Observations and Interpretations 9/23/09

Week of September 21, 2009; Brielle Stark

Observations

Project: Bubbleology I

Bubbleology I

• Teacher premade a solution of soap and water
• The goal was to learn to cooperate with other students/scientists and make observations about the subject, as well as record data.
• The teams were made up of 2 individuals from the same grade level.
• My job, as an experiment facilitator and observer, was to ask questions of the student scientists and to observe as they created bubbles and recorded data.
• The student scientists’ jobs were to measure the diameter of the popped bubble, to find the volume of the bubble and volume of air in their lungs (the older grade level) and to blow a successful bubble.

Teacher

• This open ended lesson was much different from Oobleck because the students didn’t get an entire period to sit with the bubbles and explore many options. For this experiment, the students had a certain set of observations that had to be made (the diameter, for instance).
• The teacher and I hypothesized that perhaps the students felt less creative and felt like they had less leeway and room to explore because there were ‘necessary’ components to this open ended lesson. - However, teacher felt that this lesson was a strong building point. Now that the students knew how to collect and organize data, as well as analyze it (as with volume), the students could move on to future experiments such as experimenting with differing amounts of glycerol with water, experimenting with the size of the bubbles, seeing how long a bubble can last depending upon the amount of glycerol and predicting when the bubble would pop. I too felt that this demonstrated a good starting point to let the student scientists explore further, in the future.

Brainstorming

• Before the students came back in groups, the teacher led the group in a discussion about Bubbleology. o How can we show our observations and data to other scientists?
  • One student remarked “emails” and “computer” – other students commented off of this comment, stating that they could share observations and ideas through this method
• How do we record observations?
  • Students said, “letters and numbers.” The teacher asked for a way to combine these letters and numbers, and the students answered, “graph.”
• How do we blow the largest bubble?
  • One student said, “we can estimate” -- other students added on, saying that they could measure the bubble with a ruler. The teacher pointed out that it would be hard to measure a floating bubble with a ruler. She asked if blowing a bubble on a hard surface (like a table) would be a better option. The students pointed out that the bubble would look like half of a sphere or a hemisphere if blown on a table. The teacher pointed out that the bubble, when it popped, would also leave bubbles around its edges and thus the diameter was easier to measure.
• The teacher left the students with a question to be explored at later times: why is the table wet in order to blow a bubble? Does the dry table make a difference?
• The students, when prompted about what units to use, all agreed upon centimeters so that the “measurements could be shared.”
• The students were to take 5 measurements, so one member blew 3 times and the other blew twice.

Groups

• Note: used a premade data sheet.
• Group 1
  • When asked about a pre-plan, one member answered, “just blow,” while the other said, “blow at an angle.”
  • The teacher pointed out that there are little markers on the rulers to use. The members said that they were “tenths of a centimeter” and began to estimate the bubble diameter to a tenth.
• Group 2
  • One member was unsuccessful the first few times, but after blowing softer and moving the straw, was successful.
  • One member reminded the other to use centimeters.
• Group 3
  • The two members worked together to agree upon a measurement for each bubble.
  • “Most successful with straw right on bubble,” one offered.

Notes

• Because the three groups who were observed today were all of the older grade level, they had an extra activity to incorporate after their 5 measurements. They had to take 3 “lung breaths” and then measure the diameter of the bubble after exhaling those 3 breaths. When they used the volume formula, which they had all learned, they could find out how much volume 1 breath had and how big the bubble was.
• One member could not fit three breaths into a bubble because it kept popping. I prompted with, “could you maybe use only 2 breaths?” and we came to a conclusion that if she divided her formula by 2 instead of 3, she would still get the volume of one breath.

Interpretations

I really enjoyed observing this activity because it was of inquiry than I had seen the week before.  While Oobleck had been more of an open-style inquiry without a specific goal or sequences of actions set in mind, this week in Bubbleology was meant to be the 'rock' with which to build upon later.  Therefore, the lesson was geared around having the subjects make several specific measurements and do specific activities without as much room to explore.  There were still inquiry aspects involved (how much fluid should be on the table, how to blow the right bubble, how to measure the bubble accurately), but it was far more specific than Oobleck had been.  The subjects that I observed seemed to be concerned about how to measure the bubble 'correctly,' but when they came to a consensus with their partner (not the teacher or myself), they seemed content to agree upon a measurement.  This emphasis on trusting others opinions' has been seen throughout my observations at the field site, and I find it very intriguing.  I believe, too, that it's creating a sense of confidence and security in the subjects.  The instructor encourages them to ask things of their peers rather than just herself, which seems to not create the inhibitions I often see in my college classes (fear of peer editing, showing work on the borad, etc).  The inquiry that occurs with the subjects is definitely geared just as much toward discovering things for themselves as getting authentification through the teacher.

Disclaimer: I have no previous affiliation with the workings of the school, and my writings reflect my own observation of events that occur and are not suggesting concrete fact.  If you have questions, please email me at bstark@brynmawr.edu