Use the Force

This week in science we are learning about Forces. Not the force like in Star Wars but forces that are all around us.
First forces are what makes things move, or stop, or change direction. Can you name all of the forces that we see and experience?
Well, let's start with the easiest. Gravity. Sir Issac Newton is known for his work in gravity and is even know for it's discovery. (Notice I didn't say he 'invented' it. This is what most people misconceive) Newton is also attributed as to discovering gravity while sitting under an apple tree and one hitting him on the head. Yes, another misconception. More than likely he OBSERVED the apple falling and wondered why did it fall.
It is this curiosity that I am trying to bring out in your child. We try to answer the "why" does something happen. Coming up in the next week or so, we will be exploring this question and using 'forces' to answer it.
First we will go through the Scientific Method and come up with a testable experiment. This will be totally from a curiosity perspective from your child. They will have to come up with a 1. Hypothesis, 2. Constant, 3. Variable, 4. procedure for testing, 5. a way to collect data such as a chart, 6. conclude with a reasonable finding.
You might find your child rummaging through junk to find things to test or they may ask you weird questions. This is normal and ok.
Keep in mind that this project will take a few days and there may be times that they will be frustrated. Again , this is normal. Assure them that things will get better the more times they perform the tests. Help them tweak some things and help them take careful notes.
After Newton's work in gravity and his Laws of Motion were widely accepted among scientists, Einstein came along and made even more understandable... yeah right! watch the following video and you will see what I mean. By the way, your children will NOT be tested on the following information.
Newton vs Einstein

First post

This is our class first post.

The idea behind having this blog is to get our students excited about what we are learning in the classroom. What better way than to show the world what we are doing?
Feel free to look around and leave a comment. Who knows, maybe you might find something interesting!
Carry On!

New Information

We are getting new information and guidelines on our school website. My "blog" will be attached to the school's website. Look for it soon.

Forecast for the following days

It is progress report time already? Well, almost.
In celebration of Freedom week we are studying the Constitution and other famous documents. This Friday we are going to recite the 2nd sentence of the Declaration of Independence. Information on the DOI can be found here. It is for a grade and will be assessed like the following.
Choice 1= recite verbally
Choice 2= write out on a blank paper
Choice 3= Fill in the Blank

Choice 1 will be the easiest while choice 3 will be a little more difficult.


Science were are starting to get into the States of Matter. We will have to know what we have learned up till now in order to understand where we are going. For instance,
1. Matter is anything that takes up space and has mass.
2. Mass- the amount of "stuff" in an object. Do NOT get this confused with weight. Remember, you can weight differently on the moon but still have the same mass.
3. Physical properties- anything that can be observed with your 5 senses or measured with a tool.
4. density- the amount of "stuff" in a given space.
5. Volume-the measurement of the space an object takes up

Also, know how to measure mass, volume, density. With what tools do you use to do these?

More to come later....

Upcoming News

I'm introducing a new Reward System for our 5th grade team. You can find it at http://www.learningearnings.com/index.php/

Check out all of the items you could redeem.


Also, if you haven't found out already, I am requiring that all students carry an ISN. This is the hardback type composition notebook. Parents if you have seen your child's ISN ask for it. Ask them to explain what it is all about. If they can not answer then we need to address it. It is an important aspect for their Science work.

Coming up in the future, we are going to work with the different types of energy. Revisit this blog to get more information periodically. I'll post some web-site for reading and exploring. I may even give some extra credit.

I have had a few questions from parents (and I welcome all questions) concerning procedures in my classroom and school-wide. I am working on an electronic copy to post for reference. In the meantime do not hesitate to contact me for anything.

Again I am so glad that you choose Northbrook Elementary as your child's school and that I am privileged to be their teacher.