“Tell me and I'll forget, show me and I may remember...
Transcript of “Tell me and I'll forget, show me and I may remember...
Jersey City Public Schools
Early Childhood Department
2016-2017
“Tell me and I'll forget, show me and I may remember, involve me and I'll understand.”
STEAM: INQUIRY BASED LEARNING
Unit of Study
Title: Balls
Name: Margaret Da Costa Pereira
School/Center: Jersey City Day Care 100
Index It all started when…
Teacher Preparation
Resource Hunt
Study Web
K-W-L Chart
Activities
“Aha!” Moments
Photo Opportunity
Teachers Helpful Hints
Documentation Panel
It all started when…
In the box below, please state the originating idea for your study.
We had an open discussion during Greeting Time about balls. We then
created a KWL chart as the children were gathering information about
what they knew about balls and what they wanted to learn about balls.
Some of the things the children shared with the group were: MV “I
have a Spiderman ball. JV “My ball bounces really high.” DM “My ball is
broken.” Then I asked DM, “How did your ball break?” DM said, “It’s
flat.” T-“Why do you think your ball became flat?” DM “I don’t know.” T
“Would you like to find out?” DM “Yes!”
After a few back and forth exchanges, we decided to further
investigate what makes a ball bounce, what’s inside of a ball, and how to
make a ball.
TEACHER PREPARATION Materials needed:
●Variety of balls E.g., tennis balls, basketball, soccer balls, whiffle balls, golf balls,
marbles, bouncy balls, ping pong balls, beach balls, bowling balls, etc.
●cardboard tubes
●plastic tubes
●funnels
●discovery ramps
●wooden blocks
●painters tape
●strips of construction paper
●paper plates
●pipe cleaners
●sink and float chart
●water
●large container
●measuring tape
●outside slides (inclined planes)
●parachute
●paint
●metal trays
●computer
●camera
●writing materials
●measuring spoons
●air pump
●playdough
●aluminum
●yarn
RESOURCES
Books
Watch me throw the ball –Mo Willems
Balls! –Michael J. Rosen
Balls!- Melanie Davis Jones
Peanut and Fifi have a Ball –Randall De Seve
Elmo’s World: Balls!
Can I play, too? – Mo Willems
Watch me throw the ball! –Mo Willems
A Ball for Daisy –Chris Raschka
Websites
Ball ramps:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReaIZFxiy4I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5sNYWTbhSk
Ball Bouncing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZlYl0l2lFs
Inside of a basketball
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHvHGCMkjkQ
Songs
Pass the “ball” sung to the song, “Pass the beanbag.”
Take me out to the ball game
Fingerplays/Chants
Basketball sight word chant
Students pretend to dribble and shoot as we spell the sight
word, “y-o-u-! spells you!”
Poems
Bounce the ball
My ball is round
Parents/Home-
School Connection
STEAM letter to parents (see attached)
Ball hunt
Ball show and tell
Dear Parent(s):
STEAM education stands for science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics. All throughout
your child’s Preschool year we are learning content from each of these areas. Now we are going to
focus on a study of Balls, incorporating all of these areas of STEAM. We choose to do a study on
balls from the interest of the children, deriving from conversations they had with us about their
personal experiences with balls. Also, from their conversations about balls during Greeting Time
when we created a KWL chart about what the students know and want to learn about balls. Given an
opportunity please talk to your children about this topic. You can connect any experiences they have
had playing sports that involve balls or to the experiences they are having in the classroom with
discovering the many things you can do with balls. Throughout the next month you may send your
child’s favorite ball to school so he/she can share with the class. Please feel free to share anything
else that you think may have a connection to our study! We look forward to sharing our discoveries
with you as our study on balls progresses!
Best Regards,
Ms. Maggie & Ms. Reina
Queridos padre(s):
La educación del STEAM significa ciencia, tecnología, ingeniería, arte y matemáticas. Durante todo
el año preescolar de su hija/o, estarán aprendiendo el contenido de cada una de estas áreas. Ahora
nos vamos a enfocar en el estudio de las Pelotas , incorporando todos estos áreas de STEAM. Este
tema viene del interés de los niños, derivando de las conversaciones que tuvieron con nosotros
acerca de sus experiencias personales con las Pelotas. Tambien, de sus conversaciones sobre las
Pelotas durante el tiempo del saludo cuando creamos un gráfico KWL sobre lo que los estudiantes
saben y quieren aprender sobre las pelotas . Dada una oportunidad por favor hable con sus hijos
sobre este tema. Puede conectar cualquier experiencia que haya tenido practicando deportes que
involucren las Pelotas o las experiencias que están teniendo en el aula con aprender sobre ellos en
profundidad y descubrir las muchas cosas que usted puede hacer con las pelotas. Durante el próximo
mes, usted puede enviar la pelota favorita de su hijo/a a la escuela para que él / ella pueda
compartir con la clase. Por favor, siéntase libre de compartir cualquier otra cosa que usted piensa
que puede conectarse a nuestro estudio! ¡Esperamos compartir con nosotros nuestros
descubrimientos y creaciones!
Atentamente,
Sra. Maggie y la Sra. Reina
K What do you
KNOW?
W What do you
WANT to know?
L What did you
LEARN?
“You can throw a
ball.” –MV
“You can catch the
ball.” –DM
“I like to play
basketball.” –DK
“Balls bounce.” –LH
“They come in
different sizes.”
“Balls and big and
small.” –JV
“My ball bounces
really high.” -JV
“Balls are round.”
–RL
“My ball is broken.
It’s flat.” -DM
“How high can the
bouncy ball go?” -
JV
Which ball bounces
higher?
Which balls do not
bounce?
Do balls sink or
float?
“What’s inside a
basketball?” -LH
“Why did the ball
become flat?” -DM
How can we make a
ball?
What do we need to
create a ramp for
our balls? Do all
balls roll?
“The bouncy ball
bounced the
highest.” –JV
“The marble don’t
bounce.” –AS
“The balls float!” –
GL
“Air is inside a
basketball. It don’t
have any air.” –DM
“We can make a ball
using playdough.”
–RL
“My ball rolls.” –MC
“We need the long
blocks. Then he put
it on top of another
block. Now the balls
can roll”-MV
Study Web
Technology
Message Boa
Art
Engineering
Science
Math
-Classify, sort, order balls. -Make a ball pictograph. -Measure how far the ball rolls and bounces. -Compare groups of balls.
-Test predictions in a sink & float experiment. -Discover what’s inside a basketball. -Use ramps to explore how far/fast different balls roll.
Title: Balls
-Marble painting -Create 3D works of art using playdough, aluminum, or yarn. -Paint a ball.
-Take pictures of children working. -Watch Youtube videos on how to make a ball ramp, what’s inside a basketball, which balls bounce?
-Marble painting -Create 3D works of art using playdough, aluminum, or yarn. -Paint a ball.
Activity 1: Paper Plate Marble Maze
This lesson addresses the following area(s): (Please check one or more) Science Technology Engineering X Art __X__ Mathematics
____
Daily Routine:
Small Group _X___ Large Group ____ Outdoor/Indoor ____ Transition ____
Other ________________
Originating Idea: After adding balls to the block area, JE created a tunnel for the
balls.
Standards/COR items: Use imagination to solve problems, use materials, role play,
write stories, move the body, or create works of art E.g., create pretend spinach
out of torn green construction paper to make a sandwich. ATL 9.2.2.
Materials: Marbles, paper plates, tape, pipe cleaners, strips of construction paper
Beginning: Using imagination to create a maze on the paper plate, students will
use trial and error to tape a variety of materials, such as, strips of paper, yarn,
pipe cleaners onto the paper plate to create a maze for the marbles. Teacher
will say, “Here are some materials to use to create your maze.” Encourage peer
to peer problem solving. For example, “Can you hold this while I put the tape?”
Middle: Demonstrate how to use the paper strips to create tunnels. Also, show
them how they can use the pipe cleaners and yarn to make pathways for the
marbles. While modeling ask children for their opinion, “How should I stick the
tape?” or “The tape isn’t sticking does anyone have a solution?”
End: When students are just about done with their mazes ask them to explain
how they did it and if any one helped them in the process. Give them each a
marble to test on their maze. Have children switch with a peer to test out
another way of creating a maze.
Child Anecdotes: AS “I made a tunnel. Jeylani helped me.”
JR “The ball goes around and around.”
JV “I worked with Alana. The ball went under and around.”
REFLECTIONS:
What worked was pairing
the children to work
together in creating a
marble maze. While one is
holding down the materials
(strips of paper and pipe
cleaners) the other one is
taping it to the plate.
Higher Order Questions: I wonder what will happen when you put your marble on the paper plate
maze.
How did you create the tunnels and pathways for your maze?
New vocabulary:
Marbles
Maze
Tunnel
Pathways
Scaffolding Technique: How can we get the pipe cleaners to bend to make a tunnel? When
students were having difficulty getting their tunnels and pathways to
stick, teacher encouraged peers to help one another.
PHOTO OP
Activity 2: Which balls bounce/roll?
This lesson addresses the area(s) of: (Please check one or more) Science x Technology x Engineering Art ____ Mathematics __x_
Daily Routine:
Small Group __x__ Large Group ____ Outdoor/Indoor ____ Transition ____
Other ________________
Originating Idea: When working with marbles the previous day, we noticed when the marbles
fell on the floor they didn’t bounce.
Standards/COR items: Observe, question, predict, and investigate materials, objects, and phenomena during
classroom activities indoors and outdoors and during any longer-term investigations in
progress. Seek answers to questions and test predictions using simple experiments or
research media. S 5.1.2
Sort, order, pattern, and classify objects by measurable attributes E.g., length,
height, and width. M 4.3.1.
Use the internet to explore and investigate questions with a teacher’s support. T 8.5.1
Materials: A variety of balls, measuring tape, writing materials, computer, inclined plane, and
yarn
Beginning: After previously watching a video on which balls can bounce students will be
observing, predicting, and investigating which ball will roll the furthest and bounce the
highest. Students will each be given one ball to test and they will measure the length using
a low inclined ramp, non-standard and standard measurement. Before beginning, ask
students to predict which ball they think will go the furthest. Then say, “I wonder what
we are going to use to measure the balls? Does anyone know how we can measure how far
or how high the balls will go?
Middle: If students are unsure, say, “Here are some materials we can use to measure how
far the ball will roll.” Show children the blocks, yarn, and tape measurer. After all the
students took a turn rolling their ball, teacher will say “I wonder how we are going to use
these materials to measure the distance. Then ask, “I wonder what ball rolled the
furthest? What ball rolled the closest? Were our predictions right? How do you know?
Now we are going to measure the ball in different way. We are going to test to see which
ball bounces the highest. Students will gather around near the wall where there is a piece
of measuring tape. Students will take turns dropping their ball on the ground and the
teacher will put a piece of tape where the ball bounced at its highest point.
Child Anecdotes: “The bouncy ball bounced the highest.” –JV
“The golfball didn’t bounce.” –AS
“Jospeh ball next to mine.” -GL
REFLECTIONS:
When rolling the balls on
the carpet the balls didn’t
roll as far so it was easier
to measure the distance
that each balled rolled.
Bouncing the balls on the
carpet made the balls
bounce a lot lower than on
the wood floors.
Higher Order Questions: I wonder what we are going to use to measure the balls.
Does anyone know how we can measure how far or how high the balls will go?
I wonder what ball rolled the furthest. What ball rolled the closest?
Were our predictions right? How do you know?
New vocabulary:
Bounce
Low, high
Far, close
Measure
Length, Height
Scaffolding Technique: Teacher demonstrated the action and paired it with the word. Examples: Bounce
(Teacher bounced the ball). Bounce high (Teacher bounced the ball really high) and
Bounce low (Teacher gently bounced the ball.)
End: After all the students took turns dropping their ball. Ask, “What ball bounced the
highest? What ball bounced the lowest? That’s right the balls that are made out of
rubber tend to bounce higher than the balls that are hallow or made out of plastic. If
you have a small ball please drop it in the basket. If you have a big ball you may now
drop it in the basket.
PHOTO OP
Activity 3: How to Make a ball
This lesson addresses the area(s) of: (Please check one or more) Science x Technology Engineering x Art __x_ Mathematics ____
Daily Routine:
Small Group __x__ Large Group ____ Outdoor/Indoor ____ Transition ____
Other ________________
Originating Idea: AC was working with playdough and she made several balls by molding the playdough into a
ball.
Standards/COR items: Bring a teacher-directed or self-initiated task, activity or project to completion.
Approaches to Learning 9.1.5
Investigate how and why things move S 5.2.4
Materials: Playdough, aluminum, yarn, tape, ramp, basket
Beginning: Use a variety of materials, such as aluminum, paper, felt, tape, or clay to
create a ball. Teacher will say, “Today we are going to use different materials to make
a ball. I wonder how we are going to get the shape of a ball. Does anyone know how we
have to use our hands to make the ball round?” After showing the children the
different materials they can use, model using one of the above materials. Middle: Encourage children to bring the project to a completion by saying, “I know you
can do it. If you need help you can ask a friend to show you how they did it again.
After everyone has created a ball teacher will bring one long rectangular block and
one short one to the table to create a ramp. Have children predict whether or not
their ball will roll down the ramp. Children will investigate how and why their ball did
or did not roll down the ramp.
End: Ask, “Why do you think your ball didn’t roll down the ramp? What do you think
you need to do to make your ball go down the ramp faster? Have children sort the
materials and place them back where they belong.
Child Anecdotes: “The playdough rolls!” –MC
“My ball bounces!” –DM
“I’m going to see if my ball can roll.” –JV
REFLECTIONS:
Children added a basket at
the end of the ramp to
catch the balls from falling
off the table.
Students also tested to see
if their ball bounced.
Next time, we will try and
make a ball of rubber bands
instead of using yarn. The
yarn was difficult for the
children to put together and
tape to create a ball.
Higher Order Questions: Why do you think your ball didn’t roll down the ramp?
What do you think you need to do to make your ball go down the ramp faster?
New vocabulary:
Inclined plane
Fast
Slow
Round
Bumpy
Scaffolding Technique: To show the children what fast and slow meant teacher had students roll their
arms fast and slow. Teacher showed various objects that were round (e.g. ball,
circle, and button).
PHOTO OP
Activity 4: Circumference of a Ball
This lesson addresses the area(s) of: (Please check one or more) Science x Technology Engineering Art ____ Mathematics _x__
Daily Routine:
Small Group __x__ Large Group ____ Outdoor/Indoor ____ Transition ____
Other ________________
Originating Idea: DM said to his peer, “My ball is bigger.”
Standards/COR items: Observe, question, predict, and investigate materials, objects, and phenomena
during classroom activities indoors and outdoors and during any longer-term
investigations in progress. Seek answers to questions and test predictions using
simple experiments or research media. S 5.1.2
Sort, order, pattern, and classify objects by measurable attributes E.g., length,
height, and width. M 4.3.1.
Materials: Measuring tape, pipe cleaners, yarn, variety of different sized balls
Beginning: observing, predicting, and investigating the circumference of a ball.
Students will each be given one ball to measure the circumference using non-
standard and standard measurement. Before beginning say we are going to
measure the circumference of the balls. The circumference is the distance
around the ball. Middle: Then ask students to predict which ball will have a short or long
circumference. “I wonder what we are going to use to measure the
circumference of the balls. Does anyone know how we can measure the
distance around the balls? If students are unsure say, “Here are some
materials we can use to measure the distance around the balls.” Show children
the yarn, different size pipe cleaners, and measuring tape. “I wonder how we
are going to use these materials to measure the distance of the balls.
End: When the children have finished measuring their balls circumference,
have them lay their measurement next to the ball and compare the distances
with the other balls.
Child Anecdotes: “The bouncy ball is the smallest.” –AS
“The soccer ball is big!” –MC
“My ball is the same as Alana.” -JV
REFLECTIONS:
It was helpful to create a
chart showing children the
different measurements of
the circumference of each
ball.
Higher Order Questions: How do we know which ball is the biggest? Smallest?
What kind of materials can we use to measure the circumference of the
ball?
New vocabulary:
Circumference
Small
Big
Measure
Distance
Scaffolding Technique: Teacher explained and demonstrated using various measuring tools E.g.,
measuring tape and ruler. After demonstrating how we measure objects
teacher then showed students non-standard ways of measuring. E.g., yarn,
pipe cleaners, paper strips.
PHOTO OP
Activity 5: Sink & Float
This lesson addresses the area(s) of: (Please check one or more) Science x Technology Engineering Art ____ Mathematics ____
Daily Routine:
Small Group _x___ Large Group ____ Outdoor/Indoor ____ Transition ____
Other ________________
Originating Idea: New/unexplored materials
Standards/COR items:
Observe, question, predict, and investigate materials, objects, and
phenomena during classroom activities indoors and outdoors and during any
longer-term investigations in progress. Seek answers to questions and test
predictions using simple experiments or research media. S 5.1.2
Materials: Variety of balls, large container, water, sink & float chart, writing materials
Beginning: Children will observe, question, and predict whether or not the
balls will sink or float. Children will seek answers to questions and test
predictions by putting a variety of balls in water to determine whether it sink
or float. Teacher will ask, “I wonder what will happen if we put a golf ball
inside the water? What is the object made of?
Middle:Students will test a soccer ball, whiffle ball, bouncy ball, golf ball, ping
pong ball, tennis ball, and a basketball. Encourage student to make a mark on
their papers before testing to graph whether they think the object is going
to sink or float. After students have tested their predictions ask the
students, ”Why they think the objects sunk vs. floated.
End: Explain to them that objects filled with air float. There are tiny
particles in objects and if they are loose, they will float. If they are packed
tight, they will sink (e.g., Float- wood, boat, foam, sponge; Sink- penny,
paperclip, rock, key).
Child Anecdotes: “Floated!” –JR
“It went under.” –JV
“1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 balls float.” –AS
“More balls float.” -MC
REFLECTIONS:
It definitely helped having
previously done a sink &
float experiment for
children to have prior
knowledge in order to make
more accurate predictions.
Higher Order Questions: I wonder what will happen if we put a golf ball inside the water.
What is the object made of?
Why do you they think the objects sunk vs. floated?
New vocabulary:
Float
Sink
Glass
Plastic
Air
Scaffolding Technique: Teacher showed a variety of pictures before and during the lesson
that showed objects that sunk and floated. Teacher encouraged
children to identify the type of object (e.g., glass, plastic, or wood).
For ELL students: teacher narrated what they were doing with each
object (Say, You are going to test the glass marble? What happened to
the plastic whiffle ball? Did the wooden ball sink?).
PHOTO OP
Teacher’s Helpful Hints
Marble Painting What helped when we used marbles to paint was to thin out the paint before giving to the children otherwise the ball won’t roll as well. Marble Maze What worked was pairing the children to work together in creating a marble maze. While one is holding down the materials (strips of paper and pipe cleaners) the other one is taping it to the plate. Next time, I will try using straws and encourage the children to work together to create one big marble maze on a thin cardboard box. How to make a ball? The children were engaged in creating their own ball. The playdough was the easiest way of creating a ball that can roll down the ramp. Aluminum was also an easy way to create a ball. Next time, we will try and make a ball of rubber bands instead of using yarn. The yarn was difficult for the children to put together and tape to create a ball. Although it was good for the ones who like a challenge!
“Aha” Moments!
Moments of sudden insight, discovery, or realization!
Students First Name Students Response
1. Jeylani “My ball doesn’t roll. It’s not round.” We had to then
figure out how we can make the ball round enough to
roll down the ramp.
2. Dante During the make a ball activity DM said, “My ball
bounces!” Then we tested the balls we had created to
see if they would bounce.
3.Max During the How high can a ball bounce activity MV
bounced his ball on the carpet and noticed it didn’t
bounce as high. He said, “It doesn’t bounce high on the
carpet.” We then tested different surfaces to find out
the outcome.
4. Robin When testing balls on the ramp the balls kept rolling
off the table. RL put a small bin at the end of the ramp
to prevent the balls from falling off the table. He said,
“I caught the balls!”
5. Amanda She took different balls and tested them to see which
one would roll the furthest by rolling them down the
slide on the play shaper.
6. Joseph Joseph used the pom poms in another way. He used
them to fill up the entire bottle. We predicted how
many pom poms it took to fill up the entire bottle. JR
predicted 10.
7. Taylor “We can use the water bottles in the water beads
table.”
8. Josiah After forming a ball with the playdough and testing to
see if it rolled Josiah shouted, “It rolled!”
9. Maxx “The soccer ball is the biggest.”
10. La Quan “I can bounce the ball.”
11. Gabriela “Look Ms. Maggie. The ball floated!”
12.Alana “We need tape to keep the cardboard ramp from
falling.”
Documentation Panel/Bulletin Board Photos
Additional PHOTO OP
JR “A pelota.” ( A ball)
"The ball rolls!" -DM
"I did it!" -MA
"I make lines." -RL
"Look. Ms. Maggie!" -AC
"I want to look up how to make a ramp." -AS
"I have three baseballs. I play with my daddy and
Kenny." -MV
"I made a tunnel for the balls." -AS
"The ball went through the tunnel." -JV