Week of October 21 - 25

Here's what we did in Science Lab this week:

• Kindergarten: We learned more about science tools and using them to collect information. We concentrated on our measuring skills this week.  
• 1st grade: We saw how matter can be changed by heat and graphed our results.
• 2nd grade: We saw how matter can be changed by heat, and what requirements an object has in order for it to be able to float.
• 3rd grade: We learned more about mixtures and solutions by making "lava" in a cup.
• 4th grade: We started our adaptations project. This week was our research, planning, and starting the very beginning of our project. Next week will involve finishing creating our animal model and finishing our lab write-up. If you have any extra craft supplies at home that you would like to get rid of, please send them to the lab!

Upcoming Events:

• The Super Science Sale will come to OUES for the second year in a row on December 2 - 6. It will be set up much like Book Fair -- where students have an opportunity to preview at the beginning of the week and shop the rest of the week. I'll post an updated list of shop hours when the date gets closer. 

Week of October 14 - 18

Here's what we did in Science Lab this week:

• Kindergarten: I didn't get to see my kinder friends this week due to our teacher work day. I'm excited to see them next week, though!
• 1st grade: I didn't get to see my first grade friends this week because of Dragon Day. (Dragon Day is our school-wide Professional Learning Community meetings. Students have a special encore rotation for this day.)
• 2nd grade: We learned about changing temperatures of matter.
• 3rd grade: We got to conduct our Milk in Motion experiments this week. We got some pretty cool results!
• 4th grade: We learned more about adaptations by studying bird beaks.

Upcoming Events:

• On Tuesday, October 22nd, 4th graders will start an adaptations project during Science Lab. This project requires the use of lots of arts and craft supplies. If you have any extra craft supplies at home that you would like to get rid of, please send them to the lab! I do have some supplies but probably not enough for the entire grade. Students will be constructing a brand new animal of their choice with adaptations. I'm encouraging students to think creatively for this project, so almost any supply goes!  
• The Super Science Sale will come to OUES for the second year in a row on December 2 - 6. It will be set up much like Book Fair -- where students have an opportunity to preview at the beginning of the week and shop the rest of the week. I'll post an updated list of shop hours when the date gets closer. 

Week of October 7 - 11

Here's what we did in Science Lab this week:

• Kindergarten: We practiced using our sense of hearing during an egg match memory game and our sense of smelling during a wafting test. 
• 1st grade: We learned more about volume and choosing the right science tool for the job.
• 2nd grade: We learned more about the scientific method by conducting an experiment with Tic Tacs.
• 3rd grade: We started planning for our first independent experiment called "Milk in Motion." Students learned about "investigable questions" and how to prep for an experiment. 
• 4th grade: We rotated to various stations around the room to learn how animals' adaptations help them survive in their environment.

Upcoming Events:

• On Tuesday, October 22nd, 4th graders will start an adaptations project during Science Lab. This project requires the use of lots of arts and craft supplies. If you have any extra craft supplies at home that you would like to get rid of, please send them to the lab! I do have some supplies but probably not enough for the entire grade. Students will be constructing a brand new animal of their choice with adaptations. I'm encouraging students to think creatively for this project, so almost any supply goes!  
• The Super Science Sale will come to OUES for the second year in a row on December 2 - 6. It will be set up much like Book Fair -- where students have an opportunity to preview at the beginning of the week and shop the rest of the week. I'll post an updated list of shop hours when the date gets closer. 

Week of Setepmber 30 - October 3

Here's what we did in Science Lab this week:

• Kindergarten: We practiced using our sense of sight during a color mixing activity.
• 1st grade: We practiced using a balancing pan to weigh various objects.
• 2nd grade: We learned how to use a spring scale and weighed objects with a pan balance.
• 3rd grade: We learned how molecules in various types of matter look, and then we played a game where we pretended we were the matter molecules.
• 4th grade: We learned more about making our own microscope slides. We had the opportunity to view living creatures swimming in pond algae, prepared slides of different plants and animals, a piece of our hair, a dyed piece of onion skin, and our fingerprint. 

Upcoming Events:

• Next week, 2nd graders will be participating in a scientific method experiment involving Tic Tacs. We will be using orange Tic Tacs, and students will be asked to consume 1 during our investigation. If you do NOT want your second grader to consume an orange Tic Tac, please contact me or your child's teacher ASAP. 
• In a couple of weeks, 4th graders will start an adaptations project during Science Lab. This project requires the use of lots of arts and craft supplies. If you have any extra craft supplies at home that you would like to get rid of, please send them to the lab! I do have some supplies but probably not enough for the entire grade. Students will be constructing a brand new animal of their choice with adaptations. I'm encouraging students to think creatively for this project, so almost any supply goes!  
• The Super Science Sale will come to OUES for the second year in a row on December 2 - 6. It will be set up much like Book Fair -- where students have an opportunity to preview at the beginning of the week and shop the rest of the week. I'll post an updated list of shop hours when the date gets closer.