We went outside to study waves. Small groups were given ropes, a ruler and some basic instructions. They spread out and studied different sizes waves while enjoying some beautiful weather.
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It was time to build again. We did this activity twice. Groups of four were given a stack of newspaper and a roll of tape. With 10 minutes on the clock they had to design the tallest structure but with an important rule. It must be able to stand for at least three minutes. This activity was used to start exploring earthquakes and building design. Time for Mystery Science! We studied different types of lava using flour and water. It was hands-on and gave us a chance to understand the difference between cone and shield volcanoes. Students were given a handful of wooden toothpicks and a cup of mini marshmallows and a mission - Build the tallest structure your can. We are studying earthquakes in science so this was an exciting way to test out some designs and get to know my scholars. Using Mystery Science, we used marbles to study motion. Here are some videos of the energy lesson we finished today. We joined Mystery Doug for a live event discussing questions about space and featuring Jessica Meir, an astronaut who just returned from the International Space Station. (She also graduated from the same school Mrs. Riggs and I attended - UC San Diego.) So cool!  So the competition continues. Tomorrow students will show their new and improved bridge designs. So far, the strongest holds 850 coins. Wow!  Today, we started a Mystery Science bridge building lesson (distance learning style). We watched the video during our daily Google Meet, discussed designs in the chat, created prototypes and started building bridges out of paper. Students are inserting pictures of their bridges into a Google Slides presentation and retooling/retesting designs. So far, Mia was able to build a bridge, made with only two pieces of paper, that can hold over 700 pennies! The competition continues next week. My little engineering scholars are amazing! We are learning about the effects of rain, wind and temperature on rocks.   On Friday we used balloons to learn about static electricity. Check out the videos below. Scholars simulated three types of Earthquakes faults using books and sugar cubes. 
We did a hands-on investigation today in science. Scholars created mini "riverbeds" with soil and pebbles to study how flowing water affects rocks differently than soil alone. More videos are available in our Twitter feed to the right. |
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