I was lucky to spend a week in beautiful Avon, Colorado. It was a relaxing week--well as relaxing as a trip with my 5 year old and 1 year old can be, lol. I took a ton of pictures, and being a science teacher couldn't help but notice the science all around me. Then BOOM--an idea--what if I created something that could be used to get students thinking about the science around them. I wanted it to be open-ended, no right or wrong answers, and I wanted it to be something that could be done as a warm up or enrichment type activity.
So I got the idea for "The Science in the Picture"
It's simple really--and it can work with any picture. Just project a picture for the whole class to see. And ask the students to analyze the picture and then write a couple of sentences on the science they see in the picture.
Here's a picture I took of some chairs next to our Cabana at the Glenwood Hot Springs--which if you ever get the chance to check out you should. Anyway--students would look at the picture and identify the science. One of our learning standards in 5th grade is the behavior of light--light travels in straight lines until it hits and object--the shadows show that light hit an object and couldn't pass through it. We also talk about how the sun moves through the sky--shadows are changed when the sun moves through the sky. These are all ideas that the students might come up with.
I took tons of pictures in Colorado once I had the inspiration. I can't wait to try this in my classroom as soon as school starts. I really want to get pictures of scientists doing science to use during the first few days.
I am so excited to share with you my first set of "The Science in the Picture" product. It includes 15 pictures that I took over the last year, both in my classroom and out in the real world. I have also included a student recording sheet.
What do you think of this idea in the classroom? Is it another way we can get kids making connections between the real world and what they are learning?
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