Solar Car Race Day!

Please see the previous post to know what led to this exciting day at DATA!

First we met in class and went over the instructions of how to complete the data collection from. Then students got their cars and took off to the race tracks!

The goal was to time how fast each car could go on a ten foot track. Each team got three turns, and each timed score was written down.


Clip boards in hand... ready to collect data

 on your mark, get set, GO!

 Students collecting data as classmates race their cars.

 A proud group photo

Once back in class students calculated the MEAN for each car (we had 18 teams).
Finally students reflected on the Solar Car project on a message board in Thinkquest.

In addition to these assignments students also:

Student worked on finding the circumference of the wheels and then calculated how many revolutions the wheels would make on a variety of tracks (tracks of different lengths).  They also worked with proportions using the ratio of the revolutions of the drive wheel to that of the other wheels.

Thanks again Mr. Wulff for such an exciting project that integrated science, math, writing and critical thinking!

Also,
Happy Winter Break to all the wonderful Champion students in room B9.
Have a wonderful and safe break and consider reading a book or two duing your two weeks away from school....
Ms. Lynch

Solar Cars With Master Teacher Wulff

Day One...
Yes, it is true, we are building solar cars in room B9 with the 6th grade GATE class.
This will be a week long Investigation into learning, building, and racing solar cars.
We started today with a mind map of how Solar Energy works. Once students completed their notes they read the following article:
http://www.need.org/needpdf/infobook_activities/SecInfo/SolarS.pdf

Finally students put it all together in an essay titled: Solar Energy.
Tomorrow the students will earn two solar panels based on the quality of their essay.
Thanks so much to Mr. Wulff for building this project for us and teaching it with us!

Picture of Mr. Wulff introducing the lesson

 Students making their own mind map to help them with their essay

Students posted their work on Thinkquest. Below are a few examples of the students essays from today

• Shiara C
             Can you believe that simple sunlight can be converted to mechanical energy to, for example, power our cars? It is an unbelievable thought but it can be accomplished through a couple of steps. It all starts with the sun, like everything on this planet. As you know the sun is s a big ball of gases that is made of mostly hydrogen and helium but it takes four molecules of hydrogen to make one molecule of helium and the sun is made up of millions and millions of helium molecules. The way the hydrogen is transferred into helium is called nuclear fusion. Since the sun has an extremely high temperature and a lot of pressure it causes the hydrogen atoms to come apart and their nuclei to fuse. After it has fused it is now helium but not all of the matter is fused, some of it is lost and emitted into space as radiant energy.
             It takes a little over eight minutes for the suns energy to travel 93 million miles to Earth. The suns energy is also known as photons, with photo meaning light. Only a small portion of the energy radiated from the sun reaches Earth, yet the amount that reaches Earth is enormous. Just imagine if all the energy radiated from the sun actually made it to Earth. How would it affect life on Earth? Would all that radiation just demolish Earth or just give us another power source to use? When these photons reach Earth we use Photovoltaic cells to convert the energy into electrons. We contain these Photovoltaic cells in, what we call solar panels. When these electrons start to move they create electricity or what we call mechanical energy. The mechanical energy cause’s the generator to move making it fulfill any option it is being used for. Then the generator cause’s the wheels to spin, therefore making your solar car move.
             In conclusion, this is all called The Conservation Of Energy which in simpler terms means energy changing forms. To think this all happens in one tiny solar panel is unbelievable. Just think of all the possibilities that we can use this for. What if we extended solar energy so it can power much more? I mean we will always have the sun and as long as the sun is still shining we will thrive on planet Earth. If you were to look at it at a different angle the big picture is the sun is our best friend. Without it there would be no you or me, no wind currents, no ocean tides, and no temperature changes. All life on Earth would be diminished forever until the planet Earth yet waits for another sun and waits to start the process all over again with a whole new, fresh planet waiting to thrive on this planet.
  
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Day Two:
Fist a mind map...
Diagram and words to better understand the new concepts

Testing

Below is the project in Thinkquest (created and uploaded by Mr. Wulf

		Series vs. Parallel. Amps vs. Volts. It can get a bit confusing. Practice and test different wiring configurations here so that you can build the ultimate race car.

 

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Solar Circuits Activity

Lost your solar circuits activity? Forgot it in your desk at school? Not to worry, here's an electronic copy for you to download and complete. Only page one relates to your assignment.

File Type: XML Document: 195 K

Writing Organizer

 

Use the organizer below to help target each component of the writing assigment. Describe what a series circuit is. Explain how it's wired. Do the same for parallel. Describe amps and volts. Provide colorful examples. Finally, relate it all to your solar car. How will you wire it?

 

Optimal Wiring Configuration

Based on what you've observed in the simulation and in our experiments today in class, will you wire your solar car in series or in parallel? Will this result in greater voltage or amperage? What performance impact do you think this will have on your car?

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Day 3
Deciding on the solar car design and how, many panels, and what configuration would work best for the car design to win the "race".

Day 4
Students built their solar cars and took notes in their scientific journals. After students built their cars, they tested them. Fun work:)

The building manual was uploaded online for students to access

 Testing

Solar Car Science Journal

An example of one students excellent journal entry

• Sarah Y
  Zainab and I originally planned to build our car with a parallel circuit and 3:1 ratio, but right now it’s a work in progress. We’ve experimented with many different things. We tried a series circuit and it worked at first, but then the drive gear stopped turning. We also realized that our axle rod was really long, so it kept moving around. This made our car turn in different directions.
  Now our finished car is very different than we had planned, but it’s great. It has a 5:1 ratio which will help it to move farther more quickly. A 3:1 ratio gear and 2:1 ratio gear are in between the axle rod and the wheel. This way the axle rod does not have as much space to move around, so the car will drive in a straight forward direction. The car is wired in a series circuit because it seems that our drive gear turns more easily that way. It took us lots of taking pieces off, putting them back on, and rearranging them to figure it all out, but now our car looks pretty good.
  I hope our car races well, but I’m really not sure what’s going to happen. We never got a chance to test it out on the ground because class ended before we did. I hope the car has enough amperage to make it to the end of the track. Well, wish me luck!

Story Share

Today we walked to E.P. Foster to read our Story Bird Stories to the Kindergartners.
Students did an exceptional job reading to the little ones.
Thanks so much to everyone who helped to make this happen:)

walking there

 Reading to the Kinders

Below... Message Board Reflections.....

 

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EP Foster Book Share

Dr. Lynch-Thorpe  
Page: Quarter Two work

Did you enjoy going to EP Foster and reading to the Kinders? What did you enjoy about it? Did you learn something new? Would you want to go again? Finish your post wtih.. One thing I think you should know is"

Post a Message

• Lizzy U
  I loved going to E P foster and reading my story to kindergarteners. I loved reading my story and taking to the younger kids. I also learned that E P Foster is way bigger than it looks like. I would defiantly do this again. One thing I think you should know is that I had one boy who wouldn’t tell me his name and then 2 girls named Stacy and Lesley.
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• Kathryn B
  I thought it was fun reading to them! I enjoyed talking to them! I learned that kindergarteners love it when you make voices when you talk. I would love to do it again! It was fun! One thing I think you should know is that I had so much fun! The kids were so cute! I would love to do this again! Thank you Mrs. Lynch!
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• Joshua H
  I did very much enjoy sharing my story. What I enjoy was walking there and reading my story. I would want to go again if they understood what I was reading. One thing I think you should know is that I really enjoyed the field trip.
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• Alejandro L
  Yes, I enjoyed going to E.P. Foster and reading to Kindergardeners. I enjoyed reading to Kindergardeners and I learned it is fun to read to someone else. I do want to go again. One thing you should know is I had fun.
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Again, thanks so much for letting us share:)

The Dead Sea Scrolls

As we investigated standard 6.3.5, we learned that the Dead Sea Scrolls included much insight into the Israelites. Students made their own "Dead Sea Scroll" which included ten important facts we have learned about the Ancient Israelites in the past few weeks. Once students made their scrolls, they took pictures of them and uploaded it into their Ancient Civilizations power point. Well Done Kids!

First Person Historical Fiction Essay

Today we read out of the Social Studies Text about the "Daily Life of Ancient Israelites" (page 217-218) and took notes. Then we watched s short video of daily life of the Ancient Israelites, then again took notes. Finally we did a web search to learn even more about what life was like for the people of Israel thousands of years ago. Once our notes were complete, students began writing a three or more paragraph essay as if they were an Ancient Israelite. Essays were typed into their Ancient Civalizations Powerpoint, then students recorded themselves reading it and uploaded the recording into a slide as well.
Super job Champion students!

Here is an example of a students essay:
                                                       My Life as an Israelite
                     Shalom! Shalom means hello or peace in Hebrew. Jews have a different language called Hebrew. Do you know how the Israelites used to live? Well you have come to the right person to ask! My name is Athalia which means God is exalted. I am an Israelite. I live with my brother, mother, and father. We live in a mud brick house like the other Jews. In my religion we only believe in one God. My religion effects my whole life. It affects my life with school, clothing, and even food.
                 My mother taught my brother and I , though when my brother grew old enough our father taught him to earn an income and worship God. Then the elders take over the job so my brother is taught by them. In other words I am only taught by my mother who teaches me to be a good wife, be a good housekeeper, learn about Jewish laws ,about food, and clothing. Girls also learn about courageous ancient Israel women. Boys are very important to a family because they can carry on the family name, and once the father dies can become the head of the family. When a boy reaches the age of thirteen they are considered an adult.
                   Boys wore turbans, or skull caps on their heads. Girls wore scarfs or skull caps because over their hair because a women's hair was considered very private. Judas wore very lose clothes. Women used flax and wool for clothing , though couldn’t combine any of the materials. What you could eat and couldn’t eat was very strict. We are only allowed to eat certain types of meat for example we are allowed to eat beef and lamb though are restricted to eat pork. We could eat scaly fish though couldn’t eat shellfish or smooth- skinned fish. Matza is a type of flat cracker bread that they ate at every meal. They also ate plenty of fruits and liked barely soup.
               The Jewish met on the Sabbath the weekly day of worship and rest. It starts from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. On this day they would read out of the Tora that later became the first part of the Hebrew Bible . The Hebrew bible is a series of thirty four books put together. The tora describes events in Jewish history. When they read the tora it often rebuilt the Judaism hope during hard times.
One day I got married to a carpenter and all those things I learned came useful. It is like it keeps going at a certain rhythm and never stops. I had kids and taught them exactly how my mother did with me. I hope one day my kids will be as successful as my life has been. In Conclusion I love my life and I wish the best for the Judaism future.

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Learning In Teams

Students were able to work in teams and investigate standards based questions about Ancient Israelites (st. 6.3). Students were put in groups of five and asked to research five topics and take notes to add to their Ancient Civilization powerpoint. Group work with middle school kids can get hectic, but these students did a great job working together similar to a college class.

Ancient Israelites

Today we focused on standard 6.3.3 The people of Ancient Israel. We researched and read about the important people, then students chose one to write a short poem/ song about. Once that was created on their Ancient Civilizations power point, students went to VirtualKeyboard.com and made it into a song. Once they recoded their song, it was uploaded into their slide.

Getting notes and summarizing into our own words

 After writing the song/ poem, making the music...

Reading Activity

We read the story Eleven, by Sandra Cisneros. Then students were placed in teams of five to play an interactive game called, "Numbered Heads Together". I used quarter 2 standard questions that related to the story Eleven and each team came up with their own answers. Then we used the electronic spinner to see who would answer the questions for their team.
After the game, students wrote a response to Literature using insight into the characters. Once their essays were completed, they posted them on a message board in Thinkquest for the class to read.

This is what the game looks like....

Students working in teams answering their questions

Students working in teams

This board posts the game and questions...

Example of a students essay:

• Courtney C
  Response to Literature- Eleven
            Do you like your birthdays, getting presents and being with family? In the story Eleven, By Sandra Cisneros we learn that a girl named Rachel isn’t being understood by her unreasonable teacher. The theme of the story is even though we are a certain age; we can morph into whatever age fits our emotions best. The story is good because it tells of a life lesson that should be known by all.
           The main character in the story is Rachel. One word to describe her is frustrated, for example on Pg. 365 she thinks in her head “Not Mine, Not Mine, Not Mine” when Mrs. Price is telling her that the ugly red sweater is hers. This shows that she is annoyed because her teacher isn’t listening to her. Another word to describe her is Unhappy, for example on Pg. 366, “I’m crying in front of everyone”, this shows that she is embarrassed to be acting like a three year old. And a final word to describe Rachel is Many Ages, for example on Pg. 365 “What they don’t tell you about being eleven is that your also ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, and one.”, this shows that even though you are eleven you don’t always have to act eleven.
               Another character in the story is Mrs. Price. One word to describe her is mean, for example on Pg. 366, “You put that sweater on right now!” this shows that she isn’t very good at listening. Another word to describe her is rude, for example on Pg. 366 “Mrs. Price pretends like everything is OK” this shows that she doesn’t want to believe that she is wrong and somebody else is right. A final word to describe Mrs. Price is unreasonable, for example on Pg. 366 “Mrs. Price says ‘Now Rachel that’s enough!” this shows that she just can’t wrap her head around that sweater not being Rachel’s.
               In conclusion, the story Eleven by Sandra Cisneros is interesting because of the way she talks about the way we have all different ages and emotions inside of us.
  
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