The Answer - A blog about Education, Preparation, and Commitment.

The Answer

Apply to teach

7th Grade Science at YES Prep

January 21, 2010 by Jeremy Jones

What is the question you are usually asked when you meet a person for the first time?

“So, what do you do?”

I have received this question about a gazillion times, and have answered the same way for the past five years:

“I am a teacher.”

“Oh, what do you teach?”

“I teach science.”

“Wow, that’s great! What grade do you teach?”

“I teach 7^th grade (or 6^th or 8^th depending on the year).”

“Oh, you definitely deserve a medal or a trophy or extra pay…” or, “Wow, how do you do that?”… or “Oooh, tough job, I am glad someone is willing to do it.”

To me, that seems a strange response. I teach MIDDLE SCHOOL students SCIENCE. Yes, of course, middle schoolers have their moments: they are gawky, they are discovering who they are, they are all over the place as far as achievement goes, but in my extremely professional opinion, this is the ideal subject to teach to the ideal age group. Middle school students are absolutely brimming with questions and are bold enough to actually ask them in class. They are curious and inquisitive beyond belief and they still have the propensity to get excited about science, given that we give them the opportunity and encouragement to actually EXPERIENCE science.

Science at YES Prep is attempting to change the face of typical science education in low-income public schools, and other schools for that matter. We strive to capitalize on the innate curiosity of our kids. We want to move away from years of “science in a textbook” (though there are definite merits to ensure students have opportunities to read science), and move towards a meaningful science curriculum that is highly relatable to the students’ lives.

So, with looming TAKS testing in 8^th,10^th, and 11^th grades, and short 50-minute classes, and the need for standardization across the district, and the varying degrees of experience of our teachers, how do we accomplish this? We start with the objectives. We have talented Course Leaders who lead their grade-level teams in writing strong curricula with TEKS as the baseline. We then work together in these grade-level teams to come up with meaningful lesson plans, with activities and labs that make science more meaningful for students. A few examples of our “hands-on” learning:

Science Projects 1. Simple Machines – Students are tasked with building a complex machine using different simple machines. The machine’s job is to move a tennis ball from one place to another. Students don hammers, and nails and screwdrivers and rope and wood and actually create what they learned about in class.

2. Human Digestive System – Each student represents a different organ on the path of digestion. As a “food particle” travels through the digestive tract, each organ explains its purpose. Instead of simply seeing a diagram and labeling the parts, they actually get to be involved in the process of digestion.

3. Partner Offspring – Students work in pairs to create offspring…not what you’re thinking. Students are responsible for 10 traits. They determine their genotypes based on their phenotypes and other given information. They create a Punnett Square with Student Science Projects their partner, and based on probability, come up with the genotype and phenotype of their offspring.

These are just a few examples from my 7^th grade classroom, but there are hundreds more happening across the district on a daily basis. Science at YES Prep is about the experience as well as the knowledge. We want to engage the minds of students and prove to them that science is fun and accessible. However, we don’t stop at engaging lessons. It is essential that we know our lessons are preparing our students for the rigors of high school and eventually college-level science. We use teacher-created, system-wide assessments to ensure that our students are not only on course to pass TAKS, but on course to pass AP Exams and be successful in college.

As the Science Content Specialist for YES Prep, it is my goal to increase the number of students graduating from our system who will study in science related fields in college. In order to see this happen, I believe it is of utmost importance to not only interest our students in science, but to give them confidence in their ability to be successful in the field. It starts here. It starts with inquiring minds. It starts in Middle School!

Erica Weybright teaches 7th grade science at YES Prep North Central. Erica graduated from Cal Poly in 2004 with a degree in Ecology and Biology. Erica is a 2004 Teach For America Alum.