Making our own filaments and more

In this picture, Shannon is making the final connection that will make the nichrome wire filament glow.

Yesterday, students learned to diagram circuits using the symbols that electricians use to represent batteries, wires, and bulbs. Today, students built circuits with batteries in series and in parallel. They noted which had a brighter bulb and predicted which would last longer.

pride

Earlier this week, our students wrote me a final letter, reflecting on their growth and imagining goals for next year. Here are a few quotes about what they are proud of from this year:

• Reading out of my comfort zone in the reading missions unit.

• Reading over 50 books

• Taking something I love (Greek gods) and making poetry about it.

• My math confidence went from 8 to 10.

• I wasn't the biggest fan in writing, but now I enjoy writing.

• How much better I got at throwing a football and a baseball.

• The states: I improved by 25 states between my first test and my last test.

• The poetry and stories I have written.

• Dominating in the Word Olympics for the second year in a row

• I started making more and more time for reading

• More than anything else: winning the Battle of the Books

• My collection of TFK magazines

• How many new friends I have made this year

• I didn't try to change myself to be like other kids

• One last thing I am proud of is the whole class. We have all learned stuff academically, physically, and we have learned how to take care of each other, and not bully one another.

A Closer Look

In this picture, two students from our class are working together to build an electric circuit. When their bulb lights, they know they've done it!

In addition to the circuits we are building, we are reading The Magic School Bus and the Electric School Bus.

This book helps us understand and talk about how electrons run through wires (and other conductors), how magnetism can create electric current, how lightning forms, how switches work, and many important safety rules related to electricity.

Electric Circuits!

Our class is studying electric circuits. First, we had to make a small bulb light with a D battery and a wire. Then the whole class tried to make a big light bulb light. First everyone guessed how many D batteries would make it light. We started with two D batteries and worked our way up. It finally lit at eighteen batteries!

(entry written by Piper)

4th grade visits the Springfield Science Museum

April 29th, the third and fourth grade classes traveled to the Springfield Science Museum. At the Black Holes Special Exhibition Program, our students were able to have hands-on experiences as they explored the properties of black holes. They even piloted an excursion pod into an enormous black hole at the center of our galaxy! Students received Black Hole Explorer's ID cards to use from home when they visit the museum's website. With this card they will be able to continue their space exploration. We reviewed facts about the planets in the Space Explorations Classroom Program. Students volunteered to demonstrate the rotation of the earth and moon as they orbit the sun. It was a memorable and entertaining model! After a picnic lunch by the Dr. Seuss Sculpture Garden, we went inside the planetarium to learn more about the night sky. It was a wonderful way to extend our understanding of space!

Diane Adams and Ms. L.

April is National Poetry Month!

Our students have been reading poetry! Here are some poetry reading activities we've enjoyed:

• finding poems that represent our inner and outer selves

• choosing poems to perform in pairs and trios

• reading poems aloud

• finding kinds of poems we like

• identifying the characteristics of poems, and then finding poems that are good examples of those characteristics (for example, poems that use repetition, have rhythm, include comparisons, etc.)

• recording favorite lines of poems

We are now reading poems closely in small groups. We talk about the ideas, images, language, and feelings of the poems we read. We find evidence in the poem to support our interpretations.

Heart Goals

Our class has been talking about what it means to bring "our best selves" to our interactions with each other. Here is a sample of the goals they set:

I want to be patient with others.

I want to accept hard things, like a baseball glove accepts a baseball.

I want to put myself in others' shoes.

I want to be able to control when to let out my energy.

I want to make people feel good about themselves.

I want to be nicer to my sister.

Tell the truth but in a nice way.

Stand up for your rights.

Talk to people to get ideas to say.

I am going to let the other person do some too, so I don't do it all for them.

After setting our goals, we represented them using words and images (as seen on the bulletin board shone above).