Students “switched” their brains to teacher mode this morning as they shared their research from yesterday with the class. Some of the topics we learned from each other include:

Then, we began talking about scale. We related scale to hopping like a frog, swallowing like a snake, growing at the rate of a newborn, and more. The book, If You Hopped Like a Frog, by David. M. Schwartz gave us some fun ways to imagine different scales. Then, we talked more precisely about scale and scale models. Students used their knowledge to draw scale models of toy cars, scaled both up and down. Ask your student which comparison to scale in the book they found most interesting and why!

After discussing precision in our work and thinking, students began to design an experiment by creating a hypothesis, identifying an independent variable and dependent variable, making observations, taking measurements,  and identifying constants and the control. The class divided to create two different experiments: Can We Circuit: How conductors change light bulb brightness and Multi Bulb Parallel Circuit Brightness. Students used a checklist to be sure they had a well-rounded experiment designed. Then, students began to think of the execution of their experiment. They planned materials, action steps, data to collect, and data tables. Some questions you can ask your student about our experiment include:

Tomorrow, we will put both our precise writing and precise model drawing to the test as students plan and execute one final experiment. Then, we will end the week the way we started it – making a “thing” that lights up! Except, this time, there are a few more requirements, so students can “illuminate” what they know!