Why are we doing this?

To introduce my students to lab skills and the scientific method, we started with a basic lab -- how you can fit the most drops of water on a penny. I left it up to my students to come up with the potential variables and their procedure.

Initially, a student asked me, why are we doing this? Putting water on a penny didn't seem like real science to him. It was great to see him thinking about why we were doing it. As we talked about the lab and the different ways he and his partner could do it, I watched him start to realize that their could be more to it than he initially thought. He and his partner then came up with some very original ideas for how to accomplish their goal. I want to encourage questions and discussions like this on a regular basis because thinking critically about what we are doing everyday helps build a foundation for critical literacy. If students become accustomed to considering all possibilities and thinking about their biases, then critical literacy is something that will come more naturally.

When given the opportunity and being encouraged to think about all possible ways to fit the most drops of water on a penny, I was impressed with the creative ideas my students had. I am excited to start reading about issues in ecology with these students so that I can watch them apply their own outlook to the readings. I hope to see them carry over these critical thinking skills to our readings and class discussions.