MS. DETERRA'S MAKER STUDIO

Hello Everyone!

Using our knowledge of simple machines, we will be building a Rube Goldberg machine! Before we begin, please do some investigation. On Rube Tube you can watch a variety of Rube Goldberg contraptions and get some ideas. You can also read about Rube Goldberg himself on this biographical website.

Consider the DESIGN PROCESS as you create your own contraption!

1. Ask a question – What task will your machine complete?
2. Imagine what you would do – Brainstorm ideas and watch Rube Tube.
3. Plan and consider materials – Make a draft in your journal and a list of supplies
4. Create something based on your plan – all day Friday or Monday
5. Reflect, make adjustments to improve, and document changes — Journal!
6. Present final product – Show it to Ms. D

You will have a whole day to build. The contraption must use at least three simple machines. Documentation of all your building steps is a must! I will be marking both your journal and your final presentation, so even if your product is amazing, you need written observations. Even if the machine doesn’t work, you need to show evidence of having considered simple machines and be able to explain your process to me.

We will build the machines on Friday during a large chunk of the day. Begin looking for ideas and materials from home. I have a lot of building supplies here, but if you need something specific, then please look at home. You shouldn’t need to buy anything new, so please focus on recyclables and toys you already have.

One way to make your machine more interesting is to consider how it might tell a story. When you watch the OK Go video on Rube Tube, it is based on a song. How does it tell a story or have a message?

I look forward to seeing your machines!

Hello Everyone,

Just a quick update to bring everyone up to speed with what we have been doing in the classroom!

Unit Work – Science:

We continue to talk about simple machines and how they are used in more complex technology!

• We used rulers and blocks to do a CANTILEVER balancing challenge in groups,
• We looked at how cantilevers are used in bridges and cranes,
• We read about fixed and movable pulleys and tried to make some of our own to deliver messages across the classroom,
• Ms. D set up a fixed pulley clothesline system across the classroom to deliver messages,
• Ms. D brought in some 3D printed pulleys and spring scales to experiment with lifting loads and reducing the force required,
• Students had opportunities to either play with or build mini machines using hydraulics and simple machines,
• We used iPads to play the game Simple Physics to explore cantilevers and other physics principles in contruction,
• Students experimented with inclined planes while playing with “Build Your Own Wooden Pinball” engineering sets from the AWIM Engineering Design Group, and
• We read together multiple picture books showing the many simple machines INSIDE of other, more complex machines, which led to interesting conversation!

We have been doing a lot of great experimenting in class! Pictures to come as soon as I can get them all re-sized and posted.

We also began talking about mechanical advantage and how WORK is expressed in joules, FORCE is expressed in Newtons, and DISTANCE is expressed in meters as we solve math equations about force! W=F x D. Our next step is to do some experimenting with forces and ramps AND to build a Rube Goldberg machine!

Unit Work – Socials:

We read two entertaining picture books called Nerdy Birdie Tweets and The Fabulous Friend Machine, which led to great conversations about how social media has impacted our lives. Students discussed the pros and cons of new technology for communication, and then they made lists in their journals of the top ways to ensure social media safety!

We created a larger list of all technologies out there, and then as a class began deciding whether those technologies were positive or negative for humanity and the health of the planet. A week ago, through a group web activity, we discussed how all technologies have an impact, as their existence and/or use is interconnected to the environment, to natural resources, and to all aspects of our lives. Each student chose 5 technologies or inventions and wrote the positive and negative impacts. This handout was due Friday morning.

All of this work is preparing us for a final project in which students have to choose an invention they believe has had the greatest impact AND prove their case through research. We will also be having classroom debates on the impact of video games and social media.

Thank you for all of the great TIMELINE work you did, showing how CREATIVE THINKING has been used over time to make technologies! You can see some of the timelines in the hallway near the music room, and then some I will find room for in the classroom.

Math:

Some of our math is interconnected with the unit, as we have started discussing mechanical advantage, which will require some math equations, problem solving, and multiplication!

We also have been doing measurement! I encourage everyone to find measuring tools at home and to practice using both metric and imperial systems to measure! Find ways to use and to discuss measurement at home as we explore it at school!

Math survey projects are now complete and marks are going home Monday. Some of the projects are displayed in our classroom.

Language Arts:

Based on our work from the TED Talks, we will continue to work on areas of grammar and language students need to review, such as parts of speech, sentence construction, transition words, and proper paragraphing. We will also continue to work on advanced vocabulary lists throughout the rest of term two, such as the Greek and Latin word list we have used to invent new words, to write pretend magical spells, or to create new monsters from our imaginations.

In connection with our unit, we are reading the book City of Ember, to further discuss what the world would be like without technology or with scarce resources. Students are primarily reading the books in class and answer questions as we go. We are also analyzing the book through the READING POWER model, which I will talk about more in a future post.

Holiday FUN!

This month is all about MAKING as we get ready for the holidays. So far, we have made three mini projects, and there will be more to come next week! We participated in the HOUR OF CODE on December 8th, and I hope to bring out other technology tidbits before we go to break.

We are doing a Secret Santa and each person, if they chose to participate, was assigned a person from class. Each person provided a wish list of 3 items that are under $5. Please do not spend more than that on Secret Santa. Made items are totally okay, too, although do try to follow the wish list as possible.

Reminder to be looking for WHITE ELEPHANT gifts, too, as you voted as a class to have this fun gift game again on Dec. 22nd! Only find one if you will be there that day. Guidelines:

• If you can’t find a gift, please see Ms. D  — I will help!
• Please avoid food and used stuffies, as we have lots of allergies in the class
• Gift items do not have to be expensive and can be any recycled gift you have
• Ideas: books you have read before, gifts you received you don’t want, toys you are done playing with, building/making supplies, craft kits you aren’t going to use, or mugs/kitchen items you don’t want anymore.
• Gifts should be clean and usable
• Gifts should be wrapped without any names on them at all
• Gifts can be hidden inside of other boxes to fool the people choosing them 

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Ms. D directly via email, not on the blog. Thank you!

Happy Holidays and have a good weekend!

Ms. D

Hello Everyone!

Happy Holidays are upon us! Ms. D set up her holiday tree in the classroom today so we can fill it with some maker projects over the next three weeks, which connects well with our unit on machines and technology. I look forward to having fun making things with all of you! If you have any ideas of smaller, holiday tree projects we can do, remember students, feel free to comment on this blog entry with ideas! Next week, we will also celebrate the Hour of Code!

Today students worked away on projects. There is the Socials Technology Timeline and the Math Survey Project, both due Tuesday end of day. Many students are choosing to take some of the work home, and there are also dedicated periods in class to work on both projects on Monday and Tuesday.

Students received their math quiz marks, and parents please do sign them so they can be returned right away to student portfolio folders in class. Thank you! Everyone did very well and they are using the learning in their current math project.

We spent a lot of time talking about Communication Skills during the first term, and now we are moving on to unpacking Creating Thinking! Today I sent home a Parent Letter Core Competencies, a copy of the Communication Competency Profile from the BC Curriculum, and a Communication Competency Reflection Handout. Students began reflecting on their communication skills in class, and I ask everyone to please continue the conversation at home about future goals and areas of growth. Handouts are due back to me on Monday, thank you!

We will finish up TED Talks and French quizzes early next week! Thank you for all of your hard work and collaboration in groups over the last few days. 

Have a great weekend!

Ms. D

Hello Everyone!

Yesterday was very exciting! We worked with tools, measured our stuffed animals, collaborated with peers, and did some great learning together.

Unit: Socials

We are continuing our conversation about technology’s impact on humanity and our world. Each student has chosen an area of technology, such as communications, entertainment, transportation, or health, to research further. With their findings, students will create a timeline of technology developments! We have looked at some timeline examples in class, and a wide range of non-fiction books on inventions and machines are available to use. We discussed strategies for using non-fiction resources, such as using synonyms for our topic as we look through the table of contents or the index. 

Timeline criteria includes:

• Use no more than 4 pieces of legal-sized paper to create the timeline,
• Use a ruler to make the “line” for your timeline down the center, and then mark off specific dates. I showed examples in class.
• Use both words and coloured pictures to illustrate the changes in technology. Limit any words to the name of a technology, the date, and 1-2 sentences about the technology or change in history.
• Make sure to focus on machines, technology, and devices. We don’t need the whole history of your topic area. Our focus is machines.
• Write words in pencil, then go over it in fine liner at the end so it is visible.
• We will display these in the hallway, so make sure all words and pictures are appropriate.
• We will have one week, and you may use time in class and at home.

Unit: Science and Art

As we talked about simple machines, we discussed how the WEDGE makes work easier because it helps us split things with less effort. We looked at sandpaper and its purpose, and we talked about how the edges of sand particles (the small rocks and minerals in sand) act as tiny wedges, splitting away the wood slowly to smooth it down.

Each student received a piece of wood to sand down, and everyone said it was hard work! Then, we used another machine, the hammer, to put nails into our wood piece in a pattern. This will become a lovely piece of art after everyone finishes connecting the nails with coloured yarn and string! I look forward to the finished product. And I enjoyed watching everyone work with hammers and learn how to use simple levers successfully — for some it was the first time! Stay tuned for more making projects during the month of December! And thank you to all parents who donated hammers for us to use. They will be returned shortly, as soon as students finish up.

Language Arts

About half of the class has finished their TED Talks. During the delivery of these speeches, students are practicing their communication skills from the BC Core Competencies by listening attentively, providing positive feedback afterwards, and practicing the gentle ways to give and to receive constructive criticism to improve for next time. With every project, we are exercising our self-assessment muscles, and hearing feedback from peers helps students find the words to fill out their assessment rubrics.

French

Thank you to everyone who has completed their French quizzes online. Ms. D will start doing the oral quizzes today and over the next couple of days, as it will take time to get through everyone.

Math

Thank you to everyone who did their homework and brought in a stuffed animal yesterday! We had a wide variety of interesting critters! The purpose was to have something to measure and to begin our new unit Math Makes It Work. We talked about the differences between the imperial and metric measuring systems, and then discussed how it is important to know how to use both! Students used both systems to measure the height, width, and breadth of their animals. Meanwhile, we also created a measuring wall, where we put down the measurements of all students in the classroom, along with the heights of our stuffed animals. It will be interesting to see if everyone’s height changes as the year goes on!

Math quizzes were completed, and I will hopefully have marks from these by the end of the week. 

Math Survey projects are due next week on Tuesday. Use your time wisely in class to get your data from the surveys organized and to talk with your partner about how you will display the data on one poster in an interesting way. Remember you have a rubric with criteria on it in your math binders!

Reminders!

• If any parent knows of an engineer or science-based person who would like to come in and talk — or anyone who works with technology (digital or any kind of machines) — then please let Ms. D know! We are looking for visitors!
• Please save recycled items, particularly tubes and interesting bits for building. The students will be doing a project next week that involves a need for parts!
• Library on Wednesday, so reminder to bring in your books!
• Please return signed work back to the classroom as soon as possible, so we can put it in our black portfolios!
• Break does not start until Dec. 22nd. If you are planning on leaving early, please let me know ASAP, as we will be doing unit activities until the end. Thank you!

Have a great day! I look forward to December, as we will have Hour of Code next week and lots of maker things to do leading up to the break!

Ms. D