Welcome parents. My name is Richard Frazier. This is my 10th year teaching middle school science at the American Embassy School. More of my background is included in the profile <http://rfrazier.msblogs.aes.ac.in/profile/>.I have used this blog for a number of years to disseminate information on plans, activities, resources, etc. This year (2019-2020) we are using Google Classroom for the same purpose. See below for emails sent to parents of both Grade 7 and Grade 8 Science Students. These messages include more information and links.
Email: rfrazier@aes.ac.in
My schedule for 2019-2020:
- Period 1 Science 8 Science8syllabus-1920
- Period 2 Planning
- Period 3 Science 7 Science Syllabus 7
- Period 4 Science 7
- Period 5 Planning
- Period 6 Planning
- Period 7 Planning
- Period 8 Science 8
I am available and happy to help before and after school, during most lunches, and during planning periods (except for meetings, clubs, prior appointments) . (I arrive at school around 7:30 am most days). Please contact me with any questions or concerns. I welcome opportunities to meet with students and their parents. Students are my main priority. Do not let any question or concern go unaddressed.
Letters to parents sent 23 August, 2019:
Dear Parents of Science 7 students,
I would like to introduce you to our Science 7 course for the 2019-2020 school year. I have 2 classes during Period 3 and Period 4. I hope you will be able to attend Back to School Night this coming Tuesday 27 August. I will be in M313 for the 3rd part of the evening.
We are using Google Classroom this year to disseminate information to the children. They will also submit various pieces of their work through this platform. If you have not already been invited to receive information via Classroom, you should receive an invitation soon. You may select the frequency of notifications.
I will do my best to have a plan published for every class. All the plans as well as other information are housed in this folder which is set for viewing by anyone who has the link: https://drive.google.
I used the class blog for many years to post plans, and it is still available with course information <http://rfrazier.msblogs.aes.
We will also use Powerschool to document work (both formative and summative) and learning habits. I intend to provide feedback through both the Google Classroom and Powerschool platforms.
Our topics in science 7 this year are: Motion, Energy, Grow-Development-Reproduction (Biodiversity), Natural Selection.
Our approach involves as much firsthand activity and investigation of phenomena as possible. Children see, notice, and think about things they have never seen, noticed, or thought about before. Science 7 is full of exciting experiences and rich learning opportunities.
I encourage you to set aside time at home to have your child show you what they are doing in science. You do not have to take on the role of instructor, but instead, let your child “teach” you. Your excited interest in their ideas will make a huge difference in their motivation and engagement. A useful vehicle for these conversations is the Digital Science Notebook (DSN). Students are to create an entry in their DSN for every class. Each entry has items that need to be addressed / included. I will soon ask them to share viewing access of their digital science notebooks with you. Sustained engagement in our class is guaranteed to help every child learn.
Please know that I am always available to meet with you. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. It is a great privilege to help your children learn science.
Many regards,
Richard
Dear Parents of Science 8 students,
I would like to introduce you to our Science 8 course for the 2019-2020 school year. I have 3 classes during Period 1, Period 6, and Period 8. I hope you will be able to attend Back to School Night this coming Tuesday 27 August. I will be in M313 for the 3rd part of the evening.
We are using Google Classroom this year to disseminate information to the children. They will also submit various pieces of their work through this platform. If you have not already been invited to receive information via Classroom, you should receive an invitation soon. You may select the frequency of notifications.
I will do my best to have a plan published for every class. All the plans as well as other information are housed in this folder which is set for viewing by anyone who has the link: https://drive.google.
I used the class blog for many years to post plans, and it is still available with course information <http://rfrazier.msblogs.aes.
We will also use Powerschool to document work (both formative and summative) and learning habits. I intend to provide feedback through both the Google Classroom and Powerschool platforms.
Our topics in science 8 this year are: Matter (Intro to Chemistry), Astronomy, Earth Cycles and Systems, and Human Impact on the Environment. One conceptual thread is how matter behaves at widely variant scales.
Our approach involves as much firsthand activity and investigation of phenomena as possible. Children see, notice, and think about things they have never seen, noticed, or thought about before. Science 8 is full of exciting experiences and rich learning opportunities. I make the claim to the Science 8 students that our course may be the most important of their lives as the culminating projects involve issues, like climate change, that will have a major impact on their lives and the lives of their children.
I encourage you to set aside time at home to have your child show you what they are doing in science. You do not have to take on the role of instructor, but instead, let your child “teach” you. Your excited interest in their ideas will make a huge difference in their motivation and engagement. A useful vehicle for these conversations is the Digital Science Notebook (DSN). Students are to create an entry in their DSN for every class. Each entry has items that need to be addressed / included. I will soon ask them to share viewing access of their digital science notebooks with you. Sustained engagement in our class is guaranteed to help every child learn.
Please know that I am always available to meet with you. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. It is a great privilege to help your children learn science.
Many regards,
Richard