ImagineIT Phase 6

My project has been off to a great start so far this year. Last week students presented their first round of 20% projects. Some of the projects students chose to pursue were:
  • raise butterflies from caterpillars
  • write an anthology of poems based on students' attitudes towards science
  • build a clay muscle system onto a discount Halloween skeleton (top photo)
  • create a model of emphysematous lungs that really wheeze (middle photo)
  • interview high school football players with type 1 diabetes (bottom photo)
  • perform a series of original raps about air pollution
  • series of drawings raising awareness about Orca whale captivity

This week students will be starting their second round of projects and I will be doing my own project this year. One concern that students raised in their reflections from the last round was that they felt limited since their projects had to be about science. I asked students to share out the types of projects that they would be interested in pursuing. As a group they realized that everything they said was related to science in some way.

This next cycle I asked students to think of their projects in one of two way:
  1. Identify a science-related problem, question, or topic to investigate and then select an interesting way to showcase their work, or
  2. Think of a way they want to showcase their work (musically, visually, kinesthetically, etc.) and then identify an appropriate topic to present in that way
During our first cycle, some students convinced themselves that they best way to present their information was through a traditional essay or PowerPoint presentation. Upon reflection, these were also the students that didn't enjoy our weekly work days. It is my hope that these students will feel more comfortable experimenting when presented with the new way of thinking about their projects. 

During the second semester we will also be continuing our long-term project-based units. For our next two projects students will take on the role of an environmental resource management officer and monitor the health of two-liter bottle ecosystems they will be creating (bottom photo). They will also be taking on the role of environmental lawyers by comparing an contrasting environmental policy under President Obama and President-Elect Trump and developing their own environmental policies. During my focus group discussion, students asked for more opportunities to take on the identity of different scientists so I have planned to provide them with more opportunities to do so. 
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