From my very first day in the third grade classroom, I began wondering "How do I teach eight year old students to think critically?" I knew from my ED classes that the first step was to engage the students at their level. Test questions challenged the students but only on the superficial level. Most of the tests used showed the students were capable of recognizing and recalling bits of information, but didn't seem to challenge the students. Open-ended questions forced them to think and formulate their thoughts. I especially found this true during science lessons, where I could ask thought provoking questions pertaining to the chapter. Asking instead of telling seemed to work well with these third grade students!
The ecosystems unit was a lesson teaching a variety of ecosystems. The class was learning about ecosystems for about one week. I produced a worksheet for the students on ecosystems. Although I created an excellent PowerPoint presentation, I wanted to create a real life experience for the students. I decided to plan a science field trip to learn about ecosystems in our own back yard. This provided a point of reference to enhance overall questioning and provided the opportunity to engage students concerning a local ecosystem right next door to Hampton Cove Elementary. During our walking trip to the Preserve, we had a lot of fun with our scavenger hunt. The students really enjoyed the field trip and hoped to visit Hays Nature Preserve again.