Curriculum Night 2013

1. Curriculum Night 2013 Ryan Christopoulos 8th Grade Science Discovery

2. The important thing in science is not so much to obtain new facts as to discover new ways of thinking about them - William Bragg Sr.

3. Mr. Ryan Christopoulos • ryanchristopoulos@sd54.org • 847-357-6780 • All class information will be posted at frost.sd54.org/mrcscience • Twitter: @frostSCImrc • Bachelors Degree in Education – Augustana College (2009) • Concentration in Earth Sciences (geology) • Highly Qualified in Algebra, Art, Biological Sciences, Geography, History, Physical Science, General Science Reading, Theatre, and Music • Captain of the Augustana Men’s Lacrosse Team • Northwestern University Center for Talent Development • Summer Instructor for Apogee Program (grades 5 – 7) • Up, Up, And Away : The Science of Flight and History of Aeronautics.

4. District 54 Goals • • Students who have attended District 54 schools for at least one year will be at grade level in reading and math upon entering third grade as measured by Measures of Academic Progress (MAP). • • Each school will close the achievement gap for all students in reading and math as measured by both district and state assessments. • • Each school will perform at or above the 90th percentile (top 10% nationally) in meeting individual student growth targets in reading and math as measured by Measures of Academic Progress (MAP).

5. 3 GOALS 2013 FOR

6. 95 Reading 95 Math ` 95 Culture

7. Common Core at Frost

8. Literacy: 3 Shifts Building knowledge through content-rich nonfiction Reading, writing, and speaking grounded in evidence from text, both literary and informational Regular practice with complex text and its academic language

9. Common Core in Science

10. Exclusive to Discovery • “Homemade Science” • Independent Scientific Inquiry. • Students use the scientific method to conduct their own scientific experiments. • Students must complete 2 per trimester. • Common Assessments • Consistent higher level questioning. • Open ended short answer and essay questions. • 3 – 4 per trimester.

11. Curriculum • Scientific Method • Physics • Forces & Motion • Simple Machines • Gravity • Astronomy • Planets • Earth, Moon, Sun, Stars • Environmental Science • Natural Resources • Energy Forms & Generation

12. Additional Science Opportunities • Rocket Club • Partnership with NASA • Students work collaboratively to engineer rockets and understand rocket flight • State and National contests • GEMS/BASE • Women’s/Men’s exclusive science inquiry club. • Engineering and 21st century learning based activities. • CAN Club • Students work collaboratively to plant and maintain a vegetable garden • All produce is donated to Schaumburg Food Pantry • First Lego League • Students work collaboratively to engineer Lego robots. • Local, State, and National competitions.

13. Instruction

14. Support

15. Homework • Homework is given on a consistent basis. • Most homework assignments will require 30 – 40 minutes to complete • All homework is posted on the Frost homework page, our class website, and our twitter (@frostSCImrc) • Textbooks • A hard copy was given to each student on Sept. 4 • An on-line version and additional resources are available at this website: • www.my.hrw.com • User Name: christopoulo1 • Password: d6j3x

16. Grading System

17. Grading System (cont.) • Common Assessments (Tests) • Cut-off score is 75% • If a student needs to be retaught and retested, a score of 75% will be received after meeting or exceeding the cut-off score on the test. Re-teaching and re-testing will occur before or after school. • Labs • If a student is absent on a lab day, he/she will be exempt from the assignment but they will still be responsible for learning the information • Assignments – All are due on the due date given!

18. Frost Strong