The weather is awesome! It'll continue to be awesome next week, but in a more rainy and snowy way. So these ideas are still more indoors oriented. Soon, my friends. Soon, we can do more stuff outside. On to science ideas for the week:
Kindergarten Ideas - On to our lessons that will integrate with the Process, Nature, and Communication of Science. Though I dislike the label, it's the scientific method, in short. (I dislike that label because it implies that science always follows a rote series of steps, and must be done a certain way. This is simply not true. In the real world, science is as messy and creative as it is methodical. We can and should have elements of both when we teach science.) Check out the ideas, tied in with movement of nonliving things, on our district web page here:
First Grade Ideas - Here's an indicator, from standard 2, objective 1: "Observe, compare, describe, and sort components of soil by size, texture, and color." Couldn't be simpler! Go get a few scoops of soil, some big pieces of paper, and some hand lenses. If you have microscopes, this really helps. (Hawthorne teachers, see me if you don't know how to use the dissecting microscopes in your science room. They're a little different, and very cool.) Please use real soil from outside, not potting mix. That's not soil, it's an artificial media. Which works great for potting. But not for learning about the parts of soil. We want the kids to see that the stuff we usually just think of as dirt has a whole lot of complexity to it. Give them some vocabulary to describe what they're seeing: grain size, rocks, pebbles, organic material, etc. The highlight is if they find bugs or worms. Let me know if you need some good soil, and I'll bring you some from my garden. Fun stuff!
Second Grade Ideas - New standard this week, and it's a great one! Here you go:
Objective 1
Communicate observations about falling objects.
Communicate observations about falling objects.
- Observe falling objects and identify things that prevent them from reaching the ground.
- Communicate observations that similar objects of varying masses fall at the same rate.
Let the fun begin! I'll have a lot of ideas here, so we'll go a little at a time. First, gather up various items around the room, and do drop tests to see which hits the floor first. Make sure you get a few things that have different masses, but won't catch a lot of air as they fall. Example: a stapler and a paperclip. They should hit the floor at the same time. A few tips: it's hard to see which hits first, but it's easier to hear. Second, all iPhones have slow-mo video now, right in the camera app, which is fun for this test. Third: you can make a drop test rig by pushing things off a desk at the same time with something straight, like a ruler. They have to be close to the same size for this to work.
So here's the science: things all fall at the exact same rate, no matter how heavy they are. Unless something gets in the way. Like air. So something with a large surface area would catch a lot of air, and would then actually fall more slowly. This is usually explained by saying "gravity pulls evenly on everything." More ideas next week!
Third Grade Ideas - Here's an indicator from Standard 5 Objective 1: "Observe and report how sunlight affects plant growth." Give each group two ziploc bags with 10 lentil seeds in each bag. Stick the seeds in a wet paper towel inside each bag. Put one bag in a sunny windowsill, and the other in the dark. Wait a few days, then get them out and make observations. Do this for two weeks. You'll see the sunny ones do what you'd expect, and the dark ones do some interesting things. Talk about what you see, and why you think they did that. Another observational activity: look at how the plants and trees outside grow towards the sun. We call this phototropism, or heliotropism. That's the tendancy of plants to grow toward light (photo) or the sun (heilio.)
Fourth Grade Ideas - Here's an indicator: "Investigate and record temperature data to show the effects of heat energy on changing the states of water." One of my favorite labs: boil a pot of water in front of the class with a digital thermometer inside. Observe as it changes phase. And rest assured: The watched pot DOES boil. A few things to note: Heat is molecular movement. So when we add heat to a pot, we add movement. When the molecules reach high enough energy, or are moving fast enough, they fly off into the air. When the whole pot is boiling at the same time, we can see that the whole pot has reached that point. A few questions: as it's boiling, where do the bubbles come from? We saw on google that water boils at 212 degrees - is that what we observed in class? If not, why not? See me if you want a glass beaker to do this in, it just helps them see the bubbles.
Fifth Grade Ideas - Here's a great lesson for heredity. You're probably familiar with the story of the peppered moth. Check out this whole lab right here: http://www.biologycorner.com/worksheets/peppermoth_paper.html
Sixth Grade Ideas - I hope everyone's ears and spirits are still ringing from home made instruments last week. Sticking with our Heat, Light, and Sound standard, Here's a seriously cool demo about refraction. You HAVE to show your kids the video.
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