We Have LOTS of Energy!

We have been working hard on our energy unit. I have been very diligent in providing students with lots of different activities - from hands-on experiments to reading nonfiction texts - in order to provide them with authentic experiences through science. We love, love, love Bill Bye, but I do not like the idea of showing a video and throwing my hands up. We have some really good class discussions based on what we see in Bill Nye's videos! I have the students use sticky notes (which they LOVE) to write down a good piece of information that they learned from the video, and a question about something they saw or a concept they learned about. Then we talk. We talk about what we learned and we try our best to answer questions - even if we don't really know the answers. We talk about our hypotheses about the questions that we have and then over time, throughout the unit, we hopefully clear up any misconceptions. 

Getting students to think critically and to ask "juicy" questions is NOT an easy feat, people. It's a learned skill that takes a TON, TON, TON of practice. I am nowhere near where I want to be in this aspect. But I push my students more and more every day - I push them to explain more, to go deeper with what they are trying to convey, and to question everything that they learn about. Sometimes, it's so difficult for me to articulate to them what I want them to articulate! Ha! It's a vicious cycle that I continue to challenge both myself as well as my students!

Roller coasters lend themselves so very perfectly to energy. After all, without potential and kinetic energy, they wouldn't work. So I LOVE letting the students build their own roller coasters using some plastic tubing and a BB as their car. Then we talk about what in the world this has to do with energy. They LOVE coming up with elaborate coaster ideas! 

After the first day of roller coaster design, we get a little more involved with it. We start to design virtual roller coasters. I found a really great website that we use to do this - click here to check it out. And {most}of the time, they fail the first time around. Their car either flies off the track or it doesn't complete a loop, or it gets a poor safety rating. Failure is such a beautiful thing in science. Love it. It helps them LEARN! Once a failure occurs, I make them talk about WHY it failed {and what it has to do with energy} and then re-design their coaster. They love it, I love it, and everyone is happy, happy, happy.

Though there is so much MORE to roller coasters than just kinetic and potential energy, we don't really go there. I mean, come on, we're in fifth grade! However, it never ceases to amaze me how much this activity sparks so much curiosity in these kiddos. I hear things like, "What is velocity?" and "What does this have to do with gravity?" For those students, I lead them down the path that they can take in order to find the answers to these questions. I don't want to push this complex material on fifth graders, but I certainly support those students that are able to generate this type of thinking. 

Having so much fun in fifth grade science this year!!! If you have any good suggestions for books on critical thinking, post away. I welcome all the help that I can get! 

Back in Action - Exploring the Scientific Method

I'm baaaack! YAY! I have a helper today. Daddy is off work and he's on major daddy duty this morning while I pump out some school stuff.

Quick update - my school has decided that we need a change of scenery. I'm moving rooms. Wowzas! No small feat when you're a science teacher...But nonetheless, it's getting done. We have to be out by this Friday because - for extra fun - we're getting a new roof. So everything in my section of the school has to be completely removed since everything will be exposed to the elements once they start on the roof. So - EVERY teacher in the school has to pack up their classrooms - even those that aren't in my section - because we have to have a place to store the stuff from the classrooms that are affected. For any other school in the country - I would say "IMPOSSIBLE!" - but for us, PFFF. This is a walk in the park. We're getting it done and it's all good. I'm actually looking forward to a new room, a fresh start. Updates to follow! I can't get back in my room until August, so pics of said new room won't be available until then.

I am rockin' and rollin' with a new scientific method approach. I was a mess last year and didn't really focus on what I should have when introducing the scientific method and variables. I felt rushed to make sure I got "everything" in. Whatever that was. But now I have a clear understanding of how much time I have to get "everything" done and I feel much better about it. I made a little packet of fun activities that can easily and efficiently introduce both the scientific method and variables. I also found a SUPER FANTABULOUS activity that I will definitely be using. It's a paper airplane activity that is perfect for variables. I mean, what 5th grader wouldn't LOVE throwing paper airplanes in class?! Click here for that experiment.

Check out my variables experiment packet on TpT! Here's a peek:

It's so great to be back in action. My posts will still be few and {not too} far between since I have a little chicken to look after this summer, but I am definitely plugging away at my Light Unit that I've been hollering about for almost a year now - and I've also got a new take on my Human Body Unit that I'm working on. So - not to worry - I'm not going anywhere! I will just be here less frequently as I get acclimated to my baby girl's ever-changing schedule.

Which Diaper Holds the Most Liquid?

I have been working hard on coming up with simple consumer product tests that my students can do in the classroom. It's harder than you'd think! I thought up a lot of them that can be done over a period of time, but I'm specifically trying to develop experiments that they can do in 1 or 2 days max so that they can practice following through with the Scientific Process and get some practice recording their data in their science journals. Below is a list of tests that you could do in the classroom {with just collecting a few household items - or asking parents to send with their child}.

I'm demonstrating my own test that I conducted using different chewing gum brands. I wanted to see which gum holds its flavor the longest. I will record all of my info in my journal and show it to the students, just as I expect them to do throughout the year as we conduct awesome experiments. Here's an example of how students could record their data {in "Scientific Method" format.}

From the top, here is the critical information that students need to make sure they are recording as they conduct experiments:
Title of the experiment
Question that is being tested
Hypothesis
A brief description of the experiment
Data, in chart form if applicable
Analysis

Communication is not pictured, but implied. Students will always present their results in class.{informally or formally, depending on the format of the experiment and the required assignment}

As the year moves forward,  I will explain to students that to make this a more fair experiment, I would want to do this same experiment at least 3 times and collect the average flavor times. However, this activity is primarily focused on getting students used to the idea of recording their experiment data in an organized way and following through with the scientific process. The following week, I will introduce the concepts of controlled experiments and variables. Students will understand the differences between the types of variables (controlled, independent and dependent} and will know to include this information in their recordings of later controlled experiments. {This information would be placed under Data}

Here is the list of consumer science experiments that you could use in your classroom during the first few weeks of school to get them used to the idea of asking more investigative questions and get them practicing with recording their experiment data.

1. Does bubble gum really produce bigger bubbles than chewing gum?
2. Which carpet cleaner cleans Kool-Aid stains the best?
3. Which stain stick cleans Kool-Aid stains best?
4. Which popcorn brand produces the most popped kernels in X amount of time?
5. Do different brands of bubble gum produce the same size bubbles?
6. Which chocolate tastes better - generic or Hershey's? (This would be a survey experiment)
7. Which permanent markers are the best?
8. Which hairspray holds stronger against wind?
9. Which brand of glue has the strongest bond?
10. Which diaper holds the most liquid?

There are so many more experiments like these that could be conducted over a period of time - such as which freezer bags prevent freezer burn the best? Or which tooth whiteners are the best? And which batteries last the longest? But in order for my students to just practice with coming up with good, testable experiments that are quick - the above work just as well!

If you teach solely science like I do, you could also invite students to continue this trend of thinking and create their own long-term experiment on their own time. Then set aside certain days of the month to allow students to present their findings. I call this "Mad Scientists" in my classroom and hope that my students will take advantage of it throughout the year!