Instill in Students a Desire to Learn and Achieve

On the first day of school, I inform my students that science WILL be their favorite subject by the end of
the year! It is then my mission to ensure that they love science as much as I do.
To accomplish this goal, I incorporate hands-on activities and simulations to make difficult concepts easier
to grasp. For example, I created Sports and Science Day, where students participate in a series of games such
as basketball, chariot racing, and launching projectiles with slingshots. The goal is to have students connect
physics concepts (e.g., the Laws of Motion) to real world activities. I also created a game called Tellus, where
students compete for limited natural resources on an alien planet. This engaging activity provides an interesting
way for students to understand the impact of natural resources on every aspect of our lives from politics to food
consumption. In addition to hands-on activities, I incorporate songs, dances, real world examples, and
technology. For instance, students create dances and play charades in order to learn the different types and parts
of waves. Energy conservation is taught through a variation of K.C. and the Sunshine Bands Thats the Way I
Like It. A debate on coal mining is used to explore research and scientific bias. Finally, the steps of the
scientific method are taught through an interdisciplinary project where students identify a myth, create a lab,
and produce their own Mythbusters videos.
By providing an enjoyable learning environment, my students, become eager to learn. I believe that
students who want to learn put forth more effort and thus tend to achieve more. This has been seen in my
classes. In the first two quarters of this year, more than 95% of my students have a C or above, which includes
ESOL and special education students. Last year, more than 90% of the students who were not proficient on the
5th grade MSA science assessment, passed science with a C or above each quarter. Finally, perhaps my greatest
indicator of success is on my end-of-the-year survey, more than half of my students acknowledge that science
was their favorite subject.