**This page is arranged in reverse chronological order, starting with our first steps, so please scroll down to follow our journey and to find out where we are currently “at”.
Feb 11, 2016 We have started our new learning journeys in Science!
Our grade 5’s are inquiring about Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms:
Our grade 6’s are inquiring about Space:
We will be following our model to guide our inquiries:
Feb 16, 2016 Brainstorming Possible Questions
Based on the overall expectations, we started by using our schema (what we already know) to brainstorm “deep and rich” questions that we would like to explore to find the answers to. By researching and discussing students are adding to their list of questions. We believe “the more we learn, the more we question! (Below are some student examples of questions they have brainstormed.)
Grade 5-Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms Brainstormed Questions
Grade 6- Space Brainstormed Questions
We are now starting to reflect on our questions and narrowing our focus to pick one or two question that we would each wish to explore, insuring that they fall within our curriculum guidelines while at the same time being “deep/rich” questions.
Stay tuned to find out the questions each student selected that will drive their Science inquiry and their new learning journey!
Feb 19, 2016 Selecting our Questions
We spent some time researching, reflecting, discussing and sharing to finalize the questions that will drive our inquiries.Our questions are as follows:
Space- Grade 6
What is humanity’s main method of space exploration and how does it affect society?- Logan
If the Earth rotated at a different speed, would the affective gravity at the surface be different?-Megan
Does the sun affect the moon? How does the sun and moon affect the earth?- Damien and Teighn
Why and how does the earth rotate and how does that affect us?- Kady
What would happen if the earth stopped in its orbit?- Kendra
What would happen to the earth if the moon disappeared?- Mason and Cooper
What would happen if the earth stopped rotating around the sun?- Jesse
How fast does the earth rotate? How does the speed of our planet’s rotation affect life on earth? How can earth stop rotating or speed up?- Ryden
How does the sun affect global warming?- Lan and Jenna
Understanding Structures and Mechanism- Grade 5
How/Can forces work together to make a more powerful impact?- Melissa and Tori
How powerful can a tsunami’s impact be?- Carson and Braedon
Where do forces come from?- Charles
Where do forces go?- Brody
What is the strongest force in space?- Evan
How do forces come into action?- Olivia
Feb 22, 2016 Our Research has Begun!
Now that we have selected our driving questions, we are in the process of researching to become experts on our selected areas of study. We are reading, watching and listening to a wide variety of information, picking out important details and taking jot notes in our Science Learning Logs to record our learning. We are now starting to think with the end in mind. We each know that we are responsible for sharing our findings with our classmates using a platform of our choice.
March 8, 2016 Finishing up our Research We have spent the last two weeks researching. We have inquired to help us find the answers to our “BIG” question and have been taking accurate and concise notes in our Science Learning Logs. All of our research needs to be done by Thursday, March 10. A good indicator of whether the researcher has gained a good understanding and is ready to move to the planning stage is if he/she can answer the question thoroughly while making some reference to research notes. Below are some examples of notes from one researcher’s Science Learning Log.
**We are now starting to think of an idea of how we will share our learning.
March 21, 2016 Developing our Plans By now all students should have a very good understanding of the answer to their question and should be able explain the answer thoroughly. They have used their research notes to begin developing a plan for how they will share their understanding with their peers using Google Slides (a few may choose iMovie). Students must complete their plan and all visuals by 9am on Wednesday March 23. Below is an example of one student’s plan and some of his visuals. Please note, the plan is a little lacking in detail and this student is encouraged to elaborate on each step of the plan. Have your child share his or her inquiry question with you. Then have your child tell you the answer to his/her question. Does he/she have a thorough understanding? Did he/she explain the answer to his/her question fully and in a way that is understandable to you?
We are Creating our Presentations! All plans will be done by first thing tomorrow morning! We will then begin to organize our presentation into Google Slides. The key is to present the answer to our question in kid friendly, easy to understand language. The information should be presented in a way that the audience will understand the answer to our inquiries. It’s important to elaborate but keep the information concise. Click on the image below to direct you to Brody’s completed Google Slide presentation. Does the information and visuals help you to understand the answer to his inquiry question?
Mr.C's SharesEase Blog 