Overland Avenue Elementary School
Overland Avenue Elementary School is part of the Los Angeles Unified School District. We are located in West Los Angeles and serve approximately 550 students of diverse backgrounds. There are thirty teachers working with grades K - 5. We have multi-grade special education and gifted and talented education programs. Overland is a high performing school and is part of the Los Angeles Educational Reform Now (LEARN) movement.
Project Inquiry Team of Teachers
Ms. Gascoigne
Grade level: one
Years teaching: 13
What makes Overland Ave. School unique? Teachers receive tremendous support from parents and our administrator for professional development
Favorite bird: Black Phoebe
Approach to teaching inquiry based science: We always start with a web and then we usually do some teacher directed lessons to compile a bank of knowledge. Then we would move onto investigation in cooperative groups incorporating the scientific method.
Favorite science unit: Life sciences, especially using animals in the classroom. For example, we raise tadpoles in the classroom.
What have you learned about birds in the city?: That the wings move in a different way than I had previously thought. They don't flap up and down, they move forward and back.
Mrs. Spaulding
Grade level: two and three
Years teaching: three
What makes Overland Ave. School unique? The collaboration of teachers, parents, and students
Favorite bird: Baltimore Oriole
Approach to inquiry based science: We start with the "KWL" (Know, Want to Know and Learned) charts, and then we look at our Want to know columns and decide where the most interest is. I can almost always connect what the students want to know with our classroom investigations so they can answer their own questions.
Favorite science unit: Sound, although it's no longer a third grade unit!
What have you learned about birds in the city? I've been surprised by the diversity of bird life in Los Angeles. I never realized how many birds we have around us.
Ms. Ikeda
Grade level: three
Years teaching: over 20!
What makes Overland Ave. School unique? The level of community support that we receive
Favorite bird: Penguin
Approach to inquiry based science: I feel it's important for students to investigate using "KWL" (Know, Want to Know, Learned). The students create their own chart of what they know and want to know, then we discuss as a group, and they begin research and investigations. Then, they can complete the "learned" part of the chart.
Favorite science unit: Chemistry and chemical changes
What have you learned about birds in the city? It's amazing how birds adapt to various environments.
Mr. Brimble
Grade level: four
Years teaching: five
Favorite bird: Wren
What makes Overland Ave. school unique? The strong sense of school community.
Approach to inquiry based science: Children learn best when they inquire into things that are important to them. We try to develop meaningful questions and plan hands-on experiments based on these questions. It is important for children to follow scientific proceedures to develop higher order thinking skills.
Favorite science unit: Electricity
What have you learned about birds in the city? I am intrigued by how birds find the direction they are going during migration.
Mrs. Kiviat
Grade level: five
Years teaching: two
What makes Overland Ave. School unique? The diverse student body promotes understanding of our multi-racial and multi-ethnic society
Favorite Bird: Tundra Swan
Approach to teaching inquiry based science: Students learn best through investigation and discovery. It's also important for students to work in cooperative groups. I give my students less direction because I think fifth graders are advanced enough to do a lot independently. I give them materials, and explain the purpose, but then I like to see how far they can go on their own. If they need assistance I stop and provide specific guidance.
Favorite science unit: Weather
What have you learned about birds in the city? I'm amazed by the efficiency of birds' lungs.