CoL 1.mp4
Direct Instruction
It is fairly common practice to use guided reading as a way to integrate your inquiry topic: this term my school is learning about space.
What I wanted to show in this episode was the way I plan for guided reading, and why I do it that way. Basically, in each group, we only read one page of our story, each day. Even if the story is 7 pages long, we only read one page per day. Yes, this means one article might take us more than a week to read. However, it affords us a lot more time for in-depth discussions, and to find new words or ideas we may have missed if we had read all 7 pages at once. I believe deeper connections can be made if we take our time with reading.
I also wanted to show how even though students are reading off their Chromebooks, we can still use paper modelling books in a meaningful way.
(This was a 20 minute lesson)
Reflection on the video clip
The discussion was great - lots of connections, new words, building deep knowledge about the topic of space.
I kept leaning forward and blocking Hiria from the camera view.
Encourage all students to share (not just the boys).
Class Site Content
Term 2 Week 7
Becoming a martian
Monday - page 24 and 25
Explain the timeline that is described in the first paragraph under ‘Boots on Mars’.
What does it mean when it says “when the two planets are at the closest point in their orbits?”
Why will “These first people to Mars will be highly trained”?
Why would “they ask for volunteers to be the first Martian settlers.”
“Before you put your hand up, though, there are lots of problems to solve.” - what problems could those be? Record your ideas.
If gravity on Mars is ⅓ of Earth’s, how much would you weigh on Mars if you weighed 60kg on Earth?
Why is Mars red?
Create
Research the Olympus Mons and Valles Marineris. Create a profile (What, where, who, when, why, how) about each. Share on your blog.
Wednesday - page 26 and 27
Why does the heading have a number 1 in it?
In your own words, how long would you live on Mars for (without oxygen) and why?
What would happen to settles on Mars if a dust storm happened?
What’s magma?
Why is it ‘doubtful’ that the volcanoes are still active?
What was prehistoric Earth like?
What would be an impossible task and why?
What is a ‘desalination plant’?
How do astronauts get water now?
Create
Research geothermal power stations. Create a profile (What, where, who, when, why, how) about each. Share on your blog.
Thursday - page 28 and 29
Why would the food need to last 26 months?
Why won’t plants grow?
What would the giant mirrors be used for? How would that work?
How long would the first settlers have to live in their landing craft for? How do you know?
Explain the three reasons astronauts can’t just walk around on Mars.
Create
Draw a picture of what you think the inside of a ‘module’ would look like. Remember that astronauts would have to live in for upto 18 months.
Friday - page 30
Discuss: How long could you stand living in a colony that contained just a handful of people?
Create
Create a summary of the story using the problems/solutions as headings. Write a paragraph in your own words about each problem/solution. Share on your blog.
