Camp Pendalouan and Sturgeon Release Video

 Click this link to see our classroom sturgeon release!
SRCN Outdoors: Guided Sturgeon Viewing Tour 2016
 

I can’t believe it’s time for camp already.  It sure feels like summer out there now.  It’s hard to believe it was snowing at our Sturgeon Guard Weekend just two weeks ago.  I guess that’s life in Michigan. 

Speaking of life in Michigan, check those packing lists for camp.  Camp is a blast, but it looks like it will be pretty warm this year.  Bug spray is totally acceptable, head nets for some of the woods hikes can be nice too.  With this weather, swimming will most likely be an elective, and we will spend a little more time on the water in the kayaks and canoes.  So, swim suits and water shoes are another good option.

Please make sure medications are in their original bottles and zip locked in a baggie with the students name on it.

When kids show up Tuesday morning, they can bring their bags down the room, place them on their desk and head down to the Multi-Purpose room for breakfast.

  I can…in the coming week.

Have a lot of fun with my classmates while enjoying the outdoors, and celebrating my time at Quincy Elementary!

Eclipses, Planet Size, Tide Investigations / Camp Packets

This week we investigated partial / total solar and lunar eclipses.  We also did some investigations with tides and drawing models of planet sizes compared to Earth.

Next week we will look at planet heat, asteroids, dwarf planets, and comets as well as reviewing for the Objects in the Sky Test.  We will also be finishing our last novel in our ReadyGen Series “George’s Secret Key to the Universe” the kids and I are definitely enjoying the book.  It will also be our last week of Reading Log.

Camp packets will also come home on Monday.  The schedules and menus are sometimes subject to change once we arrive at camp, but it should give the kids a good idea of what will be happening.  Camp is a blast, and I look forward to it every year! 

I can…in the coming week.

Compare comets, dwarf planets, asteroids.

Compare Earth to other planets in terms of supporting life.

Determine the theme of a story from details in the text and how characters respond to challenges.

Explain how a series of chapters fit together to provide overall structure of a story.

Tilt of the Earth Investigations / Sturgeon Release

This week was a short week with all the half days.  We did some specific investigations of day and night, as well as how the tilt of the Earth causes our seasons. 

We are heading up north this weekend to release our classroom sturgeon “Mickey” in The Black River, Onaway Michigan.  There are a group of families coming along, so I’ll share photos and videos sometime next week for those that can’t make it.  This is our third year of raising a sturgeon and releasing it. 

www.sturgeonfortomorrow.org/guarding-program.php

Keep those camp forms coming in!  We’ll give the kids their packets containing activity groups and cabin assignments as camp gets closer. 

A small note asking some donations for our annual 2 liter bottle rocket launching event should be coming home Friday.

I can…

Explain how the motion of the Earth, Moon, and Sun is related to the phases of the moon.

Describe a lunar and solar eclipse.

Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Compare and Contrast two or more specific events in a story, drawing on specific details in the text.