We started class by turning in missing homework and their test. We went over the test and answered questions. Lastly we went outside for a team scavenger hunt game where they reviewed material that they had learned this past semester.
Thank you all for a wonderful year and have a great summer!
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I started off class by showing the students a power point of pictures from the Redwood Forest to show them just how big those giant sequoia trees are and also pictures of ginkgo trees so hey had a better idea of what they looked like. I also graded their lapbooks for the final time! (if your student did not bring theirs to class today because they forgot or they were absent, PLEASE make sure they bring them on Monday as that will be the last chance I have to grade them!). We finished class by playing Will the Winners Lose? which they really enjoyed. One more class day left!
Homework: Complete the test in the link below. This test is over Stems, Trees and Gymnosperms. botany_lesson_8-10_test.docx I can't believe it's already May!! Today we reviewed the reading on Gymnosperms and read the remainder of the lesson in class. We then talked a bit about the rest of the year--on Wednesday we will do a review in class over stems, trees and gymnosperms and the homework will be to take the last test (due Monday). Then on Monday I will collect the tests and we will have our final activity! For the remainder of the class period today, we talked about what a field guide is and then made one. Students decorated their cover and most were able to get a few pages started!
Homework: Finish the lapbook if you have not already :) Those will be graded on Wednesday. Suggested homework--throughout the spring/summer, try and identify the trees/plants in your yard/neighborhood and add them to your field guide!! This will not be for any points, just a fun way to keep learning :) Today we focused on how trees grow, specifically the importance of the heartwood.
We started class by going over the cup experiment and tied that in with why it's so important that trees start off with a bendy stem before it gets hard and turns to hardwood. We then looked at seedlings of maple trees that I found in my yard and we were able to check out the root systems too! I discussed with them the more hands-on activity I had planned with play dough however when I got to school, my homemade play dough was a sticky mess so we were unable to preform the activity but we were able to talk about it :) We ended class by reading the intro to Gymnosperms. Homework: Read pages 136-139 and do the corresponding lapbook pages. Also, bring something to color with to class with you on Wednesday! We started class by going over what the students learned in their reading and referring back to the KWL chart to see if any of the Want to knows were answered---and they were! We then moved on to twig anatomy and went over their lapbook activity. Then we went outside! We found twigs, counted the rings of a tree stump, measured a tree to figure out its age and even found evidence of acorn weevils! Students took their twigs inside to identify the parts of the twig. We ended class by reading part of page 131
Homework: Finish the chapter on Trees (pages 131-133) and do the corresponding lapbook activities. Today we started off by reviewing what the students read about Auxins, phototropism and woody and herbaceous stems. We also reviewed their seed experiment that they started on Wednesday (make sure to water it in the dark but to store it in a sunny place). We then moved on to talking about trees. We started a KWL chart (Know, Want to know, Learned). Students filled out what they already knew about trees and then we reviewed it as a class and talked about what we want to know. We ended class by reading page 125 out of the book.
Homework: Read pages 126-129 and do the corresponding lapbook pages. As you read about trees, you may want to fill in the Learned column of your KWL chart with the things you learned! Make sure to keep an eye on the cup and seed experiment! You may see something cool happening this week! Today we were able to take a closer look at our celery which had been soaking in blue water for the past 48 hours! The students had a lot of fun finding the colored bundles of veins inside the celery! I also passed back the test that students turned in on Monday and we went over any questions they had. We finished class by starting the activity on page 126. I gave the students all the materials needed to complete the "Seeking the Light" activity on page 124--they are to follow the directions for the cup with the hole towards the bottom--PLEASE make sure to read the instructions very carefully before getting started on the activity. :)
Students were given a sheet where they can record the results of the activity after a week or two (please keep that sheet somewhere where it won't get lost). Homework: Along with getting the activity on page 124 started---finish reading the chapter on Stems and do the corresponding lapbook pages. We started off class by going turning in the test and then going over the answers. We then brainstormed about the different ways a stem is useful to a plant--they came up with really great answers! We read the intro section on Stems (page 117-118) and then we did the first part of our celery experiment where students were able to see the xylem tubes at the bottom of the celery--after soaking the celery bottoms in blue water for an hour, the xylem's turned blue and showed up as little blue dots on the bottom of the celery plant!
Homework: Read pages 118-120 and do the corresponding lapbook pages. You may want to have your student review the material read in class as well. Bring a black marker or crayon to color with on Wednesday! We will be coloring paper cups black so colored pencils wouldn't be the best option for a coloring utensil this time :) Today was a big review day for your test and we had quite a bit to review! I graded their lapbooks from chapter 5-7 and we did the actions to photosynthesis and the parts of a leaf. We then played Will The Winners Lose? and went over the test questions/topics. It was a very lively game and they went over a lot of information. We ended class by looking over the next lesson and seeing all the things we would discuss when learning about Stems.
Homework: Please complete the test by next class period (Monday). Please remember this is not an open notes or open book test but I do encourage students to look through their lapbooks before they take their test. CLICK HERE FOR THE TEST :) Today we focused more on roots as seen in the pictures above :)
We started by reviewing information they learned from book including the 3 jobs that roots perform and how roots grow! We then talked about the two different kinds of root systems, taproot and fibrous. Students then were given plants from my backyard (grass, dandelions and a henbit and were asked to remove all the dirt surrounding the roots. They were then to locate the root hairs under the magnifying glass and decide what kind of root system the plant has. We found out just how delicate the root hairs are and why transplant shock happens so much when moving plants. We ended class by reading pg 111-the top of page 113. Homework: Read pages 111-114. (Your student may want to reread the section that we read in class if they weren't able to hear the person reading out loud) and do the corresponding lapbook pages. Also, the test is coming up soon! Next class period we will review the homework and start our review. The test will be given for homework and go over the 5 types of seed dispersal, fruits, leaves and roots. We started class by reviewing transpiration. Then we focused on the parts of the leaf by doing leaf rubbings of different shapes of leaves and labeling the parts of the leaf. I then had students look up on page 100-101 the and identify what kind of leaf shape their leaves were (they did a great job at identifying!!). We ending class by coming up with actions to remember Apex ("A" shape with arms over the head and hands touching), Margin (drawing the outline of a leaf with your finger), Midrib (drawing a line down the middle of your body with your hand), Petiole (shaking your foot) and Blade (motioning over the whole body). We then talked about roots and why they go so far down and why they spread out. Students make lots of good guesses on why roots behave the way they do which is a great intro to our next lesson--ROOTS!
Homework: I decided that the rest of the lesson on Leaves was a little too complex for the majority of the class so we are moving on to our lesson on Roots. You do NOT need to finish the lapbook activities you have left for Lesson 6. Read pages 107-111 and do the corresponding lapbook pages Today we reviewed photosynthesis a lot. We started by going over the lapbook activity and reviewing what stamata are and their function. We then started our photosynthesis flipbook where we focused on what a plant needs in order to go through photosynthesis and make food and oxygen! We then ended class by making up actions to help us remember what photosynthesis does and the 4 things a plant needs in order to go through photosynthesis (sunlight, carbon dioxide, water and chlorophyll!)
Homework: Read pages 93-97 (starting with Transpiration) and do the corresponding lapbook activity. Bring a leaf to class! It can be from a tree or a shrub (or even a flower if you have any!). Please make sure the leaf is at least 2 inches. And please bring crayons for some leaf rubbings! We started off class by going over the different kinds of fruits that they read about for homework and discussing favorite facts that they learned. We then moved on to talking about the next lesson (Leaves) and we read pages 87-89 as a class. Then I passed out their new lapbooks and we discussed the different topics they will learn about between now and the end of the year while they colored their new lapbook cover page. If your student needs a new cover page, I will include the link below. I am also going to include a link to the file containing all of the lapbook pages and information on how to put it together. You do not need to follow the guide for were to place the finished lapbook pages. Instead, simply fill one folder before moving on to the next one. You have 3 folders for 5 chapters (each chapter has 3-4 cutouts) so just make sure to fill the folder before moving onto the next one. If additional folders are needed, I will provide them. :)
Homework: Read pages 89-92 and do the lapbook pages for that section as well as the lapbook page for the reading that we did in class. botany_lapbook_cover_lessons_6-10.docx botany_lapbook_part_2.pdf In class, we focused on what makes something a fruit and seed dispersal. We looked at some of the fruits I found in my own house (acorn, maple tree seeds, ornamental grass) and seed packets. Students were to draw the fruit and seeds inside it and decide how it would be dispersed. We learned that lots of plants can be dispersed a couple of different ways!
Homework: Look at pages 81-83. You do not need to do lapbook pages with this reading. It is simply to give the students an idea of the different kinds of fruit. I apologize for the late post. I didn't have a computer so I attempted posting with my phone and it did not work.
Homework: Read pages 72-78 and do the lapbook pages. Today we finished up our lesson on pollination by planting a few flower seeds in our biodegradable flower pots and playing "Will the Winners Lose?" to go over the topics that will be on their test.
Care for the seeds: Keep the soil moist but not soaking wet and place the pot on a plate or some other surface that would be okay if it got wet/muddy. Once the plants have started sprouting, make sure they get some sunlight throughout the day. After our last frost (early April), you can plant the seeds in the ground, pot and all! They would grow best in a partial sun/mostly sunny place. Homework: Take the Lesson 4 Test WITHOUT using notes or the book. Bring the completed test to class on Wednesday and make sure ALL missing work is turned in by then too! Lesson 4 Test Yesterday, we focused on pollination. We talked about how pollinators are attracted to different kinds of flowers and why. I showed them 5 kinds of flowers and as a table they were to decide what kind of animal would end up pollinating that flower. We then talked about self pollination and wind pollination. We did a simulation with crumpled up paper and a bowl that showed how difficult it is for something to pollinate via wind and that's why trees produce so much pollen so it has a better chance of a few pollen pieces reaching the carpel in a nearby tree.
I then showed student what missing homework they have and graded their lapbooks for lesson 4. Homework: There will be a test given for homework on Monday (due Wednesday) over pollination. Please review the lesson by looking over the pages in the book and/or reviewing the lapbook sections for that lesson. Make sure to finish all missing homework, including lapbooks! Today we reviewed the readings from the homework assignment and students shared their bee pollination comic strip with the people at their table. We then moved on to learning about other pollinating animals. Students made a flipbook in which they drew a picture on of the pollinating animal on the outside flap and then wrote their favorite fact about how they pollinate on the inside flap. To learn about how those animals pollinate, we read pages 61-63 as a class and students had time to draw the animal and write their fact before moving on to the next animal.
Homwork: Finish the flipbook by reading about hummingbirds and bats. Also, read pages 64-67 and do the corresponding lapbook pages. Today, I handed back the chapter 2 and 3 test and answered questions over the test. We then moved on to talk about bees and pollination. We focused mostly on HOW bees pollinate, from deciding which flower to collect nectar from to taking the nectar back to the hive to make honey. Students then were given their homework assignment where they are to make a comic strip showing the 6 different steps bees take to gather nectar (and pollinate flowers). We then took advantage of the BEAUTIFUL February day and went on a nature walk around the school. Students were able to see covered seeds (acorn and walnuts) and uncovered seeds (pine cones), compare leaves and count petals to decide if a plant was a monocot or dicot, and take a look at where to find moss! Students had a great time seeing the things we've been reading about!
Homework: Finish the bee pollination comic strip. If it was lost or if your student was absent, a link will be posted below for you to use to make another copy. ALSO, please read pages 56-59 and do the corresponding lapbook pages. Bee Pollination Comic Strip Activity |
I will be updating this site regularly with what we did in class as well as any assignments or projects. Please feel free to contact me with any questions.
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