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Picture-Perfect Science |
The NSTA Symposium: Picture-Perfect Science took place at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel's
Ryman Chamber A/B rooms in Nashville, TN, on Friday, December 2, 2005. Thirty-nine
educators were in attendance, representing the states of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona,
California, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, New York, South Carolina,
Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
The presenters were Karen Ansberry and Emily Morgan, co-authors
of the NSTA Press publication Picture-Perfect Science Lessons: Using Children's Picture Books
to Guide Inquiry. The symposium focused on the essential features
of inquiry and the 5E instructional model. Participants also learned how to use
the Picture-Perfect Science Lessons book. NSTA would like to thank all the participants
and the presenters for a job well done!
The morning started with a delicious continental breakfast, an icebreaker activity,
and an introductory administrative session during which Flavio Mendez, Symposia
and Web Seminars Program Manager at NSTA, familiarized participants with the contents
of their folders, including the agenda, college credit forms, talent release form,
the pre-assessment form, and the session's learning goals. From there, the presenters
started the content portion of the session, which centered on using selected children's
books to guide inquiry in the elementary classroom. This portion of the program
helped the participants to become familiar with the book Picture Perfect Science
Lessons: Using Children's Picture Books to Guide Inquiry. Karen and Emily
continued to describe the essential features of inquiry and the use of the 5E instructional
model: engage, explore, explain, evaluate, and elaborate.
Ansberry and Morgan proceeded to use two activities demonstrating the use of inquiry
and the 5E instructional model. The first activity was about sea turtles. The presenters
used the book Turtle Hurdles. The book details the life cycles of sea turtles
and the challenges (or hurdles) they face on the journey to maturity. In the activity,
all participants assembled turtle fortune cards to play a game to see how many turtles
would survive the trip from their nest to the ocean. Only three turtles out of 39
survived the trip! A graph was drawn to show the results.
Karen and Emily followed the first activity with information and materials on The
Changing Moon. This book illustrates the concept of the lunar cycle. The
participants used a scale model of the Moon (a white ball made out of foam) and
a light source to simulate the phases of the Moon. Ms. Morgan moderated the activity
and answered the teachers' questions. These activities and books are featured in
Picture Perfect Science Lessons and are great examples of how to use simple inexpensive
books to guide inquiry in elementary aged students.
During the entire session, Ms. Ansberry, in addition to presenting, played the role
of "disc-jockey" playing appropriate musical pieces to complement the presentation.
All participants received a copy of the NSTA Press book Picture-Perfect Science
Lessons and some won fantastic prizes via a raffle at the end of the symposium.
Want to see more photos taken during the program? Check out the photo gallery below
and feel free to browse the program's agenda and read the presenters' information.
For more information contact symposia@nsta.org
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Underwritten in part by NSTA Press |