Teacher Training By Dr. Diana Wehrell-Grabowski

Teachers and students throughout the nation will be celebrating the birthday of Dr. Seuss this week. Theodore Seuss Geisel aka Dr. Seuss (March 2, 1904- September 24, 1991) was the author of over 40 children’s books. A great many of us learned how to read through the literature of Dr. Seuss. Classrooms throughout the nation and world will celebrate Dr. Seuss’s Birthday this week by reading Dr. Seuss books, conducting hands-on science explorations like making Oobleck, the unique substance that looks like a liquid but behaves somewhat like a solid, conducting experiments with eggs and more. In addition to the well-known Dr. Seuss books Tish Rabe and Bonnie Worth have authored over 31 children’s books that have science-related themes Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library Collection. The books contain the recognizable Cat in the Hat character, and Dick and Sally. Each book has a glossary with science terms as well.

I developed a teacher training workshop “Teaching Science Through the Literature of Dr. Seuss” years ago to introduce teachers of early childhood students through grades 6 how to teach science through the literature of Dr. Seuss. Teachers are introduced to over 70 Seuss books as well as 30 books in the Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library Collection that can be used to introduce and reinforce science concepts. Teachers are actively engaged in conducting hands-on investigations to explore the states of matter, plant and animal kingdom concepts, earth and space concepts and more. A key component of the teacher training workshop is teaching the importance of making observations as well as writing and drawing in the science classroom.

The following photos are from a recent hands-on science program I conducted for students to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss.  To view and purchase science-related theme books from the Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library Collection check out my recommended book page, all books can be purchased from Amazon via this site at no extra charge. For more information about teaching science concepts through the literature of Dr. Seuss check out the following slideshare link of a recent Teaching Science Through the Literature of Dr. Seuss teacher training workshop I conducted.

I’ve been conducting hands-on-minds-on teacher training workshops since 1987 throughout the nation and lately conducting teacher training abroad as well. With over 650 teacher training workshops under my belt from 3 hour sessions to 10-day institutes one constant remains the same, “Change comes from within.”  For the most part teachers are willing to try new teaching methods within their classroom. However, there are always the few teachers that are resistant to change their ways. Attending a teacher training workshop is only the first step to making real change within the classroom, what teachers choose to do with what they learned is the determining factor as to whether the training experience was valuable. The point is, “change comes from within.” The movement to implement inquiry-based science practices and learning within all K-12 science classrooms has been on the forefront of education reform for close to twenty-years. Yet there are still so many teachers who are unaware of what an inquiry-based science classroom really looks like. What is the role of the teacher and the student in an inquiry-based science classroom? Essentially, it’s up to the individual teacher to decide what form of inquiry-science best fits their teaching style as well as the group of students to whom they are teaching. One teacher may choose to use a structured inquiry format, while another chooses a guided approach, and yet another implements an open-ended inquiry approach. It’s difficult enough to be an excellent science teacher, let alone master effective inquiry-based practices on a daily-basis. I found a great article by Carl J. Wenning, Department of Physics, Illinois State University Implementing inquiry-based instruction in the science classroom: A new model for solving the improvement-of-practice problem. Wenning’s article brings to light the difficulty of actually implementing inquiry-oriented pedagogical practices within the classroom. Just because a teacher has attended inquiry-based professional staff development, and has learned how to conduct scientific inquiry does not automatically translate to implementation of inquiry-based instruction. In the end, I do believe change must come from within. A teacher who is not comfortable with inquiry-oriented pedagogical practices is not going to change their existing practices, it’s just that simple. To read Wenning’s article in detail see the following link in the Journal of Physics Teacher Education.