Welcome to Ms. Farias' Class. I am a science teacher. This year I will be teaching Biology and Physics. So to my freshman, welcome to Plainfield South and my classroom. To my juniors, welcome back to the most important year at Plainfield South! I am excited to be here at Plainfield South. This is my third year teaching in this district. It has been an exciting time at Plainfield South with these last two year and I know that this third year will be as awesome as the rest.
How can I help my child to study?
This year students will not be given study guides. It is recommended that they create their own study guides for the class. Some steps have been taken to help students make sense of the class. We will give students notes in a Concept Map for their notes. There are other ways students can organize their information.
CONCEPT MAP OR GRAPHIC OVERVIEW
If you learn best from visual representations, this may be the best method for you. Arrange a chapter's titles and subtitles using geometric shapes such as circles, squares, triangles, radiating lines and arrows to place information in a meaningful pattern. Graphic overviews can also be prepared for sections within a chapter.
Index cards are an efficient means of organizing information that can be written in a straightforward manner. Examples include definitions of terms, brief facts or charts, mathematical formulas, and foreign language vocabulary. Index cards are very easy to make and a few could even be made after reading a chapter. First, write the title or topic on the blank side. Then write the information to be learned on the back or lined side of the card, preferably upside-down so it is easy to read when the card is turned. You may even include a brief example on the back of the card. If you number the cards, be sure that you mix them up during your final review session(s) to test recall and understanding.
Adapted from Purdue University Website
What is NGSS?
The practices describe behaviors that scientists engage in as they investigate and build models and theories about the natural world and the key set of engineering practices that engineers use as they design and build models and systems
In essence, we are focusing on the skills of a lab class more than the content. Students are expected to problem solve more. To identify problems and create investigations.