Matter Projects: A Few Things to Keep in Mind.......

After having a look at all of the videos a few things have caught my attention. The first is how much you guys know about matter. This is not just a good thing, but a great thing! The second is, it is clear that you have kept your audience in mind. Yet again, a great thing. A few things to make sure you include: Changes in matter, what causes these changes, what is density, what is mass, what is volume, what is a conductor, and what is an insulator? Answer all these questions, and you are sure to get an A!!!!!

Website!!!

As we get closer to the due date of your latest project, here are a few more links:
http://www.harcourtschool.com/scienceglossary/
https://tx-science.cinchlearning.com/g_login.html

Links!!!

Here are some links that will help you with your research!

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/index_A.htm

http://kids.discovery.com/activities

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/

http://www.sciencewithme.com/

http://www.chem4kids.com/files/matter_intro.html

Matter PBL

Greetings! This week we will begin our investigation into the states of matter. Many of you know this already, but I bet you probably still have some questions. Let's start with a few definitions:
 Matter- Anything that has mass and takes up space.
Mass- The amount of matter that makes up an object. We weigh it in grams, milligrams, kilograms.
Molecules-  group of two or more atoms that stick together.
Solid- an object with tightly packed molecules.  The molecules may vibrate, but do not move past each other.
Liquid-   a substance that has a tendency to flow. Takes the shape of its container. Particles are close together, but have no regular pattern.
Gas- has no specific or fixed shape. It can expand or contract in response to changes in temperature. 

Introduced Species Effect on Ecosystems

In the 1940's Argentina wanted to start fur trading. In order to do this they released 50 North American Beavers into the wild. The results have been disastrous. Here is a link to an article covering this.
http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080618/full/453968a.html
A list of introduced species is located here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_introduced_species
Keep in mind that an ecosystem is a lot like a row of dominoes. If one thing changes, then all things will change. Just like the dominoes, when one falls the rest follow.

Resources

Here are some other links:

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/animals/
http://www.kidsgeo.com/geography-for-kids/0164-ecosystems.php

Ecosystem PBL

As all of you should know by now, we are currently doing a project on an animal. We are taking that animal and learning everything about it. We are also learning everything that we can about its ecosystem. Below I am going to give you some examples, definitions, and links. Remember you have a glossary in the back of your science journal.
 Inherited Trait- Something that an organism is born with. Color of petals, hair color, eye color, etc.

Adaptations- changes that are made to an organism over time that help the organism survive in its habitat. It is an inherited Trait.
Examples: Whale and Dolphin blubber, 

Learned Behavior- Something that you do that you are taught or have learned through experience. Examples: Dog fetching or sitting on command, speaking a language, reading, etc.

Instinct- Behaviors that animals are born knowing how to do. Examples: Spider building a web, bird building a bird nest, sea turtles going into the ocean after hatching on a beach.

Links: www.brainpop.com/science/

The user name is manortx and the password in manor.
https://tx-science.cinchlearning.com/g_login.html

New Science Cinch Website

The state has provided us with a new website!!!! You have your username and password in your journal. This is the link!!! We will be using it during our Ecosystem PBL!!!

https://tx-science.cinchlearning.com

The Scientific Method

Alright ladies and gentlemen, we are now getting to the fun stuff. The scientific method is a 6 step process used to answer questions. However, we can not answer just any question with it. You will be learning how to ask a questions that can be tested!!! Also, we will learn how to predict!!! Stay tuned for more.....

Science Safety PBL!!!!

Alright, time to get started!!! You should have the rubric and guidelines. The links to some of the websites are listed here.

http://carnegiescience.edu/first_light_case/horn/labsafety.html
http://utahscience.oremjr.alpine.k12.ut.us/sciber00/safety/Rules.htm
http://www.williamsclass.com/MainSitePages/LabSafety.htm

http://www.csun.edu/science/ref/laboratory/safety/safety.html
http://www.markothepencil.com/html/science.html
Remember, you must have at least 4 rules to pass. In order to get a 100 you must have at least 5!!! Have fun and learn. Ask me any questions you may have.