Summer SAVY, Session 6 Day 3, The Science of Senses (3rd – 4th)
Hello Parents,
Welcome to Day 3 of Sense-sational Science! Today, our focus was on the fascinating world of vision and illusions. We continued to emphasize our S.A.V.Y. class creed and ensured everyone followed classroom rules to create a safe and supportive learning environment. Here’s a recap of our activities and ways you can support your child’s learning at home.
What We Did Today
Review of S.A.V.Y. Class Creed: We began the day by reinforcing our S.A.V.Y. class creed:
- We will be safe.
- We will be accountable for our actions.
- We will value our friends and adults.
- We will yield and be kind to our friends.
Exploring Light and Vision: We delved into how our ears, eyes, and brains work together to interpret visual and auditory information.
Activity 1: Ear and Eye Vocabulary: Students learned vocabulary related to the eye and ear and practiced identifying each part by using color coordination.
Activity 2: Model of the ear: Students utilized play dough to construct a model of the ear and identified each component.
Activity 2: Creating Optical Illusions Students discussed optical illusions and created their own optical illusions using paper, markers, and rulers. They explored various types of illusions, such as motion illusions, impossible shapes, and distorted perceptions to understand how the brain interprets visual information. They did an amazing job with this activity.
Supporting Your Child at Home
To reinforce today’s lessons and support your child’s learning at home, you can:
Discuss Daily Learnings:
- Ask your child about what they explored and discovered today: Engage in conversations about their vision experiment. Ask a question like, “Can you tell me the optical illusion you created?” “What are the three parts of the ear?”
Encourage Scientific Thinking:
- Promote curiosity and observation: Encourage your child to observe and think about how our vision works in everyday life. Discuss how different objects create different visual effects and why.
Celebrate Curiosity:
- Praise their efforts and discoveries: Show enthusiasm for their scientific explorations. Celebrate their curiosity by recognizing their achievements and encouraging them to continue asking questions and seeking answers.
- Create a science-friendly environment: Provide materials like books, kits, or online resources that foster a love for science. Encourage them to document their findings in a journal or share them with family members.
At the end of the day, I encouraged all students to create an optical illusion with you. You are welcome to view the following website for several examples of optical illusions: https://kids.niehs.nih.gov/games/riddles/illusions/lots-of-illusions A prize will be awarded the following day for their participation.
I am excited about the discoveries and learning happening in class. I am also thoroughly enjoying working with your students. They are extremely creative and simply amazing. Tomorrow, we will use our taste and feeling senses. Science is sense-sational, and so is your student.