Annual WSST Convention

On Thursday March 14, I will be attending the annual Wisconsin Society of Science Teachers Convention, so I will not be at school.  I will be back on Friday.

Snow Shelter Building

 

As part of our survival unit in Nature of Science, students have been busy building their snow shelters.  Once completed each shelter should be able to accomodate 2 students comfortably. 

Chemistry Fun

Here's a nice demonstration of a combustion reaction from last week.

Water Testing on the Sheboygan River

Today the Nature of Science class took a field trip to the Hermitage Conservation Club on the Sheboygan River to perform a variety of water quality tests including: dissolved oxygen, temperature, nitrates, phosphates, turbidity, fecal coliform, pH, total solids, and macroinvertebrates.  The data obtained will be pooled with other districts who are sampling different stretches of the river to give an overall picture of the health of the waterway. 

Testing the Waters Field Trip

The ELGHS Nature of Science class will be teaming with Camp Y-Koda and 9 other Sheboygan County schools to sample the Sheboygan River at various locations this year.  Students will be collecting information on several water quality parameters and the compiled data will hopefully give us an accurate picture of the health of this waterway.  Training for this endeavor will be on October 12, and will require students to be out of school all day to learn proper sampling technique.  The river will be sampled on October 16, and then again next spring.

Nature of Science Students

We'll be outside keying-out trees all week (if it's not raining heavily).  Dress accordingly.

Science Department Updates

Beginning in the 2012-2013 school year, I will be teaching AP Biology and Nature of Science.  This is the first time that ELGHS will be offering AP Biology, and I'm very excited to a part of it.  This is a college level Biology course that should be considered for students in their Junior or Senior year.  This is particularly appropriate for those students considering a science-based degree or career field.  At the completion of the course students will have the option of taking the AP Biology exam.  A satisfactory score on this exam will grant the student college credits for their first Biology course in college (ex: Biology 101).
Nature of Science will change slightly from previous years in that it will now run for 1 period for the duration of the school year instead of the back to back periods first semester.  The content and approach to the course will be similar to how it has been in the past.
To make room for these courses in my schedule, I will be handing over General Science to Ms. Baxter, who will be teaching Math and Science courses at the high school this year.