Fall SAVY 2017, Day 1 – Environmental Explorations: Dig It! (Kindergarten)
Dear Parents:
It was a pleasure meeting your child on our first day of Fall SAVY. We had a nice time getting to know each other. Our morning began with a discussion of what a scientist is, and how a scientist does his/her job. We talked about how scientists observe, ask lots of questions, make hypotheses, design and conduct experiments, closely watch the results to see what happens, draw conclusions to determine if the hypothesis was proved or disproved and then share with others. We also talked about what a scientist can do if the experiment fails, and several students said that a failed experiment is okay because we still learn from it. I asked if a scientist could change something (I called those variables), and repeat the experiment, and the students agreed that they could. We had read one of my favorite books to launch our discussion called, Eleven Experiments that Failed. Students really enjoyed the first experiment (all are from the perspective of a young girl) where the author had a hypothesis that children can survive all winter just eating snowballs and ketchup (she loved ketchup), Her hypothesis was yes, a kid can survive all winter just eating snowballs and ketchup. She designed an experiment, but her hypothesis proved to be wrong as she quickly got a stomachache! I asked students how they might repeat the experiment by changing the variables. One student suggested cream cheese and salmon, while another suggested, candy and sugar.
Next, we began another thread focused on change. We then, went outside with science notebooks and a pencil to look for evidence of change. Students recorded change in leaves, trees, light poles, grass, insects as they moved to different places, time of day (morning and night), a repair truck that moved around to make work on jobs, wind movement, falling leaves, season of fall, etc. When we returned to the classroom, we divided into two groups and students shared their observations of time. Students noticed two very important generalizations about change; 1. Change is everywhere, and 2. Change is related to time.
We then did an experiment involving wind. Students were asked if they thought a blow dryer would move a piece of tissue paper farther across the carpet or by blowing with our mouths. Students made their hypothesis and then they each got to mark how far the paper moved with the wind power of their mouths blowing compared to a blow dryer. Students then discussed the outcome and that their hypothesis was correct. This mini experiment was practice for the next experiment so that students would understand the scientific method.
I am looking forward to more learning more with hands-on science next weekend as we talk about natural resources.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Tyson
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