Category Archives: Ashley Mangini

Knowing Technologies

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Knowing Technologies Campfire PD session June 13th at Mercy High School



I was able to attend the inaugural professional development campfire put on by one of our partners, Knowing Technologies. I want to shout out the director, a De La Salle alum and past teacher, Jim Puccetti.


I loved that the presenters were other educators from private and charter schools. We have similar experiences and can learn a lot from others. I love hearing what has been successful for other educators regarding technology in and out of the classroom.  My favorite takeaways were:



Having students use the touchcast app.  This app allows students to create and edit videos using a green screen.  I loved examples i saw and how easy it would be to create dynamic and engaging videos in my classes.  There are some great tutorials on youtube to check out!

Another app I look forward to trying next school year is called clips. It is another video app that students can use to create short videos.  What makes clips special is you can add labels, emojis and subtitles. I think it would be a lot of fun for the students to add some ‘flair to their video clips. Their personalities can shine through as well as they can edit clips to include phrases and other information. There is an in depth tutorial video here. ’


*I was lucky enough to attend with Janine Orr and Ashley Mangini too!

What Do They Meme?

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I started my unit on DNA a few weeks ago and wanted to do something fun and interesting to start out the first few sections of the chapter. These sections focus on the scientists that helped contribute to our understanding of the function and structure of DNA. Last year, some of my students had trouble connecting the scientist to his or her contribution to DNA so I wanted to do something different this year. I got an idea from Elizabeth that involved the students creating a meme that included a few words that connected the scientists to DNA. The results were hilarious, unique, and clever and they girls actually enjoyed the assignment. I have 104 students so I decided to share my favorite ones from all four of my biology classes. You can find my favorites here.

These same ones will be posted on Schoology in hopes that these meme’s will help other students in remembering these scientists’ contribution to DNA.

Enjoy!

What Is So Special About Seaweed?

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Did you know that many ingredients in our foods and household products contain seaweed? Did you know seaweed is actually algae? Did you know there is seaweed in milk? Did you know that kelp forests (brown algae) provides home and food to many different types of organisms? Did you know that seaweeds are a good source of some vitamins (particularly B12), minerals, fiber, and antioxidants?





Yeah, that stuff that tickles your leg while you’re in the ocean and freaks you out is actually all around you!!

In November, I had my students make or buy a dish that included seaweed in the recipe. The assignment was simple: find a recipe that included seaweed, make or buy the dish, and briefly explain the seaweed. I took this assignment from Merrilee and totally loved it. My students did as well!

Most of my students made the dish and some of them were pretty detailed. Once everyone presented, we all chowed down and got our daily vitamins and nutrients from the marine primary producer!

UPDATED Marine animals and their endangerment

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Last week I had my marine biology students prepare a presentation on a marine reptile, bird, or mammal that they chose. I wanted them to identify features of their animal, metabolic processes, feeding behaviors, reproduction methods, any significance their animal has on their ecosystem and the impact of humans on that marine animal and it’s ecosystem. I wanted to do this so that they could investigate themselves and be more curious. They had to include different types of media, more than just pictures. I was tired of lecturing on this kind of stuff when a) these students CHOSE to take another year of science and b) it’s just not that much fun.

I got this assignment from Merrilee when she used it last year when she taught this class. I really enjoyed it and I am so glad I decided to do it. I had the students take notes during all the presentations so I knew they were all paying attention. I asked them after all the presentations were done if they liked the project and I heard a lot more “yes'” than “no’s”.

However, I wanted to do more with this assignment.

Out of the 18 marine animals that were chosen, 16 of them are considered endangered. I wanted to bring more awareness to these marine animals and what would happen if they would be completely removed from their environment. So, instead of giving a test like I had originally planned, I did something different. This project is the “action plan”. The first part is to create a visual (not a PowerPoint but a brochure, ad, video, etc.) that advocated for the marine animal they previously researched on. I told them to think of the SPCA videos they see on TV or the flyers that are handed out on the streets that show pictures of pigs and cows being slaughtered for meat and why they are so effective in getting people’s attention. The second part (and my favorite) is writing a letter to a political official or an organization explaining the significance of their animal and why they need to be protected. I will actually send the letter that they write.  I wanted them to understand that if something is not right, they have a voice and the opportunity to try and fix it. Or least make someone else more aware.

Pictures to come of the action plan!!

UPDATE:

Below you will find the some student’s work of their Endangered Species project. There were two parts. For part 1, my students had to create a visual “advertisement” of the endangered animal they researched. Most of my students did a brochure but I had one boy who made a video. The second part was writing a letter to an organization or official describing the importance of their animal. I sent out the letters about 1 week ago and one student got a response!

Student Samples of Endangered Species Project 

Our Eggcellent Eggsmosis Eggsperiment

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I demonstrated osmosis in my biology classes this week using eggs. Raw eggs were soaked in vinegar for 24 hours. The acetic acid (C2H4O2) dissolved the egg shell which is made up of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). This left a “naked” and this represents the cells in our body. 


Water from the vinegar moved into the egg, causing the egg to increase in size. 

Next, we placed the “naked” egg in corn syrup for 24 hours. Water diffused out of the egg, into the cup.

 

The water movement in and out of the egg is an example of osmosis. The comparison of the first and second egg with what an egg actually looks like is below.