This week’s blog post is going to be set up a little bit differently than usual simply because my internship was more about creating curriculum than other projects. This means that I have already addressed this week’s prompts in other blog posts. Below is an outline with links for more specific ways that I will bring my internship experience into my classroom curriculum:
To begin with, my project is going to focus on reviewing the major concepts from three units of AP Physics C: Mechanics. As students work through the computer modeling and questions, they will be exposed to new material and applications of their modeling such as synchronization and chaos theory. Students will then present a small research project based off of their work in a science fair or physics conference type setting outlined in this blog post: Welcome to the HSHS Physics Conference. I got this idea from working at SAMSI because they were constantly hosting workshops and conferences to present research and investigate new ideas.
Luckily for me, my internship experience focused solely on working on the classroom curriculum product so my goals were very specific to that idea. Those goals included learning how to code in octave, understand the work going on at SAMSI, and create a relevant and engaging project for my students. More on my goals throughout the summer can be found here: Goals of my internship.
Creating my rough rough draft with Tom has been a wonderful experience. Dr. Witelski set up working meetings with me to create the amazing project I will be giving to my students. If it were not for him, my curriculum product would not be what it is currently. For more ways that Tom helped me blend my internship and curriculum together, please visit this blogpost: Wrapping up my internship.
Last, but not least, last week’s blog post really outlines how my internship has affected my personal outlook on teaching. Applying my experience to the upcoming school year really summarizes everything I have been through this summer.
It is the transformation you have experienced in your own concept of teaching that will make the difference in curriculum delivery and authentic learning. Grounding every step of your lesson creation in the standards will make it more organic and meaningful. Often, teachers write or find fun engaging projects that they tweak to fit their curriculum. This often leads to a shallower experience for our students. Thinking through the concepts our kids need to master while creating meaningful, engaging experiences is a quality master teachers possess. I love how you described your lessons as a blend. Blending your lessons with your internship rather that forcing them into a template is innovative and exciting. I suspect your kids will learn more about their world than you even intended when you began writing your lessons.