Wednesday, September 11, 2013

2nd Grade Field Trip to Powell Gardens

We learned about insects, bugs, and plants on our Powell Gardens field trip.  We also saw many amazing Lego sculptures.  We started our trip with a lesson about the difference between bugs and insects.  We got to pet a Madagascar hissing cockroach and watch a tarantula named Annie.  We also learned that people across the world eat insects.  Some of us tried eating a meal worm-yummy!
Common Green Darner Dragonfly made from 6,535 Lego bricks.

American Bumblebee made from 16,383 Lego bricks.


Our lovely, young ladies and a rose made from 41,242 Lego bricks.

Lego Lawn Mower (13,704 pieces)

Not sure what this is... but it made for a great photo opportunity!

Monday, September 9, 2013

4th Grade Field Trip to Ft. Osage and MO Town

We took a step back in time to the 1800’s!  It was as close to time travel as you can get.  We learned about the Osage Indians and settlers who traded along the MO River at Ft. Osage.  Did you know that the Osage Indians averaged about 6 ½ feet tall?  Quite impressive! 

At MO Town, we stepped into the year 1855.  We also heard from a blacksmith on the details of becoming an indentured servant.  I think the highlight for most of the students was the wandering sheep that did not stay in the confines of their fence! J 

Both locations have some interesting events coming up.  Here are the links if you would like more information: http://www.jacksongov.org/missouritown/ and http://www.fortosagenhs.com/

When we arrived back at school, we reflected on our experiences through writing. This led to a discussion about the importance of studying our history; not only learning from past mistakes, but celebrating how far we have come.  
The view of the MO River at the Ft. Osage Museum.




We learned about fur trading at Ft. Osage.  This is a hat made from beaver.



This flag had 15 stars and stripes.  They soon realized that adding a stripe for each state would become a problem, so they changed it to just adding a star for each state and having 13 stripes for the 13 colonies.

This young man demonstrated how to load and fire a musket.  He had to load and shoot it four times before it worked, which was a great glimpse into the reality of war in the 1800's.



MO Town

We learned about the life of a blacksmith in 1855 and how to become a blacksmith.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

4th Grade Science Experiment

Today we explored capillary action using paper towels, cups, and water with food coloring.  We used 2 different brands of paper towels.  We noticed that the water molecules moved more quickly through the denser paper towels.  We also observed that the food coloring molecules got trapped in the paper towels, so the water was clearer once it made it to the second cup.  The paper towel was acting like a filter.  We talked about capillary action in plants and watched a quick video that showed how a thorny devil uses capillary action to drink-amazing!  Can you think of other instances of capillary action in nature?
Viva: the denser paper towels

Off-brand paper towels

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Unit of Study: Dream School

B Day students have been designing their dream schools all semester.  They debated dress code/uniform policies, wrote mission statements, created daily schedules, and researched schools in other countries.  Now they are finally getting to use Sketch Up to make 3D drawings of their unique schools. I think we have some future architects!





Negro League Baseball Presentation

Thank you Ms. Cathie Moss for visiting our class today!  You taught us so much about the history and players of the Negro League Baseball.  It made us all want to travel back in time to witness a real game. :)





Friday, May 3, 2013