Upcoming Events & Deadlines January 15th, 3:45 - 5:30 GK-12 Fellows and Teachers Meeting Plant Sciences Bldg., Lecture Rm No presentations February 5th, 3:45 - 5:30 GK-12 Fellows only Meeting Plant Sciences Bldg., Lecture Rm Sue and Ian present February 19th, 3:45 - 5:30 GK-12 Fellows and Teachers Meeting Plant Sciences Bldg., Lecture Rm Esther and Rita present CONTACT US: Hannah Sanger Program Coordinator ISU Faculty: Dr. Rosemary Smith Biological Sciences Program Director Mike Ellis Engineering Co-Director Dr. Jeff Hill Biological Sciences Co-Director Dr. Larry Stout Engineering Co-Director Dr. Glenn Thackray Geosciences Dr. Scott Hughes Geosciences Dr. Cathy Krilof Mathematics Dr. Rob VanKirk Mathematics Dr. Steve Adkison English CURRENT FELLOWS: Sid Blackmore Jennifer Cannon Maurita Jones Ian Kihara Esther Kingsbury Milana Michalek Erin Naegle Pam O'Hearn Susan Parsons Nicole Sheeley Chris Smith Nicole Wisniewski CURRENT TEACHERS: Lori Anderson Doris Autenrieth T. Paul Davids Sharie Ellis Meg Fleishmann Norris Ganstrom Jean Hancock Deb Hobdey Peggy Kaiser Christina Melancon Marilyn Mikkelson Richard Neves Debbie Newhouse Joshua Nielsen Staci Orr Lynette Smith Cara Sonnemann Carri Thomason Kristi Wehrspann Maria Wilson All graduate student advisors of GK-12 fellows are asked to attend at least 1 class and GK-12 meeting with their advisee. Fellows, please remember to invite your advisor to come out to your classroom for 1 hour to either watch you teach - or help you lead an activity with your teacher partner. Recent Activities & Highlights In School Labs and Studies Biology students have been studying genetics, including karyotypes and patterns of inheritance, and learning about DNA structure & function, including extracting DNA from living tissues, DNA replication and protein synthesis, They've modelled natural selection through simulation experiments. Students have also been studying photosynthesis in plants by using microscopes to study stomata. They've measured cellular respiration in peas and crickets using oxygen and carbon dioxide probes. Chemistry students have been doing ZnI2 synthesis Robotics students built VEX robots and competed against several other high school teams at a public event held at Pocatello High School. Geology students at the Pocatello Community Charter School gave impressive presentations to their families and the public about the Yellowstone Hot Spot, continental plate movements, lava formations, and their scientific observations from trips to Craters of the Moon and Yellowstone. Other Highlights - News APPLICATIONS FOR 2008 GK12 are available at www.isu.edu/departments/gradk12. Click on APPLY. They are DUE by February 12th, 2008. GK-12 faculty and staff will visit area schools in January to answer questions from teachers. If you know of a school that hasn't had a GK-12 fellow - please let us know, we'd love to visit! December 1st was the FIRST LEGO robotics competition. This year's official qualifying match brought over 40 teams to the ISU campus (Reed Gym and the Rendezvous Center) to compete. Robots maneuvered and transported objects around a playing field, with judges awarding points for successful missions. Teams also presented their robot designs and their public building energy audits to judges. Prizes were also awarded for teamwork, an integral part of the FIRST LEGO competition. Upcoming Plans Biology Continue long term studies of C-fern reproduction and life-cycles. Continue studies on avian flu, learning about immune systems and designing experiments with birds and birdfeeders around the school. Begin work on science fair projects. Continue to study evolution and population genetics. Conduct dissections and visit ISU's cadaver lab to help students visualize and understand various anatomical features. Geology Revise geology lab experiments and help students to explain the purpose for each step in the scientific method. Physics Study conductors and insulators with electricity; look at series and parallel circuits. Map magnetic fields. A Field Trip to INL. Chemistry Conduct water quality labs. Continue to use demonstrations to teach about chemistry. An AP class will help their ISU fellow with his research. Robotics The FIRST robotics competition will be the primary focus of the robotics classes through March.