Phases of Moon TPCK

What is the content you are focusing on in your science lesson?

The content that we focused on was the phases of the moon. More specifically, we studied how the appearance of the moon changes over a 31 day period of time. This is taught to students in the sixth grade. It is very interesting and fun to learn about.

What is the pedagogy you are using and why is it a good fit with the content?

The pedagogy being used is predicting, observing, and acquiring data. These concepts are great pedagogy tools to be used with teaching the phases of the moon. First, the students predict how they think the phases of the moon will change throughout the month. This gets the students really thinking hard about the phases of the moon. Then they observe how the moon changes throughout the month. They can cross check their predictions with their observations to see if they are correct. Lastly, the students will compile all of their data from their observations and predictions. it is a great way to incorporate your content with pedagogy strategies.

What is the technology you’ll be using and why is it a good fit with the content and pedagogy?

The technology used was Stellarium. This is a really neat internet site that allows you to observe all sorts of things in space. It is the perfect tool to use that can implement the content and pedagogy ideas already mentioned. Since the content we are teaching is the phases of the moon I used Stellarium to show how the moon changes throughout the month. It is so convenient and quick. It is really helpful so the students don't have to go outside every night to observe. It is available to them right at their fingertips. It is a great fit with the pedagogy because it allows students to predict, observe, and acquire data. The content, pedagogy, and technology combined create a powerful lesson.