al-mofhariz

Roller coaster designs....you have read that I begin my force and motion unit using the lessons created by Karen Ansberry and Emily Morgan in More Picture Perfect Science Lessons.  But what comes next?  I felt like I needed to extend the unit more - to cover other concepts besides pushes and pulls.

First, I wanted students to test and explore how to increase a marble's speed by changing the hill height. Next, I wanted students to explore what happens when you change the mass of the marble. 

So we used four different marble sized balls - one of play dough, one with texture and one metal ball bearing.


We weighed the mass of each ball before we experimented on our roller coaster tubes. The children were able to record true data that measured time and mass.

But what next???? I wanted students to learn how to write better conclusions, so I created several cards with their individual conclusions.  The students were able to analyze the responses and decide which were clear, which were confu…

Say hello to your little friends—all 100 trillionof them. Each of us harbors about 1,000 microbial species in our noses, mouths, and guts; on our skin. Together, they weigh an astonishing 2 to 5 pounds. If you’re worried about the alienswithin, don’t be. A torrent of new medical and genetic research shows that your microbiome is essential to your survival. These itty-bitty bugs help you metabolize food and build your immune system. They make vitamins and protect you from getting sick.
The director of NYU’s Human Microbiome Program, Dr. Martin Blaser is at the forefront of this new research on the jungle of microorganisms inside us. While medical science has traditionally focused on “bad” microbes—the germs that cause illness and how to eradicate them—Dr. Blaser and other pioneering researchers have flipped that idea inside-out, investigating good germs and their role in health and disease. He asks:
--How did the human microbiome evolve? Are we humans actually ecosystems, superorganisms…