The final section of Objects in Motion is about angular momentum. We read this section and discussed how points farther from the center move faster than those closer. We also had a spinning chair in the room that they made use of to show how they spin faster with their limbs closer to their bodies.
There's a lot you can do with spinners to supplement this section. We used Zomes to build spinners, seeing who could build the one that spun the longest.
Next, Liquids and Gases...
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
You may have noticed, or maybe stopped noticing, the tabs at the top of the blog under the banner that have led to blank pages, or at least previously blank pages. I have finally gotten around to actually creating those pages.
The structure of each is similar. The top part of the page is topic-related picture and two links, the top icon is linked to my Diigo list of website for that subject and the bottom icon is linked to my LibraryThing book list for it. Below all that is the Our Favorites section with resources I have found especially helpful.
Hopefully those pages will help you find more homeschool science resources to enjoy with your family and co-op. Click on them and let me know what you think!
While we are still continuing with Secrets of the Universe (having embarked on Liquids and Gases) it is time again for Journey North. Most of the offerings starting in February, but by far our favorite is the Mystery Class.
This is our third year doing this project--an excellent example of projhect-based learning. Using sunlight and cultural clues, you try to locate 10 mystery locations around the globe. It combines science, math, and geography into one fabulous project. This Friday is the first data set so it is not too late to start. Just click the Journey North tag in the right sidebar to see my blog posts from last year.
A few weeks ago we went to the Boston Museum of Science since they have free Omni Theater Fridays in January. We happened to see Whales, which was not the best Omni production I've ever seen since I am convinced they tried to instill sea sickness in the audience by turiong off the camera stabilization. However, a good part of the movie talked about the Gray Whale migration, the longest of any mammal, and that got me thinking about another Journey North project.
I happened to look today, just in time to see the Journay North Gray Whales project runs on Wednesdays starting in February. After looking through the site, and seeing they had the lowest numbers ever in 2010, I am excited to see so far they are reporting record calves in Mexico so far. And so I have downloaded the data sheets and out together our journal to follow along with this project as well. I hope to let you know how we are progressing.
Objects in Motion, Chapter 5 part 1, Conservation of Momentum.
I turned to a favorite book of mine, Gizmos and Gadgets, and found a bunch of activities relating to this chapter. Simple things, like giving them three coins--two pennies and a nickle--and challenging them move one penny using the other penny without them touching each other. They tried all kinds of things before finally figuring out how to use then conservation of momentum to do it.
And more complex things, like creating Newton's Cradle using marbles and an egg carton ramp. There's just something fascinating about watching spheres collide!
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We finished up building a simple momentum tower, another idea from the book. I had two 20 oz bottles filled with water. The kids tied a string between them and then attached two strings with paperclips to the first string, and then stuck modeling clay onto the paperclips. They held the bottles so the string between them was taut and then carefully swung only one of the clay suspensions. Guess what happened to the other clay swing?
Objects in Motion, Chapter 4, The Law of Universal Gravitation.
This chapter brings together Kepler, Galileo, and Newton, especially the first and the last. I created a review sheet listing their laws we covered next to a picture of each of them.
All I used for this class was a white board. I read and we discussed, using the board to draw illustrations and to write equations. It served as a good opportunity for review as well as an opportunity to consider the information in novel circumstances.
We considered and discussed the weakness of gravity, elliptical motion, "falling around" earth, wobbling planets, Newton's cannon, and satellite rockets. It makes for good conversation...
The final section of Objects in Motion is about angular momentum. We read this section and discussed how points farther from the center move faster than those closer. We also had a spinning chair in the room that they made use of to show how they spin faster with their limbs closer to their bodies.
This is our third year doing this project--an excellent example of projhect-based learning. Using sunlight and cultural clues, you try to locate 10 mystery locations around the globe. It combines science, math, and geography into one fabulous project. This Friday is the first data set so it is not too late to start. Just click the Journey North tag in the right sidebar to see my blog posts from last year.
We finished up building a simple momentum tower, another idea from the book. I had two 20 oz bottles filled with water. The kids tied a string between them and then attached two strings with paperclips to the first string, and then stuck modeling clay onto the paperclips. They held the bottles so the string between them was taut and then carefully swung only one of the clay suspensions. Guess what happened to the other clay swing?
