TERM 1 2017 - Desert Survivors
Our first unit of work this year is the Primary Connections Unit Desert Survivors. Students investigate how life can survive in the extreme temperatures and dryness of a dessert environment. We look at how plants and animals have structural adaptations that help them to survive and thrive. This is a very relevant unit for our students because they live in the surrounded by the desert country of the Australian Mallee. Click on the link below to explore our wonderful Malle desert.
The Mallee Desert
Click on the link above to explore the Malle desert and try to find the animals that live there. If you collect all your animals and answer the questions about them correctly, you can earn your expert badge.
http://museumvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseum/discoverycentre/wild/victorian-environments/mallee/ |
DESERT WONDERINGS...week 3
Come check out the windows if the science room to read all the students desert wonderings........they included wonderings about the weather, temperature and conditions of deserts; where deserts are found in the world and how they got there; what type of living organisms live in a desert and how have humans survived in deserts
TERM 1 2016- Marvellous Micro-organisms
Our first unit of work this year is Marvellous Micro-organism. Students are investigating how some living things can me microscopic. These microscopic organism can help us like yeast in the process of bread making or hinder us like germs.
A highlight of the unit was our trip to Nooy's Bakery. Here students got to experience first hand how bread is made. I have it on good authority that many students who took their dough home, enjoyed the delicious experience of freshly baked bread at home
A highlight of the unit was our trip to Nooy's Bakery. Here students got to experience first hand how bread is made. I have it on good authority that many students who took their dough home, enjoyed the delicious experience of freshly baked bread at home
Student experimenting to determine what conditions yeast needs to grow during week 4
Students visiting Nooy's Bakery during week 5. A BIG THANK-YOU to our parent helpers Rina, Sarah, Lisa, Lisa and Sandra
Term 4 2015
This term students are working on the Primary Connections unit 'It's Electrifying'. We have engaged ourselves experimenting with static electricity. Dismantled and investigate torches to try and discover how they work. We have also tried to make our own torches.
This week we investigated light bulbs more closely and read about how hot the wire tungsten metal wire filament gets. Did you know it heats up to 2000 degrees, but doesn't burn because there is no oxygen in the globe.
This week we investigated light bulbs more closely and read about how hot the wire tungsten metal wire filament gets. Did you know it heats up to 2000 degrees, but doesn't burn because there is no oxygen in the globe.
As we learn more about circuits we have practiced building them both in the science laboratory and on the computer. Check out these links to have fun at home
Term 3 2015
This term students are working on the Primary Connections unit 'What's the Matter'. We have been exploring the properties of Solids Liquids and Gases.
Photos below show students exploring the properties of liquids
Photos below show students exploring the properties of liquids
While some 5/6 students travelled to Swan Hill for the regional sports, those 5/6 students still at school investigated solids liquids and gases while cooking omelettes, in their science class. We discovered that when we heat some solids they melt changing state, but other solids burn and change in a chemical reaction. When we heat liquids they might evaporate changing into a gas and we can smell the odour or like eggs they can change to a solid if a chemical reaction occurs.
Science meets Geography
Students in 5/6V came across to the science room to make compasses. They had been studying maps in Geography finding out about continents, oceans and mapping skills. They learned that the world acts like a giant magnet so small magnets will try to line up with the north magnetic pole. By magnetising a needle and floating it on water, they found that the needle was free to spin around as one end of the needle magnet was attracted to the Earth magnet.
WELCOME TO 2015
Semester one we are looking at the two major environments around where we live:
The Mallee Deserthttp://museumvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseum/discoverycentre/wild/victorian-environments/mallee/
We have investigated some of the native animals in the Mallee and the introduced species that have become pests. We played on the game below on the Melbourne Museum Site
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The Murray RiverPeter Ryan 2014
We have followed the Murray River on google earth from its beginnings in the mountains past Albury/Woodonga and the Hume Dam, to its end at Lake Alexandrina in South Australia where the river meets the sea
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Alexandrina_(South_Australia)
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BASIN CHALLENGE
To complement our science program for 2015, St Mary's 5/6 students have been registered in the Murray Darling Basin Authority (mdba) Basin Challenge program. This program will not only allow students to investigate and engage with their local environment, but it will also introduce them to 21st century learning as they become part of the global classroom.
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5/6 Students met Clair Bannerman through an initial video conference. Clair shared with us some information about the Murray Darling Basin. She also taught us how to do simple water quality testing so we can test the local river when we visit it next term.
Some of the things Clair told us
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Term 4 2014
In term 4 we are looking at light
We started with a few demonstrations and identified our wonderings.
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Check out the Giant Aluminium curtain at the Oslo Opera house.
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These images were created by Swedish Photographer Erik Johansson
Check out some of his other amazing photography on this link http://erikjohanssonphoto.com/ A photographer needs a good understanding of light to help create great works like Eric's optical illusions Do you know where Oslo is?........Have a look at the map.
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The students had some amazing and probing wonderings about light. Check out their questions
We also looked at shadows and how they are made when light rays cannot pass through an object. We described the object as opaque because light could not pass through it
opaque from the Latin word opacus meaning 'darkened'
opaque from the Latin word opacus meaning 'darkened'
We thought about the light that creates shadows and worked out that moving an object closer or further away from the light changes the size of the shadow
This link lets us make shadows of different shapes and sizes......... like we did in class
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/7_8/light_shadows.shtml
or have a look at the game below
This link lets us make shadows of different shapes and sizes......... like we did in class
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/7_8/light_shadows.shtml
or have a look at the game below
When making shadows on a wall, the light or torch is shining away from us (not in our eyes) So if the light is not coming directly to our eyes, how can we see?
Quoting Dimitri..........REFLECTION.......which got us thinking about mirrors and how they reflect light
Quoting Dimitri..........REFLECTION.......which got us thinking about mirrors and how they reflect light
Understanding reflection helped us complete the task on this link
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/10_11/see_things.shtml
and conquer this game
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/10_11/see_things.shtml
and conquer this game
Then if you are really clever, try this The Mirror Game on the link below..........what is the highest level you can reach?
http://www.coolgames.com/the-mirror-game-version-30.html?related |
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Term 3 2014
In term 3 we looked at materials
First we reviewed and quizzed ourselves on different types of materials natural and synthetic (man made) http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/science/materials/material_properties/read/1/
First we reviewed and quizzed ourselves on different types of materials natural and synthetic (man made) http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/science/materials/material_properties/read/1/
then we got to sabotage the Androvax space ship
Next we brainstormed properties of materials and thought about how they determine the use of the material. We realised that not all substances can be easily classified on the basis of their observable properties.
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Did you know that a real life example of a newtonian fluid is QUICKSAND
Making oobleck a non-newtonian fluid was great fun. It was something we could try at home in the kitchen. Here is the recipe
Here is a wordle of the properties of materials created from words the students suggested
We also looked at how materials change physically and chemically. The question we explored was:
WHAT DOES HEAT DO TO MATERIALS?
Making an omlette showed us that materials can both change state like melting but also change chemically like cooking
WHAT DOES HEAT DO TO MATERIALS?
Making an omlette showed us that materials can both change state like melting but also change chemically like cooking