This Week on the Island 12/12-12/16

Dates to Remember:

• Holiday Break - 12/19 - 01/03
• End of Term 3: 01/13/17. My gradebook will close 01/11.

Need help with something? Post your questions on Edmodo.

Classroom News

  5^th Science

This week you will continue to work on your Constellation project. At this point, you are putting final touches, and getting ready to showcase your work. Constellation project presentations will be done during class on December 16. Practice what you will say. Each team is allowed 2 minutes to tell us about their constellation.

6^th Science 

This is getting fun. You will begin the week determining the probability of traits passed on to your superhero babies, and you will have a chance to draw him/her out. Is your baby a superhero or a villain? Back it up with your Punnett work. As we continue, we will talk about incomplete dominance, co-dominance and sex-linked traits. Be ready to show what you know!

7th Science

We will start the week retracing Mendel's work, and using what we learned to figure out just how he determined the dominance of traits. With that knowledge in hand, we will work on the traits your superhero has, and identify his/her villain mate. Be ready to explain the genotypes of your superhero that lead to his/her phenotype. 

7^th  Engineering

This week you will continue your Thermos Challenge. With the evidence you gathered in the Learn section, you will get an opportunity to go through the complete design process to create a working prototype. Who will win the Thermos Challenge?

8^th  Engineering

Your final exploravision submissions are due this Friday. I have re-posted the requirements in the schoolloop assignment. Be extra careful to comply in order to avoid disqualification. Sometime this week, you will be tested on your knowledge of your submission. You should be able to explain all aspects of the work in detail. Be prepared to demonstrate the learning you acquired.  

This Week on the Island 12/05-12/09

Dates to Remember:

• Charity Fair - 12/07 @ 5:00 p.m.
• Holiday Break - 12/19 - 01/03

Need help with something? Post your questions on Edmodo.

Charity Fair Project Website

Classroom News

  5^th Science

This week we start our Constellation project. You have your partner and the constellation you will be working on. Gather the necessary data to create an amazing presentation that helps us understand your constellation. Remember, although Google slides is an option, we want to encourage others to care about constellations. Think outside the "presentation" and choose different format. 

6^th Science 

Now that you have identified the genotypes and phenotypes of your superhero and its mate, what do you do with that data? This week you will be introduced to Punnett, who will help you discover the rules of probability that make each organism unique. Pay attention as you will use this week's work to add an offspring to your superhero family.

7th Science

You created some interesting superhero concepts. It is time to begin learning about the genetics concepts that led to your superhero. We will "Tour the Basics" and make an inventory of traits. We will them talk about a monk who spent his life working with peas. You may be thinking, what does this have to do with anything? All will be revealed in due time.

7^th  Engineering

This week you will start working on your Thermos Challenge. You will learn some basics about heat, and how to protect a hot drink from getting cold. Follow the format you have been taught and come up with a solution to the problem.

8^th  Engineering

The webpages for your exploravision project are due this week. We have reached the final stages of this project are are preparing to submit your work for competition!