Science
Science, science everywhere!!! This has been a really exciting week in the science classroom! We spend the beginning of the week learning about Global Warming. Please take a second and ask your child what they think about the greenhouse gasses being emitted into the atmosphere. We have had some really amazing conversations about using alternate energy sources. We have been discussing the consequences of using fossil fuels and the impact on the polar bears and the Arctic ice. To illustrate the effect of global warming we created Global Warming Jars and took temperature measurements before and after one hour of direct sunlight. Your children were able to observe that trapping the radiant energy creates a much warmer temperature. We redirected our thinking to utilizing the sun as an energy source by creating solar cookers. Your children had an amazing time creating solar cookers and making S'mores. We applied the concepts of conduction, convection, and radiant energy to our solar cookers. I was amazed by how quickly your children were able to process these vocabulary terms and apply them to their solar cookers! On Friday turned in our homework and shared our Home Energy Assessments with each other. We talked about applying our knowledge of energy problems into solutions for our Green Home construction. We also used photovoltaic cells to understand how they work and learn practical applications for the use of solar cells. We had a very busy week in science, I had a blast and hope that your child did too!
Science, science everywhere!!! This has been a really exciting week in the science classroom! We spend the beginning of the week learning about Global Warming. Please take a second and ask your child what they think about the greenhouse gasses being emitted into the atmosphere. We have had some really amazing conversations about using alternate energy sources. We have been discussing the consequences of using fossil fuels and the impact on the polar bears and the Arctic ice. To illustrate the effect of global warming we created Global Warming Jars and took temperature measurements before and after one hour of direct sunlight. Your children were able to observe that trapping the radiant energy creates a much warmer temperature. We redirected our thinking to utilizing the sun as an energy source by creating solar cookers. Your children had an amazing time creating solar cookers and making S'mores. We applied the concepts of conduction, convection, and radiant energy to our solar cookers. I was amazed by how quickly your children were able to process these vocabulary terms and apply them to their solar cookers! On Friday turned in our homework and shared our Home Energy Assessments with each other. We talked about applying our knowledge of energy problems into solutions for our Green Home construction. We also used photovoltaic cells to understand how they work and learn practical applications for the use of solar cells. We had a very busy week in science, I had a blast and hope that your child did too!
Math
Our first unit of Green Home Design is well underway. Since development of proportional reasoning is one of the most important goals of the 5-8 curriculum, the project of designing and building a scale model of a “green” home is of particular significance to our students’ learning. To begin the mathematical portion of this unit, we defined and explored the concept of ratios through an interactive note-taking and problem-solving experience via PowerPoint. In this activity, students solved ratio problems in a variety of contexts such as boy to girl ratios at weekend parties and candy bar comparisons. We explored part-to-whole ratios as well as part-to-part ratios to deepen our understanding of how ratios and fractions differ. Then through viewing a short video clip of a scale model displayed at Lego Land USA, we took this knowledge and applied it to scale and proportion. We discussed the difference between similar and congruent figures and their relevance to scale drawings. To make these concepts more concrete, the students began the process of making a scale drawing of our classroom. This activity involved estimating the lengths of each side of the room, actually measuring the sides of the room, and then formulating algebraic statements to check the accuracy of our measurements. (Ex: EF = AB + CD; FA = BC + DE)
As we progress in this unit, I encourage you to point out the connections ratios (and rates) have to your daily lives whenever possible. Here are a few possibilities:
As we progress in this unit, I encourage you to point out the connections ratios (and rates) have to your daily lives whenever possible. Here are a few possibilities:
Cooking
· Rice – 2:1 ratio of water to rice
· Salad dressing – 1: 3 ratio of vinegar to oil
· Any situation where you are increasing or decreasing a recipe.
Digital Photography
· Resizing images for publication (email or other digital media)
Sports
· 8 minutes: 1 mile (running)
Medication
· Body size: dosage 40lb: 1 tsp
Money/Shopping
· 12 boxes: $5.99
Friday’s review/ enrichment session went very well. Some students received teacher assistance on problems that they found challenging on last week’s assignment. Student who did not need this extra assistance participated in a NCTM “Cartoon Corner” entitled Text Message Injury in which they explored the concept of ratios and proportions through daily and monthly text messaging data. Hopefully none of your children suffer from “Carpel Thummel”. (Get it?) Lastly, we reflected in our daybooks about this week’s learning experiences and then set some goals for the upcoming unit of study. I am thrilled with the growth and maturity I see in your children! It’s going to be a GREAT year!
· Rice – 2:1 ratio of water to rice
· Salad dressing – 1: 3 ratio of vinegar to oil
· Any situation where you are increasing or decreasing a recipe.
Digital Photography
· Resizing images for publication (email or other digital media)
Sports
· 8 minutes: 1 mile (running)
Medication
· Body size: dosage 40lb: 1 tsp
Money/Shopping
· 12 boxes: $5.99
Friday’s review/ enrichment session went very well. Some students received teacher assistance on problems that they found challenging on last week’s assignment. Student who did not need this extra assistance participated in a NCTM “Cartoon Corner” entitled Text Message Injury in which they explored the concept of ratios and proportions through daily and monthly text messaging data. Hopefully none of your children suffer from “Carpel Thummel”. (Get it?) Lastly, we reflected in our daybooks about this week’s learning experiences and then set some goals for the upcoming unit of study. I am thrilled with the growth and maturity I see in your children! It’s going to be a GREAT year!
A Quick Note About Homework
I know that you are eager to turn the responsibility of homework completion over to your child, and I am completely with you on this! However, since it is the beginning of the school year and we have a new format in place, it would be very helpful if you would check in with your child, particularly regarding the format, for the next couple of weeks. Prior to starting each assignment, I think it would be beneficial for your child to review the reminders found on the homework page of my website. Then upon completion, they should refer to it again as they assemble their final product. We had each student staple a hard copy of this checklist to next week’s assignment to help them with this important organizational piece. Simple things such as stapling papers in order and labeling papers with name, date, and section number save the teachers a tremendous amount of time. Thank you so much for all you do at home to help your child reach his/her full potential. Your help, involvement, and support are invaluable to me!
I know that you are eager to turn the responsibility of homework completion over to your child, and I am completely with you on this! However, since it is the beginning of the school year and we have a new format in place, it would be very helpful if you would check in with your child, particularly regarding the format, for the next couple of weeks. Prior to starting each assignment, I think it would be beneficial for your child to review the reminders found on the homework page of my website. Then upon completion, they should refer to it again as they assemble their final product. We had each student staple a hard copy of this checklist to next week’s assignment to help them with this important organizational piece. Simple things such as stapling papers in order and labeling papers with name, date, and section number save the teachers a tremendous amount of time. Thank you so much for all you do at home to help your child reach his/her full potential. Your help, involvement, and support are invaluable to me!
