About the Author

Anna Miller » currently teaches 6th grade Science and 6th through 8th grade Science and Math electives teacher at East Garner Magnet Middle School in Garner, North Carolina. Anna has been teaching at East Garner Middle School since 2006. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology and a secondary education teaching license from UNC-Wilmington in 2006. Anna also received a Master's degree in science education in 2010 from NC State University. Anna values higher education and plans on pursuing a doctoral degree in education. Anna is a member of North Carolina Association of Educators, North Carolina Science Teachers Association, North Carolina Science Leadership Association, and the National Science Teachers Association. Anna has presented at several conferences on topics related to international science education and teaching science through a global lens.

During her fellowship, Anna had the opportunity to travel to Brazil to study the savanna forest boundary with her Mentor Dr. Hoffmann and his team of researchers. This experience gave her a first-hand experience observing and participating in the research process. The research projects in which Anna was able to participate while in Brazil included sap flux, irrigation, leaf architecture, and fuel load.

In 2010, Anna traveled to India as a part of Group Study Exchange (GSE) program with Rotary International. While there, Mrs. Miller visited schools, spoke to students, and studied the educational system of India. While in India, Mrs. Miller’s students tracked her travels, participated in interdisciplinary lessons related to India, and communicated with her directly through Skype.

Anna is a science enthusiast. She has a collection of animals and insects which she incorporates into her lessons so the students not only learn science, but experience science. She has a weather station for real time data collection and also maintains an online blog with science news, updates, and announcements for her students.

COLLABORATION

Mentor

< Dr.Hoffmann and his team of researchers were a great help during the entire process. These individuals welcomed me into their research in Brasilia, Brazil for 2 weeks during the Summer of 2008. The researchers were very helpful and understanding, especially when I had hundreds of questions about their data collection procedures and the science content related to their research. I was fortunate to work with observe and help with projects dealing with irrigation, sap flux, fuel load, and leaf architecture. The researchers were very helpful in providing me with information and data needed to incorporate into my lessons. The most interesting part of working with my mentor was being able to experience the research firsthand. This unique opportunity is one that I will always remember and share with my students.

Kenan Fellows Summer Institutes

These summer institutes allowed me to talk with other fellows, meet influential people in North Carolina public education, work on curriculum development, gather for book discussions on popular books, and share my teaching experiences with others. The summer institutes were truly a time for sharing and learning from the other fellows.

Reviewers

The individuals who reviewed my lessons were helpful by providing a variety of different perspectives on how to modify the lessons to best incorporate advanced science into the 6th grade curriculum. The reviewers were very positive and their recommendations were greatly appreciated. My curriculum developed much further after receiving input from the reviewers.

Teachers at East Garner Middle School

Because of my Kenan Fellows project, I was able to work with the humanities teacher on my 6th grade teaching team to develop an interdisciplinary lesson on Brazil. I used this opportunity to work with other teachers at my school and share my experiences with the program. This was also the point at which I piloted my lessons to make further modifications.