5th Grade Science and Engineering

Announcements: June 26: Zohar found a snow quartz crystal. She sent us a photograph of it, which you can see in the Outdoor Discoveries gallery. June 22: Max, Ian, and Olivia spent some time building grabber arms, each with a different grasping strategy. You can see the results of their efforts in the Student Engineering gallery. Here is a list of Summer Science and Engineering Resources.
Science Lessons Here is the first of several lessons about Climate Change. Here is the second lesson about Climate Change, called Earth's Climate History The third lesson about Climate Change, called Melting Polar Ice, is now online. Here is the link to the Sea Level Rise chart to go along with the above lesson. Here is the website that will let you know the Elevation of Your Home. The fourth lesson about Climate Change, called Desert Belts, is now online. The final lesson about Climate Change, called Winners and Losers, is now online. Watch ants bring food back to their colony with this How Do Ants Find Food? activity. I was planning to do a series of lessons about comets as Comet Atlas grew closer to the Sun, and I had planned to start with a lesson about how the objects in our universe are grouped together. There doesn't seem to be much need for a comet unit now, (stupid comet), but you might find the introductory lesson, "So What All Is Out There, Anyway?" interesting. Here, too, are the Pre-Reading Activity in MS Word (PDF Version) and the Answer Sheet (PDF Version) that accompany the article. If anyone fills in the answer sheet, I'd be happy to reveiw your work if you send it to me. I have posted a lesson about viruses for you: What Is a Virus? There is a follow-up lesson that examines why washing your hands with soap is so effective against the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It's called Life Without Purel. There is an experiment on page 4 that I would like you to do as you work your way through this lesson. You will need two clear glasses or empty jars, water, cooking oil, salt, a measuring cup and measuring spoons.	Engineering Challenges Here is the Balloon Rocket assignment, along with a little story. Here are the directions for the Paper Rocket Design Lab. Here are the requirements for the Shoebox Maze engineering challenge. Here are the directions for constructing the Cotton Ball Launcher. Build a Sundial following these simple directions. Here are the directions and requirements for the Catapult Challenge. There is still time to attempt the Bird's Nest engineering challenge.
Experiments and Activities In honor of spring I have added three new science activities that you can do with plants. A photograph that Ascher (5th grade) sent inspired this lesson on Root Vegetables. What would spring be without Daffodils? Here's an activity to make them even more colorful. You can also find Before and After photos of Avery's (3rd grade) experiment on this page. Ever wonder what's inside a seed? Try this Seed Sprouting activity to find out. Print out this Checklist. How many items on this list can you spot while we are out of school? Go outside sometime and look at the buds on trees. Are they going to become leaves or flowers? Spring Tree Buds Announcing The Goofy-Looking Tree Bark Photo Contest open to all Leffell 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students. Have a look.	Science Videos Here is a link to a short video about the North Pole region. It goes along well with our lesson about Melting Polar Ice. Here's the Video that inspired Ascher's most recent science experiment. This video also mentions two other great YouTube channels. Life in Jars is all about creating mini ecosystems, and Journey to the Microcosmos is devoted to exploring the microscopic world. Ascher found this video on a site that has compiled thousands of excellent educational videos for kids. It's called The Kids Should See This. The videos on this site cover a broad range of subjects. Of course, I like the Science Videos best. Both Mark Roper and the Backyard Scientist have a lot of great videos that investigate different science principles. Many of these investigations are quite dangerous. Do NOT try these at home, but I think you will enjoy watching them from a safe distance! Check out this short, beautiful video of a Flock of Starlings in flight. A student working on the lesson about viruses has asked me if there are any videos to go with the lesson. There are many videos about viruses on YouTube, but most of them are pretty technical and difficult to follow. This video does a pretty good job of explaining how a virus works without overwhelming you with details: What is a Virus? A parent sent in this video explaning how soap kills bacteria. It looks like a good follow-up to the Life Without Purel lesson. I shared this link with the 4th grade because it sort of fit in with what some of them were doing in engineering, but these sculptures are too cool not to share with everyone. They are completely wind powered--there are no electric- or gas-powered motors involved. Check out this video of some amazing creations by Theo Jansen: Strandbeest Evolution Here is a nice collection of Earth and Physical Sciences videos. Interested in some off-the-wall science videos? Of course you are! Here are some YouTube videos by Steve Spangler. Let me know if you have any favorites and I'll pass them along to everyone. And let's not forget The King of Random. (Please do NOT try these activities at home!) Okay, if you're really bored, you can watch some Glenn's Science Videos. I'll apologize in advance. But with so much emphasis placed on "best practices" in science teaching, I just felt that we should also celebrate some "worst practices." We can't all be great teachers (or YouTube stars), can we?
Student Work Galleries Bird's Nests We now have a Building Bird Nests web page to show off your birds' nests. Want to include your nest, too? Send photos to gsimonelli@leffellschool.org and I will add them to the page. Goofy-Looking Tree Bark Have you seen any goofy-looking tree bark? Contribute to our Goofy-Looking Tree Bark Photo Gallery. Send your photos and snarky comments to gsimonelli@leffellschool.org and I will add them to the Photo Gallery. Root Vegetables Have you gotten anything to grow while working on the Root Vegetables activity? Add your photographs to our Plant Sprouting Gallery. Outdoor Discoveries Find something amazing outdoors An animal? Or a plant? Maybe an interesting rock? Sent us a photo of what you found for our Outdoor Discoveries gallery. Spring Tree Buds Spring Tree Buds are beginning to open. The Spring Buds Photo Gallery has increased to 3 pages. Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Send your photos to gsimonelli@leffellschool.org. Let's keep this gallery growing. Student Engineering Here is where you can share any engineering projects that you have worked on. If you sent me photos or a link to a video of any engineering work that you've done (roller coasters, shoebox maze), they are now part of the new Student Engineering gallery. Student Experiments Have you done any other experiments at home that you'd like to share with your friends and classmates? Send your photos and a desciption of what you did to gsimonelli@leffellschool.org and I will publish them our Student Experiments page.	Science News The virus that causes the COVID-19 illness has a new name! Some background: The term "coronavirus" is a general term that describes a family of viruses with tiny little "spikes" sticking out of their protective coating, sort of like the corona of our Sun: . The current illness that everyone is so concerned about was first identified in 2019, so it was called Coronavirus Disease 2019 and shortened to COVID-19. Recently, scientists have discovered that the virus causing the COVID-19 outbreak is very similar to another coronavirus that caused the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) illnesses about 18 years ago. They named that virus SARS-CoV, so they have given this new virus the official name SARS-CoV-2. So the next time someone talks about COVID-19 you can roll your eyes and say "That name is soooo last month!" That is, if you want people to dislike you.
Old Announcements: March 22: Getting outdoors. Here are some great places to hike in the Westchester County area: For those of you close to the Bronx, Pelham Bay Park has a lot of secluded hiking trails. The Westmoreland Sanctuary and the Butler Memorial Sanctuary are right across the road from each other in Mt. Kisco. Both have nice trails. The Butler Sanctuary is a great place to view the spring and fall hawk migrations. Mianus River Gorge is a little further east, near Bedford. Stone Barns is closed, but you can still enjoy hiking the extensive network of trails in the Rockefeller State Park Preserve. The Thirteen Bridges Loop is one of my favorites. Teatown Lake Preserve in Ossining has a very family-friendly hike around the lake, along with additional hiking trails. Croton Point Park is a little expensive during the summer, in my opinion, but admission and parking is free until May 25. A little further north, the Blue Mountain Reservation offers both hiking and mountain biking trails. It, too, is free until May 25. Turkey Mountain Nature Preserve in Yorktown affords some nice views of the Hudson River and, on a clear day, the Manhattan skyline. And finally, in Rockland County, Harriman State Park, which includes Bear Mountain State Park, is a national treasure. With over 200 miles of secluded trails, you might want to buy the set of hiking trail maps published by the New York/New Jersey Trail Conference A big thank you to everyone who is sending me links to other science resources. I am starting to compile a list of these websites on a new Resources page. March 20: For those of you who, like me, feel the need to get outdoors every now and then but want to avoid crowds, the New York/New Jersey Trail Conference has recently published a collection of maps of Hiking Trails in Westchester County. They also have a lot of other books and maps on their "Marketplace" page. I've gotten several of both and can recommend them. (I particularly like hiking in Harriman State Park.) Links to Outside Sources of Science Lessons and Activities 11 Engaging STEM Activities for Kids That Will Foster Curiosity from Rasmussen College by Brianna Flavin Explore different topics and games on National Geographic Kids. You do not need to set up an account for this web site. 40 STEM ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS The California Academy of Sciences has collection of different online live science lesson videos. I like how these include the target age group and contain additional materials to supplement the lesson. The Environmental Protection Agency still exists and has developed lessons to introduce students to the EnviroAtlas. Some members of a Girl Scout troop in Alabama sent us a link to a page of Engineering Games and Projects. There is also a lot of information about engineering carreers on this page. A big "Thank you!" to Amelia for sending this link to a web page filled with Computer Science and Engineering Resources for Women in STEM. Scroll down the page for links to programs, scholarships and other helpful information for woman interested in STEM careers.

Last Updated: November 1, 2021
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