November 19, 2010

Above are pictures from our trip to the circus and a science activity called "Seed Olympics." We looked at different ways that seeds travel, then students used felt, marshmallows, styrofoam, and feathers to create their own seed. The seeds were tested in three events: floating in the wind, clinging to animal fur, and floating on water. Students tested their seeds on Day 1, observed what worked and what didn't, then redesigned their seed to compete on Day 2. There were many improvements. On the second day, the seeds went 30 cm farther in the wind, clung to the animal fur longer, and many of them are still floating in the water now, three days later! Instead of a test, students are creating their own animal and describing the adaptations it has. This project is due on Tuesday.

We've also finished reading How to Eat Fried Worms. We had to stop reading only five pages from the end because it was time for recess, and I've never heard students want to not go to recess so badly before! They are practicing skits right now to share different scenes from the book with the class. There is a test on Monday on the book, and it would be helpful if they reviewed the vocabulary words from the unit beforehand. The sequence worm is also due on Monday.

Advent is quickly approaching, and with it comes one of my favorite religion projects: creating a Jesse Tree. Each student will be in charge of reading one Bible story, writing a summary, and creating a symbol of that story to share with the class. By doing this, we will trace Jesus' ancestry from Adam and Eve to his birth.