Online Projects, Collaboration Sites and Publishing Opportunities

Lesson Idea Name: Let’s Explore It!

Content Area: Science
Grade Level(s): Pre-K
Content Standard Addressed: CD-SC3.4a: Observes, experiments and describes a variety of animals and
plants. Describes their basic needs and their life cycles.

Technology Standard Addressed: Knowledge Constructor

Selected Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity: Bugscope

URL(s) to support the lesson: https://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/

Describe how you would incorporate an Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity in your
classroom:
Bugscope is an online collaboration site. Students can collect insects from outside their classroom and
ship them to their lab. The teacher will be notified of when they will have a live session where the insects sent
are put under a microscope and the students are able to interact with a scientist and ask questions about
what they see. I would incorporate this project during our unit on living and non-living things. Bugscope will
allow students to take a look inside insects. I would encourage the students to think of some questions before
hand to have ready for the scientist during the live webcam session to ensure participation from everyone.
Before I use this collaboration site, along with any other one, I would make sure that it complied with my
school’s online safety rules. I would also have all my students dress up as scientist to let them know that they
are also scientist when they make observations and interact with others. After our Bugscope session is over, I
would have a class discussion about what the students learned from the scientist, and what they observed.

What technologies would be required to implement this proposed learning activity in a classroom?
A laptop and interactive white board would be needed so that the students can see the projected images of
the insects under the microscopes.

Describe how the following features are addressed in this learning experience (note: all of them may not be
addressed in the project, but most should be if you are reaching a high LoTi Level).
a. Collaboration with peers, near-peers, mentors outside their classroom and often beyond their
school: Students will be able to collaborate and engage in conversation with a real scientist by asking
questions.

b. Student-centered learning and knowledge creation (creating original data and or producing original
products as a result of engaging in a project): Students will make predictions and draw what they
think the insect will look like under the microscope. Later, they can compare their drawings with the
real images from the live session.

c. Higher-order thinking: Students will be exposed to a scanning electron microscope to observe their
insects. Students will be encourage to ask questions and engage in conversation with the scientist.

d. Students publishing their original work to others who will use/care about their product: The
students’ session will be saved and the class can go back to it later and review it.

Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):

Spring 2018_SJB
 Online Projects, Collaboration Sites and Publishing Opportunities
☐ Remembering ☐ Understanding ☐ Applying ☐ Analyzing ☒ Evaluating ☐ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration (LoTi Level):

☐ Level 1: Awareness ☐ Level 2: Exploration ☐ Level 3: Infusion ☐ Level 4: Integration
☒ Level 5: Expansion ☐ Level 6: Refinement

Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

Students will be able to write down their own questions that they have for the scientist regarding the insect
beforehand. The children will be exposed to a real life scientist and learn from another person besides their
teacher. The students will also be exposed to a SEM microscope, an amazing scientific tool that not many
schools have available for students. This activity is also hands on because the students will have the
opportunity to explore outside their classroom and find bugs that are interesting to them to send to the lab.

Lesson idea implementation and Internet Safety Policies:

This lesson will be approved by the school and have parent consent before the classroom connects with
Bugscope. Teacher will also be cautious of student privacy when they are asking questions and engaging with
the Bugscope scientist.

Reflective Practice:
Bugscope is a collaborating site to expose students to science and real life scientist. I hope that this lesson will
teach them that they are all already scientist when they make observations and raise questions to learn more.
This activity can be incorporated into the unit regarding living and non-living things. It is a great way to also
expose students to a microscope because most Pre-K classrooms do not have one available. It will also give
students the opportunity to explore and observe insects from the inside. I would further enhance this project
by saving the Bugscope session and if possible linking it to my classroom blog so that parents can take a look
at their children learning and interacting with the scientist.

Spring 2018_SJB