Paul's chem Experiment

Memories of my high school chem class came rushing back to me when I entered the lab room. I was thrilled to get to use the lab and use chemicals, burners and scales. I was not sure if I would have been able to figure out how to measure the water percentage on my own but felt at ease with Kathy. I enjoyed the the experiment and the down time in between. The time we waited for the water to burn off we used to brainstorm ideas for alternate lessons. We talked about the need to fill in the down time. Teachers, myself included, feel that any down time is bad time. Sometimes children need to use down time to just socialize and collaborate. There is no need to always fill down time with busy work. As long as boundaries are set, let the children communicate.  Communication is the key to success after all.