Mrs. Peña's Blog

Have you read any awesome books lately, ones you just couldn’t put down?  It’s time to share these super books with your classmates.   You will write and present a “book talk” (these are short book reviews-sort of like a movie preview).  For example, Mrs. Houghtaling just gave a “book talk” on the Sunshine State Reader books. 

Please follow the directions provided to you, in class, on the “How to Advertise a Book” sheet.  Below I have included a few excellent sites to give you ideas when preparing your first “talk”.   I also added links to other reading related sites that I thought you’d find cool reading spots. 

Nancy Keane (audio talks)                    

Scholastic Book Talks (short video clips)                                          

Book Adventure (book adventure)          

Reading Rainbow (audio talks)

Everything around us is matter.  We are matter, too.  Forms of matter are as varied as the shapes, colors, and textures of things we can – and cannot – see.   Watch these Brainpop videos to help you better understand matter, its properties, and how it changes.  You will receive one point per video you watch, take the graded quiz and email or print out (you may want to do both), and leave a post detailing a fact from each video.  This extra credit assignment is due to me by Thursday, Nov. 19th. 

* Matter Changing States          * Compounds and Mixtures          * Atoms               

* Measuring Matter                  * States of Matter                        * Temperature

It is time to put your knowledge of animal adaptations to the test!  You will be planning, designing, and creating a model of you very own “creature”.  You and your team will work together to come up with an original plant, animal, or combination of the two.  This creature must be able to survive in the environment you choose and have all of the necessary adaptations for that environment.  Visit the BuildYourWildSelf website and let your creative juices flow.  Be sure to read up on the adaptations you use while building your crazy creatures.  Have FUN!!

Build Your Wild Self

Plant Adaptations

How Animals Adapt

Animal Adaptations

Below you will find some movies related to our current unit of study.  You will receive one point for each movie you view and then complete the quiz (with a score of 80% or higher).  Remember to either print your graded quiz or email it to me at mrspena@comcast.net.

•     Mitosis
•     DNA
•     Camouflage
•     Ecosystems
•     Land Biomes
•     Metamorphisis

How do objects hundreds or thousands of miles above Earth affect you down here?  From TV programs to cell phones and weather forecasts, satellites play a big part in your life.  Read Eye in the Sky to learn how.  Which creature makes you shiver with fright?  In this month’s issue you can take a tour to see some of the world’s creepiest critters.  After reading Frightful Animals, you can decide.  Lastly, in America the Beautiful you will read about some of America’s most incredible national parks.  Read the 3 articles carefully, complete the activities provided, and post 3-5 facts you found interesting in the articles.   Due: Monday, Oct. 19, 2009                                                 

The Weather and Water Cycle test is on Monday, Oct. 5th.   If you’d like some extra credit here’s a fun and easy way.  1. Watch the BrainPop movies linked below 2.  Take the quiz (the graded option) 3. Email the quiz to me (mrspena@comcast.net) Make sure you include your name and period number   4. Leave me a post detailing a minimum of 2 facts you learned from the movies.  Submit to me by Friday, Oct. 2. 

• Climate Types                                 
• Weather
• Water Cycle
• Clouds
• Hurricanes
• Thunderstorms
• Wind

Meteorology – The science that deals with the phenomena of the atmosphere, especially weather and weather conditions.

Choose a weather related concept, research it, prepare a science demonstration and short presentation to share with your classmates. You can find many simple science demonstrations at the weather experiments section of the Weather Wiz Kids site.   I look forward to your presentations – Have Fun!!   Due: 9/28/09    

Visit these sites to assist you with your inquiry: 

• http://www.weatherwizkids.com
• http://www.fema.gov/kids/

Every family needs to plan for what might happen. You should sit down with your family and talk about things like: what types of disasters might happen in your area, what you should do to prepare (ex: creating your family emergency kit), and what to do if you are asked to evacuate, which means to leave your home.  Visit the the links below  for more information and directions on creating your family plan  brochure.                              Due: Monday, 9/28/09            

• http://www.fema.gov/kids/
• http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/prepare/family_plan.shtml
• http://www.sesamestreet.org/ready
• One Storm Family Emergency Plan

In this month’s National Geographic Explorer magazine there are some exciting and interesting articles.  Here’s a little preview of what you will find:

• Seeing Eye to Eye: Birds, insects, lizards, and humans too, use vision to make sense of the world. In this story, you will learn the basic anatomy of an eye and how it catches, bends, and focuses light.   * Download the ACTIVITY 
• Fooled You!: Is it a leaf or an insect?  Is it a poisonous snake or a harmless copy cat?  In this story, you will discover the surprising ways that plants and animals use mimicry.  * Download the ACTIVITY 

Your task is the following:  1.  Read the articles carefully.  2. Complete the activities provided (click on Activity beside each article description to open, then print).         3.  Leave a short post including three facts you learned about each of the articles.      4.  Turn both activities in to me.

This assignment is due:   Monday, September 21, 2009

Scientific Inquiry refers to the many different ways in which scientists investigate the world.   Scientific investigations are done to answer questions and solve problems.  Many times investigations are said to follow a  Scientific Method.  Scientific methods are steps that are followed during an investigation to make sure that the information gained during the investigation is accurate and true.  During this experiment, you will practice the steps in the scientific method to determine which plane will fly the farthest distance.  Below you will find three websites that contain different airplane designs.  Take some time to peruse the sites and pick a design you believe will fly the farthest. 

•     Paper Airplanes
•     Best Paper Airplane Designs
•     10paper airplanes