For 19 years, Patrick Kyne has worked to make science exciting for his students. This summer, the Duncan U. Fletcher Middle School science teacher traded textbooks and classroom models for volcanic craters, lava fields and some of the most geologically active terrain on Earth.
Through the Cindy Edelman Excellence in Teaching Fellowship, Kyne traveled to Hawaii’s Big Island to deepen his understanding of volcanism and Earth’s changing surface and bring that firsthand experience back to his students. The Fellowship provides Duval County public school educators opportunities to pursue professional learning experiences of their choosing.
Kyne’s experience demonstrates how investing in teachers can strengthen their knowledge, renew their enthusiasm, and ultimately create richer learning experiences for students.
First, the Fellowship allowed Kyne to experience the science he teaches firsthand. His journey included exploring Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and learning alongside experts. A private tour to Mauna Ulu with a retired geology professor became one of his favorite experiences. He also learned to read volcanic inflation graphs and use them to anticipate when magma might become visible at the surface.
Second, those experiences are already generating new ideas for his classroom. Kyne plans to use what he learned to help students better understand concepts including igneous rocks, pressure, temperature, and volume. One creative idea inspired by his hikes involves comparing different types of Cheetos to intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.
Finally, the impact extends beyond one classroom. Kyne plans to create and share lessons with colleagues that can support seventh-grade instruction in plate tectonics and volcanism as well as eighth-grade science test preparation. His students will also have opportunities to create models connecting plate tectonics, volcanism, and the rock cycle.
For Kyne, the experience ultimately renewed something essential: his excitement for teaching. “I feel truly inspired by the experience,” he shared while thanking the donors who made his Fellowship possible.
His students may not have stood beside a volcano in Hawaii, but this school year, a little piece of Hawaii’s geology will come directly to them.