Once a Science Teacher...

Once a science teacher, always a science teacher.  Today, my family and I enjoyed our time visiting a field of sunflowers.  As we are walking through the field, I am noticing the bees bouncing from flower to flower with pollen covering their body.  I look close at the parts of the flower and recall the 12 years of teaching sexual reproduction of a flower.  With 8th graders, you can have a lot of fun with this topic.  I often wonder what stories my students would share with their parents or if this was one thing they preferred not to share?

All of this has me reflecting how important it is for students to make connections to what they are studying.  Many students come into the classroom with some prior experience, but then there are other students that the classroom is the first time for these experiences and connections.

Teachers work very hard to give students these opportunities.  In the last couple weeks, I have seen an increase in the number of students searching for background knowledge that helps them make a connection.  The Internet makes this very easy, but I would have to admit there still is nothing like the real thing.

I hope today's experience for my boys will never be forgotten;

• Running in between the rows of sunflowers, 
• having mud caked on the bottom of their feet, 
• seeing the bees flying from flower to flower, 
• seeing a caterpillar eating the leaf, 
• the thick stalk of a sunflower as you try to break it, 
• the yellow pollen on your hands,
• seeing the flowers facing in the same direction,
• and whatever a 5 year old and 2 year old soak up.

I'm glad my family and I will continue to give our children an experience that goes beyond the classroom and the Internet.