Week Of Nov 30-December 4
Lessons to prepare the students; background knowledge for inter disciplinary unit 'Sense of Place'
Activity from Ho'ike o Haleakala
Coastal Unit 2:Coastal Connections
Activity 1: Coastal Inhabitants
Monday November 30
Big Questions
1) What are some of the main native and nonnative plant and animal species represented in the coastal ecosystem on Haleakalä?
2) How have coastal areas in Hawaii changed since humans settled the islands?
3) How have coastal plant and animal species reached the islands, and from where?
Objectives
Differentiate between native and nonnative species represented in the coastal ecosystem.
Make a schematic that represents the species composition of native Hawaiian coastal ecosystems prior to human settlement.
Make a schematic that represents how humans have altered the landscape and species composition of Hawaiian coastal ecosystems.
Identify and explain patterns having to do with the origins of native and nonnative
Coastal Inhabitants Activity from Hoike o Haleakala. Students
make visual representations of how species composition of coastal
areas has changed since human settlement. Students learn about endemic, indigenous, and Polynesian introduced species. Activity 1
It is important to modify this activity for next year. Preparation is to cut 6 foot lengths of newsprint and staple to space around room. Instead of 4 groups, use 6 groups. Too much waste time for a few of the students, everyone needs to be busy and work together. The number 6 is too big for this activity. Make sure to color code the cards. Have the endemic be represented by one color (drawing black or brown) then the indigenous/native by another color (I chose red) then the Polynesian introduced by another color (blue) and the recently introduced by a fourth color (green). In that way, the students can use color to categorize the species and get a visual (by color) of what species are associated with other species) Overall, the murals were really nice, but remember to talk less and have them draw more!)
Activity from Hoike
Coastal Unit 2:Coastal Connections
Activity 2: Coastal Jeopardy Game
Tuesday Dec 1 (Periods 3,5,1)
Objectives
• Identify characteristics of coastal species such as habitats, relationships to other species, adaptations to the coastal environment, past or current use by humans, and cultural significance.
Students hone and demonstrate their knowledge of Hawaiian coastal species by playing a game. Canoe plants are specifically introduced.
Reflection:
I thought this was going to be a bust but my students LOVED LOVED LOVED this! I copied the sheet with the species on, put into groups of endemic, native, introduced, and vertebrates, plants, etc. Having them discover that the questions asked for in the jeopardy were based on those categories was big! After they learned that, they actually did much better in answering. I used newsprint cut into a 4 foot swath. Wrote the categories above, and the dollar amounts below. I left space on the chart to list the student teams (there were 6) and the amount they won. I boxed the dollar amount if they got it right, and crossed it out if it was wrong. It all helped stay on task. Excellent! However, next year I will create questions that focus more on indigenous, endemic, and introduced as a way to see if they understand the differences.
Our Sense of Place
Wednesday December 2
Introduction to unit and objectives
Students will use canoe plants (those plants brought to Hawaii from Tahiti (Marquesas) in canoes at time of migration to the Hawaiian islands) as metaphors for who they are at this time in their lives. This will help them discover their sense of place and their connections to each other, the world around them, and to Hawaiian culture. Hawaiian stories, chant, and visual arts will help the students connect these complicated ideas. Students will reflect on their newfound connections through writing assignments, chanting and art.
Essential Questions for Sense of Place
How are we unique?
How are we connected to one another and to nature?
Why do we belong where we are?
Objectives
Learn student names and associated canoe plants
Compare Hawaiian cultural interpretation of environment and interconnectedness with their current understanding of environment
Begin an understanding of their canoe plant and it's relationship to the canoe
Learning Activities for Day 1
Science/Art
Icebreaker (Makamae and Maggie) - Students will introduce their canoe plant, Maggie will give scientific name, Makamae the Hawaiian name. Makamae will share Hawaiian cultural knowledge of plants.
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Olelo Nou'eau (Makamae and Maggie)- Students will listen to Hawaiian knowledge to learn about relationships between self, moon, and the environment. Maggie will record statement for upload onto webpage. Students will be able to access recordings to reflect using writing skills.
Homework: Students must practice chant. Students must discover one medicine use for their canoe plant and write an informative paragraph about it.
Language Arts/Art
Students will reflect on learning experience today/yesterday. They will begin a narrative that will examine their understanding of their place at school, on the island, their relationships to others and to the environment around them. They will use their canoe plant as a metaphor to their self.
Period rotation: 4 recess 6 lunch 2 . Periods are about 75 minutes in length. Students rotate once during the block so they may learn and reflect using art and writing.
Reflection:
Wow what wonderful learning time we had! I introduced Makamae and then she went around the room and asked the students their names and their canoe plant. She gave them their Hawaiian canoe plant name and more information about the plant. They will always remember turmeric and tea, and baby lau-lau I am sure! After 35 minutes we swapped with Benny's classes and Benny worked with the students to write down their observations of their learning. After the end of the day, we met for 45 minutes and debriefed, then Makamae chanted the oli, I recorded it an uploaded it to our webpage. This was a huge deal for me because i have never done this before. We had a great first day and our plans for next week are all about the moon. We needed to discuss the next steps of this IDU as we continue to collaborate and learn together.
aloha, It's me Makamae! E ho mai, an oli for deep focus set the tone for this class. This introduction allowed me to learn allitle of the personalities and dynamics in the class.
Maggie was so gracious and welcoming and the kids grew a curiosity about me that was indearing.
this is a brilliant group of kids and i had no trouble feeling comfortable at first. The kids responded well to the vocal warm up and chanted some.
i talked about the olena, tumeric can regulate menstration and how the moon also affects your moods. finding connections! I felt good ! a successful begining!
Thursday Dec 3
Students will draw their phase of the Hawaiian moon. Homework reminder to learn more about canoe plant and moon gaze. Students will use pastels and oil pastels to practice moon drawing.
Period rotation is 5,6,1,2,3,4 (about 35 minutes long)
NOPE! we didn't do this. I began thinking that they just spent a whole day learning about their canoe plant and couldn't possibly switch them over to the moon when they don't know anything about it yet. They did learn that last night was a Hoku (fullest of the full) moon and that they needed to go outside and start to observe the different phases. So I took my teacher's gut and told them I wan't to start them off drawing Maui. I had them measure a piece of newsprint paper into 4 10 by 10 cm squares across the top, and 3 10 by 10 cm squares vertically. Then I copied a small map of Maui, had them fold that rectangle into a 4 by 3 square piece (similar rectangles) and then use the squares on the map to enlarge the map into the larger newsprint. They had done an activity like this earlier in the quarter as a way to get the students to learn two Math benchmarks on measuring and ratios. So that's what I did. I did this because I needed to bridge into waypoints. I knew we were going to learn about Maui as part of the Hawaiian archipelago in this unit, so on Monday, we will do the waypoints, and ages of all the Hawaiian islands in the archipelago. It will lead into the learning of waypoints (using GPS), their particular waypoint on thsi island, and then marking the waypoint of Hawaiian canoe plants on campus. Art integration this week looks at getting out from the earth (satellites send waypoints to our GPS receiever) and looking at the moon. Students will experiement with drawing using chalk pastels, pencils, and oil pastels. On Monday and Tuesday, downtime in the classroom will be spent with them drawing their canoe plant. Drawing the moon will come after Wed, when Makamae and I will teach the students about the moon.
No School December 4-Furlough Friday
Week of December 7-December 11
Students will (informally) continue to learn about their canoe plant by drawing the canoe plant from living or collected specimens The drawing needs to have plant Common Name, Hawaiian Name, and scientific name on back. Students will continue to observe the moon by going outside each night, observe where it rises in the sky, in the morning, find where it sets in the sky, note anything special, color, clouds, moonbows. Making drawings of their observations in a moon journal. Students will create art as a way to reflect on their understanding of themselves, their relationship to others, and to the world around themselves.
Science/Math Objectives
-Learn to graph latitutde and longitude coordinates as a way to map.
-Learn that the Hawaiian Archipelago is an evolving archipeligo, currently changing, growing, and moving to the North and West at the rate of about finger nail growth each year.
-Learn how GPS is used to mark latitude and longitude coordinates for scientific uses
-Mark their personal place through using googleearth and view the location from satellite pictures.
Language Arts Objectives
-Use a narrative autobiographic writing style to compare the growth and changing of the Hawaiian islands to their own growth and development. (Loihi, Hawaii, and Maui-stages of development)
-Use creative writing to express and describe the relationship between the moon, their canoe plant and themselves
-Use a journal to reflect on why you think your plant was selected as a canoe plant
Monday December 7Activity- NOAA NWHI Explorer-Islands, Reefs, and a Hot Spot
- Students will use the latitude and longitude of the Hawaiian Archipelago to map the island chain.
- Students will use colored pencils to draw their canoe plant. Chalk pastels will be available as well.
- Students will practice the 'oli
Reflection: Students had a real hard time graphing the lat/long. See the two photos above. Have decided (in the future) to give them the lat/long of the Pacific Ocean imposed on graph paper. That way, not too much time is spent on getting them to visualize the points where the islands need to go) Make sure students who need modifications for math are sent to resource room before frustration level is met.
Tuesday December 8
Activity-Draw your Canoe Plant (OPTION every day-drawing due Thursday)
- Students will use colored pencils to draw their canoe plant. Chalk pastels will be available as well.
- Students will practice the 'oli
Lab- GPS-Waypoints Marking Your Place
Students will learn how to use a GPS to:
a. Mark the place (of a specimen, nest, event)
b. Find a place
c. Make inferences (using Islands, Reefs and Hot Spot Activity)
Reflection: We never got to the GPS lab. The students did a pencil drawing first of their canoe plant. That activity went wonderfully well, but make sure there are plants or pictures of each canoe plant. Then use the chalk pastels to overlay the pencil drawing in different ways. Mark leaves outline, inside color contrasting, blend where the colors kiss, with one finger only. Lay the color on thick and brightly. Sign your art! For next year, will give a powerpoint introducing them to GPS (history and technology), also GIS
These are pencil and pastel drawings of Kou and Kukui
Wednesday December 9
Makamae will teach the students about the importance of the moon in Hawaiian culture by telling them a story about Hina. They will learn a chant about the phases of the moon. Students will practice the 'oli of going into the forest.
Maggie will teach the students about the moon and it's importance to the earth and ocean in rotation stations.
Benny will have the students reflect on their learning and draw the moon or moon phases(faces).
Reflection: Change of plans because Benny had students taking Edison testing, his students were not available for rotation. So Makamae and I split the class in two. She went over chanting, the 'oli, and told them stories. I had the kids get onto google.earth, find their waypoint by selecting the directions tab, inserting school address, then their street address (if they didn't know street address I had them type in their town) then they put the cursor on the end spot, and wrote down the lat/long in degrees, hours, minutes, and seconds. They put all this information on an activity guide I call 'Organization of knowledge' there are also places to write informationa bout their canoe plant and moon phase. When they finished with their waypoint, they went to senseofplace.yolasite.com and gathered info about their plant/moon for the guide.
Here is a fact sheet that is filled with information, the waypoint coordinates are on the last line of the page.
aloha, it's me Makamae! This was an awesome class! we were able to warm up in a dramatic way and they echoed my chanting. i was impressed, still reserved in chanting while some showed great confidence.
this was valuable time for me because of the split class, sometimes deep subjects go deep in smaller groups.
Hina, the Goddess of the moon and Yemanya, also goddess of the moon for Africa, play part of our discussion along with mood shifting and noticing peoples behavior during the full moon. i told a story of Hina's children while the kids drew their moon phase with oil pastel. we loved this!
Computer Lab Activity-U mark your place
- Students use Google Earth to find the waypoints of their home address and view their place from a satellite view.
- Students will practice the 'oli
Reflection: Shortened periods of about 35 minutes each is not a lot of time to do anything....So I created a checklist of all the projects we have done so far, and we gathered all their materials from the checklist and put them all in one place, their folder cubby. By this date, students should have their NWHI graph, the map of Maui, their pastel drawing of canoe plant, their waypoints from google.earth, and drawing assignment in colored pencils from Makamae. If they didn't the work becomes homework so that all their projects are ready for the collage assembly.
Friday December 11 No School Furlough Friday
Week of December 14-December 18
Arts Integration
Students will continue to explore different media to express their drawings. Chalk pastels (of canoe plant) and oil pastel (of moon phase) will be available for collage.The idea of using layers in a collage to express understanding and relationships is explored. Students will continue to observe the moon by going outside each night, observe where it rises in the sky, in the morning, find where it sets in the sky, note anything special, color, clouds, moonbows, making drawings of their observations in a moon journal. Students will create art as a way to reflect on their understanding of themselves, their relationship to others, and to the world around themselves. Students will use art as an assessment.
Science
Students use their personal waypoint (from google.earth- Science Standard 1 and 2-Doing science as a scientists and using technology to gather information). Students use their canoe plant to identify their relationship to canoe plants (Science standard 4-Describe the cell theory, the levels of organization and degree of relatedness between living things).
Language Arts
Monday December 14
- Students practice 'oli
- Students write their waypoints on acetate sheet
- Students draw their moon phase/canoe plant using chalk pastels/oil pastels
- Students use a Venn diagram to list characteristics/similarities/differences between themselves, their canoe plant, and the moon.
Tuesday December 15
- Students draw their moon phase/canoe plant using chalk pastels/oil pastels
- 6 stations, station 1-Map waypoints of HI Archipelago (make sure finished) station 2-Map of Maui (enlarged from small map using 10 by 10 cm squares) station 3-fill in pukas for fact sheet using senseofplace website also station 4-research on senseofplace.yolasite.com station 5-pastel of canoe plant also skin comparison plant epidermis and human skin pastel drawing station 6-moon oil pastel
- Students continue to use the Venn Diagram to note relationships between self,plant,moon.
Wednesday December 16 (even only)
Makamae: Pono bowl and start Collage
Maggie (help with collage)
Here is a collage that Makamae made very quickly for students so they got an idea of what needs be done.
Aloha, it's me Makamae ! This class went to a deeper level and i feel confident that the students received this message. the Pono bowl is an excersize that i learned from, the Tales of the night rainbow,written by Pali Lee and Koko Willis. POHAKU, stones of the land were brought with intentions to heal. Students were asked to place the stone on their forehead and focus on a problem they have been dealing with and allow themselves to let that problem go. to some students this was far fetched yet there were some students that silently allowed the healing mana, power to absorb.
Sharing art is an awesome way to inspire kids before they get materials in their hands. I brought paintings by abstract artist Kyra Kendall, they loved the art and shared some thoughts of what they saw.
The students worked on their collages peacefully while i told another story of Hina.
Thursday December 17 (all periods 5,6,1,2,3,4)
Collage-all students work on collage using student reflection page to build relationships
This is a picture of waypoints and the scientific name of Kukui. They were written with a sharpie (permanent and black) on a clear sheet of acetate so the student could layer it as part of their collage
Friday December 18
No School Furlough Friday
Week of January 4-8
Arts- Students complete a quality art piece to help explain the student's relationship to Maui, canoe plant, and moon. Reflection regarding the relationships students formalized in collage.
TRIBES-Students learn about their relationship and their importance to others.
Science- Students are able to describe the degree of relatedness to biotic and abiotic elements in an island ecosystem. Students learn how technology is an important source for information (and a tool in communication) through using the webspace to finish all information gathering for the project and the computer as a word processing/editing tool.
Language Arts- Students write a descriptive paragraph or poem to reflect on their learning. What is their relationship between them and Maui, their canoe plant, and the moon?
Monday-No School-Teacher Work Day
Tuesday-Wed January 6-7 (block)
Assign new seats
Hand out Writing Guide
Work on Collage
The students finished their collages today. About 1/4 could still use more time. Others were able to start their writing guide. I had them fill out number 1 and 2, just facts.
Thursday Friday January 8-9 (block)
Student Presentations-Students share their art with other students. They read their paragraph to help other students understand how they belong. Students share appreciations.
No we didn't do this. Instead I PAINFULLY extracted similes and metaphors with them on the writing guide. Painful! Very painful! There must be a better way. So for the odds, they did their writing guide and had the assignment to write a paragraph explaining the relationship of them to Maui, the moon and their plant. The evens, I had them do a post reflection on their meetings with Kumu Makamae. We will see what happens on Monday. I am guessing very few students will have done their paragraphs and that will be their homework for the week. Write a paragraph explaining their relationship.
Week of January 11-15
Art-Students will be introduced to rhythm and chanting as a metaphor in learning the difference between asexual and sexual reproduction. Chanting is the passing down of information from generation to generation, relatively unchanged over time. Rhythm will allow students to understand the beat (rhythm) of parents and how it combines to make a different rhythm, yet similar. Small changes in the parent beat result in larger differences in the resulting beat.
Science- Hawaii State Science Standard 7.5.1-Differentiate between asexual and sexual reproduction. In order to understand this fully, students learn what DNA is made of, they sing a song (ultimately learn a dance too) about what DNA is and how it replicates. They fold an origami DNA to understand more about the shape of DNA.
Monday January 11 (all periods)
TeenBIZ3000 Week 2 assignment!
Paragraphs on reflection of relationships in collage DUE! (Homework to all who have not completed it)
Activity 1-DNA-What's it made of? (Handout DNA1)
Activity 2- Sing! The DNAuh (Handout DNA2) (DNA midi)
Tuesday January 12 (all periods shortened)
Activity 3- Origami DNA (Handout DNA3)
Progress reports
Wednesday January 13(evens block)
Voyaging Chant
Introduction to Rhythm
Rhythm Orchestra
Aloha it's me Makamae! This class was exciting! we began with some activities i learned from my work shop in Oahu, in fact most of this class was inspired by what i had learned. These kids have opened are willing and comfortable with me.
We first partnered up and questions were presented, share with your partner, What is a trait that you have in common with your parents?
Maggie asked a question , what is the most inherited trait that is passed down generation to generation?
we got into groups of 4 and 5 to build a rhythm circle, this wasn't easy but very enjoyable, some students that used to be shy came out of their shell and created some awesome music ! These kids want to move!
Thursday January 14 (odds block)
Sing! DNA uh (add the dance)
Lab Activity 1-Match the chromosomes (Handout DNA4)
Chromosome Slide Show (SlideShowChromosomes)
Friday January 15
No School-Furlough Friday
Week of January 18-22
Art-
Science-Students continue to learn about the difference between sexual and asexual reproduction. A new benchmark is introduced, that being: I can describe how the environment can influence the expression of genes
Monday January 18
No School-Honor Martin Luther King
Homework TeenBIZ Week 3- 'Fear of Foods'
Tuesday January 19 (odds)
- Say DNAuh
- Switcheroo Activity 5
- Mitosis Cells Alive Song Activity 6
Wednesday January 20
Learning 'How you belong' through painting. Kumus Makamae and Kyra have students create art, evaluate art, and make connections to science through metaphors.Students create a painting that represents themselves and their relationship to their moon, canoe plant, and Maui. Paintings are done on pie shaped wedges of canvas prepped with gesso. 4 quarters make one circle. The circles will be put back together and displayed in the school library along with a poem that describes their 'Sense of Place.'
This activity went beautifully. The students set up their paints, some drew their image on the piece of canvas before others just went at it free hand. Water is a key to painting the canvas. Perhaps next year, a reflection activity before the actual painting, where the students identify images that represent important peices to how the students belong. Also important for the students tomresearch the moon on the day they were born so they can use that as a piece of the painting. The canvases were cut so that each circle was divided into 4 pie pieces, all numbered and lettered so they could be put back together.
Thursday January 21 (odds)
- Sing Mitosis Cells Alive-Activity 6
- Do Switcheroo to see if stages of mitosis are matched correctly
- Math-Science Technology 'How Many Cells Born in a Day.' Activity 7
- Students do a math activity to calculate the number of cells born in a day, then graph their data using Excel. Students answer the problem using constructed response.
- Hand back collage and paintings
- Students complete painting and then reflect on 'Sense of Place'
- Discussion of IDU and lessons learned (writing sample #2-How I belong?)
Week of January 25-January 29
Art-Students
will analyze their art piece and other student art pieces using art evaluation rubrics. Students will continue with using rhythm and chanting as a metaphor in learning the
difference between asexual and sexual reproduction. Chanting is the
passing down of information from generation to generation, relatively
unchanged over time. Rhythm will allow students to understand the beat
(rhythm) of parents and how it combines to make a different rhythm, yet
similar. Small changes in the parent beat result in larger differences
in the resulting beat. Chant is integrated into rhythm.
Science-
Hawaii State Science Standard 7.5.1-Differentiate between asexual and
sexual reproduction. In order to understand this fully, students learn
what DNA is made of, they sing a song (ultimately learn a dance too)
about what DNA is and how it replicates. Students will use Andy Warhol Mitosis Project to learn stages of mitosis and understand the idea that mitosis is replication, asexual reproduction.
Monday January 25
- Homework TeenBIZ Week 4- 'Internet Zoo for You'
- Progress Reports
- Even periods-Finish Origami DNA
- Even periods-Switcheroo
- Even Periods-Mitosis Cells Alive
- Odd Periods-Mitosis Cells Alive
- Odd Periods-Switcheroo
- Odd Periods-Andy Warhohl Mitosis Project ppt
- Andy Warhohl Mitosis Project
Students will analyze their art piece and other student art pieces using art evaluation rubrics. Students will discuss how they belong.
Makamae led the students into a gallery walk. Students agreed to evaluate and be careful of others feelings. They slowly revolved around the center of the tables, with the art pieces laid around the exterior of the tables. Both collage and paintings were present. After that, Makamae had students mingle, stop, and discuss various aspects of the project, what the students like the best, what they would like to change. Then Makamae held up different art pieces and students commented positively on what they saw. It was awesome! I found out early in the day, that the arts toolbox evaluation form was not very user friendly for the students and the wording MUST be rewritten before it becomes meaningful in the clasroom.
Thursday January 28 (both)
- Odds-Complete Andy Warhol Mitosis using art evaluation guide.
- Evens-How many cells born in a day-math/science/technology benchmark test
No School-Furlough Friday
Week of February 1-February 5
Science-Students continue learning HI State Science Standards
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| Describe how an inherited trait can be determined by one or more genes which are found on chromosomes |
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| Explain that small differences between parents and offspring could produce descendants that look very different from their ancestors |
Monday February 1
- TeenBIZ 3000-Week 5 Reading
- Switcheroo (Mitosis)
- Cells Gone Wild-Daybook
- Mitosis Cells Alive-Sing
- VT: Strangers in Paradise-Island Biogeography (Activity Guide)
Students complete the Sense of Place Project by writing sentences that explain what they have learned and placing them around the art exhibit in the library. They answer the question-How do I belong? They contemplate their future.
Chanted E Ho Mai to focus. Hands held to share mana. Students got into a community circle. We asked students how are you unique? In a circle we went around and each student volunteered how they were unique. We shared appreciations. Then we looked at the art in groups of 5 to 7. It was placed on desks so students could walk around the art in a large circle. Explanation of the IDU and art was written on tagboard and placed at several places in the exhibit. Students evaluated the art and volunteered their responses. Then students were asked how were they the same? Discussion drawn back to science because all living things have DNA. Appreciations were shared. Students read some responses from their yellow reflection sheet 'How Do I Belong?'
Thursday February 4
- Progress Report-Class Folder Check-Missing work becomes homework
- Daybook-Assignment pages 34-37
No School Furlough Friday
Week of February 1-February 5
Science-Students continue learning HI State Science Standards
Monday February 8
- TeenBiz Week 6-Surprize in New Zealand (extra credit available for Hawaiian Gifts reading)
- Progress Report (Prioritize missing work and do as homework assignment this week staple missing work in planner)
- Black Grace: Cultural Uniqueness, small changes resulting in large changes
- Seedy Side of Plants DVD guide
- Students with missing work, must work on missing assignments.
- Black Grace FT- Maui Sense of Place-Gallery Walk
- Apply FT to Science Standards
- Environment verses Heredity-How heredity works (Activity Guide 10)
- DNA-Mitosis Class Folder DUE!
No School Furlough Friday
Reflection and Projection:
I will be learning about heliophysics this summer. I am planning to connect what I learn to integrate it into the effect of the moon and moon's phases. I need to also connect with Kapa Makers here on Maui so I can have part of student hands on Kapa (possibly using natural dyes to paint small, small piece of kapa) Want students to research what phase of moon when they were born. Reflect on how that is connected with who they are and goal in life? Believe that this IDU is EXACTLY what seventh graders need in the middle of the middle of middle school, where they came from (reflect) where they are, where they are going. Goals for the future for them :)
