Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011

1. Go to Brainpop.com
2. Follow the instructions on your computer lab handout for today
3. Come back here and answer the following question:

After Watching both videos and e-mailing the quizzes leave a comment below telling me something new you learned today, it can either be about weathering or erosion.

Have a great Thanksgiving!!

Mrs. E

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

Today in class we were beginning the early stages of becoming cartographers who need to create maps of our school. First we began by discussing what the word "model" meant and all of the different examples of models that we could think of. We discussed how a map is an example of a model representing an area on the Earth. We created a list of things that should be included on a map of our school.

Tomorrow we will continue our mapmaking process by creating our actual map and designing it.

See ya then,
Mrs. E

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

Today is our first time using the blog this year. We just took our first Science CBA over Physical Science content and today we will begin our unit on Earth Science. Today you made vocabulary cards for the following words:

72. Model- something that represents something else
73. Boundary- a limit or border of an area or region
74. Structure- something built by people, like a road or a building
75. Map- a drawing of an area, usually as though you were looking down on it
76. Cartographer- a person who makes maps
77. Grid- a network of vertical and horizontal lines that form squares on a map
78. Symbol- a color, shape or texture used on a map to represent something else; like a road
79. Key- an explanation of any symbols used on a map

Tomorrow in class, we will become cartographers and create a map of the school. For today's blog entry I'd like you to write a short paragraph, describing what you think we will be doing tomorrow. In your paragraph you will need to make sure to include all eight of our new vocabulary words, make them bold or italic to make them stand out when I am grading your entries!! Remember, no names, only your classroom number. She the first comment as an example...

Have fun!!!
Mrs. E

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Friday, March 25th, 2011

Today we are going to continue our discussions of Adaptations.

First it is important to fully understand what an adaptation is. An adaptation is a STRUCTURE (body part) or BEHAVIOR (something the organism does) that helps and ORGANISM (any living thing) to SURVIVE in it's environment. These adaptations can serve many purposes, such as: air, water, food, survival, reproduction, etc. Let's watch the following STUDY JAMS video to learn more about adaptations.

Now, grab the bag that you have in the center of your table. You and your group members are going to sort the thirty pictures of organisms that you have into the nine biomes that we learned about in class earlier this week. For a reminder these are: Marshes, Fresh Water, Marine/Ocean, Deciduous Forests, Tropical Rain Forests, Tundra, Taiga, Desert, and Grasslands. When you are finished please raise your hand and either Mrs. Kuykendall or I will come to you and check your work. Once you have solved them correctly, you need to flip each organism over and write an adaptation that it uses in it's environment.

Now, we have learned that organisms are any living things and are seperated into both producers (organisms that make thier own food) and consumers (organsims that get their energy from another organism). Consumers are then split up even further into three separate categories: Herbivores (plant eaters), Carnivores (meat eaters) and Omnivores (eat both plants and animals). These organisms have an adaptation that we sometimes overlook; and that is the shape of their teeth. Let's explore this further by going to Teeth and Eating.

Another adaptation that we often overlook is an organisms feet. An organism's feet can help them in many ways. By looking at their feet we should be able to tell if the organism lives in a wet/dry climate and possibly even what color/texture the ground in their environment is. Let's explore feet here.

Another adaptation that an organism has that can tell us alot about them are the beaks of some organisms. The shape and length and texture of an organism's beak can tell us what type of food they eat and how it is used. For instance, a short, wide, strong, pointed beak is often used for cracking seeds and nuts. A sharply hooked beak is used for tearing animal tissue. A long, spear-shaped beak with a wide base is used for spearing fish. Finally, a long, very narrow beak is used for probing flowers for nectar. In your same bag that your group was given earlier you will find a half sheet of pictures of birds, and a half sheet of a chart, take one of each and with a partner try to determine which bird species matches which beaks. Once you have figured it out glue them in the correct place and glue the completed chart in your composition book.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Monday, March 21st, 2011

Hey guys,

It's been awhile, I know, but now that we are back from spring break and getting ready for the BIG DAY (a.k.a. Science TAKS). Look over on the right side of the page to see the countdown clock.

So, this week in Science we are going to be talking about Habitats and Adaptations. To start us off this week, I'd like you to click on the following link ADAPTATIONS and watch the video, you may need to watch it once and then watch it a second time to look for the answers to the questions that you have to answer.

After watching the video the second time: choose one of the animals that Mr. Gallo discusses: the first cephalopod, the squid, the cuttlefish, the second cephalodpod, the first octopus or the second octopus. Then respond with a comment telling me what animal you are talking about, what you saw them do in the video, and why you thought it was happening. Please remember to put your classroom number with your response.

Look for more coming tomorrow!!!

Mrs. E

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Tuesday, January 25th, 2011

Yesterday and today we discussed the Solar System. We reminded ourselves of the Acronym that helps us to remember the order of the planets: (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune).
My
Very
Educated
Mother
Just
Served
Us
Nachos

We discussed the fact that Pluto is not considered a planet, that it does not meet the definition of a planet because it is too small, it is now considered a dwarf planet. We discussed the location of the asteroid belt and how it separates the inner (rocky) planets from the outer (frozen/gas giant) planets.

Here is a picture we created in class that they put in their composition books.



Tuesday, January 25th, 2011

Today is the Science Fair!! YEA!!! We had everyone turn in projects, and we did a great job. Hopefully we had fun studying and working through the Scientific Method and we will remember what the ever-so-important VARIABLE is for our big day.

Here is a lovely slideshow of our kiddos and their GREAT projects!



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Another photo slideshow by Smilebox

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Thursday, January 13th, 2010

Hey guys,

Since we have been back from break, we haven't made it to the computer lab with our day being the same as those that we have been off. We are currently wrapping up our Earth Science studies and will be moving on to Life Science in a few weeks. As you are reading, remember that any underlined words are linked to examples for better understanding.

This week we began Space Science, we started by discussing the terms ROTATE and REVOLVE and their meanings. We made a T-chart (see below) to help us classify the two terms and study their differences. We demonstrated rotating by spinning, or turning, in one spot, and revolving by going around, or orbiting, our chairs. We then talked about how the Earth is held in orbit around the Sun, found at the center of our solar system, by it's gravitational pull on us. We learned that the more mass and object has, the more gravitational pull it has. This is what keeps all of the planets in orbit around the Sun. We had volunteers demonstrate how the Sun, Earth, and Moon interact together. Today, we learned that this same concept is what keeps our moon in orbit around us. We learned that it rotates at the same speed in which it revolves, which is why we always see the same side of the moon. We began discussing the Phases of the moon, but will get more in depth on those tomorrow.

P.S. Don't forget to be working on your Science Fair Projects. Projects are due Monday the 24th, and the Science Fair Night is Tuesday the 25th. Let me know if you need any additional help or have any more questions.

Happy Star Gazing,
Mrs. E