This week in the lab...
we candled the chicken eggs! The results were very interesting. We saw developing chicks inside a few of the eggs, and we saw no developing chicks inside other eggs. We also were able to see a "blood ring" inside one egg. A blood ring is a sign that the embryo, or baby chick, has died. This can happen for many reasons: too much trauma to the egg, the incubator temp or humidity levels were too high, or simply because the embryo was sick and was not able to continue growing. Even though it's sad to realize that not all of the eggs are going to hatch, it is very interesting see see all aspects of the chicken life cycle in our very own classroom! We are keeping our fingers crossed that the eggs with growing embryos will continue to develop, and that in less than 2 weeks we will have hatching chicks! Feel free to stop by the science lab before or after school to see the different stages of eggs we have in the incubator. Miss Phillips has kept all eggs in the incubator with the exception of the two eggs that were broken when they were delivered to Casita. This way, we can compare the eggs and the growth of the embryos over the coming weeks!
Kindergartners continued to learn about clouds. They finished their cloud books too! Next week, we will be using these cloud books on our Cloud Hunt. During technology time, kindergartners were introduced to a new program called Dance Mat Typing. This website teaches children the proper way to type using Home Row keys. The children loved it!
First graders learned about different types of weather. Students discussed what clothing items we should wear for each weather condition. Then, students learned about wool, cotton, and nylon, even looked at them under our microscopes. Students learned that wool is the best type of fabric to wear when it's cold, cotton is the best type of fabric to wear when it's hot, and nylon is the best type of fabric to wear when it's raining! Since Miss Phillips was sick on Wednesday, our technology day, students practiced their typing skills on Dance Mat Typing instead of continuing to work on their PowerPoint projects.
For second grade science, Miss Phillips invited a few of her friends from the Helen Woodward Animal Center to come to Casita with their 32' AniMobile! They even brought three animal friends with them: Gordo, the Argentine frog (pacman frog), Andy, the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and a HUGE skink! The students loved learning about these animal, and even touching them! During technology time, students continued to work on their interactive powerpoint games.
STEM Academy was given the challenge of designing 2 boats out of foil. The boats had to be completely different. Then, students tested both boats in a bucket of water to see which could hold more pennies without sinking. Students took this information, and used it to design a third boat to enter into the class competition. Our winning boat was created by Gisele and Briana, which held 138 pennies
Well, that's what happene