Perimeter: ALL THE WAY AROUND!

Today we worked on PERIMETER! First, we discussed reasons why we would need to find perimeter: fences, border, planting, decorating, etc and watched a BrainPopJr. Perimeter. Then, we worked online on the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives Geoboards. My third graders were excited to get started finding the perimeters on their geoboards. We started with easy shapes: squares, rectangles, and triangles.

Then, students were able to get a little more creative with their shapes. Students made any shape they wanted to on their geoboard to challenge their classmates. They LOVE this part of math, getting to stump their neighbors!

Worms!

Today was WORM DAY!

Time to get a little gross again in class! Today, we got out the worms. Each student got one worm to study. They were to name their worm, observe it, measure it, and draw a picture of it. At first, the students were a bit grossed out by the slimey little worms, but once they hung out for a little while, the worms & kids were great friends!

We learned LOTS of great facts:
-Worms don't have lungs, they breathe through their skin (like fish through gills)
-No legs (obviously) and no eyes either! Worms sense light and dark through special cells on their bodies
-There are about 5,000 species of worms in the world
-Although most worms are about 6 inches long, one species in Australia can grow up to 12 feet!
-Earthworms help us by eating decomposing things (leaves, sticks, dead insects); This helps make rich soil for our plants!

We did two experiments with our worm friends:
Do worms prefer white or black paper?

Do worms prefer dry or wet paper towels?

We finished the day with a worm race! First on out of the circle wins!!

Before we left for the day, we gave our worms a new home in our school garden.

Tie Dye

Today, we tie dye! The normal way of tie dying can get a little messy, so we opt-ed for the more controlled tie dye. Plus, then we could add in a little bit of science! As we all know, sharpie ink does not come out (well) with water. This is because the permanent marker is not soluble in water. It is, however, soluble in rubbing alcohol.


For more information, follow these links: Sharpe to Tie-Dye For and Sharpie Pen Science. Here's a Sharpie Tie Dye Video to help as well.

Oogly Monsters!

Myrna Minnis, the oogly lady, visited our 3rd graders today! The students made Oogly Monsters today from clay. They start with a ball of clay and work it into a large mouth. Then come the add-ons of eyes, arms, legs, a nose, etc. The students make their oogly however they would like. They get to be very creative in making their monster!

Earth Day Celebration!

Wow! Did we have a busy, fun-filled day today?! Moonlight has quite an Earth Day Celebration. We were moving all over the school learning about animal life in our world. Here are some photos our our Earth Day Adventure.

Animal Scavenger Hunt:


Compost Speaker:


Snack Room/Story:


Ernie Miller: (Ernie Miller Nature Park)


Rabbit Speaker:


Book Swap/Mural:


Making Binoculars:


Planting Parsley:


School Planting Area:


Relay Races:


Goats & Bees: