MACC 4/5 SUNCREST

Yesterday we played a fun game to identify commonly-used elements from the periodic table! Scientists use their knowledge of element properties and characteristics to use elements in creative ways.

To further explore this, each student has chosen one element from the periodic table. They will research it a bit, using videos from TED Ed Periodic Table or other resources online.

Then, turn the element into a superhero or villain!! You need to think about your element as a person. What would it do with its superpowers based on the element’s characteristics?

So, first, here are the questions you should try to answer as you research the basics of your element:

• What is your element? (Gas, metal, non-metal, etc.)
• What is your element’s atomic number, atomic weight, and symbol?
• What are the physical properties of your element? (color, weight, size, malleable, hard, etc.)
• What are the chemical properties of your element? (reactive, reacts with what, how does it react, etc.)
• What is your element used for? What can you make with it?
• Where can you find this element?
• What other elements often combine with your element?
• Any other interesting facts you can find out?

Then, after you have found out the basics, now you can start to think creatively about how those characteristics of your element can be used to create a superhero character!

• Will your element be a superhero or a villain? (or both?)
• What is your character’s name? (doesn’t need to be the element, but should probably have part of it in the name)
• What symbol would your character have on its supersuit? (Would it have a supersuit? or something else?)
• Would your element look like a person, or something else? What do they look like based on your element’s physical properties? (Get creative!)
• Would your element have specific powers? For example, do their chemical properties give them powers? (Else why would they be a superhero??)
• Would your element have certain weaknesses? (All good superheroes have at least one.)
• What does your element do every day? For example, if it is a villain, what kind of thing does it want to do that could be related to your element’s real-life information? Or, if it is a superhero, what good things can your element do for others?
• What is your element superhero or villain’s origin story? How did they become powerful and decide to be a superhero or villain?
• Where does your element superhero/villain live? Do they have a hideout?
• Do they have an arch nemesis or superhero they are trying to defeat?
• What additional element superheroes or villains could combine with your hero to make them more powerful?

Find out information and the next step will be to design an actual superhero in art and to write about them.

I look forward to creating our own table of superhero and villain elements.

Basic research is due by May 3rd, and there will be some class time to do some of the research.

Have a good night,

Ms. D

As we talk about where our STUFF comes from, it is important to understand global trade. Today we talked about the many countries and materials that go into making jeans, and we watched the video called The Story of Stuff to learn about the materials economy involved in getting stuff to us in the stores.

To further investigate global trade, we are looking at where one of our favourite sweets comes from — CHOCOLATE!

In groups of three, we are looking at different chocolate companies to answer the following questions:

1. What is the name of the company?
2. What is their most popular chocolate product?
3. Which town and/or country did the company originate in?
4. When did the company start making chocolate?
5. Where does the company manufacture chocolate? Where are their factories?
6. Where do they get their cocoa beans from to make the chocolate?
7. What other main ingredients are used in their chocolate products?
8. Where do they get those ingredients from?
9. Where do they sell their chocolate?
10. How many people do they employ?
11. How much profit does the company make?
12. What do they claim they do to be socially responsible as regards the welfare of either people or the environment? (Fair trade, employment protection, against child labour, green farming, etc.)
13.  Any other interesting facts??

Record these facts in your journal together as a group of three. Our goal is to see which company is the most responsible AND to learn a little more about where our STUFF comes from.

Ms. D

Hello Everyone!

We have already talked about this in class, so here is a formal update on Independent Project 2024!

What has already been done?

• Students chose their topics and informed Ms. D
• Ms. Ho put out requests to all District libraries for books related to topics
• Ms. D went over the Jar of Inquiry and how to ask questions.
• Students were told to begin with Form and Function type questions, and then to expand up into connection, perspective, and responsibility questions. Examples were provided in class and via the wonderings board, which you all had an opportunity to see at Student Led Conferences.
• Over this year, Ms. D has reviewed which are good websites to use, what information to take down to document resources, how to take notes in a T chart, and where to find things like copyright dates/publishers/about us on websites, etc.
• Students began taking notes, whether in their journals by hand or online. No cutting and pasting, please! Notes in their own words. Use the T CHART format.

What’s next?

• Continue to take notes using books from the public library, books from Ms. Ho that are available in the classroom, and websites.
• Ask new questions. As you research, if something comes up that you are curious about, ask a new question!
• We have been doing secondary research. If you haven’t done it already, it is time to come up with some primary research ideas.

What is Primary Research?

Primary research is doing the observing, documenting, analyzing, and making conclusions on your own instead of finding research already done by someone else. It can take many forms. Primary research is required for the project, and it needs to be documented with pictures or notes. Here are some ideas:

• Interview with an expert on the topic. Before you do an interview, write down your questions and ask Ms. D to review them with you. Record the person’s answers, their name, and the date of the interview.
• Do observations at a location, or of someone doing something related to your topic. It is a good idea to take both written observations, the dates you took the observations, and take some pictures to share later as part of your presentation.
• Conduct a lab experiment. Use the scientific method to do a lab write up. Take pictures to document the process so you will have them for your presentation later. Write down the dates you conducted the experiment. We will be talking more about the scientific method this unit.
• Build something. Document your design process with a draft drawing or plan, notes about how the process is going, and pictures so you have them for your presentation later. Record dates about when you did certain things in your notes.
• Do something. Try something for the first time, document the experience, and take pictures so you have them for your presentation later. Record dates about when you did certain things in your notes.

Please try to think about a primary research item on your own. Ms. D can discuss with you some ideas to help.

Next Step — Bibliography and Presentation Details:

• All notes, primary research, and bibliographies are due to Ms. D by May 31st.
• In May, we will begin working on presentations, and Ms. D will go over ideas. Our goal will be to not all have trifolds like a Science Fair. Independent Project is not like Science Fair presentations. We want to see models, interactive displays, brochures, handouts, etc. versus just a board people can look at and read. Materials are available in class, and computers/iPads will be available, as well. More details about this as we get into May.
• Presentation will be from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM on June 12th, Wednesday. We may use a combination of our classroom and the library, or just the library, for presenting. Set up will be all morning on the 12th. Lunch will be early that day to accommodate a lunchtime viewing for parents and families.
• Some items from Independent Project, if they are digital, can be displayed on our class blog. Be thinking of what items could be displayed there, such as the bibliography, primary research documentation, and handouts. I will not post notes on the blog, only final presentation pieces.

Looking forward to your work!

Ms. D

*Please post a picture of Britannia Mines if you can! If you were absent for these trips, please only answer the questions you can. I encourage you to touch base with your fellow students to see what you missed. E-Port is due Tuesday, April 23rd.

Title:  Britannia Mines and Port of Vancouver Trips

Questions:

How did technology change to get light in the mine, so the miners could see?

How did they get the copper out of the rock ore in the mill? Describe what you can from the process (think about the movie/interactive BOOM presentation at the end of our trip.)

How do they remove copper from the water so it doesn’t pollute Howe Sound and kill the marine animals and life there?

Which mineral does copper come from?

How did the technology change for drilling in the mountain tunnels over time?

What does gold look like during gold panning? How do you know it isn’t pyrite?

What other facts did you learn while you were there about mining, rocks, gold panning, etc.?

What areas does the “Port of Vancouver” cover other than Vancouver?

Name the different types of ships that come into the Port of Vancouver?

What are some of the major countries we trade with?

What resources are often being sent out on ships to these other countries from Canada?

Why do you think having a port is a good thing for us and for British Columbia?

Hello, This is an e-port check in from the last two weeks since Spring Break, on our new unit. As it is being assigned today, Wednesday, April 10, it will be due one week from now on Wednesday, April 17. Do your best to answer questions using materials from class and your journal, rather than looking things up on the Internet.

Please include a picture of a favourite resource from BC or favourite mineral.

Title:  Resources and Geology Check In

Questions:

What are natural resources?

What does renewable and non-renewable mean? Give an example of each.

What are some specific resources we extract and/or sell in British Columbia? (You can use the station materials, with the resource samples, if you need them.)

Which of the natural resources is the most important according to our class data about the objects in our homes? Why do you think it is the most important?

What is geology?

What is a rock? What is a mineral? (How are they different or the same?)

What is an element?

Explain the rock cycle briefly, using scientific words.

What are the three types of rocks and tell me one characteristic of each that helps you know which is which?

How can we classify minerals (what characteristics do we look at)?

What does a geologist need or wear to go do their work?

What kind of rock would you find in the Rocky Mountains? Why?

Why might there be very different types of rocks on Vancouver Island than in Vancouver?

What are some of the main minerals we mine for in BC?

What kind of rock do we see a lot of along the coastline here in BC? Why?

In class, we have been studying migration of animals, including migration cues, and typical migration routes.

Each of you will choose one migratory animal to look at more closely.

You will use Book Creator on the iPads to make a short, creative book online to share your findings with us. This tool will give you one more option for presenting information as you think toward the end of the year and Independent Project.

While research can be done at home, the majority of the work on this project will be at school, so we need to use our time and project-management skills to stay on task during work periods!!

Step one: Do research on your animal and watch the Book Creator Tutorial on the iPads. Record your research using a T-Chart in your journal. See the questions below for what kinds of information you need to look for and share with us.

Step two: Make a storyboard of what you would like to share.

• You can use your drawing book to make a layout of the pages you want to create in your Book Creator Book.
• Your book can be about 10 pages — one page for a book cover, 8 pages of information and graphics, and one last page with a short bibliography of where your information came from.
• Your book will need to have words and pictures to explain your animal and its migration.

Step three: Start making your pages using the Book Creator application on the iPads. If you are absent or know you will be away the next week, you can also create a free account at Bookcreator.com so you can work on your computer/laptop at home, or you can get the Book Creator application on a mobile device.

There may be a fee for the app on a mobile device, but using Book Creator on a laptop in a browser is free if you make an account with parent help. Talk to Ms. D if you have questions.

Step four:  Edit your book carefully by reviewing it yourself and asking a peer to look at it, as well.

Step five: Show your finished book to Ms. D — she will try to upload it to her shared library, or we can just view your book on the iPad. Our goal is to share these during our student led conferences in April.

As you research your migratory animal, please find out the answers to these questions:

1. What is the name of your animal? Common name is fine.
2. Where does your animal live? (Biome and habitat; specific location on map)
3. What does your animal look like? What adaptations (features of its body) help it deal with the habitat and biome it lives in?
4. Where does your animal travel to as it migrates?
5. What is the migration route on a map? What biomes does it travel through?
6. What does your animal need to survive? Food/habitat/conditions
7. What cue causes your animal to migrate? What type of migration is it? (use the handouts from class if needed)
8. How is your animal important to the ecosystems it lives in?
9. Is your animal endangered and why? Are there any problems with human activity bothering the animal’s migration route?
10. Any other really cool and interesting facts about your animal?

Criteria:

• You are able to find specific migration information about your animal and to use the science vocabulary we have discussed to describe their migration.
• You are able to create a clear presentation using a new digital tool, using simple graphics to communicate details about your animal.
• You are able to use creative thinking and an organized layout as you design your presentation so your audience is engaged as they read the information.

Due Date:  April 16th at the latest, as we will present these during Student Led Conferences April 17 or 18.

Here are some websites on migratory animals you may find helpful or interesting! Many of these are on birds, but please see the Articles of Interest for other options, under the heading “Migration Unit.”

Earth Rangers Top Ten Most Amazing Animal Migrations

Nature Animal Migration

BBC Animal Migration Videos and Info

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology (study of birds — so any bird can be searched!)

NOVA Magnetic Field and Animal Migration

Scientific American Silent Skies: Billions of North American Birds Have Vanished

Audubon North America Has Lost More Than 1 in 4 Birds

Cornell Chronicle Nearly 30% of Birds in US Have Disappeared

Nature Canada How Climate Change is Impacting Birds

Mass Audubon Effects of Climate Change on Birds

Forbes Climate Change is Affecting Migration Timing of Birds

Cosmos Bird migratory patterns changing with climate

United Nations International Gathering on Birds to Discuss Migratory Species

Ted Ed Video on Bird Migration Dangers

Hello Everyone!

We started this project yesterday, and I passed out a packet to follow, but I wanted to put the details we have talked about down on the blog for parents to see, too.

We are building a TINY HOUSE MODEL as part of our combined MATH and ADST studies, and in connection with the IDENTITY core competency.

In class, we discussed tiny houses, looked at pictures, talked about why people build them, and considered different designs. Then, each person was given a planning packet to begin drafting their own tiny house scale model.

As part of math, we are using the TINY HOUSE to practice scale and proportionate thinking. We will also be practicing communication around area, perimeter, and measurement.

As part of IDENTITY, our concept of study for our recent unit, we are exploring what kind of personal space we would invent for ourselves. This will be a great communication of our personal preferences and needs, through the designing of a living space.

Finally, as part of ADST, we will practice creative-thinking and building using a variety of tools to produce a scale model, while using the design process of envisioning our idea, drafting a plan, making our model, revising it as we go, and presenting a final product.

Steps for Creating the Model:

1. PLAN:  Read through the Tiny House Booklet and make a plan on the design page. Use the list of items on that page to help you think about what a tiny house needs. You are welcome to look at Tiny House ideas on the internet, as there are so many TV shows on YouTube about them!
2. MAKE:  Ms. D will provide you with cardstock grid paper for the floor, roof, and walls of your tiny house. The building of our Tiny House will happen in class. You may use coloured pencils, markers, clear tape, glue, extra cardstock, pipe cleaners, and other building supplies to help create your space.
3. BE AWARE OF SCALE: We discussed in class having an idea of how big your person is that is moving in the house. This will help you design things, so that your couch isn’t made for a giant! Also, we compared the grid squares to the size of our classroom, so that we would know how high to make doors and windows. Be aware that all of your items in the house need to “make sense” in terms of size and relationship to one another.
4. CREATE 3D FURNITURE: Ms. D has a handout with sample furniture already on it, or you can create your own. Make the furniture, light fixtures, garden items, etc. as 3D as you can. You can draw some things on the walls, though, such as art or in-set shelves that are not sticking out into the space.
5. BE CREATIVE:  Make sure you add colour! What does the outside look like? Will you have a roof patio? A garden? An interesting pathway? You decide!
6. PRESENT:  When you finish, we will present to one another, sharing our creativity, in our TINY HOUSE TOWN! I will ask you to write about your design experience, as well as the math involved, in a final e-port reflection.

CRITERIA:

• I can envision a creative tiny house space, including elements that represent my identity and personal preferences.
• I can use the design process to draft ideas, build, revise, and produce a tiny house model.
• I can work with alternative materials successfully to create a 3D model of a space.
• I can use proportionate thinking to design a space that makes sense in terms of the related size of furniture, door, window, and other items.
• I can use a grid plan, as well as a sense of area, to plan out a tiny house.
• I can use design elements and creative thinking (colour, 3D construction, line, texture, interesting items included) to make an interesting and aesthetic house model.
• I can explain the design process and my math thinking successfully through a written reflection.
• I can use materials responsibly, not wasting cardstock and other classroom supplies as I build.

DUE DATE:  No later than April 17th, Wednesday morning

BUILDING HAPPENS IN CLASS — SO MS. D CAN SEE YOUR PROCESS. Thank you!!