Creepy Science 2015

On Friday, we had a phenomenal day of Hands-on, Minds-on learning with Creepy Science. Thanks to the volunteers from UA and our wonderful parents, our sixth graders had an amazing opportunity to experience different science principles with exciting experiments. Enjoy the highlights with this Storify:

Creepy Science

On Halloween we did a day called Creepy Science. It was when we did these cool and creepy science stations. We did the Franken- Pickle, Goblin Goo, Screaming Quarter, Blast Off, Magic Potion, and Spooky Glove. In Franken- Pickle we electrocuted a pickle to see what caused the yellow sparks to erupt inside the pickle. Goblin Goo was were we mixed glue, borax, and water together and it created a substance that felt like goblin goo. The Screaming Quarter is when  we put a quarter on dry ice to see if it causes a reaction. Blast Off is when when we put 3 mentos in coke, coke diet, and coke zero to see what would happen. In Magic Potion, we mixed dry ice,green food coloring,and water. In Spooky Glove we put vinegar and baking soda in an empty bottle of water and then we put a glove on the top to see what would happen.

During Franken-Pickle we electrocuted a poor pickle, when it didn't do anything to us. Yellow sparks were inside the pickle and they didn't go exploding out. It was very interesting. Mrs. Abrams did that station and she was a British Einstein. It was so funny. Kids were talking about it the entire day.

During Goblin Goo we mixed glue, borax, and water. It created a gooey substance that we believe is called Goblin Goo. Mrs. Brewer did this station. She let us each take a little bit of goo. But be warned. If this is left on any substance that is not plastic, it will melt into the substance.

Screaming Quarter was when we put a metal object to a piece of dry ice. The oxygen was trying to escape, so it made a screaming sound.

Blast Off was when we put three Mentos into a bottle of Coke, Coke Zero, and Coke Diet. We wanted to see which explosion would go the highest.

Magic Potion is when we mixed dry ice, green food coloring, and water. We wanted to see if we could drink it, because we know that you can't eat dry ice. You can!

Last, but not least, there is the Spooky Glove. During Spooky glove we put vinegar in a bottle of water and then added baking soda. We put a glove on top and watched to see what would happen. The glove inflated.

Fun, exciting, and mysterious learning all wrapped up into one creepy day.

~ SC & TD

Our Sweet Lab

When we studied chemical and physical changes, our class did a awesome lab. A physical change is when something changes in size, shape, or state of matter. Chemical changes are change in temperature, color, a release of gas, or solid is formed. We went outside and we partnered up with someone of our choice. Before we went outside, we got all of the supplies/ingredients. We got a small, zip lock bag, a larger one, salt, vanilla extract, sugar, ice, milk, and our brains. After that we tried to guess what we were going to do. Mrs. Ramsay had been giving us hints all week.  We poured a half cup of milk into our bags. After that, we poured some sugar into the same bag. Everyone agreed it was a physical change. No one saw a change in in color or temperature. We also didn't see a release of gas or a solid being formed. After that, we put 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract, zipped the bag, and put it into the bigger bag. The class still thought it was a physical change because the color or temperature did not change. Next, we put the sandwich sized bag in a gallon sized bag. After that, we put in ice and salt. When we added the salt it was a chemical change because the ingredients were colder than before, much colder. Then we shook and shook until a huge chemical change! It went from a liqud to a solid. After that we talked about the changes that happened while we ate our sweet lab! This was such a great way to really learn and experince the differences between chemical and physical changes.

Lab: Acid or Base?

Our class did a science lesson on acids and bases. Acids are sour, and bases are bitter and sometimes slippery. We can use some stuff like red cabbage juice and litmus paper to measure acids and bases. If the litmus paper or some red cabbage juice turns a bluish purple color it is probably pH of neutral. If the color is like red, pinkish red, or purple it is probably a pH of an acid. If the color is like violet, green, and blue it is probably a pH of an base. Some examples for an acid are lemon juice, soft drinks, vinegar, tomato juice, and sour milk. Some examples for a base are soup, baking soda, plaster, cement, and some dyes. Also acids have high concentration of hydrogen ions, and bases have low concentration of hydrogen ions. Acid give up hydrogen ions (H+), and bases give up hydroxide ions (HO-). When the two react with each other, they neutralize each other.

On our project we used some red cabbage juice, and we had different kind of acid and bases. There were about 10- 20 items to test (of course not tasting it), and we used the red cabbage juice. We each had a piece of paper, and we had to write what the item was and predict if it's an acid or base, what the color is going to be, and if it's strong or weak. When we tested it turned to a color, and you had to record your onservations on your lab paper.

Let's eats rocks!!!

Mrs. Ramsay told us we were going to make rocks and eat them. We were all really surprised and excited. On Thursday, we did a rock cycle simulation. We got to help her with the poject. So first,we had to get sediment (jumbo marshmallows) into a riverbed (flat pan). Do you know how sediment becomes sedimentary rock? Well this is how, minerals and sediment get pushed down with pressure and becomes sedimentary rock. WE got to come up and put lost of pressure on top of the layers of sediment. More and more layers of sediment came and created that pressure. The more pressure that is added the deeper a rock goes. That's when heat ios applied and it becomes a metamorphic rock. Minerals mix (chocolate chips, sugar, vanilla) into the rock as as the heat increases it becomes magma. Magma boils up and shoots out of the volcano. When magma exits it becomes lava. Lava is magma that is outside a volcano. Then it cooled and hardened and it became igneous rock. Those are the rocks that we ate. Yummy! 

You can make your own rocks at home too. Here are the incredients.
1 bag of chocolate chips
3 bags jumbo marshmallows
3 cups sugar
1 cup of vanilla
1 pan
1 mixing spoon
stove
2 sticks of butter

We're sure you will enjoy eating rocks as much as we did.

Our Learning at Zoo Atlanta

We had such a great time learning at the Atlanta Zoo. We wanted to share with you some of the cool things that we learned about different animals and their habitats. Do you know something interesting about an animal that you would like to share? Please leave it in a comment.

J.I: What I learned at the Atlanta Zoo is when a flaming is cold it curls its neck to its back so it looks like a giant puffball with legs. Something else I learned is that Atlanta Zoo is one of the largest zoo's in the country.

D.C:  I learned that flamingos live up to 20 years in the wild and up to 50 years in captivity. Adult flamingos are pink because they eat pink shrimp. Pandas are meant to be carnivores but they eat plants.

Z.F:   I learned that gorillas walk with their knuckles because they have callused knuckles.

C.A:  What I learned in the Atlanta Zoo is that was where Ivan lived. There are lots of smart animals. While we were down there,I discovered that Pandas eat more than 300 pounds of bamboo a day.

  A.P: The first thing I learned at the zoo was that there is a snake called a Spitting Cobra. They shoot venom into your eyes. Next,I saw an alligator turtle which is a turtle with an alligator's skin as a shell. Last,I learned that a python doesn't have teeth. I also learned that it can eat an alligator whole.

A.M:  I learned that the gorilla eat fruit, insects, vegetables, and leaves. They are fast and can live up to 30 or 40 years. Ivan lived for 50 years.

E.G:    One thing I learned at the zoo is that gorillas are mostly vegetarians, and that silver backs are the leaders.

M.H:   I learned at the zoo that male gorillas are silver backs but the baby boy gorillas aren't a silver back yet.

L.C:    What I learned at the Atlanta Zoo is Gorillas are mainly vegetarians. I learned that Meerkats might like to eat pumpkins. Another thing I learned is Vultures are big birds that mainly eat dead things. I also learned that all male gorillas turn into a Silver back.

N.E: I learned at the zoo that flamingos eat fruit vegetables and pink shrimp. They are pink because of the shrimp they eat.

J.P:I learned that you shouldn't tease the reptiles because if you do they will get mad at you. Example:Snakes will strike at the glass if you tease them or bother them.

C.C: What I learned at the zoo was pandas were made to be carnivores but, they made adaptions and now they are vegetarians.

B.C:I learned that gorillas get fed twice a day. They are tomatoes and apples when we were there.

Do you know something interesting about an animal that you would like to share? Please leave it in a comment.

Ecosystems Poetry

In science, we have been learning about ecosystems. We studying the different biomes. Some of the biomes that we have been studying are the desert, tropical rainforest, grasslands, tundra, taiga, temperate forest ,marine,and freshwater.We even did a diamante poem which is in the shape of a diamond. We had to choose two different biomes like taiga and the tropical rainforest and contrast them through our poetry writing. It was really fun and we all learned a lot about the different ecosystems! ~AP and JM

The Best Time in Class! 9-28-12

This week in science we were studying  Body Systems. We learned about how the body works in many different ways. One thing I learned from this week was that the circulatory system and the excretory systems both aid in removing waste from the body. I also learned that lungs are part of the respiratory. I have one more thing I want share which was that the excretory system includes which two organs which are the bladder and kidneys.

 

Also this week we did math workshop. Math workshop is these like centers we do for math. A couple of centers I love are Mucho Multiplication and compare cards. You play Mucho Multiplication by getting two small tubs of dice. Then you shake each tub and turn it over then you multiple the numbers together. After you complete the problem you check your answer with the calculator. The first person with the right answer gets a point. The team member with the most points at the end gets a pass of their choice.Compare cards are when you turn over two cards from each person and who ever has the biggest product of their two numbers gets all the cards from that hand.The one with the most cards at the end wins.

We are doing the Global Read Aloud. It starts in THREE days!We are reading The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate. The field trip that we are going on goes with The One and Only Ivan. We are going to the Atlanta Zoo. We are taking a charter bus and it is going to be a lot of  fun. 

~ LNH