At first Mrs. P. showed a video on volcanoes. Next we went down to the computer lab where she showed them a PowerPoint on different types of volcanoes. Each of the students received a packet to write down notes and copy facts on. The kids had spaces to copy each picture of all the different types of volcanoes. After learning a little more about the many different varieties of volcanoes, Mrs. P. told the kids to go to the Web site in their packet and choose a volcano of their liking. They had spaces in their packets to record information on their specific volcano of their choice and Mrs. P. requested that each child print out a picture of their volcano. Once all the children got their facts and pictures, we headed back to the classroom. There, Mrs. Podsiedlik demonstrated how to create a volcano using clay and one of the different types of cups provided, depending on the type of volcano. She then handed out a chunk of clay to each student and they were asked to create their own volcano, imitating the picture of the one they chose. It was fun watching them create their sculptures, banging it on the table and seeing their hands turn gray. Before it was time to pack up, the children put their volcanoes off to the side labeled with a piece of paper with their name on it. They handed their volcano packets and pictures to me who I gave to Mrs. P. I liked watching them learn about and create their own volcano. Next week they will finish their volcano creations. I can't wait to see how they will all turn out!
Today was a pretty boring day. I was extremely tired on top of it, which made it even more boring. When we got there, the kids were already watching a video Mrs. P. was showing them. They continued watching videos so I became bored just sitting there. It almost put me to sleep but then Mrs. Podsiedlik handed out 3D glasses and said they were going to try and watch some animation in 3D. She played a video of lava and it was kind of cool watching it in a different dimension, however the glasses weren't as effective as predicted. This is all we pretty much did today so it wasn't very engaging for me. Hopefully next week will consist of more fun-filled activites.
Those two weeks just flew by and it was back to Tully for me today. They finally moved on from Mars and began learning about the Earth today. Mrs. Podsiedlik taught them what the Earth is composed of. She told them the Earth is made up of an inner core, outer core, mantle and crust. Then she explained to the students that they will be creating their own Earths and must include those four components. She listed the four layers and what colors to use for each. After handing out the different colored play dough to each student, I watched them create their balls of Earth. Mrs. P. told me after they are done with their creations to cut a slice of it using a wire to show them the inside layers. Some of them were hard to cut and I was afraid of squishing it or messing it up. After putting the play dough Earths aside, Mrs. Podsiedlik went on to talk about tectonic plates and the different types of boundaries. She discussed divergent, convergent and transform boundaries. While she was doing that I went down to the teachers' lounge to heat up marshmallows in the microwave. I handed out graham crackers, chocolate and some heated marshmallows to each student. They then were able to create their own edible tectonic plate boundaries using those ingredients. They looked and smelled delicious I wish I could have made some of my own! I thought that was a really clever idea since they were able to learn and create, then enjoy eating it after. Today was a pretty fun day except it made me hungry LOL.
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Julia MooreMy blog helps me to blend readings with my community project experiences. My reflections are based in part on my frequent and ongoing service-learning updates. Archives |