Catawba Science Center

We really enjoyed our field trip to the Catawba Science Center yesterday! Our first stop was in a science lab where we learned about matter. Matter is anything that takes up space and has weight (mass). Even air takes up space, as we could see by filling up a balloon. Students donned goggles as they conducted experiments such as making snow, which required adding tiny drops of rubbing alcohol to a mysterious liquid. They also filled a balloon with baking soda, stretched the balloon over a beaker of vinegar, shook the balloon, and watched what happened. There were squeals of delight as the balloon filled. Several students were able to tell us that the balloon was being filled by a gas produced by adding the baking soda to the vinegar!

Our next stop was the planetarium, where we watched a movie titled, "Zula Patrol: Under the Weather." It was an entertaining cartoon, but was extra special since we watched it on the planetarium ceiling. After the movie, we learned a little bit about stars and constellations. See if your child can remember the scientific name for the North Star.(It is Polaris.) We were able to take a brief tour of the aquarium before boarding the bus for the long ride back to school. We arrived back ten minutes before dismissal.

Spring Break Caterpillar-Sitting

The caterpillar babysitting job over Spring Break was a lot easier than expected since none of the ones I brought home lived! From what I've heard so far, it sounds like no one else's caterpillars lived, either. Not to worry--we still have time to order more caterpillars. I hope they came with a money back guarantee!

I haven't posted anything for a while, so I wanted to share some pictures from the Easter egg hunt. I also came across an interesting site that will keep your kids busy during the summer. It is called Smithsonian Quests. The site has 100 free self-directed, project-based activities for all ages. Students can earn badges while learning about subjects from art to outer space. Just click on this link to sign up http://shout.smithsonianquests.org The password for our class is vQWd73XuM.

Weekly Update

This week we are working on different versions of a Cinquain poem. What is a cinquain poem, you might ask. It is a poem with only 5 lines, but there are different ways to create one. Here's a link to show you some varieties with examples. http://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/davidc/6c_files/Poem%20pics/cinquaindescrip.htm Students wrote at least one poem today and shared it with the class. I will challenge them to try a different version tomorrow.

Pre-K through 3rd grade will be marching in the Palm Sunday Parade during Chapel on Wednesday. We have been asked to bring noise makers. If your child has a noisy toy, such as a kazoo, maraca, shaker, etc., they are welcome to bring it tomorrow so that I can see how many extra we will need on Wednesday.

In History today, we learned about India. We learned about the location, climate, population, religion, and a little bit about the caste system. If your child would like to learn more, I've provided some links on the right side of this page. 

It's about time for an update!

My math group started a geometry unit today. The students learned some terms that may have been unfamiliar before today. We learned about solid figures, flat surfaces, edges, faces, and vertices. We learned that some solid figures that roll have "flat surfaces" (the bottom of a cone and the top and bottom of a cylinder), and that solid figures that do not roll have flat surfaces called "faces" (rectangular prisms, pyramids, and cubes). Ask your child to look around the house for items that are shaped like  a cone, sphere, pyramid, cylinder, cube, or rectangular prism.

Your little history buffs have enjoyed learning about the Civil War, the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman, and Abraham Lincoln. See if they can tell you about the Emancipation Proclamation. They can tell you that the Underground Railroad isn't a railroad at all, and that it's not even underground. We watched a great video that showed Harriet Tubman, the modern "Moses", lead her people to safety. Ask your child why her nickname was Moses and why people called Abraham Lincoln "Honest Abe."

The Mariner Fun Run is coming up on Saturday, March 21st. I will be walking in it (not running) and I hope that many of you will be participating as well. It should be a fun day and hopefully the weather will cooperate. I'm sure your child has told you that there's a prize for the class with the highest percentage of participation, so don't forget to sign up! We're a competitive bunch! By the way, we won the contest for collecting the most loose change and will enjoy an ice cream cake celebration next Friday, March 13th!

Simple Machines

We are having lots of fun studying simple machines. There are so many things we use every day that I would have never considered simple or even complex machines. Did you know that a non-electric can opener is made up of 4 simple machines: a wedge (the cutting blade), a lever (the 2 handles you squeeze together), a wheel and axle (the handle that turns), and gears? Wow! I am so impressed by how quickly the second graders are picking up all this information!

Today we learned a little more about the pulley. Students worked in groups to lift miniature buckets off the ground using a pulley. Here are some pictures.

Best Birthday Ever!

Thanks for making me feel so special today! I had the best birthday ever! I came in this morning to find even more decorations on my whiteboard.  Mrs. Carsner and both 2nd grade classes spent some time this morning decorating the room with black balloons and black streamers. I received flowers from 3 different students, lip balm for another student, and several sweet cards. I bought a cake to share with both 2nd grade classes, and Ben brought cupcakes, too! Sorry, folks, but we had a lot of sugar today. We also watched the parade practice, where I received the surprise of the entire student body singing happy birthday to me.  Ahh....now for a good night's sleep before tomorrow's field trip.

Fun Day!

I started out a little grumpy today, but seeing the faces of my "Tweetie Pies" made me feel better. For our Bible lesson, I gave each student some clay and told them to build a statue dedicated to God. They came up with some nice ideas, such as stars, crosses, hearts, etc. Next, I told them the story of King Hezekiah and how he told the people to destroy the idols they had created. The students had to destroy their statues. It was fun to watch them smash, squish, and pound them!

We have been learning about the parts of a friendly letter so students have been learning to write their own address. Today, they wrote letters to Santa, which I promised to deliver.

Tomorrow is my 50th birthday and the students are just as excited as I am about it. They wrote a nice message to brighten my day.