes in the terrarium. This will allow the lesson to become more validated, and understand it a little better. The water cycle could also be used in the terrarium. The terrarium is an ecosystem so is should maintain a nature like state. Students will be able to the pools of water in the terrarium and the condensation on the glass; one can even set up a system that allows it to rain in the terrarium. Students get the chance to see the water cycle through the ecosystem and their world as well. For the recycle lesson this could be use an engagement for the students. We could talk about how the terrarium represents the world and what would happen if we threw all this garbage in the terrarium. This could lead to a discussion of why it is important to recycle, and how waste affects the Earth. For the moon phase lesson it would, student could hang the moon phase for that night above the terrarium. This would get into a continuous cycle the children would learn the moon phases without even realizing it, because they would constantly be having that interaction with the moon phases every day. This terrarium is also a great center because it offers other science lesson like, ecosystems, food chain, living and non living and other nature related ideas.
Learning centers change the methods from the traditional “teach and listen” approach into a more hands-on learning style. There are many benefits to having centers in the classroom. They are designed to assist students in developing independence, learning through self-discovery, and are also a chance for the teacher to target specific academic skills. Another benefit is that it with set expectations it can also be a classroom management tool. Learning centers can easily be implemented into a curriculum by setting aside a few hours each day. I have seen centers in use during my 5th grade placement in second rotation. Typically the centers include three rotations; computer, seatwork, and teacher table. The downside to how my mentor does this is that the three rotations are not explored by all groups in one day.
When teachers put into practice the inquiry method, they provide a chance for students to explore the topic through centers. I realized that during our presentations of our two lessons the center section was the part that we looked forward to the most. Most of the centers allowed us to explore really neat portions of the topic. I feel confident that I would be able to explain the topics to someone else.
The type of learning center I chose to reflect on was an art center. Art centers are good to include in most lesson topics because it allows for students to create a product that is an example of their learning. An art center is easy to set up and maintain in daily practice. Keeping a table available with art supplies close by allows for easy access to this. My previous reflection was on the art center that contained the art project from our lesson 2 about the 3 R’s. This project takes scrap pieces of paper and turns it into something else that can be reused. This is why we do not throw away pieces of paper but if you do want to get rid of a piece that you cannot use make sure you recycle it. There are so many things that you can create with the scraps on the table in front of you. You can make things like pictures for the wall, bulletin boards, wrapping paper, background art, a card to a friend, etc. This project is a personal design. You may create or construct whatever you want from the scraps in front of you. The only guideline is that you must reuse it. Do not worry about finishing in class, you may take it home to finish and use. I am really excited to hear how you end up using your pieces. You have 10 minutes to work before we move onto something else. Do you have any questions? Begin!
My Science Center would be useful in a science inquiry classroom. It is organized into stations, rather than a central location, in order to accommodate more students using it at one time. I would allow students to complete stations, using a teacher-created guide. Centers in my PDS I classrooms are designed to be stations where students do independent work, so the work must be at an independent level, not at frustration level or in students’ zone of proximal development. They include activities with instructions that students can follow, and are clearly related to the theme of the unit. Teachers introduce each individual station activity, and also provide an example of the end product for English Language Learners. The teachers place different activities into plastic bins, which are staged around the room. The plastic bins make it easy to organize the materials, and see if it is necessary to re-stock the bins with more supplies. Teachers regulate which students participate in which activities using a posted list of names of students who work together. The students are grouped heterogeneously, according to their ability level. The highest of the above-level students are grouped with the highest students from the lower-ability half of the class.
The Science Center includes: hands-on balance and stability activities using blocks of different shapes and sizes; books about balance, stability, the food chain, freshwater and saltwater environments, architecture, and civil engineering; and science investigation tools such as a scale, a balance, a dropper, freshwater, saltwater, plastic beakers, and a ruler. This would enable students to participate in the engage, explore, and elaborate activities they participated in during the Science lessons. I would also include items for the students to investigate with the balance to see how the balance works, and to understand the concept of balance better. The Center also includes instructional materials, such as instructions for activities, and graphic organizers for students to organize information and research done using the books. Students write a story about the theme or topic using the graphic organizers, and may choose to write about the topic during Writer’s Workshop. The Center includes academic materials and games to promote cross-curricular connections, such as flash cards for vocabulary, and links to online Science games connected to the theme or topic of the Center. I would use this center to help promote inquiry in my classroom, allowing students to participate in the activities as they are able.
A station in my center that could be used with this thematic unit is on that allows students to finish out their creature/animal in the three-dimensional form from the plan they constructed in lesson plan five. The students will also be asked to write a brief story about their creature/animal that they created. They need to name it and explain its “story” of how this creature came about.
The students would also have numerous other stations that they would visit that would allow them to explore the resources of the world. There would be a listening station for students to listen and read stories or information regarding our resources. A great book to include in this station would be “Michael Recycle”. It is a book that introduces recycling and reusing and it written in the form of poetry. There would be a sort station that would have an allotment of materials that the students could sort. The students would be able to sort them however they wanted, whether it is by the three R’s or by the types of materials. The students would have the opportunity to share with the class how they sorted their materials.
Another station could be the real life art station. Students could use any materials given to them to come up with pieces of art that could be displayed in a home or the classroom. They would have to give an explanation of why they think it is something that is worth displaying.
These stations form a very hands-on approach to exploring resources and the three R’s. Students are given limited rules so that they can explore and learn on their own terms, while being creative with what is given to them.
A learning center is a self-contained section of the classroom in which students engage in independent and self-directed learning activities, as discussed in our textbook (p.137). Another benefit of learning centers is to give teachers the opportunity to focus on specific areas of study.
During science centers, students work alone or interact with one another using instructional materials to explore and expand their learning; this is done in every lesson in my thematic unit. My centers are designed to offer a variety of materials, designs, and media through which students can work by themselves or with others to operationalize the information learned in the classroom. The centers in every lesson are designed to enhance the learning of concepts, skills, themes, or topics. Science learning centers can have any number of designs, each limited only by the students’ creativity and imagination. For my thematic unit in my first lesson, “Movin’ and Grovin’” the center was set up with materials that aid in mechanical energy the students had to test and analyze that all matter has energy of motion whether its moving or not. The next lesson, “Shocking”, students had to use the center to conduct electrical energy, using an electrical current, a conductor and an insulator. “Are you in the Loop”, this center was intended to allow students the opportunity to engage in electrical circuits using electrical kits and their knowledge over the content to create multiple circuits. For the center in the lesson, “Electromagnetism”, the students would be engaged in the center by experiences on how electromagnet works through a variety of materials to test, creating an electromagnetic field. My final lesson in my thematic unit, “Sounds Around”, would provide a learning center where students can create a sound maker or instrument, this incorporates that students are expected to differentiate among forms of energy, including mechanical, sound, electrical, light and heat/thermal. Learning centers provide students with hands-on experiences they can pursue at their own pace and level of curiosity, these types of centers can be set up throughout the classroom. These centers allow students to engage in meaningful discoveries that match their individual interests.
For my particular thematic unit it was most beneficial to have the learning centers as an introduction, creating an inquiry-based lesson. I did this through my lesson over energy, where the students first had to sort items that use energy to work and not work. The centers are revisited after, for more engaging activity, this is in correlation with our textbook (p.163).
Addition to blog...
The purpose of the Learning Center would be to compliment my thematic unit of “Weather.” A large table would be set up in the back of the classroom so that the students in the center will not distract the class too much. The tasks at the center will be numbered clearly so that students are able to easily see which order they will be completed the tasks. My students will be able to use this learning center throughout the time we spend on the thematic unit.
The Weather Center will have a board against the wall and all the materials for each activity will be clearly labeled at the center for the students. There will be a folder at the center to collect completed work. The wall will first contain an envelope labeled “#1 Illustration.” In this activity, students will draw a new vocabulary word from the envelope, and illustrate it completely. Blank paper will be located in the middle of the center. Students will be instructed to use the entire paper to illustrate the word, make a title for the drawing, and color it. The second activity will be titled “#2 Weather Haiku Corner.” Students will draw a picture from the folder, and write a Haiku describing what the picture is about. I thought the book had a great idea of using a weather radio so the students can record and draw what the current weather will be for the week. The radio will be labeled “Activity #3.” The fourth activity will be labeled “#4 Twister in a Jar” and all the items needed for this experiment will be in a shoe box on the weather table. There will be a list of steps to complete this activity, and the students will have an opportunity to view this weather phenomenon. The last activity will be in a bin underneath the table. In the bin I will have different tools that meteorologists use to track weather, discover the temperature, etc. It will be an engaging box that the kids can look through and explore. The students will record on a sheet from inside the bin what they think each tool is used for and draw a picture next to the description.
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