December 7, 2007
The highlight of this week was doing our first group projects in the Earth Science classes. We are studying minerals, and I let each group chose an object we use everyday in order to research the minerals used to make that item and create a poster they would present to the class. For the most part, they seemed excited to do something hands-on and showed dedication to fulfilling the tasks. It also gave us our first opportunity to use a computer lab (which wasn't without it's challenges).
I was very specific with the amount of time they would be given for each step (research/assembly/presentation/final product) and how they would be graded accordingly. However, I underestimated how much time they would need for creating the posters, so the whole project ended up taking an entire week. I was really proud with the outcomes of some of the more dedicated groups and posted the best ones for display in the classroom. They all responded with enthusiasm when I asked if they liked the project and whether they understand minerals a little better. Getting the kids involved in activities always seems to be an effective and memorable learning experience. It just seems to take a considerable amount of time, and we only have 14 weeks left until the state tests!
I'll see about posting pictures of the posters sometime soon. Stay tuned!
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