In Science Class . .. Week of 2/27

4th Grade: This week, the students have been studying the structure of the earth and the types of rocks (and how they form). We took some notes, discussed and played a game to reinforce vocabulary. Next week, we'll be moving on to weathering and erosion.
Key questions to ask:

• What are they layers of the earth? (Core, mantle, crust)
• What are the three types of rocks and how are they formed? (Igneous rock is rocked formed from the cooling of the mantle. Sedimentary rock is rock formed when bits of other rock are pressed together. Metamorphic rock is rock formed from heat and pressure.)
• What processes are important in the rock cycle? (Weathering, melting, heat and pressure are important ways that rocks can, over a long time, be changed into a different type of rock.)

5th Grade: Last week, we looked at how the energy from the sun heats water and soil. We took containers of water and soil outside and measured the temperatures over time in the sun and the shade. Students found that the soil heated and cooled much more quickly than water, which maintained a pretty even temperature throughout. On Monday, we practiced line graphing with our results. This activity will provide a basis for how the sun's energy affects the heating and cooling of the earth, weather, and atmospheric conditions. On Wednesday, students where officially introduced to the earth's atmosphere through a writing activity about photos of the earth. We then observed and discussed atmospheric pressure by putting various objects (balloon, marshmallow, bubble wrap, water) in a vacuum chamber. Kids LOVED watching the objects expand and the water change phase. It was so much fun! Next week, we're on to weather.

Key questions:

• What where the results of your heating soil/water experiment? (Soil heated and cooled much more quickly than water.)
  
• What happened to objects in the vacuum chamber? Why? (The objects expanded due to decreased atmospheric pressure on them. The balloon and bubble wrap stretched and then popped. The water started to change to a gas because of the decreased pressure as well.)
  

In Science Class . . . Week of 2/6

5th Grade: Ask your child about outdoor science camp! Kids should have a good working knowledge of redwood ecology, gardening, adaptations, etc. I was with them for part of Tue and all day Wed - it seemed like they were having a great time, and the weather was overall beautiful. What an amazing opportunity for them! If you have a minute, thank Mr. Weis, Ms. Klein and Ms. Delgado for putting so much time and energy into getting the kids there!

4th Grade: This week, we examined some new minerals and discussed the properties of magnetism, luster, cleavage, and streak color. We filled out a mineral property table and compared it to a table of known mineral properties.

Key Questions:

• What knew properties did you learn about? (Magnetism. Luster = metallic or nonmetallic. Cleavage = mineral breaks apart with flat surfaces. Streak color - color of the streak of mineral pieces when a mineral is rubbed against a tile). Why did you study this? (It helps us understand how geologists identify a mineral and also helps with our table-reading skills.) FYI, the new minerals were hematite, pyrite or Fool's Gold, galena and magnetite.

In Science Class . . . Week of 1/31

5th Grade: Since wrapping up our study of evaporation and condensation, we have started to look at the water cycle as a whole. Today, students played a game in which they "became" a molecule of water and traveled to various locations (and through various processes) on planet earth. It was fun, and kids were engaged. There was a little bit of mild frustration about being "stuck" in the ocean from a few "molecules" though : ) We'll debrief a bit more on Friday, and then it's off to science camp next week!

Key questions:

• Where did your molecule "travel?" How did it move to each location from the previous one? (Evaporation, condensation, flowing rivers, sinking into the ground, freezing into a glacier, being ingested by an animal, etc)
  

4th Grade: This week and last, we've been exploring new mineral properties. We found that calcite, a mineral, reacts with acids to form a chemical reaction that results in bubbles. Last week, we tested several rocks for calcite by putting the rocks in vinegar. Two rock types - marble and limestone- bubbled. This week and early next week, we'll examine some new minerals and discuss the properties of magnetism, luster, cleavage, and streak color. We'll fill out a mineral property table and compare it to a table of known mineral properties.

Key Questions:

• What rocks contained calcite? How did you know?
• What knew properties did you learn about? (Magnetism. Luster = metallic or nonmetallic. Cleavage = mineral breaks apart with flat surfaces. Streak color - color of the streak of mineral pieces when a mineral is rubbed against a tile). Why did you study this? (It helps us understand how geologists identify a mineral and also helps with our table-reading skills.) FYI, the new minerals were hematite, pyrite or Fool's Gold, galena and magnetite.

In Science Class . .. Weeks of 1/16 and 1/23

5th Grade: Last week and this week, we've continued our study of evaporation. Students put the same amount of water in different sized containers (with different surface areas) and measured how much water evaporated over the weekend. We found that the containers with the most surface area (water spread out) had highest evaporation rates, while our tall, thin vials barely lost any water to evaporation. Next up, we'll be looking more closely at the atmosphere and water cycle.
Key questions:

• What did your group find out about evaporation? (Evaporation happens more quickly in areas with higher temperature and in containers with larger surface area)
• What process is the opposite of evaporation? (Evaporation is the process of a liquid changing phase to a gas. Condensation is the process of a gas turning to a liquid. Freezing is liquid to solid while melting is solid to liquid.)

4th Grade: Last week, we examined the mineral property of hardness. Student experimented and found that "harder" minerals can scratch softer ones. We scratched four minerals with our fingernail, an aluminum nail, and a paper clip. The hardest mineral, quartz, could not be scratched by any of the tools, while gypsum, the softest, could be scratched by all three tools. This week, we discussed the Mohs Hardness Scale, which ranks minerals on a scale of 1-10 based on their hardness. Gypsum was a "2" while quartz was a "7." Often times, gemstones like emeralds, rubies, etc are high up on the hardness scale. Diamonds are a "10."

• What minerals were softer? How did you know? (Gypsum and calcite were softest and could be scratched by at least 2 of the tools. Fluorite and quartz were harder and couldn't be easily scratched.)
  
• What mineral was the hardest? (Quartz was hardest and could not be scratched by anything. FYI, it's a "7" on the Mohs hardness scale.)
  
• As we look at the hardness scale, can a "3" scratch a "5" mineral? What about the other way around? (A "3" mineral cannot scratch a "5" mineral because a "5" is harder, but a "5" mineral can make a mark on a "3" mineral.
  

In Science Class . . .. Weeks of 1/3 and 1/9

5th Grade: This week, the students will be focusing more on evaporation and recording data. We will examine our paper towel experiment, and then design an experiment to investigate how different locations in the room affect evaporation. Key questions:

• What happened to the scale with the paper towels? (The paper towel without the lid dried, meaning the water evaporated. The paper towel with the lid did not dry because the water was contained, though there was some condensation on the inside of the cup. The scale tipped toward the side with the lid because it still contained water, whereas the water on the other paper towel had escaped into the atmosphere.)
• Where did your group place the cups with water? What predictions did you make? Which cups will have the highest evaporation rates?

4th Grade: Our new unit is on earth science. Last week, we examined some fake and real rocks and discussing what sort of information geologists collect. Students will be working with the measuring tape and balances to collect data on the circumference, mass and diameter of their rocks.

• What sorts of information do geologists collect when they study rocks? (They look at the size, shape, texture, location, color, luster, etc. They also will weigh and measure the rocks)
• What did your rock look like? What did you notice about your rock? (Most of the fake rocks are gray with green and blue "minerals.")
• What tools did you use to collect information? (We used a measuring tape for circumference and diameter. The unit of measurement being centimeters. For the mass, we used a balance and took the mass in grams.)

This week in science, we acted like geologists and broke apart our fake rocks to see what "minerals" were inside. The students were able to identify several different ingredients, including red and green gravel, shells and some gray material. We then used water to see if we could separate the gray material. Key Questions:

• What is the difference between a rock and a mineral? (Minerals are the ingredients of rocks and are just one type of substance, while rocks are made of many types of minerals.)
• What types of "minerals" did you find in the "mock rock" Ms Jenkins made? (Most groups will find red and green gravel, shells, and gray material that we separated with water)
• What do geologists do? (They study rocks and make observations about the shape, size, texture, color, shininess, mass.)
• How are rocks and minerals used by humans? (We use them in various mixtures for roads, houses, jewelry, etc)

In Science Class . . . Week of 12/12

4th Grade: Quizzes will be going home this week. The material was a struggle for some students, so if your student would like to retake the quiz, I am available before and after school and during lunch on Wednesday and Friday. (Unfortunately, I teach through morning recess so that's not an option). We went over the quiz, and correct answers are written down. If students are still confused, please have them come visit me and we can go over it!

We also will be continuing our explorations of wind energy and turbine design! See the previous post for more details. It's been a huge hit with the students, and many of them are working very well in pairs to design interesting and efficient turbine blades!

5th Grade: The students are finishing up their planet advertising campaigns. We've been imagining that there is now a booming space tourism industry and they were in charge of creating a brochure or poster to attract tourists to their planet. This has helped students understand how planets in our solar system are unique and similar, and has helped them envision what it would be like to have humans visit and stay on their planet. Many of the planets create challenges for life, including very hot or very cold temperatures, differences in or lack of atmosphere, radically different surface compositions and gravitational pull.

• What planet did you study?
• How is this planet similar to or different from Earth?
• What sort of "attractions" did you create for your tourists?
  

In Science Class . . . Week of 12/5

4th Grade: The fourth graders this week have been wrapping up our unit on magnetism and electricity. The students took (or will take) an open notebook assessment on circuits, magnetism, and electromagnets. For the fun stuff, we are spending the rest of our science time before break designing wind turbines and testing them for electrical output! As part of a teacher education program at Chabot Space and Science Center, I acquired supplies for building wind turbines. The students will be testing different sizes and shapes of blades, and using a multimeter to measure how much electricity is generated when the blades are tested using a fan. So far, it's been great!

• How does motion generate electricity? (The motion can move a magnet in an electromagnet to generate electricity.)
• What blade shape on your wind turbine worked the best?
  
• Why is wind energy a renewable energy source? (Unlike fossil fuels, wind energy does not get depleted. It is also beneficial because it doesn't release pollution.)

5th Grade: We continue our work on understanding the solar system. We are creating advertising campaigns for each planet, envisioning that tourists may actually be able to visit other planets. Students are making posters and brochures that explain why each planet is unique.