Mole Day!

Saturday was Mole Day. For your info, a mole is 6.02 x 10^23 atoms, so each year Mole Day is celebrated on October 23 (10/23). 


In celebration of National Chemistry Week and Mole Day, we had a party on Friday after learning all about what a mole is :) 


Check out some pictures of the classroom updated and decorated for Mole Day. 

With some balloons up for our Mole Day party!

Welcome to Mole Day!

Our goal posters :) 

Full Moon

You may think I'm crazy after reading this, but hear me out (or really, read me out)....


On the day of the first full moon of the school year, a riot-fight broke out in the hallway mid-morning. Kids who are normally well-behaved were wild, and the day seemed to have that sort of disorienting feel similar to the feeling of taking too much cold medicine and then not sleeping it off before trying to do something that requires immense physical and mental exertion. 2 floors down on that same day, the principal of the school was bit by a student and had to go to the hospital because the bite broke the skin. 


Today, another full moon. Today, 2 fights broke out in the hallways of our school involving our kids. A third fight broke out on the first floor of the building involving a different school. Some of the kids involved in the fight were on their first day of school for the year. I was in the middle of a totally badass "Mole Day" party/lesson and had to actually block the door with my body to keep my students from leaving the room and joining the fight and to keep the fighting kids out of my classroom. 


I had multiple similar experiences last year. Many of them on days with a full moon. 


Conclusions: 1) The moon cycle actually has an effect on people's moods/behavior/attitude. 
2) My children are werewolves. Or really, werechildren.

Truancy Hypocrisy

The hypocrisy of truancy:

Today one of my students was walking to school late and was picked up outside the building by a truancy officer during 2nd period. When a student is picked up by an officer, the kid then has to spend time filling out paperwork, phone calls are made home, etc. It's a whole long process. Today, this process resulted in the kid missing 3rd period (my class) and 4th period class.

Moral of the story: Get in trouble for cutting school and you will miss more school.

No wonder we have an attendance problem in our building...

Cellular Respiration Song

I have to teach Cellular Respiration this week, and my kids seem to struggle with it. As a potential solution, I have written a song to the tune of Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" about respiration. We do not need to, nor have time to, learn the details of glycolysis, Krebs cycle, etc. so this is just a general overview. In any case, ANY AND ALL FEEDBACK ON THE LYRICS IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!! 


To the cell, to the cell
to the cell, to the cell


To the cell, to the cell
The good stuff that you eat goes straight to your cells
In your food yeah that's glucose
Glucose helps your cells take care of stuff


Keep eating those veggies and fruits
Cell respiration is what gets you to move
We all need energy
So we have to make a lot of ATP


Singing in Room 433, smart scientists
Talking about how we're gonna pass the Regents
Make ATP


Cell respiration
Cell respiration
Glucose and oxygen go in
Mitochondria make ATP baby
Cell respiration 
Cell respiration
The cells are making ATP
Don't forget about the water and CO2
Cell respiration


So go ahead and eat some fruit, break it down
with your stomach juice
Move into the small intestine, diffuse through the walls
into the blood yeah


Delivery that glucose straight to the cells, along with O2 
from the lungs
to the mitochondria please. 
Singing in Room 433, smart scientists
talking about how we're gonna pass the Regents
Make ATP


Cell respiration
Cell respiration
Glucose and oxygen go in
Mitochondria make ATP baby
Cell respiration
Cell respiration
The cells are making ATP
And don't forget about the water and CO2
Cell respiration


So since our cells need energy
How about we make ATP, ATP is energy
We'll use our glucose 
and use oxygen
Cause the truth of the matter is 
Respiration is so easy, hey


To the cell, to the cell
to the cell, to the cell


To the cell, to the cell
Good stuff that you eat goes straight to the cell
To the cell, to the cell
Using up glucose and oxygen
Cell respiration

Pants

It seems a little strange that I would be concerned about my students' clothing since my students are in high school. 
However, for the 4th time since I began teaching, I have dealt with an issue involving my high school students and their lack of pants...


Today, one student changed out of her jeans and into sweatpants - all while sitting in her chair. In the middle of class. 


Previous experiences are: 
1. A student asking to go to the bathroom and returning without pants on. 
2. A student coming into class with only long john underwear because his pants were drying in the bathroom after a rainy walk to school. 
3. The same student as incident 1 was making a ruckus in the hall. I looked outside the classroom door to see her laying in the hall, rolling around on the floor, without pants on. 


I could not make this stuff up even if I wanted to.