Science Worksheets Dont Grow Dendrites

I borrowed some books from Read@Academy. The books are new and very up to date. The best part is they deliver to school and pick them up when we return. No 1 service!

I just started to read this book and will update what I learn as I read along.

The author recommends the recipe of 20 brain- compatible strategies for effective teaching.

1. Brainstorming & discussion
2. Drawing & artwork
3. Field trips
4. Games
5. Graphic organizers, semantic maps & word webs
6. Humour
7. Manipulatives, experiments, labs & models
8. Metaphors, analogies & similies
9. Mnemonic devices
10. Movement
11. Music, rhythm, rhyme & rap
12. Project-based & problem-based instruction
13. Reciprocal teaching and cooperative learning
14. Role plays, drama, pantomimes  charades
15. Storytelling
16. Visuals
17. Work study & apprenticeships
18. Writing & Journals

Brainstorming & Discussion

We need to ask good questions in order to make this session effective. Refer to Bloom's Taxonomy Revised: Key words, Model questions, and instructional strategies to ensure pupils have opportunities to answer questions at all levels of the revised taxonomy, particularly those above the knowledge level.

Here is the link http://cte.uwaterloo.ca/KSU/Bloom's_Taxonomy_Cognitive_Domain.pdf .

Recently I took a look at some lesson plans belong to some experienced teachers. Their objectives are not specific and they like to use the verb " learn" . So the link is definitely useful to them.

Reciprocal Teaching & Cooperative learning

Brain research has shown that the one doing the most talking in class is actually growing the most dentrites( brain cells). In many classrooms I observe, that person is the teacher. We have a large number of teachers who are so smart since they are growing dendtrites on a daily basis. Pupils have to be part of the converation. In fact pupils learn at least 90% of what they teach to others( Society for Developmental Education, 1995; Sousa, 2006).  Jigsaw strategy fits well in this category. I like the idea about pupils making visuals, doing role play, writing a song or rap when they return to their original group to teach the content.

Just a week ago, I observe a lesson on the negative impacts on the environment. The teacher presented a long lecture on the impacts of air pollution, deforestation etc. After that, the teacher got pupils to copy his notes. I gave the feedback that he could use jigsaw strategy and get  pupils to summarise what they have learnt in their expert group using cause and effect graphic organizers. I am sure pupils would grow a lot of dendrites!

Movement

Movement helps to place information in one of the strongest memory systems in the brain, proedural or muscle memory and it makes teaching and learning so much fun! Anything that you learned while you were actively engaged, you stand a better chance of recalling. This is the reason that people seldom forget how to drive a car, how to play the piano or how to recall a science concept when actively engaged in learning it. I like what the author said that many educators have it all backward. They are going home every day exhausted, since in many classrooms teachers are doing all the work, while pupils going home relaxed, since they have been the ones sitting all day. We must remember that the person doing the most work is actually growing the most dendrites.

Drawing & Artwork

This is something I have been trying and it is much easier to draw concepts than writing out the concepts. This book recommends http://www.makingbooks.com/ if we are interested in getting pupils to draw and turn their drawings into books.

I like the idea of having pupils to stand if they agree and remain seated if they disagree with the answer. Standing provides more blood and oxygen throughout the body and keeps your pupils more alert. I am going to try this out!

If we incorporate these strategies into our lessons, we have adressed all of Howard Gardner's ( 1983) multiple intelligience as well as all four of the major modalitles: visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile.

I believe that the most important consideration when we teach Science is to take the advantage of the natural inclination of human beings wanting to solve problems and find answers to questions that present themselves in the real world and have fun while doing it!