Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The Real Einstein


Albert Einstein is a nonfiction novel by Kathleen Krull which tells us about the life of Albert Einstein. Most of us know that he is famous for the formula
E= , but most of us only know this and not much more. I thought this book had a good mixture of his family life as well as his scientific and mathematical life.  This book was fun to read as you learned about a side of Albert Einstein. I never knew that he was married, had kids, or liked to question everyone, but his questioning is exactly what made him such a good scientist. I also learned that since he was Jewish it took a long time before he was even recognized for his work! I think this book would spark the interest of students who like math and science, but do not like to read as much.
Web Resources:
http://www.kathleenkrull.com/science.html - this is Kathleen Krull’s website, with an about the author and many more links. This link has 38 ideas of how to use a biography in your classroom! http://www.kathleenkrull.com/bio38.html
Vocabulary: ambitious, respectable, proverb, embroidered, literally, obsession, anti-Semitism, rote, “compulsory science”, infuriated, provoked, Chapter 2- distressed, foreseeing, prestigious, appeased, boisterous, Chapter 3- condescending, disenchanted, progressive, diligence, “studying with an holy zeal” solace, acquaintances, skepticism, bohemians, conduction, jaunted, Chapter 4- bravado, alienating, vehemently,  humane, tactless, obnoxious, dissertation, naive, drudgery, scrutinizing, cloister, synchronicity, illegitimate, Chapter 5- inconsequential, phenomenon, theoretical, illogical, molecules, Chapter 6-  intuitively, boasting, confounding, relativity, converted, reverberations, Chapter 7- criticisms, arbitrarily, accelerations, lecturer, stubbornly, contagious, reluctance, petition, apparatus, detrimental, reconcile, nurturing, rheumatism, Chapter 8- pompously, throes, reneged, counterintuitive, curvature, cataclysmic, eclipse, palpitated, priority, Chapter 9- pacifist, manifesto, mulling, turmoil, disorienting, obscured, Chapter 10- drivel, rampant, overt, assignation, virtuous, ailments, agitated, Chapter 11-  incompatible, fundamentally, empirically, dismayed, estranged, introspective, besieged, exquisitely, Nazi, annihilation, ammunition, frivolous, Chapter 12- stifle and cosmos.    
Before Reading: I will ask my students to write in their writing journals about what they know about Albert Einstein. If they do not know much then they should write about what they want to learn about him.  Then I will have the class share what they know and correct any misconceptions.
During reading: I have chapter by chapter Questions I want my students to answer.
Chapter 1-
·         What was Einstein’s early life like?
·         Were there any misconceptions you had about Einstein or his family? Explain
Chapter 2-
If you were Einstein and your parents left you with relatives how woul have handled the situation? Would you do what Einstein did or would you deal with them leaving you differently?
What sis Einstein do when he failed the entrance exam to the polytechnic school?
Chapter 3-
What is something you thought was interesting that happened in this chapter? Minimum 5 sentences.
Chapter 4-
What job did Einstein end up with in this chapter? Why was it such a good fit?
What is Einstein’s idea of his wife? His family?
Chapter 5-
What are some of the scientific advances Einstein made which were discussed in this chapter? Explain as best as you can.
What seemed to happen to those who carried out Einstein’s predictions , if they were proved correct?
Chapter 6-
On page 63 what is meant by “frame of reference”? you may use your book.
Using the explanation of rate and time on page 64-65 how far has some one traveled  if they are running six mile per hour for two hours?
Why was 1905 called Einstein’s miracle year?
Chapter 7-
How was Einstein different than other professors?
What was Einstein discriminated for?
What did Einstein’s students think of him? How do you know?
Chapter 8-
What significant happened to Einstein’s family in this chapter?
Chapter 9-
What happened with the solar eclipse?
Chapter 10-
What did Einstein win the Nobel Prize for?
How did he feel about the publicity? What about his “new family”? How do you know?
Why did he become so famous?
What did the police warn Einstein about? Why?
Chapter 11-
What was it so important that Einstein leave Germany? Explain
How did he feel about peace? Why?
Chapter 12-
What did Einstein he urge Roosevelt to do? Why?

After Reading: I will have my students do a research paper on another famous person mentioned in Albert Einstein.  Mostly I want my students to tell me about what that person did other than their research or experiments and what they were most famous for. I would also like to know if what they were famous for is still true today. Some acceptable people would be: Currie, Newton, Sigmund Freud, Maxwell, Darwin etc.

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