the one with the midterm projects pt. III

On the third day of presentations our science class gave to us:

1. Balloon Rockets: this is another project we did last time around. But still fun for kids. String, balloon, straw, tape. Guess how far the balloon will go!
2. Tornadoes: I always enjoy this fun activity. Two pop bottles taped together, with water inside, to create a tornado/funnel effect. We put a jellybean inside ours to make it more like a real tornado. Then the water started leaking out.
3. Solid/Liquid Mixture: I don't really remember what this one was.
4. Jellybeans vs. Tastebuds: this was fun but I didn't really know how we were supposed to use our different tastebuds to tell what the candy was. Britany liked the popcorn, but I don't think anyone else did. Next time, use Bertie Bots Beans [Harry Potter inspired jelly beans]! Those would exercise all of our tastebuds!
5. Light Sources: lamps, flashlights, flames, candles, anything to light the way.
6. And more Oobleck than we needed: more more more. Goodness.

blog you later,
[andrea]

ps: Some of the flavors include Worm, Sausage, Soap, Sardine, Pickle, Boogey, Cinnamon, Cherry, Buttered Popcorn, Grass, Black Pepper, Rotten Egg, Vomit, Blueberry, Marshmallow, and Earwax.

the one with the midterm projects pt. II

We continued watching the science presentations today. The computer, sadly, was not working so the first group had to wait quite a while before the projector was finally working.

Projects presented today:

• Elephant Toothpaste: this was made with food coloring, dish soap, peroxide, and iodide.
• Bottle Rockets: a mixture created by baking soda dropped into a bottle of vinegar. My group presented today, and we had fun. I especially liked our video :)
• Oobleck: a mixture of baking soda and water. Last time we had this class there were around 5-7 people who presented this same project. It's cool, but it's getting old.
• Oil and Soap: first we dipped a bird feather into a cup of water, which the feather repelled. Then we dipped it into a cup of vegetable oil, which immediately stuck to the feather. It was sad seeing how birds can no longer fly with coated feathers after an oil spill.

blog you later,
[andrea]

the one with the midterm projects pt. I

Today we watched more midterm presentations. Some of the presentations included:

• Jello mixtures: jello powder and water, then we were given premade jello snacks. Yum!
• Sink or float: objects were dropped in the water and we had to see if they would sink or float.
• Animal habitats: the different habitats that animals may live in.
• Oil and water: oil and water do not mix well together! It was neat because we had red food dye in ours and it looked pretty cool, but creepy like blood.

Britany, Brianna, and I were supposed to present our midterm project [Baking Soda and Vinegar Bottle Rockets] but the class ran out of time.


blog you later,
[andrea]

the one with the safety

Class was held in Dr. Reins' classroom. We used the laptops to do some researching on safety. Our focus was on safety and Internet safety in particular, the latter of which children should especially learn about due to the high increase of technology in schools.

For the general safety we had to look up three safety tips and write them on stars. I, of course, illustrated my safety tips, and so did several other students. The Internet safety was on a worksheet, and we had to access a couple of sites on the Internet to find the answers. However, being so Internet savvy I filled out the worksheet without use of the Internet.



blog you later,
[andrea]

the one with the midterm discussion

During class we watched a video of how to upload a webcam video to Youtube. Those who had not yet finished their outlines for the midterm project worked on it.

My group was confused as to whether we were to start the story before or after. We also did not know what all had to be included in the midterm project. When asked, we were directed to look at the lesson plan outline which did not mention the video or story. We are not sure what to do...

blog you later,

[andrea]

the one with the bottle rocket outline

Class was cancelled today, so Britany and I got together to work on our midterm outline. We decided to do baking soda and vinegar bottle rockets. They are actually made with film canisters, but because those are fairly hard to acquire in this time of digitalized cameras, we may instead use up our recycling and make plastic water bottle rockets.

blog you later,

[andrea]

the one with the mirrors

Activity: Mirror Writing

Purpose: To demonstrate a different way of communication that pushes one's mind to really think about what is being written.

Materials: Pencil, paper, mirror, notecard with a hole in the center.

I thought this activity was pretty fun, and I think the class also enjoyed it. It was so easy to write when the notecard wasn't attached to the pencil, but the Xs in particular were incredibly difficult to draw! My table was fine doing one of the lines, but we were having a hard time doing the second line, on account of the pencil not wanting to move that way!

This style of writing is actually how many students write on accident before they properly learn to write. The reversal of letters is quite typical among young children and dyslexics. However, this may actually feel more natural for people who are left handed, as it does not smear the ink.

I thought this activity was particularly interesting because one way students sometimes write notes to each other, so other people cannot read them as easily, is by using mirror writing. Leonardo DaVinci is an example of a famous historical figure who practised this type of writing, in order to keep his notes shrouded in an enigma of secrecy.

blog you later,
[andrea]

the one with the black boxes that I never saw

There were a few people, including me, who missed class today because of the Rosebud Indian Reservation trip. So, I got the gist of the assignment from a few classmates.

Activity: Black Boxes
Purpose: Students must try to discover which shape is hiding in the virtual black box.

The activity came from the FOSS website. Though, once I went to the website, I could not open the link to start the activity. The students in class, however, took paper and wrote each group member's name on it. They then had to figure out what they each thought was contained inside the black boxes, then discuss their predictions and come to a consensus on the contents. Many groups incorrectly predicted what was inside the boxes, but that was because inside the boxes there were other shapes that messed up the perfect outside shape of the box. The class seemed to enjoy the activity.

blog you later,
[andrea]