Teacher Testimonials: Distance Learning

Spectacular Skulls -

• I am always looking for free resources. My curriculum is seriously out of date, so I often have to find online resources or spend my own money on science materials. I'm grateful that Cal Academy offers different programs and resources that are aligned to Next Gen standards and are available at low or no cost. Please keep providing these experiences for students. The Skulls presentation was more than I ever could have done in the classroom and fit in perfectly with what we have been learning (animal habitats, adaptations, food chains).

Science Storytime: Pierre the Penguin -

• We have not done any field trips this year because of the cost and hassle. The children felt as if they had a field trip after seeing this program; it was free and teachers did not have to deal with travel, chaperones, and collecting donations. My students were/are very excited about penguins and learned a lot as they always thought penguins were in 'cold' climates. The students were very excited to see their questions answered! I also shared with my students how I was uncomfortable since I am technologically challenged. My students were able to see that I could overcome my fear and share in my success. It was a good example for them.

Scientist's Scoops: -

• We are a Public Charter School in San Jose with limited funding for Field Trips, technology and Science. The Distance Learning Program provided by the Academy of Sciences was relevant, interactive and created real experiences for all students.The ability to interact and ask questions was both meaningful and informative for students. They noticed that they wondered about many of the same things as other students across the country.

Penguin programs:

• My students were eager to experience this field trip as we have never tried this before. My students were amazed that a person in California could share their penguins with us in New York in real time! The presentation inspired us to continue learning more about penguins.
   
• My students' favorite parts were to see the actual penguins they were studying and have their questions answered.
   
• All in all it was a good program but maybe not as engaging as I'd hoped. Also it's hard to manage the technology with kinder students. I REALLY found it helpful that the presenter was bilingual though as I only speak Spanish in front of my students.

Rainforest programs -

• My students benefited from the reinforcement of life cycle knowledge. It was great that they were learning more about someplace they had visited in Kindergarten.It was a perfect connection. We have first grade books about a frog in the rainforest, which also reinforced literacy and previous knowledge. For children learning English, this has been especially valuable.
   
• We will be studying rainforest in one month and this was a great introduction to the unit. We like how interactive the program is, so to allow students instant feedback to there thoughts and wonders.
   
• Students really enjoyed seeing the live camera recordings. They even used some great vocabulary words like nectar, a word we don't say often. They remembered how the snakes twisted their prey and how the fish shot water up in the air to get its flies. They also learned to look at beaks closer (something I didn't focus on, but the program did) which was great. They made the connection that the different beaks helped each bird survive and do things differently.

See the different schools Distance Learning has connected with since our inaugural semester in Fall 2014.

Can you find a school near you? What year did they virtually visit the Academy?