The Verb in the TEKS is Your Friend!

I know it's difficult to be thankful for new TEKS when they are not exactly what we would have written ourselves; some seem too vague and others are out of left field. After years of teaching and analyzing state assessments, I can assure you it is the verb in the TEKS we need to focus on and develop our lessons around. So, as you are going through the new TEKS this year and focusing your lessons to meet the new challenges of the STARR Assessments or EOC Exams, carefully read and reread the TEKS which cover the content you are going to teach while focusing on the verb and the outcome expected of the student. The verb will explicitly direct you to the level of questioning and depth you should cover the material in class. Honestly, we over-teach some material and other material we are not teaching in-depth enough. If our kids are going to be successful on the new state assessments, we have to prepare our lessons and activities to reflect the level of understanding the state is looking for from our students.

When working with the new TEKS at my desk, I actually highlight the verb and immediately compare it with a classic Bloom's Taxonomy hierarchy I keep on my desk to refer to as I develop and redevelop existing lessons. For example, the state last year may have simply used the language "the student should be able to identify" where they are now asking that "the student should be able to compare and contrast". This verb change takes the learning to a whole new level. In turn, you will have to tweek your old lesson to meet that change. If the TEK I used as an example were regarding the concept of cell organelles, this simple "verb" trick will let you know you can no longer just teach the kids to memorize a picture or be able to recognize and identify an organelle when drawn or labeled by its function. Now, students have to consider both the form and function of the organelles to be able to do the higher-level cognitive task of comparing and contrasting their form and/or functions within the same cell or between plants and/or animals. WOW~ That's a big leap! I will say that the cognitive levels have moved up the pyramid quite a bit and we are expecting more out of our students. Consequently our lessons and activities will have to be more multi-functional than ever because the amount of time we have with the kids has not increased. We really have to plan well to yield a bigger bang for our buck. Trust the verbs in the TEKS and make sure your quizzes and other forms of assessments are written to assess the students at that level of understanding. This alignment will make the transition to the new state assessments easier for everyone.

Tornado in a bottle

The classic demonstration of the tornado in the bottle is to connect two bottles head to head with a special adaptor.  The problem is that not everyone has one of those at home (you either have to order one from a teacher resource magazine or find one at the hardware store).  Well, here is a simple way that you can make a tornado in a bottle, with a few simple materials, at home.

What you need:  Clear plastic soda bottle (12 oz to 1 L in size); dishwashing liquid; glitter; a pencil; water.

What to do:  Add a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid into the bottle (a few more for a larger bottle).  Slowly (to avoid making a lot of bubbles), add water down the sides of the bottle to fill it.  Leave a little space at the top.  Dip the tip of your pencil in water, and then use the wet pencil tip to pick up some of the glitter.  Dip the pencil with the glitter into the bottle to release it into the mixture.  Cap the bottle tightly.  Give the bottle an abrupt circular swirl.  Repeat as necessary to create a vortex ("tornado").  The glitter will make the vortex more easily visible.

How did it work?  When you rotate the bottle, the water in the bottle starts rotating, as well.  The rotating water creates a centripetal force which pulls it toward the center of the bottle.  At the same time, gravity pulls the water down.  The result is a vortex, which is larger at the top, because of the space at the top of the bottle, and smaller at the bottom, because gravity is pulling the water down to counteract the vortex.  The dishwashing liquid (a surfactant) helps suspend the glitter.

Thanks to Tijani Osumah for contributing this activity.  It is probably best suited for grades K-5, but let's face it, making a vortex generator is fun for everyone.  Here's a YouTube video that also shows how to make and carry out this activity.  Enjoy!

DISCUS Approaching 1000 Users

Following efforts at the Texas State Fair and the Sally Ride Science Festival, we are happy to report that we are nearing 1000 users on the site.  Approximately half of these users are students/parents who will find neat science activities in our Activity Corner to be of interest.  We are always adding new activities, so check back often.  The other half of users include K-12 science teachers from all over the state of Texas (and a few from outside).  One of our goals has always been to provide  new and exciting educational science resources to users through Texas, but we most certainly want to expand beyond Texas to the national level, as well.  Please provide your ideas to us (discus@uta.edu) on how we can help further your science education experience, no matter where you are.

ABCExcercises.org Educational Building Blocks

ABCExercises.org provides a variety of useful snip-its to supplement different teaching lessons in a multitude of fields.  The collection is managed by David and John Turrentine and they welcome additional contributions.  Of course, these would be great components to also build into DISCUS lesson plans.  One very large section of the website is dedicated to science supplements.