Week 1: Welcome

Week 1: Welcome
This week you should refer to the resources listed under Readings & References, and you need to complete the assignments listed under Assignments. This week's assignments focus on...

Learning about the Earth system science approach through assigned readings
Exploring and practicing navigation of the course
Introducing yourself to other course participants
Getting together with your team and selecting a name
Completing the Pre-Course Survey

Readings & References
Read: Earth can be viewed as a system of interwoven systems called spheres. In this course, you will explore land (lithosphere), living things (biosphere), water (hydrosphere), and air (atmosphere). You will explore the spheres independently as well as in context of the other spheres.

Read: You will use the virtual spaces in the Classroom to communicate with your teammates about your assignments. If you are experiencing a problem with one of the course participants, please DO NOT air your grievances, or "flame" someone in a discussion space. It's like yelling at someone in class, and it tears the fabric of the team. If you have a problem with a teammate or the facilitator, talk to him or her about it in a private email.

However, do not use email to communicate about ideas relating to the course as it will take away from the team knowledge building. Use the "Teacher As" spaces for team discussions more than any other communication medium. The "Teacher As" spaces are like seminar rooms where you and your teammates come with all your questions, ideas, and information and post them on the walls. They are where you build knowledge together.

Reference: Browse through the table of contents and appendices of the Course Materials

Recommended Web Sites:

Assignments
Do: Explore the course by visiting the Intro and Guide. Become familiar with how the course is laid out and how it functions from week to week. Develop an understanding of the different requirements for the four, three-week cycles of Week A: Teacher As Researcher, Week B: Teacher As Scholar, and Week C: Teacher As Designer that begin during Week 4 and go through Week 15. Don’t hesitate to ask the course facilitator questions about the course or how to use your computer. If you are new to computers or web usage, it will pay to let others know you need help.

Do: You will build a sample terrarium for your students in Week 3. Therefore, you will need to look through pages 1-21 of Terrarium Habitats and decide what type of terrarium you would like to build and model for your students. Your students will build the same type of terrarium in Week 7, so you should begin collecting the containers and soil samples they will need to put the terrariums together. If clean garden soil is unavailable, you can obtain some at a local store. Potting soil may be a good alternative.

Do: Introduce yourself in the Classroom within Course Space to your fellow course members. What do you want to know about the people you will be teaming with for this course? Do you want to know if they are good spellers? (You'll know soon enough!) Do you want to know what they're good at or how they teach? Whatever you want to know about them, tell about yourself.

Introduce yourself by giving your basic information (location, teaching assignment, interest in the course, goals) and adding the things people say about you (e.g., really well-organized, always late but worth it, loves technology). You can include information about where you grew up, where you went to college, and what your personal interests and hobbies are. Be sure to describe your connection to education (i.e., Grade 2 teacher, 25 students; or taught fifth grade for several years…now teaching third grade).

You may want to do a round robin of questions in your team. It goes like this: each person posts a question and answers it, then everyone else answers it, too.

You can establish a "meet me in the faculty room" routine where you share what you think or know about something every week at the beginning of the week. Some teams could even have regular "water cooler" activities (that's code for "off task" or sidebar conversations) like, "If I won the lottery..." or "If I had 3 wishes..." or "If I could add a day to the week..." or "If I ran the school..."

Do: Meet your team. Go to the Classroom then to Course Space to see what team you are on. Teams consist of four, five, or six members. As soon as you know which team you are on, meet with your team members in Teachers As Researcher space. Learn enough about each member of your team to make a connection. Do you share an interest, teach the same grade level, or make similar kinds of jokes? Have you visited their region? Would you like to? Find a connection with each person and build on it.

Do: Name your team. Decide on a team name with your teammates in Teacher As Researcher space. Bring some local color into the team name discussion with lines like, "Where I come from, we say ... " or "Around here, we have ..." Let your style show with the names you suggest, the questions you ask, or the comments you make.

Do: Complete the Pre-Course Survey and submit it. The Pre-Course Survey reflects the goals and strategies for implementing the course. It makes you more goal-directed because the survey gives you insight into the goals and methods of the course.

Please email bmyers@cet.edu if you have any comments or suggestions concerning the survey. You will complete a Post-Course Survey in Week 16.

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Last updated September 11, 2000