Hello teachers, students, and families,
This week all STEM classes in grades 3 and 4 were introduced to our new field of engineering. We are now embarking on a journey to learn about Green Engineering! Green engineering is sometimes referred to environmental engineering, and the focus is on designing technologies that are earth-friendly. That could mean technologies are created from recycled materials, or technologies that can be recycled at the end of their life-span. Green engineering also is focused on renewable energies like wind and solar power. Green engineers strive to solve problems that affect our environment and the health of our planet.
Students will be engaging in a long-term project to create a recycled invention---like a car racer or toy. We are connecting this learning to the recycling marketplace in the African country of Senegal, and how the people of Senegal turn trash into treasure that can be sold in their informal recycling economy.
To make a recycled invention, students need to gather some materials. I am asking that students save recycled materials that they might otherwise put in their weekly recycling pick-up. Students should bring recycled materials into STEM class for our "Scrap Market". We need to gather a good amount of materials for students to use to make their recycled racers or toys. I recently sent home a newsletter explaining this project.
Students should:
1. Save things like 2 liter plastic bottles, small food boxes, berry and tomato baskets, egg cartons, cereal boxes, and any other recycled materials they think would make a good building material for wheels, axles, car bodies, toy parts etc .
2. Make sure recycled materials are clean and rinsed out, and do not have sharp edges. NO GLASS PLEASE!
3. Drop off recycled building materials in the Purple or Green STEM labs in the morning on the way to homeroom.
I thank you so much for your support in our Green Engineering Recycled Invention project!
-Mrs. Athearn
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Monday, March 14, 2016
Welcome back 3/4 blended and 4th grade classes!
Hello again!
Trimester 3 begins this week, and I am so excited to welcome back my 4th graders and 3rd graders from 3/4 blended classes! This trimester our theme will be Green Engineering. We will learn about how engineers have to think about impacts their technologies could have on our fragile environment, as well as, how engineers solve environmental problems. We will also be learning about the West African country of Senegal and how their recycling marketplaces allow the people there to reuse materials that would otherwise be wasted to create new products. Recycling is a huge part of Sengalese culture, and we will see how we can also use recycled materials to create new products in STEM class.
Parents and Families: Stay tuned for a request for recyclable materials that will be needed in our upcoming engineering projects!
Also, as a general reminder, anyone who would like to have a conference with Mrs. Athearn, please send an email to sathearn@scarboroughschools.org or schedule a date in PTC Wizard. I will be available for conferences the week of March 21st.
-Mrs. Athearn
Trimester 3 begins this week, and I am so excited to welcome back my 4th graders and 3rd graders from 3/4 blended classes! This trimester our theme will be Green Engineering. We will learn about how engineers have to think about impacts their technologies could have on our fragile environment, as well as, how engineers solve environmental problems. We will also be learning about the West African country of Senegal and how their recycling marketplaces allow the people there to reuse materials that would otherwise be wasted to create new products. Recycling is a huge part of Sengalese culture, and we will see how we can also use recycled materials to create new products in STEM class.
Parents and Families: Stay tuned for a request for recyclable materials that will be needed in our upcoming engineering projects!
Also, as a general reminder, anyone who would like to have a conference with Mrs. Athearn, please send an email to sathearn@scarboroughschools.org or schedule a date in PTC Wizard. I will be available for conferences the week of March 21st.
-Mrs. Athearn
Update for week of March 7th, 2016: Grade 3
Hi Friends!
Here's a quick update on grade 3 aeronautical engineering!
First, most third graders were able to finish creating their final aeronautical technology----a flying technology that could carry a certain amount of photographers and stay in the air a certain amount of seconds in order to take aerial photos of an area in the Empty Quarter.
Groups each picked an area in the Empty Quarter and their air-time and photographer criteria was based on which area they chose. Each area also had a constraint on how many materials could be used.
The kids did a great job staying within their material constraints to build this technology---something they have not had to consider so greatly before. I was able to drop or launch technologies from a tall ladder for testing, and some groups tested in the wind tunnel. In order to improve their technologies, students worked with another group before we started to get some advice on their designs. When all the testing was done, students were able to reflect in writing on how things went. This coming week will be the last week for groups to test their technologies, and perhaps India and Jacob, our student engineer friends, will send along another challenge. We know that India has warned us that the Empty Quarter can be a harsh environment prone to sandstorms---who knows how this will affect the students' challenge and designs. Some third graders got wind of this challenge last Friday, but the others will find out this week!
Happy Pi Day all!
-Mrs. Athearn
Here's a quick update on grade 3 aeronautical engineering!
First, most third graders were able to finish creating their final aeronautical technology----a flying technology that could carry a certain amount of photographers and stay in the air a certain amount of seconds in order to take aerial photos of an area in the Empty Quarter.
Groups each picked an area in the Empty Quarter and their air-time and photographer criteria was based on which area they chose. Each area also had a constraint on how many materials could be used.
The kids did a great job staying within their material constraints to build this technology---something they have not had to consider so greatly before. I was able to drop or launch technologies from a tall ladder for testing, and some groups tested in the wind tunnel. In order to improve their technologies, students worked with another group before we started to get some advice on their designs. When all the testing was done, students were able to reflect in writing on how things went. This coming week will be the last week for groups to test their technologies, and perhaps India and Jacob, our student engineer friends, will send along another challenge. We know that India has warned us that the Empty Quarter can be a harsh environment prone to sandstorms---who knows how this will affect the students' challenge and designs. Some third graders got wind of this challenge last Friday, but the others will find out this week!
Happy Pi Day all!
-Mrs. Athearn
Update on week of March 7th, 2016: Grade 5 Final Projects!
Hi friends!
I want to give a big shout out to the 5th graders at Wentworth School! You all did an amazing job this year in the STEM classroom. Final Rocket and Rover Mission projects were fantastic! Last week, the 5th graders presented their final projects---including their final rocket, rover, and mission logo. They explained their destinations and their rover missions on distant planets and moons, performed their final rocket launches and decorated and presented their mission logos. Not all groups had a successful rocket launch, and some did not make it to their destination, but everyone had ideas trade-offs on their rover tools and explanations for improvements of rocket designs which was at the heart of this assignment to use the Engineering Design Process to design a rocket and rover with specific criteria and constraints. We learned that above all, when engineers fail, they take what they learned to make their technologies better next chance they get. These 5th graders are going to do fabulously in their engineering class at the middle school!
Students will also be receiving a copy of their team's mission logo sometime before April vacation. The logos came out so great, I want everyone to have one to take home, but they do take time to print in our 3D printer, so stay tuned!
-Mrs. A
I want to give a big shout out to the 5th graders at Wentworth School! You all did an amazing job this year in the STEM classroom. Final Rocket and Rover Mission projects were fantastic! Last week, the 5th graders presented their final projects---including their final rocket, rover, and mission logo. They explained their destinations and their rover missions on distant planets and moons, performed their final rocket launches and decorated and presented their mission logos. Not all groups had a successful rocket launch, and some did not make it to their destination, but everyone had ideas trade-offs on their rover tools and explanations for improvements of rocket designs which was at the heart of this assignment to use the Engineering Design Process to design a rocket and rover with specific criteria and constraints. We learned that above all, when engineers fail, they take what they learned to make their technologies better next chance they get. These 5th graders are going to do fabulously in their engineering class at the middle school!
Students will also be receiving a copy of their team's mission logo sometime before April vacation. The logos came out so great, I want everyone to have one to take home, but they do take time to print in our 3D printer, so stay tuned!
-Mrs. A
Friday, March 4, 2016
Grade 5 Update for the week of Feb. 29, 2016
WOW Friends!!
What an exciting and busy week we had in the STEM classroom at Wentworth School!
First, Wentworth PTA's 2nd Annual STEAM Fair was a huge success! I was there showing off my new LittleBits Inventor Kit. The kids had so much fun putting bits together to create bubble machines, tickle machines, flashlights, and much more! I also had a three wheeler car on display to show the kids what we will be working on in STEM class in an upcoming unit.
Grade 5 Update
The fifth graders are winding down their trimester, but we all sure worked extra hard this week to complete the Final Rocket and Rover Mission project. The kids did a great job working as teams to create their final projects. I was also very busy printing their 3D Mission logos in our CubePro 3D printer. We had a few minor hiccups with the printing, but I am happy to report that as of Friday afternoon, I have finished printing all 11 fifth grade classes' mission logos! They came out great! Here is a photo of some of the logos.
What an exciting and busy week we had in the STEM classroom at Wentworth School!
First, Wentworth PTA's 2nd Annual STEAM Fair was a huge success! I was there showing off my new LittleBits Inventor Kit. The kids had so much fun putting bits together to create bubble machines, tickle machines, flashlights, and much more! I also had a three wheeler car on display to show the kids what we will be working on in STEM class in an upcoming unit.
Grade 5 Update
The fifth graders are winding down their trimester, but we all sure worked extra hard this week to complete the Final Rocket and Rover Mission project. The kids did a great job working as teams to create their final projects. I was also very busy printing their 3D Mission logos in our CubePro 3D printer. We had a few minor hiccups with the printing, but I am happy to report that as of Friday afternoon, I have finished printing all 11 fifth grade classes' mission logos! They came out great! Here is a photo of some of the logos.
Grade 3 Update
Third graders worked on the Create step of the Engineering Design Process to create a model flying technology that can fly above an area in The Empty Quarter with a certain set of criteria and constraints for taking aerial photos. The criteria had to do with the amount of photographers the technology must carry and how long it must stay in the air. Their constraints were the number of materials they could use. The kids had to make some adjustments to their plans from last week to make sure they could use the materials they wanted without going over their limit. This was very different than what the kids were used to, because it really forced them to think critically about their plan and ensure that materials would not be going to waste. Next week, the kids will test their technologies from a high elevation (Mrs. A will drop from a ladder) to see if they have met their area's criteria. The kids will also have time to use the Improve step of the Engineering Design Process if their technology is not successful on the first test.
Have a great weekend!
-Mrs. Athearn
Spot the International Space Station this weekend!
The International Space Station will be visible in Maine this weekend in the night sky if mother nature cooperates and provides a cloud-free viewing condition!
It will only be visible for a brief amount of time---3 minutes or less, but if you are a science lover like me, and like a challenge, check out the site below for more details!
http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/sightings/view.cfm?country=United_States®ion=Maine&city=Portland#.Vtn1JH0rLIU
-Mrs. Athearn
It will only be visible for a brief amount of time---3 minutes or less, but if you are a science lover like me, and like a challenge, check out the site below for more details!
http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/sightings/view.cfm?country=United_States®ion=Maine&city=Portland#.Vtn1JH0rLIU
-Mrs. Athearn
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