From the second his students step into the room, Stuart Malcolm leads them in a scientific experience that is intellectually challenging, yet fun and memorable. The classroom itself is a testament to active learning. Students find themselves surrounded by tangible examples of the scientific principles that shape our Dynamic Planet – the name of the earth science unit that Mr. Malcolm is currently teaching his sixth graders. A geologic timeline wraps around the walls of the room, with the Earth’s major eras illustrated by students’ colorful drawings. Popsicle stick bridges hang on the room’s back wall, the result of another class’s science lab. It is here, among a collection of beakers and the materials of last week’s sixth grade science lab, that hazy scientific concepts become real and understandable through action.
Today’s class begins with routine tasks, among them the distribution of graded assignments. Excited voices fade to silence as students look over their papers, and Mr. Malcolm quizzically proclaims, “It’s so quiet.”

“Uncanny,” responds one of his students.

Mr. Malcolm smiles and explains to me, “That’s my favorite word.”

Administrative duties taken care of and last night’s homework reviewed, the class shifts into action. Mr. Malcolm reveals a metal Slinky®, which he announces will be used to demonstrate the two types of seismic waves that occur during earthquakes. He stretches the Slinky from the front to the back of the classroom as students gather on either side – their undivided attention on the popular children’s toy-turned-science demonstration. Creating movements that model the sheer and compression waves that occur during earthquakes, Mr. Malcolm asks students to make observations on their worksheets. “You can describe the differences or draw a diagram. I love diagrams…that’s the life of an architect – we draw everything we see.”

Although he seems like such a natural, Stuart Malcolm hasn’t always been a science teacher. A graduate of the University of Washington, he had worked as an industrial architect for eleven years when he decided he wasn’t happy. Following the suggestions of two trusted friends, he began teaching in 1996. “I love it,” he says of his job – and it shows. Students seem equally to love his class, and don’t seem to notice as the clock signals the end of the period. Even as students from the following class make their way into the room, Mr. Malcolm’s sixth graders continue to broadcast their observations and ask insightful questions about the seismic Slinky demonstration. Quite uncanny.

By Melissa Cardona
Posted April 6, 2006