To end the 3rd nine weeks and begin the month of March my gifted students read information about how scientists gathered evidence to support Einstein's predictions about gravitational waves. We read an article about the Nobel Prize-winning science behind the sci-fi adventure A Wrinkle in Time, watched a TED talk from a professor at MIT about what the discovery of gravitational waves means, discussed how science influences literature, reviewed how scientists used scientific practices to investigate gravitational waves, and even went back to last year and discussed the fact that the Nobel Prize in Physics awarded in November of 2017 went to physics professors studying this exact theory. These same scientists were able to observe for the very first time the universe's gravitational waves (all this using very sensitive instruments....one of the two that exists happens to be in Livingston, LA). With that said and the timing of the release of Disney's movie A Wrinkle in Time I made plans to bring my 4th-8th graders to watch the film at the movie theater on Wednesday, March 14th. I thought that the timing of this movie was perfect for our theme and allowed us to take advantage of a teachable moment as well as watch an incredible movie together as a class (on its 6th day open at the theaters)! One of the most amazing parts of it all is that we watched the movie on Albert Einstein’s birthday and the day that Stephen Hawking (an Albert Einstein of our time) died. It was like the stars aligned and we were supposed to watch the movie!
Our latest art project involves some math: concentric circles, annulus, and symmetry! Students drew their very own mandalas. They first had to find a perfect center, create three concentric circles around the center, measure the annulus desired between each circle, and then use symmetry to create designs all around the mandala. Each students' mandala was very unique. Some of the students are also working on greeting cards using Spirograph designs they created, and other students are taking advantage of the art task challenge cards found at our class art center. Lastly, my youngest group of students began experimenting with chalk pastels and created Easter/Spring art pictures that came out so nice. We discussed blending techniques and tips for creating art with chalk pastels. For many in that particular class it was their first experience using that media.
Most classes also completed a project in which they evaluated and summarized various science news article from the year. They first had to reflect back on all the topics and news stories we have covered and then determine which stories they believed deserved to make the "Top 10". Students were not allowed to copy subtitles. They had to create their own to go with the stories. This was a quick, yet fun filled and informative project. All student groups presented their posters to the class and were graded with a rubric by the teacher! In addition, all students took time to evaluate each others' posters and complete a peer TAG critique (T= tell them something you like about the poster/product; A= ask them a question about the poster; G= give them a positive suggestion).
During the month of March some classes took part in a breakout titled "Heart Transplant". Students acted as cardiologist and were given the task to open a box that contained a heart needed for operation. They had 45 minutes to solve the clues, unlock the box, and save their patient. Only one group of students out of ten groups total were able to successfully breakout of the box within 45 minutes. All other groups required an extension to the time allowed. All in all, it was a fun breakout that involved some physical activity (exercise) and higher level critical thinking skills (math, decoding, etc). Following the actual breakout experience students reflected on the activity providing feedback to me on ways to improve the breakout or shout-outs to teammates that did an excellent job solving the problems. All students were also given a 29 piece 3D puzzle of a human heart and asked to put the heart together. This task alone was challenging for most students but as they put the pieces together they were able to identify and describe the functions of all parts of the human heart!
Another activity completed during the month of March was one in which the students took on the role of a scientist who was investigating the amount of iron found in certain foods. After a review and discussion on entomophagy (its pros and cons and discussing the fact that edible insects are a good source of iron), student groups tested 3 different mystery cereals to find out which of the three mystery cereals contained the most iron? They crushed the cereal into a powder, created magnet wands to conduct the test, and were able to successfully pull iron from each of the samples! This turned out to be a very interesting hands-on science project for the students as well as a great review of the scientific method/process.
What's Next???
Projects to look forward to during the month of April include: a research project on Isaac Newton being completed by my first through third graders; STEAM Career projects; and blackout poetry!
Our latest art project involves some math: concentric circles, annulus, and symmetry! Students drew their very own mandalas. They first had to find a perfect center, create three concentric circles around the center, measure the annulus desired between each circle, and then use symmetry to create designs all around the mandala. Each students' mandala was very unique. Some of the students are also working on greeting cards using Spirograph designs they created, and other students are taking advantage of the art task challenge cards found at our class art center. Lastly, my youngest group of students began experimenting with chalk pastels and created Easter/Spring art pictures that came out so nice. We discussed blending techniques and tips for creating art with chalk pastels. For many in that particular class it was their first experience using that media.
Most classes also completed a project in which they evaluated and summarized various science news article from the year. They first had to reflect back on all the topics and news stories we have covered and then determine which stories they believed deserved to make the "Top 10". Students were not allowed to copy subtitles. They had to create their own to go with the stories. This was a quick, yet fun filled and informative project. All student groups presented their posters to the class and were graded with a rubric by the teacher! In addition, all students took time to evaluate each others' posters and complete a peer TAG critique (T= tell them something you like about the poster/product; A= ask them a question about the poster; G= give them a positive suggestion).
During the month of March some classes took part in a breakout titled "Heart Transplant". Students acted as cardiologist and were given the task to open a box that contained a heart needed for operation. They had 45 minutes to solve the clues, unlock the box, and save their patient. Only one group of students out of ten groups total were able to successfully breakout of the box within 45 minutes. All other groups required an extension to the time allowed. All in all, it was a fun breakout that involved some physical activity (exercise) and higher level critical thinking skills (math, decoding, etc). Following the actual breakout experience students reflected on the activity providing feedback to me on ways to improve the breakout or shout-outs to teammates that did an excellent job solving the problems. All students were also given a 29 piece 3D puzzle of a human heart and asked to put the heart together. This task alone was challenging for most students but as they put the pieces together they were able to identify and describe the functions of all parts of the human heart!
Another activity completed during the month of March was one in which the students took on the role of a scientist who was investigating the amount of iron found in certain foods. After a review and discussion on entomophagy (its pros and cons and discussing the fact that edible insects are a good source of iron), student groups tested 3 different mystery cereals to find out which of the three mystery cereals contained the most iron? They crushed the cereal into a powder, created magnet wands to conduct the test, and were able to successfully pull iron from each of the samples! This turned out to be a very interesting hands-on science project for the students as well as a great review of the scientific method/process.
What's Next???
Projects to look forward to during the month of April include: a research project on Isaac Newton being completed by my first through third graders; STEAM Career projects; and blackout poetry!