I'm not smart enough to understand this, but I loved the lesson nonetheless

Whenever I visit Bassick High School, I like to  swing by Mr. Bell's room. He's a young, innovative math teacher whose devotion to his students is obvious for the ways he tries to make every lesson relevant to their lives. He's intelligent, hardworking, creative, funny, and focused on raising the standards for all students.

When I walked by earlier this week, he and his science-teaching partner were practicing a lab they planned to do with their freshmen students. Mr. Bell explained the mathematical equations they hoped to highlight (as well as some of the scientific principles) but most of it went over my head. What registered with me, however, was the hilarity of the lesson. Mr. Bell bought 30 Barbie dolls for his classes for the lesson. Students, he explained to me, would tie rubber bands to the ankles of the dolls and drop them from staircases at Bassick High School to measure how far they would stretch to the floor without actually crashing.

The teaching team was working on this activity when students were out of their classes, videotaping their own success with an iPad and iPhone to see if they could outdo the numbers reported by others in the national-Barbie dropping exercise. They shared their video with me and it was hilarious - two brilliant science/math heads playing with their toys before students arrived.

This is the moment I'm carrying with me for the extended weekend and the applause I have for innovation and creativity in K-12 schools. Kudos to their team!