As part of our plant unit we have been doing a series of experiments to demonstrate the ‘jobs’ that each part of the plant has in the healthy growth of the whole plant.  In this experiment we wanted to see what would happen to a plant if it was separated from its root system.  We took two identical plants.  We put one into a new pot; the other we put into a second pot but we cut the root ball off of it first.  Both of these plants have been placed side-by-side on the window ledge so that they both received equal sunlight.  They also received equal amounts of water.  Three weeks later you can see what has happened … Students learned that the role of the roots is to suck water up from the ground, which is then sent to other parts of the plant.  Its second job is to hold the plant securely in place so that it doesn’t get blown away.

We have begun our plant study by making bags which have wet paper towels and beans in them.  These are taped to our windows so that they will have the sunlight needed to grow.  Students will be monitoring their seeds’ growth on their recording sheets.

We have also planted some flower seeds in individual pots, along with some beans and peas in other containers.

Over the course of the next several weeks we will be doing many experiments with plants.  Stay tuned …

As part of our pumpkin unit, last Tuesday afternoon we dissected the class pumpkin that I got from our trip to the Laity Pumpkin Patch.  I had a bulb / root that had come out of my garden when I was collecting leaves for our Elements of Art lesson a few weeks ago.  So we began by talking about the ways that plants grow – bulbs or seeds.  We talked about the similarities and differences between the two methods. While one is a bulb, and the other a seed, they both are planted in soil and begin by sending roots down into the earth.  The jobs of the roots are to hold the plant securely in place and to suck up water to provide the plant with the means to make food.  Once the plants are ‘grounded’ they send shoots up into the air from which the plants grow.  We have spent a fair bit of time over the past two weeks discussing the process of photosynthesis – the way that plants use water, air, and sunlight to make their own food (glucose).

I had cut the lid off of the pumpkin and then let the students clean it out.  Those students, who wanted to, formed a very productive assembly line which included: some students cleaning out the seeds and pulp; some washing the seeds; and others drying the seeds and putting them onto a cookie sheet.  I baked these after school and left them for the students to have the next day.

The students had all tried the pumpkin pie that I brought into class the day after Thanksgiving so they were interested in seeing the part of the pumpkin that we eat.

Who says that penguins can’t fly??

Students created penguins with loops of construction paper.  They have been flying around our classroom for a few weeks now.

We have been doing research on a variety of (six) penguins with Mrs. Anstee, our librarian.  We began as a whole class learning about the Adelie penguin.  We then divided into 5 groups of 4 students to work on a different penguin (as a group) each week.  These penguins are: the Gentoo, the Galapagos, the Rockhopper, the Little Fairy, and the Chinstrap.  We have two weeks left in our research timeline.  Each week the students have completed a booklet on one of these penguins.

In addition to this research we have created a height chart (with the penguins and the students recorded on it).

Students have enjoyed doing their research and learning about penguins.