As you can see, the fall season is in full swing. The weather is changing daily, and snow is in the forecast for the northern part of our state. The first graders have been keeping track of the daily temperatures and I'm sure they can tell you what's happening with the temperatures and maybe even give a few good reasons why.
The second graders are finishing up their study of "Living vs. Non-Living, using brine shrimp as their observation models. They set up a controlled experiment (keeping all conditions alike, except for one)and observed changes occurring in the two containers. Students reviewed what makes something "alive" and also what makes something an "animal". The conclusion is that living organisms don't have to look or act alive throughout their whole life cycle.
Right after the Thanksgiving break, the second graders will begin their study of sound. So, plan on hearing lots of "good" noises coming from the science lab.
The 3rd graders have completed their unit on plants, and are looking forward to the spring when they can plant the pumpkin patch with their SK buddies. All the pumpkins you see in front of the Lower School came from our very own pumpkin patch. We hope to plant enough this spring that next fall's SK students will be able to pick their own pumpkin right here on our USM Campus.
The third graders next unit of science will start right after winter break. They better rest up during the vacation, because they will be heading to Mars and space.
The 4th graders have completed their study of food webs, predators, prey, and what an apex predator is. They reconstructed skeletons from the bones found in their owl pellets and from that evidence could describe the transfer of energy from the producer level up to the apex predator level. Their skeleton reconstructions will be on display shortly in the 3rd floor hallways.
After a short break to take the ERB's, the 4th graders will take an in-depth look at Lake Michigan and the alien invaders that live there. This unit is called, "Aliens Aren't Always Green", and has the students following the real scientific research of Drs. Russell Cuhel and Carmen Aguilar from the Great Lakes Water Institute and JASON Project host researchers. These two scientists will also take time out of their very busy schedules to spend some time working with the 4th graders, discussing alien species like the Quagga and Zebra mussels. We'll keep you posted about our invader investigations.
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