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Introductions

Started about 7 years ago by AACTconnect Admin.

Hi all, this is Jackie, I just wanted to get the ball rolling and introduce you all! I've added Winsome Arana to the group, who teaches 9th grade biology, 11th grade chemistry, and 12th grade integrated science. Jennifer Smith teaches 8th grade science, and Jamie Doran is a 4th grade science and literacy teacher! Your coach, Carla, is a graduate student at UC Davis! Feel free to start asking your coach - or fellow teachers - questions, use the AACT resource library for lesson plan ideas, or start any discussions! Have fun!

13 Comments

  • Carla Saunders

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Hi Winsome, Sorry to have been away for so long. As far as basic concepts that students doing a first year college course in Biology should have under their belt, I think there are two answers. For a student in a biology course, the professor will assume very little prior knowledge of chemistry. Concepts they'd need to know would be more along the lines of atomic structure, the concept of chemical reactions (what it means for a reaction to happen, on the molecular scale - A + B -> C - and on larger scales - what the system looks like, such as a color change, heat released, etc.). Chemical symbols and formulas would also be helpful. As far as reactivity, acid/base chemistry is the most commonly discussed in biology, so a good understanding of acids and bases would be a huge plus. If a student is a biology major, they'll almost definitely need to take a chemistry course. For the chemistry course, everything above, plus lewis structures, electron counting, and stoichiometry would be really helpful, as well as periodic trends.

  • Diana Simpson

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Hi, Everyone, I am a bit slow in getting up to speed on this new activity that I have added to what I already do....yes you could say I am a bit over extended, but that is what makes this so very exciting to have others to chat with about CHEMISTRY and incorporating it into everyone's sciences. For me, it takes a few weeks for me to get into the swing of things and to remember to check into this site and follow discussions, but I am doing better now. I just found a new to me lab to use for my Regents Chemistry class and am excited to try it out. I kind of get used to doing the same labs from year to year, so love that I have this new resource to pick and choose from. I need a new organic lab for my kids to do--we usually make soap which they love to do and I have made esters, but I am thinking something along the lines of the lipids, starches, carbohydrates that they can predict what will happen then run a test on it. They test these in Biology, so something different would be more to my liking.

  • Winsome Arana

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Carla, would you be able to tell me some of the basic concepts that students doing a first year college course in Biology should have under their belt? anything in the way of practical skills would help also. Thanks

  • Winsome Arana

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Hi Jennifer, The simplest test for lipids is rubbing the food between brown paper and looking for a translucent, greasy spot. It is fairly simple to test for starch in food using pharmacy grade iodine solution and looking for the blue/black colouration which develops.

  • Carla Saunders

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Winsome, I'd say that instrumentation is not a very big focus coming out of high school. The types of thinks that student should know going forward are mole/gram conversions, lewis structures, acid base chemistry, etc. In my experience, the level of instrumentation in labs varies a LOT with school funding, but a balance, a bunson burner (or hot plate) and glassware should be enough to do most high school level experiments.

  • Jennifer Smith

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Winsome, We do cover acids and bases briefly during our chemistry unit. They are not a direct part of NGSS, so I do not spend much time on them. I am very limited on lab supplies and do not have a science budget, which can make it difficult to complete intricate labs. Are there some simple tests for sugars and lipids?

  • Winsome Arana

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Carla, what would you consider to be the basic instruments that students should learn to use in a Chemistry laboratory?

  • Winsome Arana

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Hi Jennifer, have you done a topic on Acids and Bases with your class? I think measuring the pH of body fluids (simulated) could be a problem solving exercise where students use the pH of saliva, blood and urine to solve a problem. Testing food samples for starch, lipids and glucose is also another way in which Chemistry can be applied to some biology topics....the chemistry here may be too advanced and would need to be simplified, but just carrying out a food test could be used as a problem solving activity....I can see it...Who ate the last slice of bread? spit it out! then the 'content' of the mouth is tested for carbs, sugar and lipids, using the fact that carbs get changed into sugar by salivary amylase in the mouth.

  • Winsome Arana

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Hi Jennifer, Right now, the IS class is largely Biology, some chemistry and some physics topics. The students that I have had a largely plant based Biology course in the 9th grade, so I am filling that out by doing human biology concentrating on the body systems. In Chemistry I do the chemistry of cooking, food preservation and the chemistry of water. I am more focused on applications of chemistry. In physics I focus on electricity and light. I also look at other current topics like Genetic Engineering, and Creation and Evolution. Our biology course has changed to include more human biology so my IS course will undergo some changes next year.

  • Jennifer Smith

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Winsome, What topics are covered in your integrated science class? Jennifer

  • Carla Saunders

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Jennifer, thanks for letting us know what you do and what you're interested in getting from the group! There is definitely a lot if chemistry that plays into biology (we like to joke that biology is just applied chemistry), so that's definitely possible. I'll see if I can dig up any particulars to help!

  • Jennifer Smith

    Posted about 7 years ago

    Jamie, What science concepts do you cover with your fourth graders? Jennifer

  • Jennifer Smith

    Posted about 7 years ago

    I am looking for ways to develop problem solving activities that require the use of chemistry in my biology/human anatomy lessons in eighth grade science. Any suggestions would be appreciated.