Running Head: VIRTUAL LAB TO SELF-CREATED LAB IN THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM 1

Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom

Anthony Orduño

Arizona State University

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Applicant and School Narrative

Hello, my name is Anthony Orduño and I am currently in my fourth year of teaching

general science at Estrella Middle School, in the Cartwright School District, situated in Phoenix,

Arizona. I did graduate with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry, as well as acquired my teaching

certification, from Arizona State University. While my time in post-secondary was focused on

my studies, I often did participate in tutoring programs on campus where I was a supplemental

source for first and second year students enrolled in both general chemistry and organic

chemistry courses. It was during this time where my love for education, and my desire to become

an educator, sprouted. Now as a full-fledged educator and mentor, my philosophies in regard to

teaching have grown and evolved in the past four years. I believe that teaching must incorporate

relevancy and proper connection making, but also hands-on learning experiences. A common

concern from adolescents traversing the day-to-day of school life is how actually important is

this lesson, or why do we have to do this. This lack of desire within students is due to learning

experiences that are neither directly applicable to their personal goals or interest, or that

connections are not being made in some way to real-world issues or context. I believe that

establishing relevance in the classroom is one of the most prominent factors when it comes to

facilitating an active and healthy classroom environment (Kember et al, 2008). Relevancy and

connection making in the classroom go hand-in-hand. When a lesson, topic, objective is relevant

to the majority of the class, it can instill motivation with the student as they are able to make

connections within the lesson, but also form connections to their interests and lives out of school.

These connections are what pushes the information being taught from merely the surface level,

but towards a deeper level of thinking where one can transfer the information. As an educator, it

is our job to explain “how”, but just as important, we must provide the “why.” This can provide
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the motivation, which then cements the foundation for that deeper learning and application

aforementioned (Mehta, 2018). In addition to that, hands-on learning is something I strive to

achieve often within the classroom. The hands-on approach is a method where students will learn

through experience. In my classroom, this is often in the form of rather primitive science

experiments. This method provides students the opportunity to manipulate variables and

physically see the effects. It has been shown that the hands-on approach improves student

retention as it illustrates concepts. A lecture based lesson may show a 5% retention rate, but an

activity oriented will show an increased retention rate of approximately 75% (Ekwueme et al,

2015). With a more hands-on oriented lessons, it can provide another way for students to display

their understanding of what they have learned rather than tests or regurgitating memorized

information.

In my fourth year I want to ensure that relevancy and a hands-on approach is

implemented into the classroom even further, and one of the best ways to do this is with the

integration of technology. In the past, I have tried to use technology in the classroom through

simple lab experiments and research oriented projects, but I had found that it was not enough.

The labs were very restrictive so not many interactive experiments were able to be performed.

With the research projects, students did not have the hands-on experience that I wanted for them.

There were not many chances for students to safely explore technology within the classroom or

the labs. This year I plan on incorporating inquiry-based learning in the form of technology

oriented lab experiments, popularly known as virtual science labs. Virtual science lab

experiments not only incorporate technology but also applies the hands-on experience and

relevancy that students need to reach a higher level of education.

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School Narrative

Estrella Middle School (EMS) is one of the 21 schools in the Cartwright School District.

Cartwright School District has a variety of school types scattered around the Phoenix area. In the

district, there are twelve K-6 elementary schools, four K-8 elementary schools, two 7th-8th-

grade middle schools, one preschool, and two 6th-8th-grade middle schools, one of which is

EMS. EMS is located within central Maricopa county. The area surrounding EMS has an average

median income of $58,580 (U.S. Census Bureau). The median home value in Maricopa County

is $276,800 (Zillow, 2019). Cartwright School District is predominantly Hispanic. Of the student

population of 16,699 across all schools in the district, 89% are Hispanic, 5% are African

American, 4% White, 2% are two or more, 1% are Native American, and <1% are Asian or

Pacific Islander (Estrella Middle School, 2015). EMS student population closely matches the

same breakdown. Within the surrounding area of EMS, 83.4% of adults have a high school

diploma, while 21.4% have a bachelor’s degree or higher. (U.S. Census Bureau). Of the students

in the Cartwright School District, approximately 99% of students benefit from free or reduced

breakfast and lunch programs. Within the classroom, EMS has an average 25:1 student ratio,

which is above average when compared to other elementary and middle schools (Estrella Middle

School, 2015).

Cartwright School District is a leading urban district that puts in an effort to provide a

first-class education to all students and to equip students with life skills to become college and

career-bound learners. Their motto is "One Team, Una Familia!" and strive to empower all

students to go above and beyond their potential (Cartwright School District, 2019). Specifically,

in EMS, our goal is to ensure that every student is prepared to be successful and self-reliant in

high school and beyond. We have prepared a curriculum that will ensure the best possible
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education for students based on Arizona's rigorous College and Career Ready Standards (EMS,

2019). EMS is equipped with a variety of extracurricular activities consisting of sports, arts, and

STEM. There is program known as Estrella Academy, where students are given extra

opportunities to learn concepts or skills that they struggled with the first time. There are Estrella

Academies for science, math, ELL, and social studies. 90% of our classrooms are provided with

a one-to-one technology to student ratio that allows our students access to up-to-date resources

and engaging academic tools (EMS,2019), but unfortunately, my classroom is part of the 10%

that do not have that. I have 6 periods throughout the day, and an average number of students of

30 per period. There is a lack of resources from class to class, so that 1:1 ratio is rarely

attainable. I wish to match the technology integration present in other classrooms with the

implementation of virtual science labs, as well as the required technological equipment.

Summary of Project and Project Impact

Though the main goal of this project is to introduce more lab interactions within the

science classroom through virtual labs, a secondary goal will also run alongside it. The

secondary goal consists of the students developing their own scientific experiment, incorporating

the key items necessary in an experiment, as well as techniques, learned from the virtual labs to

identify, formulate, and test a solution to the presented problem. The presented problem may

change from year to year, but the first problem the students need to solve is:

The Earth is rapidly running out of oxygen, and in 10 years, more than 50% of Earth’s living

organisms will not be able to survive. What is the best way to replenish Earth’s oxygen levels

and quickly?
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The project, both its main goal and secondary goal, is something that I believe is

necessary within not only my school, but in all schools. The implementation of virtual labs in the

science classroom is a tool that will not only supplement student’s learning on scientific topics,

but will push what they learn at the surface, deep, and transfer levels to a whole new horizon.

Certain concepts and key ideas could be given actual visualization, outside of the static models in

the textbook . Although it may not be tangible, students will be given the opportunity to see what

they learned in action and how it may be implemented in a variety of situations not presented in

the lesson. The student’s task to develop their own scientific experiment and to test it will

provide them that tangible experience of inquiry based learning and hands-on learning. I believe

this type of project is necessary for my students as there are little opportunities for students to

personally play a role in and witness a cause and effect scenario in the seventh grade science

classroom, and this project provides that exactly.

During the development and tests of their own science experiment, some of the project-

based learning activities students will partake in is that they will need to identify the key items

needed in a scientifically sound experiment. Students will research agricultural methods, which

will become apparent as to why in the section Project Narrative. The experiment will then be

explicitly written as if they were scientist writing to a board of directors. Lastly, students will

then spend time testing and monitoring their experiment.

As mentioned before, virtual labs will help student’s visualize concepts presented in the

classroom in ways a lecture or traditional lab may not be able to accomplish. Hands-on learning

can positively impact the way student’s learn as well. By developing and actually testing an

experiment they created themselves, what is taught can be practiced more effectively, solidifying

what was taught. This project really improves on student engagement. Judging from student
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reaction when just mentioning the words “lab experiment,” I know that the thought of actually

getting their hands dirty, rather than watching an experiment being performed for them, is very

enticing. Developing and testing their own experiment would provide the excitement to learn that

is often absent in the classroom.

Student Impact

When it comes to project-based learning, student impact is a major factor when

determining how successful it is. I have 6 periods, with an average of 30 students per period. The

number of students that will be impacted by the initial project is approximately 180 students. In

the future, if the project is successful, I estimate that approximately 600 students will be

impacted in 3 years. This is considering the increasing population, as well the rate of new

elementary school teachers being certified yearly in the United States, which is in a downward

trend.

Teacher Impact

The potential impact towards myself as the facilitator of this project is determining what

best captures a student’s attention when considering which virtual lab to have students

experience. The type of virtual labs used during the initial project could be then polled to

determine which were deemed beneficial and which were not by students themselves. I would

then be able to further edit my lesson plans to better fit the virtual labs used throughout the year.

It can also impact my fellow teachers as well as the portion of the project where students develop

their own project can provide possible collaborative opportunities between instructors. The most

likely would be with an English teacher. The English teacher could supplement the experiment,

as well as their class, with a unit on how to research. A unit on research is standard practice in an
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elementary classroom, though in this case, students would research methods to test rather than a

“boring” historical figure or event. The overall engagement could be increased in the English

classroom if we were to collaborate. The English teacher could also act as a facilitator when

explicitly writing out the science experiment. Connecting student learning across subjects could

improve student learning as well. When teachers collaborate on projects across subjects, they can

drive engagement in all of their classes. It creates a common goal and message between subjects,

and teachers can leverage resources, ideas, and learning opportunities.

Community Impact

The community within the school could also be impacted. This will be further touched

upon in the Project Narrative, but I plan on having a couple of groups who gathers the best

results in their experiment to replicate their method in a school garden. The general school

population would be able to see the fruit of my student’s labor in the form of a school garden. It

would be “advertised” during the school announcements, so all are aware of what the 7th grade

class is working on. Younger years will be able to look forward to what they will do once they

get to 7th grade. 8th graders will be able to see how their garden has grown since their year. A

picture of the garden and its gardeners could be printed on the school newsletter to parents, as

well as the newsletter of the school district so many more can see what amazing working Estrella

Middle School students are accomplishing outside of the classroom. I believe that this would

overall improve the sense of community within not only Estrella Middle School, but the district

as well. This may even prompt other schools within the Cartwright school district to replicate

this project, sprouting science classroom led gardens on their respective campuses across the

Phoenix area.
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Project Narrative

I plan for the project to take approximately 6 weeks. Tentatively speaking, one week for

research, one week for developing the experiment, and the remaining four weeks for the actual

experiment to take place. If there is collaboration between the English teacher, then perhaps they

may take on the research portion of the project, while in my classroom I guide them in

formulating the experiment. Since the majority of the project is performing the experiment, and it

will not take the entire month, students will be given brief opportunities to work on their

experiment. Students will be given 5 minutes in the beginning of class to perform any necessary

adjustments to their plant (i.e. adding water, shifting soil, etc.) while the remainder of the class

will be focused on the current lesson. There will be specific days, a minimum of two per week,

where students will have more time, 5-10 minutes, to gather experimental data, specifically the

growth of their plant. They would record this experimental data and any observations made in

their science notebook. Students who struggle with organization or gathering data, will use a data

table example as a guide modeled by me. This example would include day number, total plant

length in inches, plant growth since last data collection, and observations/adjustments to

experiment.

The final week will be dedicated in writing and finalizing their lab reports as a group.

The majority of the information required for the lab report would be completed at this point. The

lab report would need to include an introduction with their hypothesis, experimental section

including materials used and procedures, a data section showcasing their observations and plant

growth in the forms of data tables and graphs, and finally a conclusion explaining what their data

says and whether their hypothesis was correct or not. Within the conclusion, a key part needed

would be answering the driving question:

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The Earth is rapidly running out of oxygen, and in 10 years, more than 50% of Earth’s living

organisms will not be able to survive. What is the best way to replenish Earth’s oxygen levels

and quickly?

Determining if their experiment can be used to solve the driving question, why or why not. As

mentioned, by the last week, the majority of the information for the lab report would be

complete. Students would need to gather final data points, create graphs depicting the growth of

their plant, write their conclusion ensuring an emphasis on the driving question, and finally

piecing it together in a report. Once again, a collaboration with the English teacher would help

streamline this process. The graphing portion may even be another collaboration, this time with

the math teacher. A simple graphic showing the anatomy of a lab report will also be provided to

help guide students through the process, attached in the Appendix. With that, this a basic

overview of what the project narrative would be.

For the introduction of the project, the opening day, I hope to engage my student’s

interest by creating a video showing a scenario where there is not enough oxygen for all the

people in the world, and in 10 years there will be so little oxygen that more than 50% of living

organisms will die off. With this idea in play, the class would brainstorm ideas to collaborate on

how to increase oxygen production from previous knowledge. From there, I would present a

slideshow, depicting various ways for oxygen to be formed, ultimately landing on trees as an

oxygen producer. At this point, the actual project would be introduced. Students would then

spend the remainder of the period collaborating and researching agricultural methods with their

project group. They would end the period with 2-3 ideas they might want to use. The inquiry

lesson plan for day 1, the introduction of the project, which provides more detailed steps of that

day will also be attached in the Appendix.

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Learning Goals & Outcome

I have developed the learning goals and desired outcomes for the first ten days of the

project. The first week/first five days, which would consist of students researching agricultural

methods to implement into their own experiment, will have the same learning goal with different

desired outcomes progressing throughout the week. The second week/next five days, which is

where the students will begin formulating their experiment, will have a different learning goal

with the desired outcomes being the components needed for an experiment broken up, slowly

building it up group-wise, and class-wise, to not overwhelm. A more detailed overview of what

the first ten days of the project would be is provided in Table I below, in the Appendix.

Description of Learning Activities

A majority of the learning activities that will be done within the first 10 days of the

project is the research aspect. This will give them the opportunities to research a variety of

methods they may wish to implement in their own experiment by using an electronic device,

either a tablet or laptop. I would provide 5-10 possible resources that can be used for students

who have a difficult time researching. These learning activities directly tie in with ISTE/S

standards which are all four aspects of being a “Knowledge Constructor.” As well as 2c of being

a “Digital Citizen.”

During the week of research, for bell work, I intend to play short videos showcasing a

different agricultural method that might interest students to further research on their own. For the

bell work, they will need to implement a 3-2-1 method. Three things you learned, two

connections you made, and one question you still have. I believe this will help guide students in

their research process, specifically with the connections made and question.
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On day two, I would create formal groups of 4 students maximum. Group collaboration is

an integral part of this experiment, with working in groups occurring almost daily. In the first

week, students will research independently, or in pairs, with the last day of the week will consist

of group collaboration where each student will express the ideas they researched. As a group,

they decide on one singular method to follow for the remainder of the project period. The

following week, where they will be formulating the experiment, roles within the group would be

assigned. Assuming there are four students in the group, there would be one scribe, one designer,

one researcher, and one leader/secondary researcher. The students will decide the assignment of

these roles as a group in order for students to determine where they think their skills would best

fit. Scribes will write down drafts and finals of procedures, material lists, etc. Designers will

create tables for data collection and any models. Researchers will collect the necessary

information for any aspect of the experiment. The leader will present progress and ideas to me

when performing check-ins. The lab report due at the end of the project period is also a group

effort. The last two days of the ten day plan consists of writing a rough draft of the introduction.

This requires the use of all roles as the scribe will be writing the draft, the designer will be

creating any visuals and act as editor, and the two researchers will provide any relevant

information. Of course, the expectations for each role will be modeled prior to beginning any

group work as to ensure that there is proper contribution.

Assessment

In terms of assessment, I plan to use a combination of formative and summative

assessments. Considering that a large portion of the project is group collaboration, a formative

assessment of self and of peers will be used weekly as to monitor contribution. A simple rating

scale with space for comments, turned in weekly to me. I would look over student responses at
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the end of the week, speaking with students who appear to be not contributing enough according

to their group members.

For summative assessments, a rubric for the lab report will be used. The rubric will

specify what is needed for the lab report, broken up into sections, clearly depicting varying levels

of proficiency from a rating scale of 1-5. The rubric is out of 100 points, with heavier point

emphasis on introduction, data, and conclusion. Students will be given this rubric as early as the

second week of the project period to ensure that each and every student is aware of the

expectations for proficiency at each step of the project period. Students will have the opportunity

to reference the rubric to keep track of how successful or how much progress is being made

toward high proficiency on a daily basis.

Both the self/peer evaluations and project rubric are attached in the Appendix.

Sustaining the Project and Innovation

Technology

The use of technology during the first ten days of the project period is vital. Students will

use a combination of tablets and laptops to access the internet on a daily basis. The number of

electronic devices, in the form of tablets, available for my students are not always enough to

provide a 1:1 ratio. I may need to enlist extra devices from neighboring teachers in order to reach

that ratio. I know that both the 7th grade English and Social Studies teachers are equipped with

laptops for their classes, so I may borrow few devices from each to ensure that the technology

tools used to support my students on a daily basis is at its best.

As mentioned prior, I will provide 5-10 internet resources for students to access who

struggle or have little experience researching academic topics individually. I would also give my
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students the freedom to record the information researched in whichever way they deem best.

Whether that be physically writing, typing in a document, bookmarking websites and sources,

etc. As with any use of textual evidence, citation use will be heavily practiced as well during the

research and writing process.

After Proposal Period

After the initial proposal period, there are definite expansion possibilities in the horizon. I

believe that the basis of the project, to develop and test self-made science experiment, can be

kept as is. The aspect that can be built upon or expanded is the driving question. The driving

question currently is effective and relevant, but there can be a higher involvement in terms of

community. A scenario that depicts a problem that hits closer to home, figuratively or literally,

can be used to increase student engagement and overall relevancy. Relevancy was one of the

concepts I wanted to include more in my classroom, so an expansion similar to this can help

make that a reality in the future.

Depending on the success and student response and engagement, there can be greater

collaboration between content areas. With a more relevant and closer to home driving question,

the content from Social Studies can briefly make an impact during the project period.

Collaboration with math can be included depending on what the driving question is. Math and

science go together often, so there are definite possibilities for more advanced collaboration.

Collaboration with English is probably one of the most needed as desired outcomes, in terms of

mastered skills, can be applied to both the English and science classroom. In the future, the

project period may even be reduced in time, as both content areas could be walking hand-in-hand

in instruction during the project period.

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Innovation

I have come across countless students who believe that school is pointless and

disinteresting, that they can not wait to not go to school. I believe this mainly due to the level of

busy work students are often subjected to. With the implementation of virtual labs leading up to

student-made science experiments will transform the student’s learning. Student will be able to

personally witness how science can directly impact their lives. Middle school science is usually a

“this is what happens,” but is hardly a “this is what happens, and this is how it affects you.” With

this project, students can make that learning to life connection that is integral in transforming

their education to the next level. This project is directly forming that bridge between learning and

life. With this experience, I hope to equip students with the skills necessary to create these

bridges on their own.

When students are behind the wheel of their learning, suddenly there is a “want” for

learning and success. With this project, students are given the opportunity to take full control in

what they want to do. This does not happen often in the education system. So, when given the

chance to study something that even moderately interests them, students will latch on and

flourish.

Budget Narrative

Table II., in the Appendix, lists the expenditures needed for the project to be

implemented. This table also includes the amount needed, price per unit, and where to purchase.

The plastic folders, one per project group, will be used to hold all worksheets, papers, figures,

hand-outs, etc. that pertain to the project that will be left in the classroom to ensure that anything

important is kept in a safe and organized location. Often times, I find that many students come
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unprepared to class, especially lacking a writing utensil. This will make sure that all students are

prepared in that aspect. The composition notebook will be used strictly to gather all data when

working through virtual labs throughout the year. The composition notebook will also be used

when formulating and implementing the student made lab experiment. The cress seeds are what

the students will actually test their researched method on. The potting soil will be used to provide

a independent variable, it introduces a constant that is used across all groups who need soil in

their experiment. The small plastic plots will be used to house and monitor plant growth in a

compact, easy to transport vessel. The 1000 mL beakers, which will be kept in the classroom as a

class set for all students to use, will be used to measure the amount of water their plant needs on

a daily basis. The large plastic container, one for each period, will be used to house the plotted

plants to avoid class mix-up. Finally, the masking tape will be used to label individual group

potted plants, as well as label the containers per period.

In order to fund this project, I believe that crowdfunding would be the best approach

considering the approximate total expenses for the project, being $241.43. Sites like

gofundme.com would be used. This would allow students, parents, friends, teachers colleagues

to donate to the project fund. With an average class size of 30 students and 6 periods, if each

student with their guardian donated $1.35 to the project fund, the expenses would be covered.

This is excluding any donations that school colleagues and friends may wish to donate. This is

also excluding any parents who may wish to donate more than the $1.35. With that, the first year

of the student-driven, student-made science project can begin.

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Reference Page
Cartwright School District . (2019). About Us. Retrieved from http://csd83.org/home
Ekwueme, C. O., Ekon, E. E., & Ezenwa-Nebife, D. C. (2015). The Impact of Hands-On-
Approach on Student Academic Performance in Basic Science and Mathematics. Higher
Education Studies, 5(6), 47–51. doi: 10.5539/hes.v5n6p47
Estrella Middle School. (2015). Retrieved from
https://elementaryschools.org/directory/az/cities/phoenix/estrella-middle-
school/40168000093/
Estrella Middle School. (2019). Welcome to Estrella Middle School. Retrieved from
http://cartwrightestrella.ss12.sharpschool.com/
Kember, D., Ho, A., & Hong, C. (2008). The importance of establishing relevance in motivating
student learning. Active Learning in Higher Education, 9(3), 249–263.
Mehta, J. (2018, January 4). A Pernicious Myth: Basics Before Deeper Learning. Education
Week. Retrieved from
https://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning_deeply/2018/01/a_pernicious_myth_basics_be
fore_deeper_learning.html
U.S. Census Bureau. (2015, March 19). QuickFacts: Maricopa County, Arizona; United States
(Report No. P94-171). Retrieved from
http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/maricopacountyarizona,US/PST045218
Zillow, Inc. (2019, August 31). Maricopa County AZ Home Prices & Home Values. Retrieved
from https://www.zillow.com/maricopa-county-az/home-values/
 Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 18

Appendix

Inquiry (5E) Lesson Plan (PBL Day 1)

Teachers: Subject:
Anthony Orduno Science/Chemistry
Common Core State Standards:
Plus HS+E.E1U3.10
Ask questions, define problems, and evaluate a solution to a complex problem, based on prioritized criteria and
tradeoffs, that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, as well as
possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.
Objective (Explicit):
 Students will be able to develop their own scientific experiment on the best method to grow trees to increase
oxygen production by researching agricultural methods and testing the chosen method on small plants to see
which method allows the plant to grow the best in the span of 4 weeks.
Evidence of Mastery (Measurable):
 Include a copy of the lesson assessment.
 Provide exemplar student responses with the level of detail you expect to see.
 Assign value to each portion of the response.

A growth of at least 5 inches from the cress plant, starting from a seed, by the end of the project period, 4
weeks.
Sub-objectives, SWBAT (Sequenced from basic to complex):
 How will you review past learning and make connections to previous lessons?
 What skills and content are needed to ultimately master this lesson objective?
 How is this objective relevant to students, their lives, and/or the real world?

Key vocabulary: Materials: Electronic Device, soil, simple plant

(Cress), specific materials for each agricultural
method (acquired by Teacher or student), plot of
land (if necessary) on school grounds
Engage
 How will you activate student interest?
 How will you hook student attention?
 What questions will you pose, based on your objective, that students will seek to answer in Explore?
Teacher Will: Student Will:
Create a video depicting a scenario where there is Brainstorm ideas, using Padlet, to collaborate ideas
not enough oxygen for all the people in the world, on how to increase oxygen production.
and in 10 years there will be so little oxygen that
more than 50% of living organisms will die off.
Explore
 How will model your performance expectations? Remember, you are not modeling what you want students to discover but
need to model expected behavior or required procedures.
 How will students take the lead and actively use materials to discover information that will help them answer the question
posed in Engage?
 What questions or prompts will you be prepared to use with students while they are “exploring”?
Teacher Will: Student Will:
Show a slideshow depicting different methods Take brief notes on the different methods as they
on how oxygen can be made, organic and non- may wish to apply a simplified version to their
organic, commending students who already experiment.
 Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 19

had similar ideas in the “Engage” portion. The

final slide should show how trees product
oxygen.
Co-Teaching Strategy
 What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

Differentiation Strategy
 What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
 How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?
Explain
 How will all students have an opportunity to share what they discovered?
 How will you connect student discoveries to correct content terms/explanations?
 How will all students articulate/demonstrate a clear and correct understanding of the sub-objectives by answering the
question from Engage before moving on?
Teacher Will: Student Will:
Explain that using what was learned in their lab Have students reference their lab work from
experiments throughout the year, students will use throughout the year and determine the key items
the techniques used to develop an experiment to needed for an experiment (Hypothesis,
test what is the best way to grow trees the fastest in Experimental, Data Collection, Results, etc.).
order to produce more oxygen, testing on the plant
cress.
Co-Teaching Strategy
 What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

Differentiation Strategy
 What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
 How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?
Elaborate
 How will students take the learning from Explore and Explain and apply it to a new circumstance or explore a particular
aspect of this learning at a deep level?
 How will students use higher order thinking at this stage? (e.g. A common practice in this section is to pose a “what If
question”)
 How will all students articulate how their understanding has changed or been solidified?
Teacher Will: Student Will:
Explain what plant we are using, cress, that will Individually, or as pairs, students will use an
represent the tree in our experiment. Provide electronic device to research the characteristics of
various websites where information on the cress the cress plant, writing down key information they
plant can be gathered. may need to take into account in their experiment.
Co-Teaching Strategy
 What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

Differentiation Strategy
 What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
 How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?
Evaluate
 How will all students demonstrate mastery of the lesson objective (though perhaps not mastery of the Elaborate content)?
 How will students have an opportunity to summarize the big concepts they learned (separate from the assessment)?
Teacher Will: Student Will:
Allow students to use an electronic device to Aa a team, maximum 4, students will quickly and
preliminary research ideas, explaining that this will simply research 2-3 ideas they MIGHT use and write
be part of their exit ticket. them down as an exit ticket (No wrong answer).
Co-Teaching Strategy
 What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

Differentiation Strategy
 What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
 How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?
Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 20

Table I. Daily Standards/Activities

Project Schedule Standards Addressed: List the Activities Goal of the
Driving Question: standards (Content, anchor, Activities
The Earth is rapidly technology, employability) that
running out of oxygen, may be addressed within the
and in 10 years, more lesson/activities
than 50% of Earth’s
living organisms will
not be able to survive.
What is the best way to
replenish Earth’s
oxygen levels and
quickly?
Day One Daily Anchor: They use technology -Class brainstorm Have 2-3 ideas or
Objective: and digital media strategically -Reference lab notebook methods to
W1: As groups, and capably. and determine key research for their
students will be able to Content: 6.L2U3.11 components of a lab experiment.
determine an Educational Technology experiment
agricultural method to Standard: S1 C1 PO 1, S1 C4 PO -Research characteristics of
test in their experiment 2, S2 C2 PO 1, S3 C1 PO 1/2, S3 the cress plant
to solve the Driving C2 PO 1/2 -Briefly research 2-3
Question by using the ISTE/S: 1d, 2c, 3a-3d, 7c methods and write said
internet to research ideas as exit ticket
and compare multiple
methods by the end of
the week.
Day Two Daily Anchor: They use technology -Bell work Research and
Objective: and digital media strategically -Research different compare different
W1 and capably. agricultural methods on methods that
Content: 6.L2U3.11 electronic device might be used for
Educational Technology their experiment,
Standard: S1 C1 PO 1, S1 C4 PO recording key
2, S2 C2 PO 1, S3 C1 PO 1/2, S3 information in
C2 PO 1 & 2 science notebook.
ISTE/S: 1d, 2c, 3a-3d, 7c
Day Three Daily Anchor: They use technology -Bell work Research and
Objective: and digital media strategically -Research different compare different
W1 and capably. agricultural methods on methods that
Content: 6.L2U3.11 electronic device might be used for
Educational Technology their experiment,
Standard: S1 C1 PO 1, S1 C4 PO recording key
2, S2 C2 PO 1, S3 C1 PO 1/2, S3 information in
C2 PO 1 & 2 science notebook.
ISTE/S: 1d, 2c, 3a-3d, 7c
Day Four Daily Anchor: They use technology -Bell work Research and
Objective: and digital media strategically compare different
W1 and capably. methods that
Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 21

Content: 6.L2U3.11 -Research different might be used for

Educational Technology agricultural methods on their experiment,
Standard: S1 C1 PO 1, S1 C4 PO electronic device recording key
2, S2 C2 PO 1, S3 C1 PO 1/2, S3 information in
C2 PO 1& 2 science notebook.
ISTE/S: 1d, 2c, 3a-3d, 7c
Day Five Daily Content: 6.L2U3.11 -Group Collaboration Choose a final
Objective: Educational Technology -Compare and Contrast method that will
W1 Standard: S1 C1 PO 1, S1 C4 PO individual research findings be implemented
2, S2 C2 PO 1, S3 C1 PO 1/2, S3 -Choose one method to use into their
C2 PO 1 & 2 experiment.
ISTE/S: 1d, 2c, 3a-3d, 7c
Day Six Daily Objective: Anchor: They use technology -Group Collaboration Simplify the
As groups, students will and digital media strategically -Research method chosen so
be able to develop a and capably. it may easily be
plan for their complete Content: 6.L2U3.11 performed in the
lab experiment that Educational Technology classroom
includes a hypothesis, Standard: S1 C1 PO 1, S1 C4 PO
material list, 2, S2 C2 PO 1, S3 C1 PO 1/2, S3
procedures, and tables C2 PO 1 & 2
to gather data by the ISTE/S: 1d, 2c, 3a-3d, 7c
end of the week.

Day Seven Daily Content: 7.W.1 -Group development of Develop the

Objective: ISTE/S: 7c hypothesis hypothesis and
W2 -Brainstorm ideas of all material list
necessary materials
needed for experiment
(both big and small)
Day Eight Daily ISTE/S: 7c -Group development of Develop a list of
Objective: detailed plan for procedures and
W2 experiment, lasting a form individual
month data tables
-create tables in notebook
to easily gather data and
observations
Day Nine Daily ISTE/S: 7c -Finalize all key parts of lab Finalize
Objective: experiment hypothesis,
W2 -Write Introduction rough material list,
draft of lab report as procedures, and
groups data tables/ Begin
writing
introduction to lab
report
Day Ten Daily Content: 7.W.1, 7.W.2, 7.W.4 -Continue to write/ finish Complete writing
Objective: ISTE/S: 7c rough draft of the introduction to lab
W2 introduction as groups report.
Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 22

The Anatomy of a

Lab Report
1. Introduction: Walk us through what you are doing
and why and explain what hypothesis you are testing

2. Materials Used: Describe the materials you used in

your experiment

3. Procedure: Explain how you conducted the

experiment

4. Data: Present the data you gathered from the

experiment using data tables, graphs, charts, etc.

5. Conclusion: Summarize the results of your

experiment and their meaning and tell us if your
experiment was successful or not
Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 23

Name: aa Week: a Date: a

Self-Evaluation: Rate yourself on how well you think you contributed to the group work this
week
Role: a
(Circle One)

1 2 3 4 5
Did not contribute Contributed sometimes Contributed all the time

Peer Evaluation: Rate your group members on how well you think they contributed to
the group work this week
Group Member Name: a Role: a

(Circle One)

1 2 3 4 5

Group Member Name: a Role: a

(Circle One)

1 2 3 4 5

Group Member Name: a Role: a

(Circle One)

1 2 3 4 5

Comments/Concerns:
Running Head: VIRTUAL LAB TO SELF-CREATED LAB IN THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM 24

EMS 2020 Self-Made Lab Experiment Group Lab Report Rubric (100 Points Total)

Section (Points) 1-Not Proficient 2- 3-Proficient 4-Very 5-Highly Proficient

Moderatley Proficient
Proficient
Introduction (15) -Hypothesis is missing or Combination -Includes hypothesis that is Combination -Includes proper
very incomplete of 1 & 3 missing 1-2 details* of 3 & 5 hypothesis*
-Does not reference -References Driving -References Driving
Driving Question Question Question
-Little to no research -Provides research for -Provides research for
provided method used in method used in experiment
-Textual evidence is not experiment and explains how it is
cited -Most of textual evidence is implemented in the small
-Goal is missing or not properly cited following scale of the experiment
clear MLA standards -All textual evidence is
-Mentions goal of properly cited following
experiment MLA standards
-Mentions goal and time
frame of experiment
Materials List (5) -List of materials used Combination -List of materials used Combination -List of materials used
includes only name of 1 & 3 including name and of 3 & 5 including name, amount
amount and purpose
-Non-important materials
are not included (example:
pencil to write with)
Procedures (15) -List of procedures do not Combination -List of procedures vaguely Combination -List of procedures clearly
explain what was done of 1 & 3 explain what was done of 3 & 5 explain what was done
-List of procedures are not -List of procedures are -List of procedures are
specific somewhat specific specific
-Procedure steps are not -Procedure steps are -Procedures are broken
clear and concise somewhat concise, into concise steps
Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 25

-Procedures are formatted contains unnecessary -Procedures are formatted

incorrectly information as a list
-Procedures are formatted
as list
Data (20) - Data collected are Combination -Data collected are Combination -Data collected are
expressed in a data table of 1 & 3 expressed clearly in a data of 3 & 5 expressed clearly in a data
-Data tables are not table table
labeled -Data tables are correctly -Data tables are correctly
-Graph is missing labeled (title and units) labeled (title and units)
-Only visual present is the -2 self-made visuals
graph showing plant (graphs, drawing, pictures,
growth vs. time experiment schematic,
-Graph is correctly labeled etc.), one of which is a
(title, axes, units, slope) graph showing plant
growth vs. time, are
present
-Visuals are correctly
labeled (title, axes, units,
slope)
Conclusion (20) -Explanation of data and Combination -References Driving Combination -References Driving
visual is missing or of 1 & 3 Question of 3 & 5 Question
incomplete -Explains what the data -Explains what the data
-Does not explain if states states
hypothesis was supported - Explains if data supports -Explains what visuals state
-Does not answer Driving hypothesis, why or why not -Explain how data relates
Question -Answers Driving Question to research topics
-Explains if data supports
hypothesis, why or why not
-Answers Driving Question
Spelling/Grammar -10+ spelling/grammatical Combination -3-5 spelling/grammatical Combination -No spelling/grammatical
(5) errors present of 1 & 3 errors present of 3 & 5 errors present
Organization (5) -Sections are not labeled Combination -All sections are labeled, Combination -All sections are clearly
-Sections are not in correct of 1 & 3 somewhat unclear of 3 & 5 labeled
order
Virtual Lab to Self-Created Lab in the Science Classroom 26

-No structure - Sections are in correct -Sections are in correct

order order (as it appears in
-Sentences and paragraphs Rubric)
are somewhat structured -Sentences and paragraphs
well are well structured** ***
Participation (15) Little to no participation Combination -Moderate Participation Combination -Full Participation during:
during: of 1 & 3 during: of 3 & 5  Research
 Research  Research  Experiment
 Experiment  Experiment Development
Development Development  Experiment/Data
 Experiment/Data  Experiment/Data Collection
Collection Collection  Lab Report
 Lab Report  Lab Report

*A proper hypothesis is a statement, not a question, that is clear, testable, simple, establishes variables and predicts an effect.

**A well structured sentence is clear, uses transition words (and, but, so, because, etc.), and uses active voice and verbs.

***A well structured paragraph is clear, has a topic sentence, supporting sentences, and a concluding sentence.
VIRTUAL LAB TO SELF-CREATED LAB IN THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM 27

Table II. Expenditures for Project

Item Number and Cost Where to Purchase

Plastic Folder 45 @ 0.82 each staples.com
Wooden Pencils 200 @ 0.14 each staples.com
Composition Notebooks 200 @ 0.52 each Walmart.com
Cress Seed Packets 10 @ 1.79 each Bentleyseeds.com
Potting Soil Bag 4 @ 9.97 each homedepot.com
Plant Pots- Plastic 45 @ 0.15 each Walmart.com
1000 mL Beakers (class set) 4 @ 6.00 each Walmart.com
Large Plastic Container 6 @ 12.16 each Walmart.com
Masking Tape 2 @ 2.32 Walmart.com
Total 241.43