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Balloon Morphing: How Gases Contract and Expand Experimental Procedure Preparing for the Balloon Tests Blow up one of the balloons until it is quite full, but not close to popping, and tie it off. Mark the balloon with the number 1. Measure the circumference of this first balloon with the cloth tape measure, selecting the fullest part of the balloon to measure, as shown in Figure 1 on the right. Hold the tape measure snug on the balloon, but not so tight that the balloon is being squeezed by the tape measure and changing its shape. In your lab notebook, make a data table like Table 1, below, and record this starting circumference in millimeters (mm) in the data table. Figure 1.  This drawing shows where to measure the circumference of the balloons. Blow up the second balloon so it looks about the size of the first balloon, but do not tie it off yet. Pinch the opening closed between your thumb and finger so the air can not escape. Have your helper measure the circumfere...

Chapter Six, in Subjects Matter, strategically answers some of the most burning questions that have been on my mind. Questions like, How do I know what concepts to teach?; Do I have to stick to a textbook?; How do I teach from a textbook?; Does the textbook provide any information that is on standardized tests? Selecting the appropriate content-area texts for my class is nerve racking in itself, because of the pressure teachers receive when it comes to their students passing standardized tests. Year-round, teachers strive to focus all learning towards passing these pesky test mandated by the state. Chapter Six advises teachers to become picky and particular when it comes to selecting content-area texts resources. Not only are the resources important to refine, but the instructions, lessons, and texts within the resource, are equally important to finely comb through. Be Selective, in Chapter Six, mentions four filters to utilize when selecting content-area mat...

Textbooks are wonderful teaching tools, but using the same tools over time can leave students and teachers feeling complacent. The content-area, science, can have tricky concepts within the curriculum. Especially since most of middle school science curriculum in Georgia is about natural and spontaneous phenomenons that happen on and around the Earth. According to the Sixth Grade Earth Science Curriculum Map, students study  the Earth, Moon, and the Sun for about four weeks. I stumbled upon a fun activity on Pinterest that highlights this topic for sixth graders. The activity is called the Oreo Moon Phase Match from the website, http://www.theteachyteacher.com/2016/04/blast-off-to-moon.html As you probably already guessed, yes, the activity involves oreos.  Students construct different phases of the Moon with oreos and icing. I found a great diagram of Moon phases, on google images, to use for a guide/worksheet to help the students during the activity. This is the l...

“Fake Reading” is a concept that Cris Tovani explains in her book, I Read It But I Don’t Get It. The chapter, How do I help Struggling Readers Readers?, in Subjects Matter highlights her ideas about not assigning “book reports” and her “admission” to students that she also struggled with reading in school. Cris Tovani aligns herself with her students and shows positive reinforcement in hopes to create a supportive relationship between student and teacher through learning. When a student is reading difficult or new material, their brains might be looking for a distraction the whole time they read. This happens because is not what they want to be doing or because they do not understand. I can relate to this. For example, the thought of reading about plants makes me want to cringe. I could never remember or understand how a plant grows from a “bulb”. On the other hand, I find astronomy fascinating. Therefore, when I read about planets and stars, I attain more details and m...