5th grade finding volume of regular shaped objects

As we learn about matter - solid, liquid and gases - we learn about properties. One of which is volume. The students find volume by measuring and then calculating l x w x h.

Onto finding and calculating the formula for density D=m/v.

7th grade Science is...

"Science is..." statements were a start to our school year. I asked the students to illustrate the Science is... Statement of their choice. Did they agree? Disagree? Could it be portrayed in an illustration?

Again, the creativity and thought many students put into this was, as always, inspiring.

7th grade

7th grade science typically consists of primarily biology, anatomy/physiology and health.

We are starting out by thinking of what life is and then we will move into the basic unit of life - the cell.

Biology is a lot of fun and will run from body systems, to dissections to DNA, genetics, bacteria, viruses, animals, evolution, animal classifications, and the list goes on and on.

It is vital that students revisit notes, stay caught up on any reading and do well on all assignments and labs.

It's fun, it's exciting, but it IS WORK. and I can't wait!

CALIFORNIA COASTAL CLEANUP SATURDAY SEPT. 21, 2013

Who: Open to 6,7,8th graders - adults are WELCOME to join! The more the merrier!

Where: Sloat and the Great Highway - out by the SF Zoo. There is parking but it MIGHT be tough due to number of participants.

Time: 9:00 am - 10:30 am

Things to know:

1) This is totally voluntary. NOT MANDATORY!

2) A waiver MUST be signed by parent for minors.

3) Must have own transportation to event and from event.

4) Must check in and check out with teacher.

5) We will be keeping data so participation and accuracy is crucial.

PLEASE read the following as it taken straight from the California Coastal Commission website.

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO HELP, PARTICIPATE - check out these statistics:

PLEASE READ:

What the WAIVER looks like:

Some thoughts I want to share...

Please encourage your student to be open to thinking of science as a different kind of opportunity to be creative. Science provides an opportunity to try things, but be responsible for gaining knowledge - not just doing a lab, activity, assignment to get through something.

Everybody has a sense of curiosity, I want that for our students. I encourage independent, critical thinking and problem solving skills. We do many activities that require them to work as a team. However, there are many times of sketchings and journal entries that allow for individual, self-directed thought. So I just ask that you encourage your student to be open and ready to sometimes be taken out of his/her comfort zones - not everything comes from a textbook - it can be a tool, a reference. We will combine science with math, art and literature. We build, design and create. It all comes together, it's science.

         Their individual abilities are amazing, their work as table teams or pairs is incredible.

                                                       The best part? 

                                 I get to be a part of that. It's a blessing and I am thankful.

6th grade

Making Gak, the students are demonstrating the composition of the layer of the earth called the mantle.

It is not solid, it is not liquid either!

6th grade

So we begin EARTH SCIENCE!

Please be sure to keep,up with readings in the text as the class is definitely more labs and hands on activities. We start with learning about the layers of the earth and will move into plate tectonics. Because it is difficult to study the inner earth, we do a lot of simulations and labs to simulate earth's activities.

So we are and running - making models and working to understand the inner composition of our planet Earth.