The Critical Crises

A teacher-friend of mine quipped, "When my students turn 35, I'm leaving the country."
"Why?" I asked.
"I am not going to retire in a country run by these people."


I chuckle at his pessimism, but I know what he's getting at.

We all recognize that the remainder of this century will present problems that must be solved. Our children will have to be the ones to solve those problems. Global warming, financial stability, food shortages, population management. These will be the problems of the next century and calling them "challenges" is of little help. 


What will be helpful is to teach our future leaders to approach problems in a healthy and productive way.


As it stands, too many of our students are under-motivated and untrained problems solvers. This is a condition bred by a school system (and sometimes a home life) that doesn't require them to solve problems. They are given formulas and they often have to be told which formula to use. 


So that is the problem... here is my solution. 


My class is built on a foundation of critical thought. I have been slowly weening my students off of closed-questions that require rote memorization. I have been replacing these questions with open-ended questions that require critical thought. Our discussions in class are Socratic in nature. I am teaching my students HOW to think and not WHAT to think. Watch the video to the right for an expansion of this concept. 


As a result of my students unfamiliarity to this approach, you will notice a drop in grades. Do not be concerned. I am committed to this process. The grades that you see online are only a part of my assessment of their skills.


Your child is learning to think in a new way. This will take time. Be patient with them and support us both and I can promise an improved student that will be more competitive in the world. I also promise a student worthy of tommorows problems.

Why I Think Kids Should Game

After some research I have started to use gaming as a teaching tool in my class. It has become a success and I look forward to utilizing it whenever I can. 

How does gaming work in teaching? I would like you to watch this video. Even though I am an avid gamer I did approach the subject with some skepticism. This video convinced me. Tell me what you think. Afterward, please visit filamentgames.com (in the resource center). 

Welcome

Jai Hale explores the inside of a computer.

Trinity examines a seed under magnification.

We have already had a GREAT year in science studies.
I would like to use this newsletter to share some of those adventures with you.

My goal is to continue to raise the quality of science education at Cambridge School and prepare our students with the tools needed to be assets in the 21st century job market. There are enough unfilled jobs in the sciences to drive down the unemployment rate and provide secure and meaningful jobs for our children. Once more, they don't need to be inventors or ground-breaking chemists. They just need an education that prepares them for the work.

Deja and Khalil experiment with genetics.

So here we are at, what President Obama called, a "Sputnik Moment" where the challenges we face are outstripped by our students preparation to meet them. It is my mission to transform Science from a memorization of facts to the adoption of an attitude (curiosity) and method (Scientific Inquiry).

Solomon employes a luster test to identify a rock sample

In light of that, you will be noticing an evolution in the type of study we'll be doing and the content of our assessments. The last quarter was a transition period of primarily fact learning. In the second quarter, the ability to store facts will become less important and the ability to think critically will come to the forefront.

That means that the flash cards will become less useful and my test and quizzes will become "cram-proof". Either I will be successful in teaching the skill or we will have to approach it again. Memorizing random information on Wednesday only to for get on Thursday will not work in this class. This is a bad habit, that unfortunately, an inferior school system supports.

Tyler dissects a flower to learn about plant reproduction

As always, to the left are some parent resources that I encourage you to explore.

Since I am convinced that the bulk of my parents DO NOT read my newsletters, I am going to do an experiment. I will give 10 pts. extra credit to any student whose parents e-mail me with an answers to these questions:
Why is science an important subject?
What can you do at home to promote science learning?

email your answers to araines@cambridgechicago.com

Look forward to talking with you again.

-- Mr. Raines
 

February 14, 2011

I am so glad to be sharing the adventures of my Science, Math, Art, and Technology classes. This is a great opportunity for you to know what's going on my classes and the reasoning behind my teaching methods.

Science

We are gearing up for the Science Fair this year. I hope that you are ready. As I mention every year, I look forward to this being a student led project. If you have questions about the Science Fair, I encourage you to look at my entry from last year here Scientific What's-it? . This will help you understand the approach to a science fair project and maybe give you some ideas. 

In class, we are learning about the environment and habitats and how humans interact with and effect nature. It would be nice if you could encourage your child to look up from the video games the next time you are driving through a wooded or rural area and pay attention to the nature around them. Compare this to how they encounter nature in the city.

Art

I am approaching the art of narrativeand illustrative craftsmanship by having my students create their own comic strips. Before you roll your eyes I encourage you watch the two videos below. I have a link to the Pixon.com site in my parent resource center. Comics have some definite advantages, especially for vocabulary building and inference. I would never advocate them as a replacement for conventional reading, but they are certainly a useful tool. 

The Benefits of Comic Books to Children

Using Pixton Comics as a Learning Tool from Knowledge Essentials on Vimeo.

Math

The third grade science class has started Algebra. We took our time with number sense in the first quarter and, while it tried all of our patience, it payed off in an easier understanding of mathematics and an innate understanding of algorithms. Now we are speeding through chapters. We have learned how to transform a sentence into a mathematical expression and how to solve for variables. These are not ideas that I approached until I was in the sixth grade and my third grade students are completing their assignments easily.
This quarter I am integrating Saxon worksheets into the curriculum so that students do not become rusty on previous lessons. If you wish to give your student more practice, I recommend superkids.com and superteacherworksheets.com for customizable practice sheets that your child can do at home. They are both listed in the Parent Resource center at the right of this page.

TuxMath is an arcade style game that has become quite popular with the students. It is one of the best reinforcement tools since Rocket Ship Math.

Thank you for your help an continued support. Please follow this blog for weekly updates or contact me if you have any questions.

-- Mr. Raines

A Brand New Year

Welcome to a new year of learning!

While learning with me, your child will not only be exploring the what of Math, Science, Art, Spanish, and Technology. They will also learn the why. 

For those of you not familiar, my philosophy is to give children tools for learning so that they become self-educators and I merely become the the facilitator. This is known as the Socratic method and is an important tool in Cambridge's instructional philosophy.

So please come by for information about what your child is doing in class and ways you can help to educate at home.

To the right you will notice the Parent Resource Center. I encourage you to look at these links. There you will find study aids and points of interest for both students and parents. 

Also feels free to look at my back log of posts. Many of them provide a short education on what your child is learning. For example, clicking on these words will take you to my entry on the scientific method which your 2nd and 3rd graders are currently studying in class. The scientific method is the corner for everything we do in science. Really the corner stone for most things that we do in life.

In 3rd grade mathematics, I try to stress concept over process. This year we will be studying two units at once. The units will be complimentary and will help our students have a more well-rounded math instruction. This past week we studied place value through the trillions and perimeter. Your student will be assessed every Friday. Their scores will usually be made available that same day.

In Spanish, we will continue to build vocabulary while the grammar grades will continue to learn to put together nouns and verbs to make complete sentences. My students will learn to speak Spanish based on situation and environment. I try to introduce new material in trickles while I drill students on the same vocabulary and grammar. This method will help to build fluency. 

This year your 2nd and 3rd grader's Art classes will closely follow what they are learning about in History, Science, and Reading.

Technology is a new class for the 2nd-4th grades. In these classes I will turn your child from a technology consumer to a technology producer. In other words, they will be evaluated based on what they can make, not on what they can use. This will prepare them for the paradigm of the 21st century. We are starting with computer repair and building. 

I strive to be as open and available as possible. As a teacher, I would like to see homework assignments completed rather than not be disturbed about homeowork after 7:00pm. So please feel free to call my cell phone number per the number listed in the e-mail that went out with this entry announcement.

-- Mr. Raines

July 30, 2010

What we did last week....

Finally! We we able to complete our survey! It was fun. We walked up to Treasure Island (local grocery store) and we asked people from the community to answer some questions. Here are some examples:

Do you think people should be allowed to defend themselves with guns?

Do you think BP should be liable for all of the environmental damage it has caused?

The we then came back to the school and spent the next few days counting the tallies as individuals and then as groups.
I think you'll find some of the results interesting.

We also started our scripts this week. We discussed the 4 elements of narrative (character, setting, conflict, resolution). After a few starter exercises I couldn't stop them. Some of them were even writing during their lunch. Hopefully, we'll be able to put some of these scripts on film. Pray for us.

What we are doing next week...
I'll be working with the students to refine their scripts and allowing them to perform them in front of a camera.

We will finish putting our data into a spreadsheet and then graphing it. We will post them outside the classroom. Then we will learn about budgeting by starting a small business.

Students of the Week
Christian Barber and Torrence Gue!

Christian is a smart kid with a dry wit. He likes to play with his classmates and often takes leadership positions. Whenever one the other students doesn't follow directions he just looks them in the the eye until he hypnotizes them... then he gives them a friendly kick!
Torrence really enjoys class time and takes an interest in whatever we do. He enjoys engineering and art. He doesn't get in trouble... but it he did, he would light a firecracker in my shoe, hit me with a rubber mallet, and then run into his hole in the wall.

Snack Family

The Mason Family!