April 6 Activities
S- science. Ok, so much for March coming in like a lion and going out like a lamb! Since it snowed again recently, let’s start a daily Weather Journal! On a piece of paper or in a notebook, start by writing today’s date. Write a few notes about the weather (for example: Today it is partly sunny and windy). Be sure to include at least two things you notice, and draw a picture of the weather you are seeing! If you have a thermometer, record and write the temperature! If you want to get really scientific, record the temperature in the morning, around lunchtime, and again at night! See if you can find out how much the temperature has changed, when it’s the warmest, and when it’s the coldest. Keep writing in your journal each day and see how much our weather changes here in Montana in the springtime! (As any Montanan will tell you, not just by the day, but by the minute!)
T- technology. Long ago, schools weren’t as common as home-schooling. Since we are experiencing a blast from the past, let’s go back to a time before every house had telephones and the internet, and build our own communication device!
You will need: a long string or piece of yarn, two paper, styrofoam, or plastic cups, OR two tin cans. Punch a hole through the bottom of each cup or can, and thread the string through each cup or can, so that the cups are connected over a distance by the string (with the bottoms of the cups facing each other, open ends facing away). Tie knots on either end of the string to keep the cups on. Hold the open end of one of the cups to your ear, and have a family member speak into the other cup from as far away as the string will reach.
Try making several sets! See if tin cans work better than cups, or if a longer or shorter string works better. See if holding the string tighter works better than a looser string.
E/M- engineering and math combined! Build a Balance! A balance is a type of scale, used to find equal weights using different units of weight. This website* shows many different types of balances, but I think the simplest one is the coat-hanger! (Just tie a paper cup to each corner of a coat-hanger with equal lengths of string, and hang it from a drawer or door handle!)
Once you have built a balance, start weighing every-day items. Weigh your shoe, a mitten, a cup, an apple, etc. Since we don’t all have standard weights just lying around, try weighing your items in units of OTHER every-day things! For example, how many Legos does your shoe weigh? Or how many ice cubes does it weigh? Write down some of the things you’re weighing and their “units” on a piece of paper, and then do some math with your results!
Try answering questions like: What is the best kind of “unit” to weigh things, a heavy unit or a light unit? How many more Legos does my shoe weigh than my mitten? (Make sure you’ve weighed both using the same “unit.”) Which item weighed the most? Which item weighed the least? How much more did the heaviest item weigh than the lightest item? (Don’t stop there! Get creative with your questions!)
*weigh-to-go-9-diy-balance-scales
Take photos and email them to Mrs. Lozar if you can! I’d love to put a slide-show together for the website and for when we get back to school! Email photos to: [email protected]