SCIENCE
What goes up, must come down! Gravity continues to be the most prevailing force discussed in our unit of force and motion. This was such an exciting week in science! We created paper gliders during the beginning of the week. Students learned about the forces of gravity and lift and how they effect the glider as it moves through the air. We flew our slow gilders and were able to calculate the distance, speed and time of our gliders. Your children were also able to understand that the larger is better for surface area of a slow gliders wing to create lift.
What goes up, must come down! Gravity continues to be the most prevailing force discussed in our unit of force and motion. This was such an exciting week in science! We created paper gliders during the beginning of the week. Students learned about the forces of gravity and lift and how they effect the glider as it moves through the air. We flew our slow gilders and were able to calculate the distance, speed and time of our gliders. Your children were also able to understand that the larger is better for surface area of a slow gliders wing to create lift.
Marshmallow catapults were a huge success! We used shoe boxes, rubber bands and spoons to create some amazing catapults! Some distances were 538 cm, 826 cm and 1025 cm. These catapults were really amazing! The students were so excited to try their catapults and cheered their classmates on as marshmallows were sent flying down the hallway! Your children had so much fun, I do not think they realized how much they were learning! Please ask your child what horizontal velocity and vertical velocity are and have them explain what a projectile is!
We concluded the week with a small group reading and writing activity on motion and used laptops to play with an amazing web site, http://www.fearofphysics.com/. This is an interactive web site that allows your child to study and apply physics in a fun and engaging way!
I had the most exhilarating time with your children this week! Playing with paper airplanes and catapulting marshmallows is so much FUN!! I love your children and want to thank them for another fabulous week!
I had the most exhilarating time with your children this week! Playing with paper airplanes and catapulting marshmallows is so much FUN!! I love your children and want to thank them for another fabulous week!
Thank you to all the families for donating shoe boxes and spoons! You made this week possible!
MATH
This week we continued with our study of percentages. Our focus was on percent of change. We learned the formulas for percent increase and percent decrease
(Percent of change = increase or decrease/original)
and then applied them in the following real-life contexts:
Increase
Taxes
Tips
Commissions
Markups
Growth
Tips
Commissions
Markups
Growth
Decrease
Sales
Discounts
Loss
Sales
Discounts
Loss
We also learned about simple interest (I=prt) and how this can work as either a percent increase, such as in savings accounts and investments, or as a percent decrease, such as credit card and mortgage payments. I used this opportunity to inform the students of what credit cards are and how they work. After watching this short video clip on “Using Credit Wisely,” the students then participated in an activity where they analyzed a situation where Mrs. V was paying the minimum balance on her credit card rather than paying the credit card bill in full. Seeing firsthand how credit card debt accumulates over time was very eye opening for many students! If you’re looking for a way to talk about money matters with your child, I highly suggest watching the video clip mentioned above. It is chock-full of great content, even for adults! I, myself, was reminded of several important things about credit ratings and credit history as I watched it….
Lastly, some special guest appearances were made this week! Wonder Woman, along with a digital Alec Trebeck, hosted a wonderful game of Jeopardy designed to review all previously learned concepts in the “Percentage Unit”. Although they won’t have the pleasure of working with Wonder Woman, I would like for the students to continue this review at home as well. A great way to do this is by visiting my website. All instructional PowerPoints are now available on the website on the “What We Are Studying Right Now” and “Class Notes” pages. These PowerPoints make for an excellent means to review material being learned in class. If you do not have PowerPoint installed on your home computer, you can download Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer for free by clicking here. For extra fun, challenge your child to a game of Jeopardy which is also located on the website! Let them show you all of the wonderful real-life applications they are learning in school. They may not be quite ready to take over your family budgeting, but I would like to believe they are well on their way!
Lastly, some special guest appearances were made this week! Wonder Woman, along with a digital Alec Trebeck, hosted a wonderful game of Jeopardy designed to review all previously learned concepts in the “Percentage Unit”. Although they won’t have the pleasure of working with Wonder Woman, I would like for the students to continue this review at home as well. A great way to do this is by visiting my website. All instructional PowerPoints are now available on the website on the “What We Are Studying Right Now” and “Class Notes” pages. These PowerPoints make for an excellent means to review material being learned in class. If you do not have PowerPoint installed on your home computer, you can download Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer for free by clicking here. For extra fun, challenge your child to a game of Jeopardy which is also located on the website! Let them show you all of the wonderful real-life applications they are learning in school. They may not be quite ready to take over your family budgeting, but I would like to believe they are well on their way!
NEWSFLASH!!!!!
Mrs V's classroom website is now an org!!! You can officially access my website
by simplying typing
into your browser!
This upgrade allows me to easily post much more high quality content
such as Powerpoints and videos!
I hope this resource continues to be of use to everyone!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment