Cool Slow Motion Video!!!  How awesome would this be for a fundraiser?!

8th: Today we made some balloon rockets in order to model how rockets propel themselves.  Tomorrow is a quiz and the kids should study page 45 (assessment questions) since they are excellent quiz questions.

7th: Today we went over the section 1.5 guided reading on plate tectonics.  Also excellent quiz questions.

8th: Today we worked through Chapter section 2.1 which has to do with the intro into Rocket Science.  Soon we’ll have our kids orbiting the Earth!  Trying to get ahold of some Estes Rockets and launch pads to make a cool lab day next week!

7th: Today was our very messy, very fun and very intricate chocolate convection lab.  They need to have the report done and turned in tomorrow.

8th: Today we spent our last day working on our Martian Calendar and the kids need to finish it at home if they aren’t done.  After that we started in on the Science of Rockets, which is section 2.1 in their text.  This week should be cool since we will hopefully shoot off some water rockets and throw some paper airplanes!

7th: Today I introduced the kids to my Chocolate Convection Lab and talked about what to expect for tomorrow.  We also worked through a map exercise where we had to find land formations and boundary lines on a  global map in an effort to support tomorrow’s lab.  After that, we started section 1.5 in the text on plate tectonics.  The guided reading is homework.

8th: Today we started in on our Martian Calendar.  They have to take the 687 days of Mars’ rotation around the sun and create their own calendar with days, weeks and months and make it work.

7th: We started a writing exercise over one of my Science Controversy Cartoons.  The kids need to look a the cartoon and determine the central message, who it affects and how we can help solve the problem.  I expect well written paragraphs about it:

ScienceControversy#1

8th: Quiz over section 1.3 Phases, Eclipses and Tides.  Then we started in on an IMAX Blue Planet video to increase our frame of reference about the celestial objects.

7th: We took our 4th quiz which was over sea floor spreading and then read a comic called Journey Along A Fieldline.  Next week we’ll get into it a little more and do some cool labs!

Here’s why we teach science: because it can save your life some day!!  

8th: Today we worked through more eclipses and cleared up some confusion on the webquest from yesterday.  Then I tested them with a moon  phase exercise and made sure they have what they need to know for the quiz tomorrow.  They are starting to come around on this section of the text.  It hasn’t been that easy so far.

7th: Today we finished up our subduction project and completed the chapter guided reading.  I also introduced them to a few “why we need to learn science” issues that affect them in real life.

8th: Today we worked through a webquest on Mr. Eclipse.Com.  The kids should have finished in class, however if they didn’t they need to finish it at home.  IF they don’t have internet access, I’ll work out a time for them to complete it.

7th: Today we are working through “subduction at trenches” by constructing a flipbook that covers pages 23 through 29.  We worked through a simulation here: Subduction Animation and reviewed what we did yesterday as well.

Scariest science video I’ve seen!

8th: Today we took a pop quiz on the moon phases, which VERY FEW kids were able to complete correctly.  After that we reviewed a powerpoint presentation and looked into eclipses and tides.

7th: Today we reviewed some sea floor spreading and worked through a few animations online to show the mechanisms behind sea floor spreading.  More to come!

Also, I gave all the kids a brain puzzle.  Try to count the squares here: 

8th: Today we did a weird little lab with oreo cookies.  The kids were supposed to take a collection of oreos and make the moon phases out of them.  After they did it correctly, they were  supposed to draw in the moon phase itself on a worksheet and eat the cookies.  (I think they love me for that one.)  After that, were onto eclipses and tides! http://www.leosciencelab.com/userimages/Oreo%20Moon%20Phases.pdf

7th: We started in on sea floor spreading after a fun “following directions quiz” and a video about undersea volcanoes.  More to come this week!

8th: Today we reviewed moon phases with a short video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXseTWTZlks as well as looked over our notes before we took the quiz.  After that, we started in on a Nova/PBS video on the origins of the planet in order to solidify some background knowledge on how the Earth came into being: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/space/origins-series-overview.html#origins-earth-born

7th: Today we reviewed Wegener’s theory and took a short quiz.  After that, we watched the Origins of theEarth video.  I also found a really great plate tectonics animation here: http://sepuplhs.org/middle/iaes/students/simulations/SEPUP_Plate_simulation.swf