Oct 1st is Flipped Day 2014

      Just wanted to inform you that a handout is coming home regrading my flipped classroom.  Oct 1st is Flipped Day and just wanted to share a quick link from NPR regarding the flipped classroom.
http://www.npr.org/2012/12/07/166748835/more-teachers-flipping-the-school-day-upside-down
Any questions feel free to contact me.

Week 4 & were Modeling

      Week 4 and this past Tuesday was our first test.  Class average was an 82 and possibly a little higher once we cleared up some errors with how some of the students read some questions.  Once that was complete we began our next unit with atomic structure and the models of the atom.  Starting with the ancient Greeks and then progressing up to what we know about the current size of the atom.  This week included a couple more videos and we learned that if we enlarged an atom to the size of an football stadium then the nucleus would be the size of a marble placed on the fifty yard line.  The rest empty space!

http://sun.menloschool.org/~dspence/chemistry/atomic/images/nucleus_marble
          With that we decided to try our hand at being able to picture something without actually being able to see it.  Similar to how scientists determined what the atom looked like without being able to see it.  So we all took part in:  Rutherford's Gold Foil pizza box prediction activity.

Who knew rolling a marble in a pizza box could be so much fun. 

          Next week we start off Monday with some atomic structure practice using the our technology for our quiz Tuesday. 

Then we start NUCLEAR!

Week 3 and We Flipped for Homecoming!

     Another great week in chemistry for week 3 Homecoming Week and this brought many new things including the introduction of Chapter 3: Scientific Measurement.  With that I introduced the students to what has been referred to as flipped learning http://jonbergmann.com/what-is-the-flipped-class/#comment-182.  I have been flipping my classroom now for over two years and have totally enjoyed all the benefits it has to offer.  I went as far as set up a green screen at home which has allowed me to place myself more into the videos.  I can't wait to interact more with my backgrounds as I explore all that the green screen capabilities have to offer.

   













The initial feedback I got from students was positive regarding the videos and I hope to gain more time for one on one instruction with each of the students in the next few weeks.

Green screen

   Amongst being comfy, hat days, dressing in all black, and showing eagle pride we saw that 10lb bowling balls do indeed float in water as we calculated density and we determined that Indiana Jones had no chance in replacing the gold idol in the movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark".

   Also this week, i got my iPads back from being reset and we had the chance to use them for assessment practices and in preparation for the quiz on Friday.  

It really was a busy week as we prepare for our first test on Tuesday and ended in great style with an awesome homecoming assembly!

Mr. Ragan

Week 2

      This past week in Chem A we continued classifying matter and everything from elements to macaroni salad to rocky road ice cream.  We saw how elements can be considered the building blocks of the building blocks of all matter.

      All students successfully passed the safety quiz earlier in the week and in no time we were in the lab looking at how what we see as physical and chemical reactions can also be viewed with atomic level representations.  I got to break out 1970's camera and describe to students the chemistry of flashbulbs!  Remember those!

   Next week is going to be busy as we continue in all things measurement and how important that is in lab!

Materials needed for class:

Required Class Materials:  CHEM A, B & Conceptual Chemistry.

1.  3 ring binder with your name on it, loose-leaf paper is provided
2.  Pen and pencil
3.  Textbook can be checked out of the library and a class set is provided.
4.  3x5 (small) index cards – (for element and ion flash cards)
5.  Scientific calculator – it does not need to be a graphing calculator.

About me

A little bit about me....

Born and raised in Newport News, Virginia. I Graduated from Denbigh High School in 1990. Attended Longwood College now University and obtained my BS in Chemistry with my secondary teacher certification in 1994. Taught Chemistry, Pre IB Chemistry, and AP Chemistry at my old high school for 6 years. Obtained my MS in Chemical Education from Purdue University in 2004.
Completed the Target Inquiry Program for chemistry teachers at GVSU to advance my degree. Happily married to Dr. Deborah Herrington who is a chemistry professor at GVSU and have two awesome kids, Lexie age 8 and Tyler age 6.

FYI:
Started playing saxophone in the 6th grade
Was drum major my junior and senior year of high school
Marched as Drum Major in the Inaugural Parade for the Governor Of Virginia
Was assistant marching band director for 6 years, while teaching in VA.
Won the Tidewater Alliance of Chemistry Teachers Teacher of the Year award
Have given talks at the local and national level including chemical demonstration shows at the State level.
Served on the Purdue racquetball traveling team
Won the GVSU racquetball intramural championship

Ryan Newman & Nascar fan
Was a visiting professor at GVSU.
Served as NHS co-advisor at HHS.
Currently a coach for HHS Science Olympiad Team
Started teaching Chemistry at Hudsonville in 2005 and love it!
Began teaching with a class set of iPads in 2010.
Totally love my iPad.
Began Flipped Classroom in Chemistry B 3rd trimester 2012

WIll be flipping Chemistry A in Fall 2013

Began sharing 30 iPad2 devices with Mrs. Webster in Dec. 2012

email me at: dragan@hpseagles.net
follow me @dragan39
7/2014

One Word

       

        Last year, we as a faculty at Hudsonville were given the task to create one word http://getoneword.com/  that would define our year.  My word was "passion" and after four conferences this summer, I truly feel I embraced this word and so you can say I have a passion for chemistry and learning about chemistry and sharing all things related to chemistry.  Which leads me to my new word "collaboration" for this year.  I love collaborating with others to learn what's new, what's better and yet also share my knowledge so I can do the same for them.
         This past week I introduced my students to the build a boat challenge.  I had gotten this activity from a fellow chemistry teacher friend and decided to use it to build a culture of collaboration amongst my students.  The results were incredible.  The students were given a list of materials and 15 minutes for design and then 15 minutes to actually build the boat.  The goal was to determine the best ratio between cost and the boats capability to float as many pennies as possible.  What I witnessed was newly formed lab groups brainstorming, making designs and decisions, experimenting and most of all talking and collaborating.  Of course this had turned into a competition with myself and fellow teachers from other parts of the U.S. again for the purpose of collaborating on what worked and what didn't.
        Well it was great start and I really hope to refer back to my one word of collaboration for the remainder of the year.  In my eyes, everyone was a winner, all the boats floated, everyone decided they could build a better build having seen everyone else's design and well having learned from one another in class.  Isn't that the culture we want to establish?  My students all agreed!  Great 1st week!