Daniels and Zemelman Chapters 5 and 8
Wow
there’s a lot I want to write about here. To start, I really like how chapter 5
is LOADED with strategies. I had heard of a lot of them, but the ones I hadn’t
heard of made it worth reading. Having so many strategies to choose from allows
the instructor to touch on all of the multiple intelligences so students will
be able to express themselves in their preferred way, and they can push
themselves to improve in another. My favorite new strategy was the “Frontloading
with Images” (page 100). It’s a pre-reading strategy that familiarizes the
reader with content before they read it. This low stakes activity allows
students to predict and give meaning to what they are about to read. In
biology, there is a lot of new material that students may not have ever seen
before. Therefore, giving students the time to see the material before they
learn it will allow them to be less anxious when reading the upcoming passage.
With terms like mitochondria, endosymbiosis, and a variety of molecular
genetics topics, students will probably want to use this technique a lot.
In
chapter 8, Daniels and Zemelman comment on some websites teachers can use in
Chemistry. Khan Academy is a site that friends and I used in my college
chemistry classes, and I can say that they are great for just about any topic.
As a teacher, I would recommend my students use this when they are having
issues grasping concepts. I don’t think it fits in lecture because it’s like
having somebody lecture for you. I would rather show a YouTube video that
illustrates a concept because I can lecture before or after it to help fill in
the gaps. I also had trouble seeing how this belonged in the “Independent
Reading Workshop in Content Areas” chapter. It seemed more like ways to use
technology, which is still useful but not really that great in the context of
the chapter. I did like the parts about what chemists actually do and how
Avogadro’s Number got its name. Again, these lessons helps students see meaning
in what they are learning so they can be motivated to work hard in your class,
even when it’s hard to see why we need to know
chemistry/biology/physics/English/history/math/anything else.
Hi Nick,
ReplyDeleteA couple of things...
First:
When I think about the strategy of Frontloading with Images, I can't help but picture a group of assorted Biome images (I don't know, maybe this is because I saw so many biome images in the text I borrowed from the library- some good pictures too). Anyway, I like that one too, it would definitely appeal to the visual students.
Second:
Good old Khan Academy... I sat up during those long nights in the summer when I was taking Orgo. Those people at Khan were my best friends! I swear I probably spoke back to them, answering their questions. I'm not sure if it was because they were actually engaging with the use of different colors and their simple explanations, or if I was actually losing my mind because of the content. Either way, Khan is my go to! Unfortunately, they don't have any genetics videos... I tried looking last semester.
Hi Nick,
ReplyDeleteI like how you isolated the “Frontloading with Images” strategy as an effective teaching approach to Science-related material. I’m taking a biology course this semester to fulfill a Gen. Ed. requirement, and there’s just so much new material to absorb. With this strategy that introduces students to a topic through the initial exposure to images, I think that students can get a sense of the material in a preparatory way. Images cannot show everything about a specific topic, but they are certainly great tools for showing students how things work. Like you said, “giving students the time to see the material before they learn it will allow them to be less anxious when reading the upcoming passage.” So many times, science textbooks are dense with information. To fill the gaps between information and understanding, it’s important to include supplementary materials, like images, to enhance learning.
Thanks, Nick, for a thoughtful response!