Systems Analysis

Before the break, I asked the students to consider a topic for their science project. They returned with some wonderful ideas. Please continue to work with them on developing ideas. Formal communication on the specifics of the Science Fair will be going home this week. 

Remember, students will have one chapter to read per week. I will usually follow that with a comprehension assignment. Please follow up with them to make sure these things are being completed. 

This week, DC 1&2 are learning about systems.
Systems are any group of things or ideas that work together to fulfill a purpose. We compared different types of systems and learned the vocabulary to help us articulate that types of systems that we see in action every day. In this picture, students have built a doorbell. Then they removed and replaced parts of the doorbell to see if it was possible to learn what was the purpose of each part. 

Next week, students will be learning about the different types of materials that are used in engineering and technology and how to judge their properties. These studies will be in Unit 3 and Lesson 4 of their science book. We have almost wrapped up this study of Science and will be studying the sciences themselves. 

These students are designing and trouble-shooting a
small vehicle with 4-wheel-drive.

The Grammar Class 6 rocked this week!
They learned about the three types of rock and how they are affected by the rock cycle. We demonstrated how a chemical rock is formed by evaporating salt water in the classroom, and we examined the physical properties of rocks to determine what type of rock they were and how they may have been formed. (Did you know that stone-washed jeans were made by washing blue jeans with pumice stones. Pumice stones are igneous rocks used for many scrubbing projects.)
Next week, we will dive even deeper into the rock cycle. And learn to use use tests to identify rocks.