Today Division 3 was learning about archeological processes and how scientists determine information about the past based on artifacts. In pairs, they examined several artifacts illustrated in the text. They speculated about what the artifacts were, what they were made of, and who may have made or used them, and then had to justify their ideas.
We also looked at this more contemporary artifact. Students were stumped!
Division 3 has been learning about how living things adapt and evolve to be successful in specific environments–meaning they can meet their survival needs. Living things need food, water, air, space, strategies for successful reproduction, and a way to stay safe from predators in order to continue thriving in an ecosystem.
Mimicry is one way that some animals protect themselves from predators. Yesterday we watched a video about the amazing Hawks Moth Caterpillar. Watch how this prey animal turns into (what looks like) a predatory one to scare away its own predator!
Division 3 has had the opportunity to work with the Inquiry Beaty Box, borrowed from the Beaty Biodiversity Museum at UBC. We have been carefully observing and making sketches of the specimens, and then analyzing and hypothesizing about how some of the various structures or characteristics of the organism benefit its survival in relation to where it lives.
Nature is truly amazing!
Division 3 — what was a structure or a characteristic of your specimen that contributed to its survival success in its particular ecosystem? Can you think of another example from outside of the Beaty Box?
Between November 15-17, speed stackers from around the world participate in the Stack Up event. Each class participating is registered as part of the official worldwide count–the record for the most people stacking was 638,503 in 2019! I wonder if we will beat it this year?
For our stacking day, we did a few different activities including making a horizontal snake, setting some new cycle stacking records, and a competition for working together as a team to make big triangle stacks (I am amazed they didn’t come tumbling down while they were being built!)
Here’s a time lapse of one group downstacking their whole stack! They came up with an efficient system where they grabbed a cup, circled around, stacked their cups, and came around again. Great team work!
How many cups do you think were in their stack?
As mentioned in the previous post, Division 3 arranged and recited the poem “In Flanders Fields” during UHE’s Remembrance Day assembly. They performed in front of the whole school, and should be commended for their effort and focus during this assembly. As some of the eldest students in our school community, they led by example and helped set the appropriate tone for our gathering.
In preparation for the Remembrance Day assembly, Division 3 has been working on a dramatic chorale reading of John McCrae’s poem, In Flanders Fields.
Chorale reading requires all performers to develop a “stage voice” where they must speak clearly and audibly. This process also provides an opportunity for some creativity with how we share the words. We discussed how to vary volume, pitch, tone, and speed, and how we could emphasize certain parts of the poem by having everyone, a small group, or just one performer speaking at a time.
Performer and director notes can be messy! Taking notes while reviewing and practicing a script helps us understand our cues and reminds us where we need to emphasize or pause. When we rehearse in an intentional way, we can run on auto-pilot for the performance!
To start off, we worked in three groups: each group examining one verse, and deciding on how it could be read for maximum effect using some various chorale reading strategies. Each small group shared their “rough” cut, and the rest of the students discussed what was most effective.
Then, as a whole group, we took ideas from each small working group and started developing our whole-class performance. After many rehearsals and feedback, we are ready to perform! Practice makes progress, and while we may not be “perfect,” Division 3 should be very proud of the work they’ve put in to perform this powerful piece.
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