The Commotion-Free Classroom
How to Run a Self-Directed Science Class
Simplify set up and take down of the lab each day and give this responsibility to students if you like.
Work through a series of topics that you’ll need to address before launching a self-directed classroom.
Learn tips and strategies—some to implement right away and others that will take more time.
Self-directed classrooms have a different rhythm than traditional ones.
Since students are simultaneously working on different things, we’ll discuss how to use the limited time you have together as a class.
The Commotion-Free Classroom
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Hello! I'm Carolyn Balch, the author of Engaging Science Labs.
I started my career as a high school physics teacher. Then, I entered the field of museum education at the National Air and Space Museum, which is part of the Smithsonian Institution. There I wrote science education materials and ran teacher workshops.
When my children were born, I left the workforce and when they were little, our family got involved with a school start up. My children grew and with them, the school. I ran science experiments for different classes and joined the faculty as the middle school science teacher when the school grew.
Now I teach part-time and during the rest of the week I work on the curriculum I use during my teaching. Each online course is a unit of study from a hands-on, laboratory-experience perspective. I write instructions for each activity and create video for many of them. I want you to feel thoroughly prepared to teach these lessons.
