EDTC 5410 W1 – Saturday, September 18 & October 2, 2010, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

 

Instructor: Dr. Mary G. Beckmann, ponotoc2@yahoo.com Beckmann@webster.edu

 

Time Frame:

Saturday, September 18, 2010

·        9 to 9:30 – introductions and discuss handhelds in general and introduce students to the Pasco equipment and other options such as Vernier  

·        9:30 to 10:00 – walk to check out area – pick up equipment - discuss check out and check-in procedures (responsibilities), time frame for keeping the equipment, care of equipment, and responsibility (the individual who checks out the equipment is the one responsible for the equipment, even when working with a partner or in groups) – check back in by Thursday, September 9, second group picks up equipment on the 13th or 14th and returns by Friday, the 17 

·        10:00 to 11:00 – expectation

o   Activity: due second class day, Saturday, October 2 - informal presentation

§  create an exercise of your own or use one of Pasco’s ideas at this website – download complete exercises http://www.pasco.com/resources/labdownloads/home.cfm  

§  http://www.pasco.com/resources/online-experiments/biology-online-experiments.cfm visit this website for online Biology experiments

§  collect data

§  explain what you discovered in a few paragraphs – detail any problems, solutions, ease of use, difficulties, etc.       

o   Final project: due Thursday, October 7, 2010,  submit via email to your instructor – ponotoc2@yahoo.com

§  create a two to three page paper (this can be a continuation of the first assignment but in much greater detail)

§  collect data as you did for the activity above - choose any of the five probes, give the details of the process and outcome, include, for example: the objective/goal, state a problem, explain an experiment, create a compare/contrast scenario, provide an explanation of what you did, what your classroom students would do if you would use these tools to teach, state a curriculum/topic, explain a description of your experiment, the method you used to collect data, explain the outcome (summary), issues, problems, and solutions, etc.

§  save the data you collected to a flash drive, import into Excel and create a graph, table, or chart to submit with your final paper    

§  provide at least two standards  ISTE NETS that would relate to your experiment http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=NETS

·        view the video titled Lesson 1 – Quick Start http://www.pasco.com/featured-products/xplorer-glx/page_3.cfm

·        11:00 to 1:00  – lunch and experiment:

o   use each of the five probes

o   save data to flash drive

o   use flash drive to bring data into Excel  

·        1:00 to 2:30 - groups of two in the field w/ handhelds to collect data and discuss afterwards

·        2:30 to 2:45 - visit the Pasco website

·        2:45 to 3:00 – clean the equipment, walk back to the check out area and turn the teacher unit in so everyone can see the check-in process

 

Saturday, October 2, 2010, we’ll discuss the following (if time allows experiment with PDAs and ebooks and search for apps for iPhone, SmartPhones, and Blackberry)

·        9 to 9:30 – discuss equipment use, issues, solutions

·        9:30 to 10:00 – share how each used the equipment and the data each gathered 

·        10:00 to 11:00 – connect data to standards and curriculum and discuss ethical, social, moral issues if applicable and fine tune the activity/assignment paper from last week that will culminate in their final paper to be presented at the end of class

·        11:00 to 12:00  – transfer data to Excel, create a Word document, create graphs in Excel that will demonstrate data gathered and then copy and paste the graphs onto their paper in a Word document 

·        1:00 to 1:30 –  finalize their papers and group together to practice presentations

·        1:30 to 3:30 – present in groups of two – final project will consist of a paper that presents a goal and problem statement, solution and procedure from gathering data, ties to curriculum, ties to standards,  and graphs and charts to prove their point 

 

PROBES AVAILABLE http://www.pasco.com/products/probeware/PASPORT/sensors.cfm?type=PASPORT&science=HighSchool&heading=All

1.     Exercise heart rate Exercise Heart Rate Sensor

2.     Water quality

o   pH Sensor

o   Dissolved Oxygen Sensor

o   Conductivity Sensor

3.     Temperature, light, sound Temperature/Sound Level/Light Sensor

4.     Soil moisture Soil Moisture Sensor

5.     GPS GPS Position Sensor

 

ABOUT THE XPLORER GLX:  as well as various units, provide probeware-based experiments that provide excellent methods for hands-on real world activities and experiences even when computers are not available. 

 

GPS

OBJECTIVES:

·         construct geospatial awareness

·         pinpoint location

·         discuss latitude, longitude, altitude, and velocity 

·         measure and observe running, walking, and bicycling

ACTIVITIES:

Using the relative position mode students will collect data, input data, then analyze the outcome of motion and energy of moving objects including cars, bicycle, boats, and people to compare and contrast kinesthetic understanding of kinematic graphs  

Using the default mode students will examine and discuss latitude and longitude and compare and contrast local and distant areas relative to activities such as sports and leisure

 

PROJECT: Data accumulation would be observed and maps would be created using either a mapping software program or a computer generated mapping program along with Google maps, or GoogleEarth.  

 

SOIL MOISTURE

OBJECTIVES:

·         measure water content of soil

·         results are in percentages

·         conduct experiments in environmental science, horticulture, biology, and agricultural science

ACTIVITIES:

Students will collect data, input, and then analyze the outcome to determine measures of loss of soil moisture over time due to weather variances such as sun vs. cloud activity and plant uptake, weather cycles can be examined. Students will evaluate necessary soil moisture content and examine how soil moisture affects plant growth with various plant species.

 

PROJECT: Data accumulation would be documented and presented via a PowerPoint presentation and include digital photographs and/or video showing the variances of data.  Oral presentations would follow.

 

TEMPERATURE, LIGHT, SOUND

OBJECTIVES:

·         conduct all three measurements simultaneously and continuously – temperature, light, and sound  

ACTIVITIES:

Students will collect data, input data, and then analyze the outcome to determine temperature differences between areas in a room or building. Determine light levels on a sunny vs. cloudy day and carry over the study into different seasons, track weather cycles. Students can compare sound levels of voice pitch, whispering, singing, applauding, animal sounds, birds singing, dogs barking, etc.

PROJECT: Data accumulation and compare/contrast analysis using charts, graphs, and tables and Excel.

 

WATER QUALITY 

OBJECTIVES:

·         conduct water studies including temperature, pH, purity, conductivity and dissolved oxygen    

ACTIVITIES:

Students will collect data, input data, and then analyze the outcome to determine thermal pollution, drinking water purity from public water systems and rural well water systems, conduct acid rain investigations, and measure photosynthesis.  T

PROJECT: Investigative study activities would culminate with a research paper in Word and compare/contrast using Excel. 

 

EXERCISE HEART RATE

OBJECTIVES:

·         measure electrical signals from the cardiac muscle

·         measure pulse and heart rate in rest and exercise mode

ACTIVITIES:

Students will collect data, input data, and then analyze the outcome to determine heart rate before, during, and after exercise, recovery rate after exercise, affects of caffeine, how heart rate changes when sitting, standing, laying, flex muscles, raise limbs, etc.

PROJECT: Investigative study activities would culminate with a research paper using Word. 

INSTALL DataStudio SOFTWARE http://pasco.com/featured-products/datastudio/index.cfm 

a.     download a trial version at the web site above

b.     double click the zip icon

c.      extract to the desktop

d.     locate the icon and double click to install – follow screen prompts

e.     double click the icon to open the software – when you see license and key information choose the lite version – no keys are needed

 

HOW IT WORKS: Video tutorials: http://www.pasco.com/featured-products/xplorer-glx/index.cfm

     1.            Turn on – bottom right green button

     2.            Hit ‘home’ – middle right button w/ house icon

     3.            Press F4 to see “connect a sensor”

     4.            Connect sensor and wait for the sensor connected to appear

     5.            Choose what data you want to collect by choosing ‘visible’

a.     NOTES: to cancel an action or to move away from ‘home,’  hit the ESC button

b.     Move through with arrows, select is really ‘enter’ using the check mark button -

     6.            Click on home (house) icon

     7.            Use the arrow keys to select a chart, table, graph, etc.

     8.            Press the check mark to select

     9.            Press the large right arrow to start data collection and then again to stop data collection

a.     Ideas: busy side of street, vs. slow side, different times of the day, stand in front of a building, go to busy side, stay one minutes, walk up steps for one minute, keep track of what you’re doing and measuring – details… repeat this for another street to get two sets of data

10.            As soon as the stop button is pushed, that is first run

11.            To create a second run press the button to start then again to stop

a.     Ideas: Press auto scale in the far left corner to make the graph larger and easier to read

b.     Press F4 to see different displays of the data collected – choose 2 runs if you collected two runs of data and the runs will show in the same graph

c.      To save, go home, press F2  (go to data files to rename – press F4, scroll down, to rename, use the keypad to label the file)

d.     Choose the function keys and scroll to make choices

e.     To create a new file, choose F4 and ‘new file’

 

HOW TO TRANSFER TO A FLASH DRIVE and EXPORT TO EXCEL

After one or several runs are made:

a.      Insert a flash drive into the Pasco unit

b.     click the ‘home’ button

a.     F2 (table menu) – this defaults to two columns, both might be blank with dashed lines across the top

b.     Might need to populate the table by hand if the table is blank (move the data from graph to table)

c.      Press the check button to highlight the dashed lines 

d.     Press the check button again and choose a heading from the drop down menu

e.     Attach the flash drive

f.       Press F4 to export all data

g.     Leave all as is, default is Unicode, i.e.

h.     Okay

i.        Wait until finished

j.       Remove the flash and insert it into a computer

k.     Open Excel and choose ‘open’

l.        Select the flash drive in the ‘look in’ window at the top

m.  Make sure ‘all files’ shows in the ‘file name,’ bottom window

n.     Select the text file name similar to: GLXportRun1

o.     Choose delimited then next, next, finish

p.     Date will show in the Excel document

q.     Create charts, graphs, etc.

r.      If using the DataStudio software choose file, import data, look for the file name similar to: GLXportRun1

12.             

a.     Highlight sets and press the ck mark to exclude or f4 to select all

b.     F1 for okay

c.      Take flash out of the pasco and insert it into a computer

d.     Open the flash and look for text file

e.     Chose import tab-delimited data

 

13.            NOTE: before returning, delete all files – home, data files – select – file – F3 to delete

 

CURRICULUM IDEAS: http://www.pasco.com/products/curriculum/index.cfm  (Click on a curriculum topic, click on the ‘experiments’ tab, click on sample handouts and activity sheets for each probe

 

14.            Open the file, F1 to open, ‘home’ to look at data – use arrows to move through and use the check mark to select a method to view

15.            To move the point in time in a graph use the arrow keys

16.            If a probe can collect two or more things there is no choice to make when collecting but there is a choice to make when displaying –

17.            To Export: be in a table or graph mode, F4, connect USB, OK, it will be named GLexport.glc, choices appear, choose ‘add all’, OK, bar will show as it is being saved – ok when complete – rename flash drive file on the computer

18.            Go to Excel or use the PASCO software, file, import, change to text file, flashdrive, select it, open in Excel, get data, deliminated, DOS, next, next, OK