History in Astronomy Podcast - Showcase ADE2023!

I was honored to share this story as a showcase at ADE institute 2023.

This assignment is all about looking back over how far we have come with regards to space science. I used to have students just research an astronomer; Newton, Galileo, Aristotle. Find information online, paste into a boring slideshow...you get the picture.

Now, with a DEI lens and also a drive to let students loose with their own ideas and creativity, I have students do so much more - and it's so much better!

We have a discussion at the beginning of class about cultures within our own classroom. I asked "tell us about a favorite tradition in your family" and a few other other pointed questions. We watched a clip from a documentary about Timbuktu and the ancient astronomical documents found there recently. Then, students got into small teams and picked from the giant list; a person, a theme, a 'thing'. They chose from a list of historical people, events, and themes that stretch all the way back to 3000 BC.

I taught them how to use GarageBand on part of one day, and many had some expertise already since we are a 1:1 iPad school district. On that same day we listened to podcasts; the theme music, the advertisements, the overall feel. We got into small groups and talked about what our own podcasts would sound and feel like. They picked music on GarageBand. They brainstormed advertisement ideas from the time period they picked.

Attached is the assignment they were given to produce their podcast using GarageBand, and a sample from student work. Some were just ok, but so many more projects were fantastic! #D214 #ADEPhysics

Attachments

History of Astronomy Podcast (1).pdf

Download  (50 KB)

Attachments

AnnieJumpShort.m4a

Download  (9 MB)