Sunday, June 22, 2014

Day 5: Experimenting with Liquids & Playground Model Presentations!

In today's happenings....

The younger group conducted a couple of investigations that required comparing liquids and what is it about water that makes it so special to our Earth and to us.  Are all liquids the same?  What is it about a liquid that allows it to mix with other liquids?  Can liquids glow in the dark?Because we worked with a particular liquid called ammonia for one of the investigations all young scientists were required to wear their goggles during their investigations.

Getting ready and making sure goggles fit!

Patiently waiting to begin :)

Mixing water with different liquids

Writing/drawing our observations

Observing how different liquids mix

What makes the liquid fizz?

Observing the effects of dish liquid soap on milk by using food coloring


Observing a glow in the dark liquid!

They also completed their ongoing investigation on the egg.  The eggs had been submerged in molasses and Karo syrup last so today each scientist weighed their egg for the last time and discovered that it had "shrunk" big time!  They also discovered much more liquid/water around the egg than the amount of syrup/molasses they had put in the cup on Wed.  Why?  How did the water get out?  We then had a great discussion about how the "shell" has small openings called pores and how the size of the liquid may or may not let the liquid pass.


In the older group, today was a culmination of an ongoing project teams had been preparing: Making a model of a playground that includes at least three (3) different examples of small machines.  I cannot begin to tell you how excited these scientists were to share their models with their classmates!  Not to mention how creative they were and how much they surpassed the expectations!  Kudos to all the teams!!!

This team even included "people" --Legos!

There was a baseball field and a pool included in this one!

From the see-saw to the hanging bar to the quite vertical slide, amazing!

Another amazing creation

This team even included a girls and boys restroom, : )

The older group also conducted a couple of investigations in which they tried to answer the questions of what makes a catapult a good machine?  And what types of forces are involved when a plane is flying and what is the best design in order to keep the airplane in the air.  For both of these investigations, the scientists had to use the knowledge and understanding they have been studying during the week about small machines, forces, and variables in order to answer the questions.  All teams did a fantastic job!


Working with their catapults, notice how they have become quite diligent at writing down their observations!

Another group tries to figure out what will make the ball go farthest.



Thank you for giving the opportunity to work with your child(ren) this week!  I have truly enjoyed getting to know each of them.  I hope that as they continue to go through life they will continue to develop a love for science and to its Creator.  I agree with the experts that we as humans are born to figure out and understand the world around us, which it is the purest for of science.  God created this wonderful world for us to enjoy and marvel in His creations!  I hope you will continue to foster this spirit of curiosity and thank you for letting me be a part of their experience.

~Mrs. Yekaterina Unnikumaran




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