Explorations of Elementary 2017 May Newsletter
We wrapped up the year with a lot of great projects. The students have worked hard all year and continued that hard work this month to present research to each other. We worked on number lines, learned about the layers of soil and science stations in Antarctica, performed for our grandparents, and ate lunch prepared by our classmates on a budget.
Our students practiced their piano, recorder, and Latin skills in preparation for Grandparents Day! Our students that take lessons, played a few songs on the piano for all of the grandparents. All students played songs on the recorder in groups. To showcase their Latin skills, they shared information about the Solar System and Roman Numerals and performed some short skits about gods and goddesses. Students then presented classroom materials to their grandparents and explained what they work on during the day. Thank you to all the grandparents that were able to make it! The students love sharing their knowledge.
Three of our students learned about budgeting this month. They practiced keeping track of spending with an allowance and determined the difference in what things we need and what things we want. To put this skill to use, our students made a grocery list and traveled to the store to purchase supplies to make lunch for their classmates. These students planned so well that they came in over $10 under budget! The day after their trip, these students prepared macaroni and cheese, grapes, carrots, gummies, and ice cream for their classmates. All students enjoyed having a meal made by their friends.
Our first-year students have been learning about Simple Machines for the last several weeks. After learning about them and practicing with our classroom material, they prepared to build their own machine. Each student needed to draw a sketch and make a list of supplies before building their machine. They collected supplies and got to work building. When their machines were built, they made Science Experiment Cards that listed the supplies, procedures, what would be observed, the explanation, and the cleanup process. The first-year students presented these machines to the class in small groups, then had them available for practice.
While our first years were studying Simple Machines, our second, third, and fourth year students learned the geographic features of the Earth. These students put their knowledge together to create an imaginary island using at least 10 of the features they had studied. After drawing the outline of their island, students colored and labeled the features based on a theme (Elements, Universal Studios, etc.). Some of these students traced their island on graph paper and cut it apart until they had formed a rectangle. From this new rectangle, they were able to find a base and height for the area of their island. Other students answered questions about their island, its inhabitants, and its climate. One student wrote the history of her island and wrote an anthem with a friend. I hope all of you took the time to check out this great work.
Field Day was an exciting end-of-the-year adventure. We attended Ms. Courtney’s talent show, played board games, card games, group games and video games with the best gaming mouse for cs go. We were able to enjoy the weather by eating lunch outside. After lunch, we had a boys v. girls water balloon and water gun fight. We went down the water slide with Ms. Courtney’s friends! After our fun in the water, we came in to have treats and enjoy a movie.
Thank you for such a great year. Have a relaxing summer! See you in August!