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Rob Greenberg's Science Center =HAWBRIDGE SCHOOL =

=UPDATED JAN 22, 2018=



"Education matters. It provides hope that we have an educated citizenry that can function for the good of all, not just a few. It matters because learning and the art of learning are great pursuits. I intend to be a better advocate for "knowledge for the sake of knowledge." Kids, the world owes you nothing - you owe yourselves everything. Value every day in each of your classrooms - minds wide open!"
 * The words of a dear friend and collaborator who just retired from science education after 30 years. Her words to her students resonate within me: **



http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/TSE_2017_GoogleMapFull.html
 * INTERACTIVE GOOGLE EARTH MAP OF ECLIPSE **

For several years, my friend Mary Watson (science instructor at ACC and CCCC) and I have been leading monthly geology field trips on Saturdays to local and non-local sites. Our growing contact list consists of home school students and their families. If you are interested and would like to get on our contact list to receive email updates, please send an email to me at rgreengeology@gmail.com Check out our blog: @http://geoexnc.blogspot.com/
 * MONTHLY WEEKEND GEOLOGY FIELD TRIPS **

Our next field trip is on Saturday August 26. A stream ecologist will meet us at Bolin Creek in Carrboro and lead a discussion about issues related to urban streams and how to protect them. We will also investigate the rocks, which reveal the geologic history of our area.

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= A LETTER TO MY STUDENTS, PARENTS, AND FAMILIES, = I feel very fortunate to be at Hawbridge School as both a middle and high school science teacher. After 21 years in the public school setting, following four years of educational outreach at the Museum of Life and Science, I am delighted and honored to have the opportunity to help students grow and expand, and get excited about the topics I offer in this non-traditional setting. As students, you'll build on your background experiences and summon your imaginations as you collaborate with other students. You will have ongoing opportunities to think critically about important science issues and help to devise and carry out solutions for our planet. Living and learning in the Triangle and Triad regions of North Carolina give us all quite an advantage. We are fortunate to live in an area with an abundance of resources, including individuals with expertise in various realms of science. As I've done for the past several decades, my classroom will be connected with the community and its resources. APES students will be engaged in a number of field experiences throughout the year and parent assistance with driving will be needed and welcome.

- Always do your very best - come to class prepared with a good attitude
 * ROAD MAP TO SUCCESS **

- Be open to learning new things and new ways of doing things

- Regularly ask questions for clarification on instructions or content and to spur additional learning

- Consistently communicate, especially when things aren't going well

- Do your part to help ensure our classroom has a great learning environment

- treat each and every person in class with respect, whether you like him/her or not; my classroom (like the rest of the school) will always remain a no-bullying zone.

- Keep smart phones and electronics out of sight and mind unless instructed to use as a "tool" for an activity. Games and social media are NOT ALLOWED during class, however, a class may earn time near the end of class to engage in these pastimes as a way to unwind. This is a privilege and only I will make the decision about "free time" near the end of class.

CLASSROOM NORMS:
- Please enter the room on time and calmly, sit in your assigned seat and get out your supplies for the class period. Please have a note if you know you will be late.

- Stay quiet and attentive during instruction and lesson time. Understand and demonstrate the difference between hearing and listening.

- Keep phone/electronics in backpack (out of site) unless instructed.

- Only use phone/electronics for class assignments /activities unless teacher announces “free time” towards the end of class. Games and social media are not allowed in class during instruction time.

- You may listen to music only when teacher allows it and the music must not be heard by others – use headphones.

- Do not leave room to use bathroom or get water during instruction or lesson time unless emergency. When instructions for an activity have been given and are clear, you may use the restroom or get water with permission.

- After being given specific instructions for classwork or project, be on-task and do not disrupt other students causing them to be off-task. Be a positive contributor to your group during group activities.

- Please communicate with the teacher (me or sub) when you are not feeling you can give it your best on a particular day.

- I can only have one conversation at a time. Please be respectful if someone is speaking with me. You will get your turn.

- Do not discuss anything related to grades or PowerSchool during class. Please wait until bridge period or right after school. If I made a mistake in not entering points for an assignment, rest assured, it will be corrected.

- When outside the classroom, please follow instructions given before leaving the room. Safety comes before anything else. When you are in the community, represent our school well and make us proud. Respond immediately if the whistle is blown outside.

The Habits of Mind are an identified set of 16 problem solving, life-related skills, necessary to effectively operate in society and promote strategic reasoning, insightfulness, perseverance, creativity, and craftsmanship. The understanding and application of these 16 Habits of Mind serve to provide the individual with skills to work through real life situations that equip that person to respond using awareness (cues), thought, and intentional strategy in order to gain a positive outcome.
 * THE 16 HABITS OF MIND **


 * Here is a link to a Habits of Mind pdf: http://www.chsvt.org/wdp/Habits_of_Mind.pdf **

When a student is disruptive, not working up to his or her potential or is unable to focus on the task at hand, in most cases, he/she will be given a reflection form to complete that focuses on the Habits of Mind. I will put completed reflection forms in student folders and have them ready for a parent-teacher-student meeting. Students will work on these forms away from their classmates during class as well as during bridge period.

I've set up Google mail contact groups for each class - one for students and another for parents. I'll send a regular email classroom update. The email address I am using for parents is the one listed in PowerSchool. If the email has been changed or another one is preferred, please let me know. Please only reply to me. Parents: if you send an email to me regarding your student, please use his/her name in the heading. Students will set up an account and invite parents. Many throughout the year will be done electronically using this assignment will be electronic and uploaded to Google Classroom. You will be sent an email invite. Please check your student's assignments and grades regularly. If you or your student are not able to sign in, please let us know.
 * COMMUNICATION AND STAYING INFORMED **
 * EMAIL CONTACT GROUPS **
 * GOOGLE CLASSROOM **
 * POWER SCHOOL **

A very useful free app that serves to remind students (and parents) about assignments, due dates, etc. I will set up a Remind 101 for each class and go over the procedures for signing on (very easy). This is completely optional for students - not required at all. I will send out this information (the procedure for signing on) to parents, as well. I've used Remind 101 for several years. Student feedback has been very positive. Students (and parents) who sign on receive a brief text message (that I send out) related to an assignment or deadline. It is a one-way message (no replying back).
 * REMIND 101 **

I recommend this free smartphone app for great articles on many scholarly topics. Once you sign up, you go through a list of categories and choose the ones you want to receive articles on. Everything stays on the Flipboard app; nothing sent via email unless you set it up that way.
 * FLIPBOARD **

Wherever we are for the class period, whether in the river, on the trails, in Cup 22 or anywhere in the Saxapahaw community, the norms listed above apply. It truly IS a privilege to have resources we can all benefit from just outside our building. It is not a __right__ to participate in class outside - it is a privilege. Failure to recognize that spending the period outside the classroom is still class in session will result in a loss of this privilege.
 * CLASSES HELD OUTSIDE THE REGULAR CLASSROOM **

- Disruption of other classes in session will not be tolerated. Use quiet voices around the school. - When outside the school, you are a reflection of Hawbridge. Carry yourselves in a way that projects maturity and dignity. - When outside, whether around the river mill building, in the village or on the river, we will stay together. I need to know where everyone is at all times. I am currently working on a document that details a structure and expectations for the class outside the classroom.

We will use laptops regularly for class. Smart phones will also be a useful tool, but only when permission is granted for specific activities. If a student is caught using social media or playing games on his/her smart phone during an activity requiring smart phones the following steps will be followed: first violation - warning second violation - phone will be taken away; given back at end of class third violation - phone will be taken away; given back at end of day after that: discipliary referral and contact with parent(s)
 * RESPONSIBLE USE OF TECHNOLOGY **


 * CLASS SUPPLY LIST **

 Each day students must bring to class a composition or spiral notebook, a pen, a pencil with eraser, and a two-pocket folder for lecture notes and other handouts. If a student prefers to use a three-ring notebook and maintain a science section (instead of using a two-pocket folder, that is perfectly fine. If a student likes to maintain their own drawing supplies, this is what should be in the container he/she carries to class: - Pilot or Sharpie ultra-fine tipped pens - black, blue, red, green  - Regular pencils and eight-pack of colored pencils  - Hand-held sharpener with case to catch shavings  - Highlighters  - Glue stick  - Six inch ruler  - Post-it notes

- Garden gloves (used gloves will do) - garden clippers (hand held) - one page large cutters (for small branches) - scissors - construction paper - note cards (3x5) and (4x6) - metal rulers (metric and English) - # 2 pencils - hand held pencil sharpeners - ultra-fine tipped markers such as Pilot or Sharpie - manilla file folders - food coloring - dice - magnifying glasses - prisms - concave and convex lenses - tuning forks (all keys) - pipe cleaners (all colors)
 * SUPPLY "WISH LIST" **
 * The first three items will be used for trail maintenance **

Used microscopes in good condition Document camera Hot plates
 * LARGER ITEMS FOR DONATION **
 * Do you have a connection with a college or university? **


 * ABOUT ME **
 * Here is a link to my resume in case you are interested in checking out my background and experiences. **




 * BOOK REPORT FORMAT **

There are many orders or sequences that make sense when covering the material, and as a teacher I try to take into account teachable moments and cover what is in the news. I use the spheres or systems approach. Below are brief descriptions of each system. During the course of the year, students will make connections between the system interactions. Causes and effects will be investigated as well as basic laws of physics that pertain to the earth, oceans and sky. Think of a large volcanic eruption and the resulting causes and effects. Which spheres would be affected?
 * EARTH SYSTEMS OR SPHERES APPROACH - CAUSE AND EFFECT **
 * EARTH SYSTEMS OR SPHERES APPROACH - CAUSE AND EFFECT **

The exosphere deals with deep space, the solar system, the Sun and its effects on Earth. Also included: auroras and the magnetosphere, moon phases, tides, the path of the Sun, Moon and planets in the sky, the Coriolis force (due to earth's rotation) and its effects on ocean currents and wind belts.

The lithosphere deals with the Earth's core, mantle and crust. Plate tectonics, rocks and minerals and earth resources fall into this sphere.

The atmosphere deals with the air surrounding the earth. The lowest layer, the troposphere is where weather (clouds and precipitation) occur. As the earth heats up unevenly, variations in pressure occur, which gives us winds and our weather. The ozone layer is in the stratosphere. When you are on a long flight, the pilot ascends to the lower stratosphere in order to get above the clouds (and weather) The Earth's magnetic field lines occur in the upper layers and protect us from solar flares and coronal mass ejections. The aurora is produced in these high layers just below the transition to space.

The hydrosphere deals with the surface of the earth as it weathers and erodes due to water, ice and gravity. Bodies, small and large, including fresh and salt water. Groundwater is a hydrosphere topic but as it occurs in rock layers called aquifers, you can argue for the lithosphere. The portion of the hydrosphere that's frozen (ice caps and mountain or alpine glaciers) is called the cryosphere.

The biosphere is the sphere of life. Life can occur in the lowest layer of the atmosphere, on the surface of the earth and even under the surface. If you consider that there is evidence of bacteria on several outer planet moons, and that amino acids were found within meteorites, you can argue that life is also in the exosphere!

**THE EVER-INTERACTING SYSTEMS OF EARTH AND SPACE: ** **BIOSPHERE** photosynthesis, respiration, DNA, bacteria, proteins, natural selection, biome, human interaction with earth and its resources, policies and decision-making
 * LITHOSPHERE minerals, earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, earth layers **
 * HYDROSPHERE <span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: &#39;Comic Sans MS&#39;,cursive; font-size: 22px;">rivers, wetlands, groundwater, glaciers, ocean currents, hot springs **
 * <span style="background-color: #debfbf; color: #00ffff; font-family: &#39;Comic Sans MS&#39;,cursive; font-size: 22px;">ATMOSPHERE <span style="color: #800080; font-family: &#39;Comic Sans MS&#39;,cursive; font-size: 20px;">storms, jet stream, ozone layer, smog, humidity, winds, air pressure **
 * <span style="background-color: #000000; color: #ffffff; font-family: &#39;Comic Sans MS&#39;,cursive; font-size: 22px;">EXOSPHERE <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: &#39;Comic Sans MS&#39;,cursive; font-size: 20px;">sun, stars, galaxies, nebulas, black holes, meteors, comets, light years **

=** COMMUNITY RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES **=

=MOREHEAD PLANETARIUM AND SCIENCE CENTER= MONTHLY SKYWATCHING SESSIONS =TELESCOPE VIEWING OF OBJECTS IN NIGHT SKY= VISIT THE MOREHEAD PLANETARIUM WEB SITE FOR THEIR SKYWATCH CALENDAR http://moreheadplanetarium.org/programs/teen-adult-programs/skywatching LOCATION: JORDAN LAKE - EBENEZER RECREATIONAL AREA


 * TEACHING AND LEARNING **



*** think tank * inquiry * hands-on** * **real world** *** community * applications** *** collaboration * wonder * 21st Century** *** global * local * critical thinking** *

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 * EARTH SCIENCE-RELATED ILLUSTRATIONS **






 * WINTER WEATHER **




 * AVERAGE AMERICAN'S ANNUAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION **


 * BALD HEAD ISLAND **


 * ATMOSPHERE - HYDROSPHERE **



**LITHOSPHERE**








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