Workshops & Summer Programs
2010 Workshop for New and Pre-Service Biology Teachers
This annual workshop held the weekend of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is specifically designed for new teachers K-12 (generally pre-tenure) and pre-service teachers (students enrolled in a college or university program leading to certification in secondary education).
Tentative Schedule
| Saturday January 16, 2010 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:30-10:30 | Registration & Breakfast: Nancy, Mike & Florianna. Biotech Atrium and Biotech G-10 | ||
| 10:30-11:00 | Introduction: Laurel. Biotech G-10 | ||
| 11:00-12:30 | SESSION I: | ||
| Building Blocks Lego Lab (8-12). Florianna. Comstock 1104 | SPICE LAB (6-10) Laurel Comstock: 1108 | ELODEA (8-12) Mary Kay Comstock: 1112 | |
| 12:30-1:30 | Lunch and Outreach Sampler table | ||
| 1:30-3:00 | SESSION 2: | ||
| P.R.I. Middle School. Richard Kissel. Comst. 1104 | How Many CATS. (9-12) Mary Kay Comstock 1112 | ||
| 3:00-3:15 | BREAK | ||
| 3:15-4:45 | SESSION 3: | ||
| NY State Lab. Diffusion/ Connections. Comst. 1108 Florianna. | Biofuels: unlocking bioenergy from plants. (6-8) Tiffany Fleming. Comstock 1112 | ||
| 4:45-5:45 | Share-a-Thon and Reception | ||
| Saturday January 16, 2010 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:00-830 | Breakfast | ||
| 8:30-9:00 | Follow up for Elodea, Spice Labs | ||
| 9:00-10:30 | SESSION 4: | ||
| Goldenrod gall size. (9-12). Mary Kay. Comstock 1104 | NY State Lab. Biodiversity/ Beaks. (9-12). Florianna Comstock: 1108 | Habitable Planets Beyond Solar System? Nancy Schaff (5-8) Comstock 1112 | |
| 10:30-10:45 | BREAK | ||
| 10:45-12:15 | SESSION 5: | ||
| Plant Game (6-10) Laurel. Comstock: 1104 | Inexpensive Labs. (5-8) Megan Wieboldt. Comstock 1112 | ||
| 12:15-1:00 | Lunch. Biotech G-10 | ||
| 1:00-2:30 | SESSION 6: | ||
| Heart Dissection. (9-12). Mary Kay. Comstock 1108 | Food for thought. (6-12). Carolyn Wilczynski. Comstock 1112 | ||
| 2:30-3:00 | Garage Sale. Biotech G-01 | ||
| 2:30 -end | Exit table: Evaluations & In-service hours letters | ||
Sample Labs and Activities
Photosynthesis and Respiration in Elodea (Grades 8-12)
This lab involves measuring changes in carbon dioxide concentration associated with both respiration and photosynthesis in the freshwater plant Elodea.
The Teeth Kit (Grades 2-5)
In this session we will utilize CIBT’s Teeth Kit, and allow students to investigate how the structure of a tooth relates to its function and the diet of different animals. The unit also includes a comparative study of jaws from carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores, as well as a review of proper oral health care.
The Spice Lab (Can be adapted to any grade level)
Does eating spicy food provide some useful function in the human body? This scientific method-based session will introduce you to ethnobotany, the study of how different cultures utilize indigenous plants. We will discuss the use of spices and their known antimicrobial properties.
New York State Lab Sessions (High School Living Environment)
These sessions are designed to give you a preview of labs high school students are required to complete in order to take the NYS Regents Exam. The major understandings, skills and standards for these labs will be reviewed and CIBT’s kit ‘Relationships and Biodiversity’ will be used to complete one of the labs.
The Building Blocks of Life Lab: Importance of Enzyme Shape (Grades 8-12)
This exercise will take students through the steps of protein synthesis, from a DNA sequence to “building” part of an enzyme using Legos. The effect of various mutations on the wild-type enzyme will be illustrated.
The Plant Game (Grades 6-10)
This simulation exercise allows students to understand the factors that affect plant growth. Teams of students “grow a plant” composed of “leaves”, “roots”, and “flowers.” The goal of the game is to produce a plant with the maximum number of flowers. This is possible only if the students have a good strategy to keep their “roots” in water and produce enough “leaves” to support adequate photosynthesis. Rainfall, transpiration, and temperature fluctuations are some of the factors that students must address.
