Sunday, May 20, 2012

Interactive Notebook
We have continued to use the interactive science notebook in class. Luckily, the students still love using it! I love the notebooks because I have actually seen an increase in student quiz scores since beginning them. I am hoping to see an increase on the chapter test scores as well. Although these notebooks take more time and effort, they are definitely worth it if the students are learning more by using them! 


The envelope contains a flipbook that shows how the continents have moved over time. The paper at the bottom pulls apart to show how continents have drifted over time. 

A view of the flipbook.

The flipbook in use.

Pictures showing continental drift over time.

A drawing of seafloor spreading.

A close-up of the seafloor spreading drawing.

Plate boundaries.

A close-up of the plate boundaries diagram.

A coloring page of the Earth's plates.

A vocabulary page.

A page describing the different faults.

Learning about earthquakes.

A vocabulary page with a summary of the Richter Scale.

A fun crossword puzzle page.

Learning about volcanoes.

A fun matching page.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Earthquakes
Yesterday, my fifth and sixth grade students began learning about earthquakes. Today, the students created their own seismographs. Once they had their seismographs, the earthquakes began! After the "earthquakes", the students were able to look at the seismograms that their seismographs recorded. This was an easy and cheap experiment that the students absolutely loved!


A close up of one seismograph.

Using the seismograph.

A close up of one of the seismograms. 

Another seismogram.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Biome Dioramas
When the fifth and sixth grade students were learning about the different biomes, they created a specific biome diorama. Several of the students were very creative when completing this assignment. Below are a few of the biome projects that the students made. 


6th grade student's African Grassland (Savanna) biome.

5th grade student's Ocean biome.

Top view of the Ocean biome.

5th grade student's Rainforest biome.

5th grade student's Rainforest biome.

Top view of the Rainforest biome.

6th grade student's Desert biome.

5th grade student's Rainforest biome.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

The Results Are In!
After all of the students' hard work, the results were finally announced tonight. I was very pleased with all of the students' projects. I was especially pleased with the fifth and sixth grade students because this was their first science fair. I was extremely happy that 17 out of 19 of my students attended the fair, even though it was not required. Although, the promised extra credit was probably a good motivator! 


Fifth and Sixth Grade Winners
3rd place: 5th grade student!

2nd place: 6th grade student!

1st place: 5th grade student!

Seventh and Eighth Grade Winners
3rd place: 8th grade student!

2nd place: 7th grade student!

1st place: 7th grade student!


Monday, May 7, 2012

Science Fair
Today, the judges came and reviewed my students' science fair projects. Three winners were selected from fifth/sixth grade and three winners were selected from seventh/eighth grade.


7th grade student.

5th grade student.

6th grade student.

6th grade student.

5th grade student.

5th grade student.

7th grade student.

7th grade student.

5th grade student.

7th grade student.

5th grade student.

8th grade student.

7th grade student.

5th grade student.
7th grade student.

6th grade student.