Faces of 501: Kyle Morris
Kyle Morris, is starting his third year teaching 8th grade science at Jardine Middle School. In his former career Morris was a broadcast meteorologist working at television stations Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Kansas. After working as, a substitute teacher for three Topeka school districts and as a program developer in the education department at the Kansas Children’s Discovery Center, he joined the transition to teaching program through Fort Hays State University. Morris is currently preparing a lesson plan for the total solar eclipse on Monday.
“When I was a meteorologist I was able to study in more detail the sciences while also
practicing public speaking and performance. My background prepared me for the
ability to keep young minds better engaged through that performance and my
former career always seems to spark interest and curiosity. I can give them
real world information from my experiences of working in science and that
initial interest and curiosity can always be used as a jumping off point to
work into other science content areas. Science is about asking your own questions
and trying to discover the answer yourself. The students are going to view the
eclipse while filling out a guided worksheet. This will allow them to observe
the eclipse and try to come up with answers to their own observations. We have
also included cross-curriculum opportunities with elements of math through
percentages and graphs, and language arts with creative writing. I’ve
been preparing for collaboration with the entire middle school science
department in the district, and then creating the details with the science team
at my school. This is an opportunity for students to really experience science
in the real world through an event that does not happen often. I
remember being in school during the 1994 annular solar eclipse in Kansas. So
I'm really curious as to the observational differences will be during this
eclipse. Planning for it was not the most fun, but I think we have developed
something that will increase learning and allow the students to fully
experience the event in their own ways. The excitement and interest that this
event could create in students to me is really exciting.
“Teaching middle school, it's not as bad as people tend to think. It can be challenging, but the students are at a unique stage where they are transitioning from a child into their teenage years. They still have a bit of innocence hidden behind their attempt to look mature. I get to experience the youthful ignorance with the development of personalities and it can be a lot of fun. I want them to learn the material I am teaching along with all other subjects, but more importantly I hope they develop in their decision making. Even if they never remember what an index fossil is, or the difference between a base and an acid, I want them to have developed the skills that it took to learn and discover the content. The content is important, but not as much as the development their brains go through when actively participating in science.”
“Teaching middle school, it's not as bad as people tend to think. It can be challenging, but the students are at a unique stage where they are transitioning from a child into their teenage years. They still have a bit of innocence hidden behind their attempt to look mature. I get to experience the youthful ignorance with the development of personalities and it can be a lot of fun. I want them to learn the material I am teaching along with all other subjects, but more importantly I hope they develop in their decision making. Even if they never remember what an index fossil is, or the difference between a base and an acid, I want them to have developed the skills that it took to learn and discover the content. The content is important, but not as much as the development their brains go through when actively participating in science.”
