Groovy Lava Lamps

It was a busy first week of school in our room! We spent the first two days going over procedures, expectations, and daily routines. On Wednesday we started previewing Math and Science material we are going to be covering in the next couple of weeks! In Math we talked about how math is part of our everyday lives and is seen in many areas of our world. In Science we studied the questions, "What is a scientist?" and "What types of tools do scientists use?" We learned that scientists study the world around us and the ASK QUESTIONS!! So...on Friday...we used what we learned, asked a question, and investigated to answer it.

 

Our question was, "Do oil and water mix?"

 

Materials

Water bottles

Food coloring

Water

Vegetable Oil

Funnel

 

 

A water bottled filled half full with vegetable oil and an observation guide sheet was placed on each of the students' desk.

 

 

At the back of the room I filled small cups with water. The students got to choose a color to mix in their water. Not only did the food coloring make funky colors, but it was a great way to visually see the difference in the oil and the water. After they choose the color and mixed it in, we used the funnel to pour the water into the bottle of vegetable oil.

 

 

The students had three tasks to complete during their investigation of whether water and oil mixed. First, they had to lay the bottle on its side. Second, they had to shake the bottle up and down. Third, they had to let the bottle sit untouched on their desk for 5 minutes. After each task they had to write and draw their observations. They recorded what the oil and water was doing at the end of each.

 

The observation sheet was also displayed on the Interwrite Board.

After the students' investigation was complete, they came back to the carpet and we talked about the outcome of the experiment. We found that although, when shaken really hard, oil and water APPEAR to mix, when given time oil and water will seperate again. Therefore: oil and water do not mix!

 

I will definitely do this experiment again. The bottles of oil and colored water resembeled lava lamps (hence-the title of this post!) so the students' interests were instantly gained. It was fun, easy, and a great way to get the students' hands on some materials. Not to mention...they were physically carrying out of the knowledge they had learned throughout the week in a hands-on investigation!

Welcome to Room 204!

This marks my first official post, on my first official blog, about my first official classroom! As you can tell, I am a little excited! Bare with me...I am still new at this blogging thing...so I can't promise any cool page gagets or gizmos. However, I hope you enjoy seeing a weekly snapshot of the "happenings" in Room 204!

Come on in...

...and take a look around!

The "Learning Focused" section of the room! Here I will post the essential questions and important vocabulary for each Math/Science unit that we study and lesson that we learn.

Math manipulatives!

Math/Science tools, flip-books, and whiteboards

Science-related books. The collection of National Geographic Science Encyclopedias were originally $17.99 each through Scholastic. Last year they had a clearance sale nearby, and I got them each for $1.00 a piece! (Great steal on a 1st year teacher's budget)

The reading-nook

Books about holidays, fantasy/fairytale, our country, other cultures, Berenstein Bears, etc.

The books in the two white bins on the bottom are "special" books that the 1st grade students in my student-teaching class gave me as a going away present! They each brought in a book with their picture pasted inside as well as a handwritten message. Such treasures! I thought it would be neat for my 3rd graders to connect with another group of kids in another school!

Books about the Math/Science related topics that we will be studying. (As you can see, I'm lacking!)

Board at the back of the room- Birthdays, "Wow! Work" and a big calendar to show what's happening in our room that month.

Vocabulary Word Wall- in each unit we will be learning the important vocabulary associated with it. After we have learned the words they will be posted on this wall and kept up for display all year.

Book cubbies. Important when you have two classes!

As you can see we are "Gearin' Up for 3rd Grade" in Room 204. Stop by weekly to see what we are up to!