Wednesday Merry Christmas

Hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a wonderful time with family. Merry Christmas!

Tuesday

Those students who have not had their parents sign the permission slip for Project Northland need to get it signed and turned in.

Today we corrected E48-E49. Students then worked on finishing their biomes and started on the periodic table.

Tomorrow students will have a movie and a dance. It will cost $1.50 for any student who would like pop and a candy bar.

Monday

We are working on finishing up a few things. First, we went to Plato and finished the presentation and worksheet. Next students worked on pg E48-49. When that is done they were to finish their Biomes. And finally, students started working on their periodic table. They are coloring it to show the different properties of each section.

The final decision for activities on Wednesday has not been made yet. I will post that as soon as we are sure. School on Wednesday will get out at 1:00 p.m.

Thursday

Students began working on answering questions on pg 48-49. Complete sentences are required. This is NOT homework as I am sure everyone will be too busy this week-end. We will complete it on Monday. We also went to askteacher.blogspot.com and reviewed the songs; A Mole is a Unit, Acids and Bases, and Something Called S.I.

The only homework is for students to notice physical and chemical changes happening around them. Physical changes, as I am sure you remember, are when the substance keeps its identity. But a chemical change is when a new substance is formed. Be ready to discuss this on Monday.

Tuesday and Wednesday

On Tuesday the substitute showed the student a Plato lesson on Atoms Elements Compounds and Mixtures. On Wednesday she helped the students make an atom and, if there was time, they should have started on coloring in their periodic table of elements. They also watched the high school play on Wednesday.

Monday

Today students had the chance to show what they knew about atoms. We discussed the parts of an atom, energy levels, how to draw an atom, and reviewed covent, ionic and metallic bonding. Then we reviewed acids and bases in the song and S.I. measurements.

I will be gone for two day. Students will study tomorrow using Plato and a worksheet. And, if I can find enough pipe cleaners, they will be making atoms and making a periodic table of elements on Wednesday.

Check out my links. A Mole is a Unit, Something Called S.I., and Acids and Bases are good songs to review your knowledge,

Thursday - bring back parent signed paper on Monday

We covered a lot of ground today. We lost the fight with the Internet and so went through the song, "Acids and Bases," by talking through it. Then we went and looked at our acid and bases experiment from yesterday. We observed chemical changes including color change and a precipitate was formed.
Then we came back to the class and learned about the parts of an atom, electron clouds and their energy levels. Then we talked about valences, which led into covelent bonding, ionic bonding and just a brief minute on metallic bonding. We will review this information on Monday.
Students have an opportunity to earn 10 points of extra credit on Monday only. They were all given a paper asking permission of the parent to allow them to participate in a survey. If it is returned on Monday 10 points, Tuesday 5 points, Wednesday 3 points Thursday 1 point. We really need the permission slips back.

Wednesday

We learned about Acids and Bases today. We watched a video on youtube to teach about acids and bases. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF40cI2O16U
We learned that acids turn blue litmus paper red, acids are sour and they neutralize bases. Bases turn red litmus paper to blue, is slippery and bitter to the taste.

Then we went into the lab. We had a pH solution made of the water from boiled red cabbage. We poured different substances into the pH solution to see if they were acids, bases or neutral. It was especially interesting to watch Tide detergent change the purple liquid to yellow and orange juice changed the purple liquid red. Students would guess which color the pH solution would turn. They filled out a sheet to help them learn to recognize the pH scale.

Tuesday

We reviewed physical properties and physical changes today by correcting the assignment from class yesterday. Then we finished the ppp on atoms and elements.

Tomorrow we will be doing a rather interesting experiment on acids and bases.

Please remember to contact your family and friends to sign up for the school fund raiser. It is a nice way to do it just before Christmas as people will be shopping anyway.

Monday

We spent today reviewing the physical and chemical changes and physical properties of matter. Students completed a worksheet reviewing these concepts. Most of the students finished them in class. If they did not, the homework should be written in their planner.

Students also started a power point presentation on Atoms and Elements. We will finish that tomorrow and begin on pages E16-E27. This should take until Wednesday.

Students will be watching a play today, "The Christmas Carol."

Thursday

We discussed physical properties of objects. Physical properties are properties observed through the use of our senses. Some physical properties are color, hardness, luster, density, odor, conduction of electricity and sensitivity to magnets. We played a game, "I spy with my little eye," using the physical properties of objects.

Next we went into the lab and studied the difference between physical changes and chemical changes. Physical changes mean that the object does not lose its identity. Ice cubes melting, water boiling into steam, water freezing, tearing paper, drawing on paper, all of these are physical changes because the object is still paper or is still water.

Chemical changes create a new identity. Metal rusting, rust has different properties than metal, it is less dense and it changes color. We put baking soda in a bottle and vinegar in a balloon and then attached the balloon to the bottle. It was fun to see the balloon grow as a gas was given off. Then we answered the question, Why is the gas given off by boiling water not a chemical change, but gas given off by the baking soda and vinegar was a chemical change. Go to My Links on the right side and review the links of physical and chemical changes.

Please remember to get your fund raiser emails done. All people have to do is shop at the places listed and the school will earn money. It is so much safer than going door to door selling wrapping paper!

Wednesday

Today students were to bring in their fixed test. If you were ill yesterday, it is due tomorrow. Students whose grades were below a C came in during study academy to start work on their paper to assure they were doing it correctly.

Today we began studying on mixtures. We saw different mixtures and how they interacted with each other. Students then read in their teams about the physical properties of matter.

Report cards were handed out today. Students will also be taking home information on a fund raiser. I believe it is the one where you can register at specific sites and they will give money to the school.

Tuesday - homework - fix test

Students received their corrected tests back today. Those who are not pleased with their grades may correct each wrong answer to earn back half of their points. However, the answer must be correct, it must be a complete sentence, (a, b, c, d, t, f are not complete sentences) The sentence must be very specific. The work must be on a new sheet of paper and stapled to the test. Spelling must be correct. These rules help the student remember the material that they did not learn for the test.

Today we corrected homework, handed out oops cards and then played with the density of liquids. To see what we did you can go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3kodeQnQvU and watch a similar experiment. We also discussed mass, weight, density and volume.

Homework for tonight will be to fix your test. The fixed test must be turned in at the start of class Wednesday to receive credit.

Monday - test and homework - Good grief!

As students came into class today we began to review for our test. We went over all the vocabulary words and did the actions to help with any memory loss that occurred over the Thanksgiving Holidays. Students then took the test. We corrected the tests in class. I will review them and then hand the tests back to the students tomorrow.

On Tuesday students will take the tests home and fix them using correct spelling, correct answers and, as always, they must have complete sentences. True and false will not work. A B C D will not work. Each answer must have a complete sentence. The purpose of this is to teach the student the answer they did not know.

Homework tonight is reading E 2 - 15 and doing, in complete sentences, 1-5 on E 15. This is due at the start of class tomorrow.

Happy Thanksgiving

Since school was cancelled yesterday due to the blizzard, I wanted to let you know that we will be having the test on Monday after a review session. Grades had to be in by this Saturday so the test will be on next trimester's grades. I spent yesterday finishing the grades so the grade that is posted is your grade for the trimester. If you like it, remember next trimester to work just as hard. If you are unhappy with your grade, please make sure that next trimester you study more and come in for our study sessions. It is your life, and your future is determined by your actions today. Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Monday - Cells and Biomes test tomorrow

We reviewed for the test today by having a matching game, one with the cells and one with biomes. Then students finished drawing their biomes. The test will be tomorrow. Students that have told me that they will be gone have been allowed to take the test early.

Thursday - test on Tuesday

Today we reviewed yesterday's information on a power point presentation. To review this read through pages B 71 - 128. This information is not on the test, but it is really interesting and good information to know.

We also reviewed the cells and biomes in preparation for the test. On Monday we will do a complete review for the test. Then the test will be on Tuesday.

Students will be out of school for Thanksgiving break starting on Wednesday next week. Go and do something kind for the people who take care of you everyday.

Wednesday + Homework

Students took home a paper tonight to check with family members of different genetic characteristics. They are to write down how many family members participate in seeing how many can roll their tongue or have a short first toe. There are ten or eleven things to test.

We discussed genetics today. We filled out the punnett squares and learned about genes, alleles on chromosomes.

The test on cells and biomes will be on Tuesday Nov. 23rd.

Tuesday - test in one week

Today we learned about mitosis and meiosis. Mitosis is when the nucleus of the body cells divide creating two daughter cells exactly like their parent cell. The daughter cells, in humans, have 46 chromosomes. Meiosis is when the nucleus of sex cells divide. But, since they can only have 23 chromosomes, they must divide twice leaving each with 23 chromosomes. To read about this go to pages B58-64.

We also broke open one of the eggs in each class. We could see the membrane and the nucleus.

Please work on knowing the parts of your biomes and cell organelles. These will be on the test.

Monday

The upcoming test will be on Tuesday, November 23rd. It will cover B1-B66.

Today we checked out our eggs. On Thursday we exchanged the corn syrup egg with the salt egg to see what would happen. The salt egg was down to 44 grams from 100 and the corn syrup egg was up to 99 from 38. Tomorrow we will break open one egg in each class just to see what the inside is like.

When we returned to class students began making charts to graph the progress of each egg in color.

Wednesday

We reviewed population, community, ecosystem, living and nonliving things today. Then we check our eggs to see if equilibrium had been attained or if diffusion was still occurring. Last the students took a quiz on the organelles they studied last night.

Tomorrow at 2:30 we will be having a Veteran's day assembly. Please remember this assembly is to honor those that fought to protect our beliefs and our country. We need to behave in the way we have learned to show support and honor to our veterans.

Tuesday

We checked on our eggs today. We have been studying diffusion and we are weighing the shell-less eggs to see if they are losing or gaining liquid. The egg in corn syrup lost almost 40 grams of liquid. The salt water egg gained 6 grams and the green water egg turned green and gained 4 grams. The shelled egg that we put in vinegar has lost its shell and is at 67 grams. We will weigh all the eggs daily and see what happens to them.

Today we discussed that living and dead things have cells, but non-living are things that never lived and so they do not have cells. However, living, dead and non-living things all have elements. We discussed the elements in the human body and the contents of the human cell. (B42-45)

We watched a Youtube on photosynthesis "Photosynthesis" by mediasemantics. Many students understand this concept so it was a review, but for some it was their first time through.

Monday

We went into the lab and started an experiment to learn about osmosis and diffusion. We take shell-less eggs and put them in water, corn syrup and a salt water concentrate. We will record the eggs weights starting and then every day. The students will also put a shelled egg in vinegar water to observe that.

Diffusion is when molecules move from an area of high concentration to lower concentration. Osmosis is the diffusion of water molecules.

We also reviewed the jobs of cell organelles. Students then were asked to write the cells jobs without looking. This will help prepare them for their test.

Thursday

There is no homework tonight. We corrected our homework, nearly every student got it done. That is good news. Then I handed out cards to each team. The cards had a cell's organelle listed on it. Each team had to figure out how to act out the function of the organelle and then we played charades. Some of the students were very good at this. Last we reviewed the parts of the organelles on Plato activities.

The student fixed tests and animal papers are corrected and the students should get those back on Monday. Two animal papers were not corrected as I am still waiting for the rubrics and first paper. The students have been reminded again to get those to me.

Wednesday + Homework

Today we looked at anatomy tissues and saw the differences. Then we went to Plato and learned about the organelles in the cell. If you want to go to your Plato account and review it, I will set it up.

Remember, your Plato name is your first and last name as one word with capitals on the first letter of your first and last name. Your group name is 2017 and your password is your student number. If it asks for the site ID it is 1002 Hope that helps.

There is homework tonight, read B1-B15 and answer the questions on B15 1-5 in complete sentences.

A reminder Plato only works on Internet Explorer.

Tuesday - computer mix-up

I apologize for missing the blog the last few days, apparently I signed in on my personal blog and that is where the updates went. For this I am sorry. I am sure that puzzled those who follow my blog.

Thursday I was gone to meetings in Boise, students watched a movie about reptiles and amphibians. We corrected that on Monday.

On Monday we reviewed the metric system, finished the Biome notes and finished watching the movie on amphibians and reptiles.

Today we are learning about cells. We reviewed the cell system, from cells > tissues > organs > organ systems > organisms. We watched a power point presentation on cells and started to look at tissue slices of hair, blood, and other slides that show the different make-up of our tissues.

Wednesday - tests may be fixed tonight

The tests were returned today. All students have the opportunity to fix their test. However, the test must be rewritten on a separate piece of paper. The paper must be stapled to the original test. ALL ANSWERS (even the matching) MUST BE IN COMPLETE SENTENCES or it will not be graded. The students know all of this.

Tonight at 7 p.m. there will be a fighting drug meeting at the school. The speaker talked to the students today and it was excellent. Please come tonight and bring your student with you. There will be prizes, but more importantly you will learn what is happening in Bear Lake. Please come.

In class today we practiced measuring using metrics.

All fixed tests are due at the beginning of class tomorrow. None will be accepted late unless the student is ill.

Tuesday

Today we took and corrected the tests in class. Students will receive the tests back tomorrow and will be allowed to correct their errors using ONLY complete sentences. Any answers not written in complete sentences will not be given any credit. The students will receive half credit for every corrected question.

There is no homework tonight. Tomorrow students are asked to wear school colors for drug free week. Thursday is costume day, no masks please.

Picture retakes will be November 2nd.

Monday test tomorrow

We played a game to review for the test tomorrow. Each table in the lab had cards on it to match. Each student was supposed to match the words to make certain they knew which invertebrate was a platyhelminthesis and that platyhemintheses are flatworms, planaria and tapeworms and that their main characteristic is that they are very very flat.
When we went back to the classroom we reviewed the words on the wall-paper. The students have prepared well for this test.

This is drug prevention red ribbon week. Today all students were allowed to wear hats to "Put a lid on drugs." Tomorrow to help them, "Live up to their dreams," students are allowed to wear sweats or pajamas that cover them. On Wednesday students will wear school colors to support the idea that, "our school is drug free." On Thursday they may dress in Halloween costumes that are school appropriate - no masks please. The theme on Thursdays is "Mash out drugs," and there will be a monster mash at the end of the day.

Thursday

Students gave their animal oral reports today, turned in posters and finished final draft. All who gave their report did very well, even though some were pretty nervous about the experience.

Monday we will begin reviewing for our test and Tuesday will be the test.

Monday starts red ribbon week to remind our students to stay away from drugs. On Monday students will be allowed to wear hats to school. On Tuesday sweats or modest pajamas are the accepted clothing. Wednesday students are to wear school colors and on Thursday students may dress in appropriate Halloween costumes with no masks. Classes will be cut by 4 minutes each and that will be added to our study hall time for either a dance or an activity.

Wednesday parent teacher conf/ Final draft tomorrow

Today we did a little reviewing for our test. We discussed the invertebrates, their classes, an animal that belonged in that class and the characteristics of the animal. Then we returned to the class and students began working on drawing the eight biomes.

Parent-teacher conferences are tonight from 4:30-7:30. Please invite your parents to attend.

The final animal report and poster are due tomorrow. We will spend the day doing oral reports.

Tuesday Final draft Thursday

We are learning about biomes so we went to the Youtube on biomes and using a chart we made in class, we listed all of the biomes and any information it had. Then we got ready to draw the biomes. The students also have biome information in their books B20-B29. Remember test on Tuesday of next week, final draft of the animal report is due Thursday Oct 21st. Please include your rough draft and your rubric.

Monday

The students were handed back their rough drafts today so they can have the final copy finished on Thursday when they will turn in their final report and poster. On Thursday the students will give oral reports of between 1-2 minutes.

We learned about cells today. We looked at onion skin and tomato skin through the microscope. We saw models of nerve cells, blood cells and muscle cells. Then we drew an animal and plant cell as seen in the book on pg B-39.

Remember

Thursday rough drafts in final due Oct 21

Today students are turning in their rough draft. If it is not in today students will lose half of their points. Any student that has plagiarized will lose all of their points. Hopefully they will do well on their final report and be able to bring their grade up. The final copy and poster are due on October 21st at the start of class.

We covered birds and mammals today. We watched a Lyre bird copy all sorts of sounds and a platypus swimming. Youtube can be a great learning tool if you are careful and screen everything first!

Next we covered metamorphosis. Students drew pictures of the stages of metamorphosis in a frog's life and that of a ladybug.

October 25th we will be studying for our test and October 26th we will take it. It will cover A36-A80.

Wednesday- rough draft due tomorrow

We took a little side turn today to watch the Chilean miners being saved after 69 days underground. We discussed the science necessary to drill down to the miners and build a working escape capsule. We also practiced note-taking again to avoid plagiarism on the reports. We have done this before, but after correcting some reports I decided we should practice a little more.

We discussed life spans and life expectancy and learned the difference. We learned that house flies live can live for 79 days while human's life span is 122 years while their life expectancy in the United States is 84 years.

The rough draft is due tomorrow. It will be returned on Monday and the final report will be due that Thursday, the 21st of October.

Tuesday

Hope you all enjoyed your day off yesterday!

Today we began working on characteristics of vertebrates. Teams used a handout and filled out the information they were sure of. Then we watched a few youtube short videos which showed different vertebrates in their natural habitat. We will finish this tomorrow.

Parent teacher conferences will be on Wednesday, October 20th. Please plan on having your parents attend.

Thursday - no school on Monday

Our topic today was endangered species. We discussed that people are really stewards of the earth. We need to take care of what we have without hurting mankind. We discussed the main reasons animals go extinct is predators, poaching, pollution, and disease. It is our responsibility to make sure that animals do not go extinct. Each team was given an animal that is in danger of extinction. They read about the animal and then came up with how we could take care that these animals are protected while being reasonable about it. We discussed that as stewards we must be wise in our decisions. We also discussed the story of the golden goose. Killing off any species might harm other species so we must learn all we can to help protect our stewardship. Each team then gave a report explaining how their particular animal might be protected.

Rough drafts are being turned in. Please get yours in early!

Parent Teacher conferences have been moved to Wed Oct 20th. Please calendar that.

Wednesday

Today the students practiced how to take notes for their report. I wrote a short paragraph on the board and the students pulled out the important information without copying the paragraph. Then we went to the library so they could find information for their animal report. Any student who has not found enough information must let me know tomorrow so I can help him/her find something.

Rough Draft Thursday Oct 14 or before - handwritten - double spaced - following the requirements on the rubric.

No school on Monday.

Tuesday 1st report

We had a busy day today. All papers have been handed back. Students were given the rubric for their animal report. The rough draft is due October 14th and the final draft is due Oct. 21. Both can be turned in earlier. I explained how to read information on the animal and outline that information so that the student is not plagiarizing. The report is to be a minimum of three paragraphs with approximately 8-10 sentences in each paragraph. The rough draft must be written in best handwriting. If I can see that the student can write clearly, then their final draft, and all other reports, may be typed. If they need practice handwriting, then they are not to type.

Parent-teacher conference will be October 14th. Please encourage your parents to attend.

Remember, there is no school on October 11th.

Monday

We are learning about vertebrates this week. Each team was given a specific animal model and was required to write down the information about the animal. Then the team presented that information to the class.

Students will be receiving their animal report rubric tomorrow. Parents, please look at it so that you know what is expected. Please allow them to do their own work, beware of plagiarism, check it over and make suggestions, but it must be their paper.

Thursday

Homework was corrected at the start of class today. Some students are failing to turn in their work. Parents will be contacted.

We reviewed Echinoderms by watching youtube videos of a sand dollar crawling and a sea urchin flipping itself over. Next we went into the lab and measured invertebrates. We returned to class and learned how to change centimeters to millimeters, decimeters and so forth.

First hour has homework, three vocabulary words and their definitions.

Wednesday - homework tonight

We finished our list of invertebrates today by learning about echinoderms watching Plato on the Animal Kingdom.

We reviewed yesterday's invertebrates by watching Youtube: Mollusc (that is how the video spells the word), Earthworm closeup, Japanese Mountain Leech vs Giant Earthworm, Leech cure and Bee Takes a Break.

Then we went into the lab where there were life-size pictures or actual invertebrates and the students measured them in Standard English measurements and using the metric system.

There is homework due tomorrow. Students are to read A-40-A49 and to answer the questions on A49 1-5. Answers must be in complete sentences and the words must be spelled correctly when they are copied from the book.

Tuesday

Students turned in their fixed tests today and their notes from parents. It will take me three or four days to get these graded.

We viewed the invertebrates we learned about yesterday by watching Youtube on sponges filtering green dye, hydra, hydra viridis, Giant jellyfish, a lecture on tapeworms and a video on Cnidarians.

Finally we went to Plato - Animal Kingdom and learned about Mollusks, Annelida and Arthropoda. We discussed different facts brought out about each invertebrate and wrote on our worksheet.

Monday

Students who are not happy with their test score were given an opportunity to do some homework and fix their test. The rules are strict and if not followed, the fixed test will not be allowed. These are the rules:
1. Using a separate sheet of paper the student will fix each incorrect question by:
a. Writing the correct answer
b. Writing the answer in a complete sentence
c. Words must be spelled correctly
d. Answers must be numbered according to the incorrect test question's number
e. The separate sheet with the correct answers must be stapled to the original test.
f. The test must be turned in to the box at the bell or the corrections will not be
allowed.

Today we began learning about invertebrates. We worked on Plato. To get to Plato go to plato.blsd.net on Internet Explorer. It does not work well on other browers. If it asks for the number it is 1002. The Plato name is the student's last name then first name with no spaces. The second line is the Group name which is the year they graduate 2017. The password is their student number. Then go to Animal kingdom. We viewed sections 2-5, but I think students will have to view it from the beginning. Make sure to use the red arrow at the top to go forward or back. The program will instruct you what to click on. We filled out a sheet based on this lesson.

Thursday

Students finished their tests today and then they took a turn at grading it. I will check the grading and then put the grades up. If you are not happy with your grade, you will have the opportunity to fix it as homework on Monday night. There are strict rules and they must be followed, but if they are then you can earn half of your points back.

The idea behind this is that you will learn the information that you just didn't absorb before the test. We want learning to happen.

Wednesday

Today we started our first test. Students that did not finish will be given the first 20 minutes of class on Thursday to get it done while those who did finish will work on a little experiment in the lab.

Tuesday - Test tomorrow

Today we reviewed for the test. The students went around the room with the test questions around the room. The students were allowed to answer each question and then we took time going over and explaining each question. The study guides were to be taken home to study for tomorrow.

Monday- prepare for a test on Wednesday

We enjoyed a movie today about the different ways that seeds are moved from place to place. The seeds are moved by animals, wind and water. We watched bats eating seeds and carrying the food to a different place to avoid being eaten by a boa. We saw a coconut crab eating the coconut meat and the seed went into the water. Wind blew the seeds of many plants.

Tomorrow we will review for Wednesday's test covering pages A1-A31.

Thursday Test coming Sept. 22.

We corrected last night's homework. Those who did not complete it or do it well had to come to remediation to complete it. Some still did not get it done, it will be due Monday for half the points. The assignment was A31 1-5 and read A20 - A31.

Today we finished our study of plants. Students drew or traced plants from each of the four divisions so they could recall what the plant's characteristics are.

There will be a test on A1-A31 on Wednesday. Monday we will watch a movie on seeds, Tuesday we will review for the test, and Wednesday will be the test.

Wednesday and homework

There is homework tonight. Students are to read pages A20-A31 and answer 1-5 on A31.

Today we learned about gymnosperms and angiosperms. We learned that gymnosperm means naked seed. Some gymnosperms are conifers, ginkgo biloba, cycads and gnetophyes. These plants have male and female cones. Angiosperms are any plants that have enclosed seeds. These can include apple trees, and all other fruit trees, flowers, grains, cotton etc. Angiosperms are divided into two groups; monocots and dicots. Monocots have one cotelydon, flower petals in threes or multiples of three, leaf veins that are vertical and vascular bundles scattered throughout the plant. Dicots have two cotelydons, flower petals in multiples of four or five, leaf veins that branch out, and vascular bundles that are in a ring, not scattered.

Homework is due at the start of class.

Tuesday

In science today we learned about two types of plants; non-vascular, seedless, non-flowering plants such as mosses, liverwort and hornwort. We also learned about vascular, seedless, non-flowering plants such as club mosses, horse tails and ferns. We learned how these plants get moisture and how they reproduce. We also learned the that the pioneers used to use horsetails to scrub their pots and pans. We learned that moss reproduce by use of the sori, the little brown spots that grown under the fronds of the fern.

Students had school pictures taken today. If you were absent, there will be a make-up day later in the tri-mester.

Monday

Tomorrow we will be having school pictures. Please make sure that you bring the envelopes back if you plan on buying pictures. We will be taking everyone's picture, but if you plan on buying you must have the paper filled out and the money turned in. There will be make-up pictures later in the year.

Today we learned about bacteria and fungus. We learned that bacteria helps make many of the foods we like such as swiss cheese, sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, sourdough, olives, and sour cream. We also learned that we need to keep our hands and cell phones clean if we want to protect ourselves from bacteria.

We also learned that fungus is used to grow and prepare the cacao bean from which we get chocolate. Fungus is also found in mushrooms and blue cheese.

After discussing these foods the students were able to taste many of them, if they wanted to.

Thursday

It is Back to School night starting at 6 p.m. Come and meet your child's teachers and learn the expectations they have for your child.

Today we learned about the characteristics of each of the Kingdoms; Animal, Plant, Fungus, Monera, and Protist.

We corrected last night's homework. Those who did not finish or did not get it done, they will be invited to remediation to complete their work and receive 50%. Our desire is to teach the students that the homework will be done - but if they do it on time, they can receive full points. We hope this will motivate them to do their work on time.

Wednesday

There is homework tonight. Students are to read A6-A19 and do questions 1-3 on A19. The answers are to be complete sentences. The question does not have to be written, just a complete sentence for the answer.

Today in class students brought in their Living Things Grow and Develop pages. Those turned in finished and on time earned 15 points. If they were not turned in, they can be turned in tomorrow for half points.

Students also completed a poster that shows the 6 characteristics of living things. The students did these in teams. They will be graded according the to rubric each student received. Neatness, spelling, correct identification, bringing their assigned supplies and participating are all part of the grade.

Thursday at 6 p.m. is Back to School Night. Come and find out your child's teacher's expectations. We look forward to meeting all parents and guardians.

Tuesday

I hope everyone had a good Labor Day holiday. Today in class students learned more about the 6 characteristics of life. We watched a Power Point Presentation showing the six characteristics that show that something is alive. Next the students got in their teams and decided who was responsible for bringing different items to represent the six characteristics of life. This is a poster that the students will do in class tomorrow. They are to bring the assigned item and help make a poster that clearly shows the six characteristics of life. The poster is worth 100 points, including ten points for bringing their team assigned item. Students also took home a "Living Things Grow and Develop" paper. This page is to be done with parents and returned to school tomorrow at the start of class.

Please make sure your student has a pencil everyday.

Thursday

Yesterday we learned how to write a hypothesis as an "If . . . Then" statement. Then we tried out our hypothesis to see what would happen. We poured boiling water on a weed and we will continue to watch the weed to see what will happen.

Today, Thursday we looked at the weed and came back into the classroom to write our conclusion. Students then worked on pgs A6-A7 and we began to learn what the main six characteristics of life are. They filled out the worksheet and then we discussed the six characteristics of life. This lesson will continue into Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. The question for the week-end is, "What is metabolism?"

Monday is a holiday, Labor Day. There will be no school. Tuesday students will have homework.

Tuesday

The first day of school is always so busy. Students have many papers that need to be returned. My science students have a paper for parents to read, sign and date. This paper explains some basic information and expectations for this class - students who have it signed and turned in tomorrow will receive a rare 10 points extra credit.

Other papers that are coming home are bus papers that need to be read and signed, an insurance paper and envelope for parents who want to buy insurance for their child, the free and reduced lunch paper, middle school fees paper, and the student information papers so we can find parents and guardians in case of an emergency. Please get these papers back quickly.

Monday

Welcome back to school! We are ready to get going - hope you are too!

Tuesday

The test is done,the grades are in. Hopefully you studied and were rewarded for your labor. Tomorrow we will finish the oral reports, then we will watch a few short videos on pollution and on doing your best. Thursday we go to Downata. Only a few students do not have their money in. If it is you, please bring it tomorrow.

Monday test tomorrow

Today the students reviewed the test for tomorrow. There will be ten questions worth ten points each. Students have reviewed these questions regularly and all should do well.

Oral reports on scientists were started today. Most students did well. Remember you must have your written report with you when you are giving your oral report. This is required.

Money for the Downata trip was due today. Mr. Belnap will allow money to be turned in tomorrow. If, for some reason, you can't afford the trip, please go talk to Mr. Belnap.

Thursday test on Tuesday

We went outside again today to observe the clouds. It was cold so our observations were made quickly. We were able to see some stratus clouds and a few cirrus clouds. Then we looked up the question, why are clouds white? Clouds are white because the ice crystals in them scatter the light. Clouds get darker when there is enough moisture in them to block the sunshine. That makes sense.

Next we began work on our Geologic timeline. Students made a chart and began drawing pictures of different material or living things that occupied that specific time.

Wednesday

Today we looked at the big rocks - we discussed what type of rock they were and what caused them to have crystals, unique shapes etc. We also went outside and learned about clouds. We will be doing this everyday until the end of school.

Please get your money in for the trip. Last day is Monday, the trip is Thursday. Keep good thoughts for a warm day.

Tuesday

Today the students discovered the names of the rocks they investigated yesterday. They also learned if they were igneous, metamorphic or sedimentary. Tomorrow we will get out the large rocks and the students will determine if what type of rocks they are.

Monday of next week will be the oral reports about the scientists. Tuesday we will finish those reports and have our comprehensive final. Wednesday we will grade the final. We have been reviewing the information on the test for the entire school year. Hopefully everyone will be able to pass with flying colors. Thursday is the incentive trip to Downata and Friday will be spent getting report cards, signing year books and watching a movie. School will end for the students at 11:00.

The money for the incentive trip must be in by Monday, May 24th. Registration forms for 7th grade should be in today.

Monday

Today the students had some hands on experience with rocks. Students worked in their teams to examine 16 rocks and find the properties of each one. Tomorrow we will take that information and use it to identify the rocks.

Homework tonight is to read D70-D79. There might be a quiz on that tomorrow.

Money for the Downata trip needs to be turned in, as do the registration forms for 7th grade.

Thursday

We had a busy day today with students handing in their scientist reports. They were due today. Students can turn them in on Monday, but they will not receive full points.

We studied glaciers today. We took ice and put it on gravel. We could see how quickly the ice picked up the rocks. We saw the till and moraine and how glacier lakes could be made. Then we watched a youtube video that showed the inside of a glacier. It was beautiful.

Students need to get their 7th grade registrations turned in. They also need to turn in their $10.00 for the 6th grade field trip to Downata. The money is due on May 24th.

Wednesday Scientist report due tomorrow

We are learning about soils. The students were asked to explain why learning about soils affects them. We decided that it affects us in growing good crops, in building homes in safe areas, and in having clothing to wear. We then watched a video from Agrium teaching the students that soil is made from silt, sand clay and organic matter. We learned about taking care of our groundwater so we will have clean water to drink. Then we went into the lab and got the feel of silt, sand and soil. It was a little messy, but the students could see and feel what the lesson was about.

Scientist reports are due at the start of each class tomorrow. Please have them done and in on time. Put them on top of your school supplies so the paper is not left at home. Save your mom the trip to school.

Tuesday

We practiced making mountains today with sand, gravel, and mud. We also used silly puddy and clay to show how scientist believe the Rocky Mountains were made. They think that a subduction occurred, but for some reason, instead of going deep into the mantle, it went shallow and bumped along the bottom of the continent pushing up granite and creating the Rocky Mountains. We then returned to class and watched some videos that re-taught what we had experienced.

Homework was turned in for D44 vocabulary today. Scientist final reports are due on Thursday. This should just take a little time to fix your errors. Make sure it is in on time so they can be graded.

Money for the 6th grade trip to Downata needs to be in by the 24th of May. The $10 includes use of the pool and slides and transportation. Lunch must be provided by you or you can bring some extra money to purchase food at the lunch counter.

Monday

Today we watched how mountains are made by using clay to show the fold mountains and thd fault block mountains. Homework for tonight is the vocabulary on D 44.

We had an assembly today to choose to live the best you can starting with today. It was excellent.

Thursday

We finished our unit on earthquakes and volcanos and we checked the review. A few of the band and choir students did not get the homework assignment even though Mr. Goodworth and Mr. Belnap reminded them that they needed to come and get it. Those students will need to finish that assignment and turn it in Monday for half points.

The final draft of the scientist report is due on May 13th at the start of class. This should give me time to get it graded before the school year ends. Each student who turned in their paper needs to staple the rough draft and rubric to the final copy. This is required for a grade. All students have had this explained to them.

Money for the field trip must be turned in to me by May 24th, but the earlier the better. Have a good week-end.

Wednesday

Today we reviewed our unit on earthquakes and volcanos. Students were assigned pg D40-D41 1-20, excluding 18. Many students are on the band and choir trip today, however they were supposed to get the assignment before they left school yesterday. This assignment will be due at the start of class tomorrow.

ISAT tests should finish today with the Language Arts section.

A flyer should come home about the end of year field trip. 6th graders are going to Downata Hot Springs. The cost is $10 which includes entrance into the park and transportation costs. The money must be into me, Mrs. Winward, by May 24th. The trip will be May 27th. We will leave the school at 8:00 a.m. and return by 3:45. Girls, please make sure your swim suit covers your stomach or that you wear a t-shirt over your suit. Boys, make sure your swim suit is appropriate.

Mnday/Tuesday

The first day of ISAT tests went well. The students took Math tests yesterday and are taking Language Art tests today. In science class on Monday we watched a movie on Youtube called "The Last Days of Krakatoa." If you want to watch it just go to youtube. It is a great movie showing the tsunami, a pyroclastic surge, and a ship out at sea during the volcano. The movie is based on the real life account of the woman pictured in the film. Today, for those who were here yesterday, we reviewed the three types of volcanos and what causes them.

Scientist reports were handed back today with the suggestions on how to fix the final copy. Please, do not copy others work. Just rewording a sentence is still copying. Write down the facts and then, using the rubric, write your own story.

Thursday

Band and choir students took their Language Arts ISAT tests this morning. Those that remained in class corrected their science test. We then discussed the three different types of volcanoes. On Monday we will continue with volcanoes.

The ISAT test schedule is as follows:
Monday Math
Tuesday Reading
Wednesday Language Arts
Band and Choir students will be gone on Wednesday to the American Falls Music Festival

The rough draft of the scientist reports are due today. If they are late they will receive half points. Sundials are now late, they will be accepted for half points until May 12th. The reason for the delay is weather related.

Wednesday

Students took the test on Observing the Sky today. Tomorrow the band and choir students will be taking their Language Arts ISAT. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week will also be the ISAT tests. Make sure you get enough sleep, drink enough water, and eat well so you will be physically prepared to take these tests. The tests are important as a measuring stick to see if you know how to use the information you have been learning in school.

Tomorrow we will correct the test and begin our unit on volcanoes. Check out the NASA site of the day in the left panel. It is quite interesting.

Tuesday test tomorrow

We reviewed for the test today with each student making a study guide with each question on the test. The students went from station to station. There were questions at each station. Sometimes they had to arrange things in order, like the colors of stars from coolest to hottest and the electromagnetic spectrum. In other stations they drew pictures to represent questions on the test. At the end of the time we went into the classroom and made sure they had the correct answers. The test should be fairly easy for anyone who filled out their study guide.

Monday test Wednesday on section C

Today we learned about tsunamis. We saw a short clip showing how earthquakes cause tsunamis. Then we used a map and found the longitude and latitude of various earthquakes and volcanoes. Tomorrow we will be studying for our test and Wednesday we will see how much we know.

ISATs are coming up. For band and choir students, the first tests will be Thursday. For everyone else the tests start Monday. Remember, get enough sleep, eat well and make sure that you get enough to drink. All of these things keep your mind more alert.

Thursday - test on Wednesday

While I enjoyed a very interesting conference yesterday on how to help students succeed, even if they don't want to, Mrs. Romrell substituted for my class. Each team was given a different catastrophe and then they were given questions on how they would prepare for an emergency. Finally each team gave a presentation to the entire class so everyone would learn.

Today we worked on our scientist reports. Most brought their information with them. Those that forgot that information were allowed to go to the library to find information. We also used the encyclopedias in class and online information. This report's rough draft is due on April 29th. I will get those corrected so the students can finish the final draft.

There will be a test on section C on Wednesday. ISATs start on April 29th and will go through the next week. Make sure you are getting enough sleep and eating healthy to prepare for it.

Tuesday

We finished our earthquake movie today. We learned about how important it is to be prepared for any kind of disaster. The man in charge of community safety in the Los Angeles areas stressed that government cannot take care of people, that they need to be prepared to take care of themselves as much as possible.

We corrected the vocabulary from D18. Tomorrow there will be a substitute. Students will be doing a safety activity in teams.

An open-book test which will cover all of section C will be on April 28th. Students need to have their scientist rough draft turned in on April 29th. We will work on that in class this Thursday. Sundials are also due. The sun is setting at 8:11, so a student could actually get this done after school if they are home by 4.

Monday

Today we finished the conservation posters and discussed the earthquake we had last Thursday. Students discussed what they felt during the earthquake. We talked about faults and the different types of earthquakes. We also discussed primary and secondary waves. Then we started a movie showing what different areas are doing to protect themselves from a major earthquake. We should finish the movie tomorrow and then on Wednesday we will talk about emergency safety.

The sundials are due Thursday, April 22nd. The weather was lovely all week-end and so students need to get the sundials turned in.

The rough draft for the scientist report is due April 29th. We will work on those this Thursday during class time. Students need to bring their information with them.

Thursday

We have 26 sundials turned in, a few more were sent home to fix. The sundial rules are these: Orient the paper or cardboard you are using so that the indicator (pencil, stick etc) is at the bottom on the south end. Mark the shadow, from beginning to the end of the shadow at hour intervals, four hours, five marks. The weather is supposed to be good. If you miss an hour, then do a couple more hours after that and indicate where you missed the hour. They will be due next week as the weather man has promised at least one good day this weekend. (Actually, he promised three good days, but last weekend we only got one.)

Today we learned about Harry Hess and the spreading seafloor. We learned that subjuction keeps the earth from growing while the spreading seafloor adds more mass to the planet. It is a nice balance. Students can read this weekend if they have time. They should be up to D37. On Monday the vocabulary words on D18 will be assigned and due on Tuesday. We are finishing our posters.

Wednesday

Today we put a puzzle together. It was a puzzle of the continents. Alfred Wegener thought perhaps the continents had moved around, and although he was scoffed at in his day, today they realize he may have been correct. We then watched a couple of youtube videos that talked about how plate tectonics may have happened. We also learned about subduction, convergent plates, divergent plates and slip strike faults or transform faults.

The videos we watched are on the links under Plate Tectonics and Plate Tectonics vocabulary.

Tuesday

Today students received the rubric for their final report. They chose the scientist yesterday, this rubric explains what is expected on the report. We will take two, maybe three days of class time to work on it.

Today we learned about stars. We corrected the vocabulary for last night's homework and spent about 15 minutes working on the conservation posters.

Monday

We are, again, putting off the due date for the sundial. They will be due April 22. We are looking for a sunny week-end and I don't mind putting this off until we have sunshine. I guess we should be grateful for the moisture. We have had about four sunny days since the assignment was given, but we will see if we can get one more day. About half of the students have their sundials turned in and corrected. Some students are turning is sundials that are incorrect. The sun directly overhead has a very different shadow than one early or late in the day. There also is a specific way the numbering should go. I measure these two factors to see if the sundials are correct.

In class today we worked on our conservation posters. Homework is the vocabulary words on D4. We will finish stars tomorrow and start on plate tectonics.

Thursday

We continued working on our solar systems today. Sundials need to be finished this week-end if there is any sun out. Make sure you draw to the end of the shadow. If you run out of paper tape another paper to your page. Sundials are worth 50 points. Have a good week-end.

Wednesday

We started on our solar systems today. Students use hangers, string and construction paper to create a solar system. The purpose is to give the students the opportunity to put the planets in order and to better comprehend the different sizes of the planets.

I am checking the sundials. Please make sure you follow the directions as some of them are not done correctly and must be fixed.

Tomorrow students will chose their scientists.

Tuesday

This morning the school had an assembly dealing with cyber responsibility. The speaker told us that ANYTHING we put online can be seen by anyone who knows how to hack. They told about people in other countries, who for a small fee, can hack into anyone's site, get your pictures and other information. That information can be posted on the "world-wide-web" and sent all over. These people generally do not care about your family picnic, they want pictures that can be used for blackmail. Our students were warned against sexting, cyber bullying and putting anything up that might cause another grief because it isn't private. Anyone who is trained can pull up what anyone texted, put on their password protected facebook, myspace, photobucket, or any other site, and use that information. Talk about it, it was very interesting.

In class we started on our conservation posters. We will be doing those and our planets all week. Sundials will be due April 15th as the weather this week-end was not conducive to making sundials.

Wednesday -Spring Break Thursday - Monday

We are having an interesting learning experience today. The people from Bear Lake, Preston and Soda Spring's Soil and Water Conservation District have come to teach the students about how to take care of their habitat. The students also get to make paw prints and identify animals by their pelts.

We are having a dance this afternoon. The students are dressed in their best clothes and look very nice.

Remember, sundials are due Thursday April 8th. This Spring Break would be a great time to get it done. However, if the weather is bad the entire week, we will change the due date to April 15th.

Tuesday

We watched Plato today and learned alot about the different planets. Did you know that Jupiter is 11 times larger than Earth, yet its days are about 9 Earth hours? Tomorrow we will be having visitors come and the students will be making animal prints and learning how to take care of our natural resources.

Tomorrow is also a dance just before spring break. Students are to dress in their best clothes.

Spring break lasts from Thursday through Monday. Sundials are due one week from this Thursday. If we have any clear skies, watch and you can see Venus and Mercury together just after sunset.

Monday

I hope you are watching the moon as it was full last night. With the weather changing it will be hard to watch as it goes into its waning phase, but try and see what you can.

Vocabulary words were due today. They were assigned on Wednesday. Those who did not get them done will be in remediation today.

The teams met together today to research planets. We will work on planets today and tomorrow. On Wednesday a group is coming to talk to the 6th graders about animals and our water. It should be fun.

Tomorrow is Bling Day for Spirit week

Thursday - check out Mars next to the moon tonight

We finished our movie today. It excellently shows that although we have learned a lot through out the time of man, we do not know everything. We learned today why the Big Bang theory was finally accepted over the Steady State theory. We learned about Fred Hoyle and George Lemaitre and how prejudice can keep you from considering new ideas.

According to the forecast the weather might be perfect for sundials this week-end. Students need to bring their metal hangers and finish last night's homework assignment.

Mars should be visible tonight next to the moon - see if you can see it there.

Spirit week starts Monday, where blue and white.

Wednesday

We reviewed the moon information today and then began on the second of three parts of the movie on the Big Bang.

Homework tonight will be the vocabulary words on C46, C58, C70, C82. The words are in a little box called vocabulary on the top of the pages. You are to write the word and then find the definition and write it. This will help you understand what we are reading about.

Please bring wire hangers, if you have some extras, please bring them ASAP. Also, this week-end finish your sundial. Please follow the instructions.

Tuesday

We have started a movie that teaches the Big Bang Theory. We will be watching parts of it for the next few days. This movies shows how scientific theory has changed over the centuries. It covers much of what we will be reading about in the next few days.

I still have nine students who have not returned their spring pictures. Either the pictures or the money must be here by Thursday.

Students need to be working on their sundials and bring in wire hangers. Remember, sundials will be due on April 8th. The instructions are on this blog on Thursday March 18th.

Monday sundials and hangers

The Hubble space telescope has sent some fantastic pictures back to Earth. Today we viewed some of the favorites of scientists. We reviewed the uses of satellites and talked about how useful they are on Earth. We showed how communication satellites can give us information. We also showed how the Earth compares to other planets and stars. It is truly amazing.

Then we moved onto why we have seasons. We used a model to show the tilt of the Earth and what causes seasons. Then we viewed a short clip on Youtube that showed the Earth, Sun and seasons. Finally we discussed tides. The spring tide is when the tide is unusually high and it is caused when the sun and moon are in line with each other. The neap tide is a very low tide and it occurs when the sun and the moon are at a 90 degree angle from each other.

Students need to bring a wire coat-hanger to class. If you have extras, please bring them for the students that have none. Sundials are due on April 8th. Please make sure that you line it up North South East West and that your stick is at the bottom next to South. The lines need to be drawn out to the very end of the stick. If it goes past your paper, tape more paper on so you get the full length. Very long sticks require a very large drawing surface. Too short of sticks won't show up.

Thursday with Sundial Instructions

We had an interesting class today learning about satellites. We are showing images from weather satellites and agriculture satellites that show moisture in soil and how well crops are growing. We discussed why we have time zones and watched on-line a current satellite map that shows where it is night time and where it is daylight. We also discussed the differences we learned from yesterday's experiments.

Here is a site that shows some of the images sent back from the Hubble telescope http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/multimedia/ero/index.html

Students were give a handout for making their sun-dial. I am also including the instructions here:
Sundial Instructions - Due Date April 8th:
Supplies:
1. Large piece of paper, cardboard, paper plate or other flat object that can be drawn on
2. A stick, pencil or other straight tall object to use to mark the time
3. Something like clay to anchor the straight stick
4. A marker or pencil

Instructions:
1. Find a good place where the sun will shine for at least five hours
2. Place your flat paper or other object in the sun, anchor it to the ground
3. Determine the directions, North, South, East, West
4. Put the stick or pencil in the bottom center of the paper
5. On the next hour, mark the shadow of the straight object – make sure you draw to the end of the shadow
6. Set a timer and then mark the shadow every hour – draw the new line including width and full length
7. Five hour markings are required

Cautions:
1. Put the paper in a place that will not be bothered by animals or wind and anchor it down
2. If you are forced to move the paper, use a compass or marker so you can reset it exactly
3. Set a timer – you think you will remember but it is really frustrating when you miss it by a few minutes

Wednesday

Today we discussed refraction, reflection and the electromagnetic spectrum. Then we went to our lab and saw what we were talking about. We held up the spectroscope to the fluorescent light and the incandescent light. Students recorded the differences they saw. Next they went to the table with the bowl full of water and a ruler. By putting the ruler in the water they could see how materials appear to bend when moving from one substance, air,to another substance, water. Lastly they went to the table to practice making the phases of the moon. We used a light and a ball and moved it around to see the eight phases of the moon.

Tomorrow we will compare what they saw. Then we will move into satellites.

Homework tonight is to read C6-C15.

Tuesday

Some students still have not turned in their spring pictures/money. The names have been sent to the office.

We corrected Thursday's classwork/homework. It was an open book review. If students didn't finish in class, which some did, they were allowed to finish it over the week-end. Those who didn't have it finished Monday were sent to rememdiation to have more time, although they would lose some of their points. After we corrected the papers we learned about different ways to observe the universe. We saw many different telescopes and two of the classes were able to see some beautiful moon pictures.

Monday

Students turned in their homework. We will correct it tomorrow. Quite a number did not finish their work and went to remediation. We learned about eclipses and the phases of the moon today. Students drew the 8 phases of the moon. They are to watch for the moon and determine which phase it is in.

Thursday

Today was our open book assignment to finish this unit. Students have 33 questions to answer on pages 46-47 1-15, 19, 20 and pg 92-93 1-16. This is open book and can be finished at home. It is due Monday morning at the beginning of class.

Wednesday

Today is the school play. Our classes are a bit shorter and we will not have learning stations. In class we reviewed the six types of simple machines and then students were asked to draw a cartoon, Rube Goldberg style, using the simple machines to do a common job. This should allow them to review the simple machines while using some creative skills.

Spring pictures or money is due now. Please make sure that you get this in. Tomorrow we will have an open book review for the chapter and next week we begin Earth Science. Students have been asked to start moon watching.

Daylight savings time starts on Sunday. Students will need to be getting up an hour earlier. It is a good time now to go to bed a little earlier and get up a little earlier to start setting your inner alarm clock.

Tuesday

Simple Machines was the topic for today's lesson. The students had the opportunity to sketch the three types of levers. Then we discussed inclined planes, wedges, pulleys, screws, and wheel and axles. We followed the discussion by having the students go into the lab and identify several of the items we discussed.
We also corrected yesterday's assignment. Students are to finish reading Unit F and to start watching the moon.

Spring pictures or the money are now due. Please make sure they get turned in as soon as possible.

Monday

We are asking the students to either return their spring pictures of turn in their money this week and no later.

Due to the play practice today we concentrated on reading the chapter on Energy and Work and doing the worksheet with that. All students should have one and it is due tomorrow. Tomorrow we will correct the worksheet and then do a lab on simple machines.

Thursday

Yesterday the school sent home spring pictures with the students. The pictures or the money must be returned as soon as possible.

Today we had a discussion about plagiarism. It is very important that students learn to do their own work. There is a real temptation to copy off of the Internet, copy and paste are so simple to use. But we are trying to teach the students that it is illegal. Any student who copies work will get a zero.

Today the students gave examples of Newton's laws. We discussed how to find force, mass and acceleration. Then students finished working on a project for next year's Project Northland.

The final copy of the Weed Essay is due Monday at the start of class. This will give me the chance to get them read before they are due. Fifteen essays that follow the rules and are well written will be turned into Todd Transtrum and they will choose the finalists from those fifteen essays. I have told the students that they must follow the rules or their paper will not be turned in. However, all students will get a grade for their own work.

Wednesday

The weed essay is due today. Many are coming in, hope they all do! Today we did an experiment racing a marble down a ruler and bumping it into a cylinder. Students experimented with different ways to make the marble go faster or slower. Some timed it and found the actual speed and velocity of the object. We discussed Newton's laws, potential and kinetic energy, gravity and friction, all concepts we have been learning in class.

The final weed essay must be in on Monday as I will need to read them and have them turned in by Tuesday. I will have all corrected rough drafts ready to hand back tomorrow.

Tuesday

Today we learned about Newton's second and third law while reviewing Newton's first law. We watched free fall prove Galileo's concept of gravity. Then we watched an explanation of the three laws.

Please, the weed essay's rough draft is due tomorrow. It is five paragraphs on Why Weeds Won't Wait. It must be in tomorrow so I can grade it and get it back on Thursday. The final paper is due on Monday, so it must be in on Wednesday. Late papers lose half the points. I am offering time to students with no computer to type their paper at school. Please make sure it is in at the beginning of class or your grade will really look ugly.

Monday

We are learning about Newton's laws. Today we discussed force, friction, balanced forces, unbalanced forces and Newton's first law which is an object at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by another force and an object in motion will stay in motion unless acted upon by another force. The word for this law is Inertia. We had students demonstrate balanced and unbalanced forces by doing a tug-of-war. We demonstrated friction by trying to slide a book on a rough surface and then by sliding the same book down a smooth surface.

The weed essay's rough draft needs to be turned in as soon as possible with Wednesday being the final day. The final copy must be in on March 8th. The rough draft is worth 50 points. The final copy is also worth 50 points.

Thursday

We began work on our weed essay today. Each student has a piece of paper telling about the essay. The rough draft must be typed and is due March 3rd or before. The final copy is due March 8th or before. The essay is 5 paragraphs and 750 words or less. The theme is Why Weeds Won't Wait The idea for the essay is why it is important for us to identify and eradicate weeds before they take over and destroy our economy.

We also finished working with our temperature graph finding out the mean, median, mode and range of the highs and lows the last week of January. We made the graph all during January so that the students could practice making and reading charts and graphs.

Wednesday

Today did not go as planned, but we managed to make things work. Yesterday the students were given information about a weed essay that they will be required to write. But the papers with the information did not arrive till 2nd hour today. Tomorrow we will start on the essays in class. The students will be bringing home the information sheets tomorrow. The due date on the final copy will be March 8th. The rough draft will be due March 3rd. This will be graded.

Today we continued our work on gathering data and creating charts and graphs using the information. Students invented their own graphs and then worked on them to make them better.

Tuesday (and Monday)

The school computers were down for much of the day yesterday and so Monday's assignment did not get put up. The students were to do the worksheet that goes with pages F4-F15. We learned about position, motion, velocity and speed by using toy cars on a very large map.

Today we corrected the homework and then learned about making data charts and graphs. We raced four cars down a ramp, compiled the information and tomorrow we will use that information to find speed, velocity, acceleration and momentum. The students timed the cars at .5 meters, 1 meter, 1.5 meters etc until we reached 3 meters. The goal of this lesson is to help the students learn to take data, put it into a chart and make a graph of the information they have found.

The 6th graders will not go to learning stations today, instead they will go to an assembly which will tell them about a weed essay that they will be writing soon. There are prizes associated with the essay. Students should be bringing the information home with them today.

Thursday

Today we did our last video of Project Northland. This video was about alcohol abuse. The students learned that alcohol is not a choice that just affects the drinker, it affects everyone.

On Tuesday the week control program will be here. Students will be writing a paper about controlling weeds. Information should be coming soon.

Wednesday dress up dance on Thursday

Today we learned that speed = Distance/time in seconds. We learned the equation then we went into the hall, and with timers walked and then ran for 20 meters. The students timed each other and then we came back into class and determined our speed. We will continue with this lesson on Monday. We also corrected last night's homework.

Students were given back their corrected tests. These tests can be corrected for half points following the instructions I sent home at the beginning of the year and reviewed with the students today. (Must be on a separate paper, stapled to the test, complete sentences are required, not questions and answers but complete sentences) These corrected tests are due Thursday at the start of class. Late tests will not be accepted.

Tomorrow is the school's Valentine's Day dance. Students are strongly urged to dress in their nicest clothes for this dance. The dance begins about 3 p.m.

Tuesday

I hope you all had a great vacation yesterday. We are back at work today. We corrected and reviewed Wednesday's test. I will go through those and have them back to the students tomorrow. Anyone who wants to improve their grade can fix each incorrect question for half credit. If the student missed a lot of spelling words, they can write the word correctly ten times and they will receive 1/4 points. (Mis-spelled words lose 1/2 point) For the student to get the corrected test's points they must: 1. Write the number of the problem. 2.If it is multiple choice, write A, B, C, or D. 3.Then, and this is absolutely required, they must write the answer out in a complete sentence, even the multiple choice questions. An example would be

2. C Volume is the amount of space an object takes up.

I don't want them to write the question, I want an answer so complete that I know what the question was.

Tonight's homework is reading F2-F15 and the questions on page F15 1-5.

Thursday - No school Monday because of President's Day

During Project Northland today, we watched a movie showing our students the effects of cigarette smoking on skin, faces, lungs, voice box, etc. The students all agreed that smoking would be a wsste of time, health and money. We will be starting our scientist reports soon. I am still correcting tests. Hope to finish that over the week-end. Remember, no school on Monday. Have a great week-end

Wednesday

It is test day. We had to add a few more places for the students to find the volume of regular and irregular objects, but other than that slow-down, all went well. We are now starting into section F. The students will be working on their second report soon. This report will be about a scientist. More information will be coming soon.

Tuesday test tomorrow

To review for our test, students went to the lab and answered as many questions as they could in twenty minutes. For example, number 1 was a fork in warm water. That is an example of conduction. Number 2 was the sunshine, that was an example of radiation. After twenty minutes we stopped and I went through and told them the answers at all of the stations. Students should have that paper and yesterday's review notes to study. Remember, in science, spelling does count. I will have all the main words on the board and students are allowed to ask for the spelling of any word that they need for the test. Wednesday is the test and Thursday is Project Northland.

Monday - Spring pictures are tomorrow

Today we finished learning about electromagnetism, made a model of a motor (that is just fun) and then began the review for our test which covers E1-E140. The questions on the test cover material that we have been reviewing regularly. The test will be on Wednesday.

Tomorrow afternoon we will take Spring pictures. Students do not need to bring money until parents have approved the pictures. A flier should be coming home today.

Thursday - test Wednesday

Some 8th grade students and Mrs. Braun came in today to help Mrs. Bloxham with Project Northland. The students brought in two lungs, one a healthy lung and the other a lung affected by cigarette smoke. The healthy pink lung inflated nicely while the black lung was hard to inflate. Students that wanted to put on gloves and felt how differently the two lungs felt. Students were encouraged to protect their lungs.

We have a test on Unit E on Wednesday. We will be reviewing Monday and Tuesday.

Wednesday

Today we watched Plato and learned about magnetism and electromagnets. We could see what magnetic domains look like. We will finish this on Monday. There will be a test a week from today, Wednesday February 10th. Tomorrow is Project Northland, be sure to bring back your books with the activities accomplished and signed by your parents.

Tuesday

We studied the scientific theory of why the Earth has a magnetic field. The students are still learning to use the metric system and we reviewed that today. We corrected last night's homework and discussed the importance of learning as much as we can. Students discussed how different electrical devices, such as MRIs, have helped them and their families.

Students should review the reading assignment. There will be a unit test on Wednesday of next week. We will review for that test on Monday and Tuesday.

Monday

We learned about magnets today. We are making a nail into a magnet using wire, a battery and a nail. Students then went to the lab and worked with different materials to see how many layers would stop the magnetic force.

Students have homework tonight. They are to ready E116-125 and do the worksheet Electromagnets. They should have it in their science book.

Wednesday

Today was a review day. We discussed open and closed circuits, AC & DC current, types of energy; potential and kinetic and methods of transferring energy; conduction, convection and radiation.

Students were then given their alternative energy project summaries. They fixed these papers to be more in line with what was required.

Tomorrow is Project Northland. Students need to complete the assignment in the booklet and return it signed at the beginning of class tomorrow. The assignment was to observe commercials, ads and tv shows that glamorize the use of alcohol and tobacco products.

Tuesday

We learned about alternating and direct current today. We watched a short video that demonstrated the movement of the electrons. Then we went to the lab and experienced that in D.C. the electrons move from the negative to the positive pole. We experienced open and closed circuits. We examined an A.C. wire and noticed that there are two parts, one that allows the current to go in and one that allows the current to exit.

We also wrote the metric prefixes down again so the students can use the prefixes in calculating metric changes.

To study for this lesson go to Youtube and watch Bill Nye on Electricity.

Monday

We corrected the homework from Wednesday. It had a lot to do with electricity, open and closed circuits, current, and electrons. We then viewed a movie that showed clearly how electrons work.

There is no homework tonight other than re-reading the assignment.

Thursday

Today was Project Northland. The students learned different ways to relax and have fun without using drug or alcohol.

Homework was turned in today by most of the students. Those who did not turn in their assignment can receive half credit if the completed assignment is turned in on Monday. Students that did only part of the assignment will receive half credit on the problems that were not done. The papers are marked.

Wednesday

We practiced our vocabulary words today. We had different questions on papers around the room. The students had ten squares of paper and had to write the correct answers on the papers. Then we added up the correct answers and discussed the questions.

Students have homework tonight. They are to read E106-E113 and do the worksheet that each student received in class today. It is due at the start of class tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Project Northland, the drug and alcohol prevention class. Student need to bring their Project Northland booklet back for points.

Tuesday

We had a great time yesterday purifying water, drying clothes, cooking cookies, and making windmills. The students really worked well on this and learned that alternative energy doesn't have to be that difficult.

Students, you need to do your reading. Learning will only take place as you do your part. The reading assignment from yesterday was E98-E105. If you didn't read it well enough to be able to answer the red questions at the top of each section, re-read it.

Today we learned about static electricity. We learned how lightning occurs and why a balloon, when rubbed on hair, will stick to a wall. There is no homework for tonight except to read or review last night's reading assignment. Again, if you can answer the questions in red, then you are done reading.

Monday doing projects using alternative energies

In our first hour class we watched water turn clear by using a charcoal purifier, a dryer that almost worked, cooked oatmeal and eggs with (fake) solar power, and saw a miniature windmill with cups on the end trying to pick up water. It was fun, but I believe the students learned that we can use alternatives to energy when we want to. I am looking forward to what the other classes have planned.

Homework tonight is to read E98-E105. First hour students will think it is E103, but if you are reading this, read to E105.

Thursday - remember supplies for Monday

Today Mrs. Bloxham came in to do Project Northland. The students learned about the poisons in drugs and discussed fun things to do that don't require alcohol. Their homework is to find out how much a six pack of beer costs and what a pack of cigarettes costs. They also are to do their "Slick Tracy" comic book with an adult before next Thursday.

Students are doing a team project on Monday. They need to remember to bring the supplies for their team. We are making things that use alternative forms of energy.

Wednesday

On Monday students were given a paper to help the school earn money. It is an online connection so that if anyone in your family orders anything online, money will be given to the school if you do it through the correct connection. It doesn't sound difficult. Students, please make sure you get this paper to your parent. It would be nice to get money from a source outside of Bear Lake.

Today in science we discussed the different alternative energy sources. We watched a film clip of solar cooking happening in countries that do not have electricity for many of their citizens.

Then students got in teams to plan how to make a "fake" alternative energy device. They were assigned, by their teams, of items to bring for their part of the device. Tomorrow is the drug prevention class, so students will work on their device on Monday. They can bring their supplies tomorrow or Monday and we will store the parts.

Tuesday

Unfortunately many students did not finish last night's homework. The reading assignment is designed to assist the students in the next day's work. So today we are adding more homework, it is to read, again, E84-E87 and come prepared tomorrow to discuss the difference between nuclear fusion and nuclear fission.

Today we learned about different sources of energy. We discussed solar power, and biofuels. We learned the about the different output of ethanol and algae as a source of future energy use.

Tomorrow we will discuss nuclear power, wind power and what a kilowatt really is.

Monday

We watched hot air expand and cold air contract today through two different experiments. We put a balloon in hot water and it expanded. Then we put it in cold water and it contracted. Then we did a short experiment on convection by putting a green ice cube in warm water. First hour the experiement didn't work because the water was in motion. But in 4th and 5th hour we made sure the water was still and the convection current was obvious. We will redo the experiment in first hour tomorrow.

Reading for tonight's homework in E78-E91. Some students are going to remediation to assure that they understand the information in the assignment.

Thursday Project Northland

On Thursdays, for the next six weeks, the students will be doing something called Project Northland. This is a class to teach students the dangers of alcohol, drugs and tobacco. A specially trained person will come and talk to the students. Today the students took the survey pertaining to the class.

In Science we discussed the three types of energy transfer, radiation, conduction and convection. Then we reviewed the measuring worksheet that we have finished in class.

Wednesday

We learned about transferring heat energy today. There are three main ways to transfer heat energy, radiation; as in waves from the sun or other warm objects, conduction; heat transfer by direct contact, and convection; heat transfer through liquid or gas. We did a demonstration showing all three of the heat transfers using a boiling beaker of water, a cold fork, and a beaker of room temperature water. Next we watched a short video clip on youtube called Eureka! This Eureka! lesson re-taught the information on heat energy transfers. Students also completed a sheet on S.I. measurements and did quite well on it.

Homework tonight is to read E66-E77.

Tuesday

We finished up our measuring work today. I thought it would be a good idea to have the students finish it after Christmas break so they could remember how to measure using the metric system. We also started something new today. We are going to track the high and low temperatures each school day for the month of January. This will give the students experience on graphing while paying attention to the current temperatures in Montpelier.

Our notes today started with a review of comparing and contrasting invertebrates and vertebrates. Next the students were asked to compare and contrast kinetic and potential energy. Last they were asked to use their periodic table and draw an oxygen atom.

Monday January 4th 2010

Students were asked to write their definition of energy. We then learned that it is a Greek word. "En" means in and "Ergon" means work, so energy is "work in." (Actually I think it should be in work, but I am not a Greek scholar so I won't argue the point.) We watched a couple of video clips on potential and kinetic energy. Then we did an experiment. Students were asked to come up with an hypothesis; what would happen if we put a drop of food coloring in hot water, cool water and ice water.

Homework tonight will be reading pg E50-E65.