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Mr. Schwarten Science
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Mr. Schwarten's
Science Class
EARTH - LIFE - PHYSICAL
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"All the world is a laboratory to the inquiring mind"
-- Martin H. Fischer
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J.U.M.P. with Joy!!
Joyful Under the Magnificent Prince
**Formatting note: It seems this web page creation has a mind of its own at times. It might not load with the proper formatting on some computers and will sometimes have gigantic fonts and/or odd formatting. I'm not sure why.
THE SCIENCE FAIR - 2013
Thank you to everyone who helped make this year's science fair a success! I have heard very positive feedback and look forward to continuing this every year.
GREAT JOB ON YOUR PROJECTS STUDENTS!!
| PHYSICAL SCIENCE - Grade 6
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In 6th grade, we will continue developing our knowledge of science by learning about many topics in the physical world of science. Examples of these topics include (but are not limited to): forces and motion, energy, electricity, the periodic table of elements, atomic structure, and chemical reactions. We will also be spending a fair amount of time working with the "Properties of Matter" kit from the Einstein Project this fall.
WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE CLASSROOM?
The students finished learning about graphing motion and wrapped up a busy week with the science fair.
LOOKING AHEAD:
Now that the science fair is over, we will return to as much of a normal routine as possible as we begin learning about forces. The students will learn about Newton's three laws and how they apply to motion and forces.
ASSIGNMENTS:
None
Due: (N/A)
*Always remember to check the assignment chart & write down your assignments.
| LIFE SCIENCE - Grade 7
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In 7th grade, we will take an in-depth look into life all around us from its smallest parts up to and including the taxonomy and classification of organisms. We will be learning all about the cell and its structure, understanding the life cycles of plants and animals, and continuing the practice of learning through dissection. We will also be spending a lot of time working with the "Organisms from Macro to Micro" kit from the Einstein Project this spring.
WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE CLASSROOM?
Last week was a busy week. Not only did the students wrap up their learning about plants and complete the unit test, but they also finished their preparations for the science fair at the end of the week. The fast plants are drying out as the students removed the nutrient solution preparing them for harvest. Students should continue working on their fast plant booklets.
PLANT PICTURES (use for making observations if needed):
Stage 1 (Plant emerges) -- Notice the anthocyanin in the stems?
Stage 2 (True leaves) -- Note the difference between cotyledons & true leaves
Corn & bean plants -- This is most-developed set of plants
A perfect dicot -- Notice the two cotyledons?
Stage 3 (Flowers) - The plants are ready for pollination at this stage
Stage 4 (Pods appear) - Notice the pistil extends as the flower petals wither away
LOOKING AHEAD:
With the science fair behind us now and the unit on plants complete, the students have effectively covered the four main kingdoms of life - protists, fungi, animals, and plants. We will now return to the animal kingdom to focus on two important groups critical to the evolution of life on Earth. These include life in the seas or fish, and life as it transitioned from the seas to land in amphibians. By finishing the animal kingdom with amphibians, the students will be ready to begin preparations for frog dissection. This will effectively wrap up their learning in life science this year!
ASSIGNMENTS:
NoneDue: (N/A)
*Always remember to check the assignment chart & write down your assignments.
| EARTH SCIENCE - Grade 8
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In 8th grade, we will learn about a broad range of topics that all relate to our planet Earth. This includes its place in space from the solar system to understanding the relationships between it, the Sun, and the moon. We will learn about the continuous processes that shape the land on its surface from erosion and weathering to plate tectonics and catastrophic events. The composition of Earth will be explored through studying its layers and learning about rocks and minerals, including how to identify rocks. Finally, students will also learn about the importance of the water cycle as well as the "ocean of air" that dynamically controls the weather on Earth.
WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE CLASSROOM?:
The students have been learning about rocks. Each of the three major rock categories (igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic) were covered. The students also finished their work for the science fair.
LOOKING AHEAD:
With the science fair complete, the students will return to finish up work on rocks by learning about the rock cycle. After reviewing what was learned about minerals and rocks, we will have the test on minerals and rocks on Thursday, May 9th. We will then move through the weathering and erosion unit to finish up the year. The science final exam is Wednesday, May 22nd.
ASSIGNMENTS:
None
Due: (N/A)
*Always remember to check the assignment chart & write down your assignments.
CURRENT SCIENCE
This section is where you can find information about these assignments.
Click on the links below and watch for more links to come as students share their articles throughout the year.
LINK FOR CURRENT SCIENCE HANDOUT
Shared Articles - Trimester 2
6th GRADE: 7th GRADE: 8th GRADE:
IMPORTANT DATES & OTHER NOTES
All-Day Field Trip to Discovery World in Milwaukee
Grades 5 thru 8
Friday, April 12
Safety Goggles - Where can you get them??
I have been contacted by some parents about where the correct type of safety goggles can be purchased. Previously, I recommended that you buy them from The School House store, but I was told by many parents that they are sold out and inquiries about when they plan to restock them have not helped. Therefore, I recommend that you check out Wal-Mart. I was at the Wal-Mart on the east side of Green Bay and checked specifically for the goggles. Good news!!! Wal-Mart has the correct type of goggles, and they had a lot of them. They also were only $3.99 a pair. They should be available at any Wal-Mart I would assume and can be found in the back area by the painting (specifically paint thinner) supplies.
Please note, the correct type of goggle is coded ANSI-Z87.
NEED HELP STUDYING?
Download "FLASHCARDS+"
It is an app for smartphones like i-Phone or Droid that gives you access to tons of pre-made flashcard sets.
Best of all, the app is FREE!!
Download it on your smartphone (or your parents' if they let you) and start studying things like the elements of the Periodic Table!
THE SCIENCE FAIR - 2013
Friday, May 3rd
Grades 5 - 8 in the Middle School Gym
BACKGROUND
With last year being my first year as the middle school science teacher, Mr. Kaftan and I chose to hold off on having a science fair until this year. We wanted to have the fair toward the end of the year, and Mr. Young expressed a desire to have his 5th grade participate as well. We decided to once again have a field trip to Discovery World in Milwaukee and to use that field trip as a kickoff for the students' preparations for the fair.
PARTICIPATION
The 8th grade is REQUIRED to participate, while the 5th, 6th, & 7th grades have the option to participate. All students may choose to work either individually or in groups of two or three. Groups can consist of students in different grade levels. I explained the benefit of this as siblings in different grades may choose to work together. Please note that the project for such a group will be entered at the level of the highest grade for a student in the group. For example, if a group had a 5th grade student working with an 8th grade student, their project would be entered as an 8th grade project.
PREPARATIONS
The students were given the information about the fair right after the field trip to Discovery World. Groups were expected to be decided by Friday, April 19th at the very latest, and I strongly advised the students to have their topics decided by Monday, April 22nd. Almost all of the work will be done by the students outside of class. Mr. Young and I strongly encourage students to approach us with any questions about their projects and follow our recommendations about how their work should be progressing. Each entry is expected to have a visual display explaining their project. A very detailed and thorough project guide handout was given to the students as a helpful tool to use in preparing their projects. We also has a few books available in the classroom about various science fair projects and many more can be found online. Finally, we will periodically discuss the project in class.
Students are strongly advised not to put off their work leaving them with a short time frame to complete it before the fair. Students in 5th - 7th grade however, can decide to drop out if things are not working out, but we do encourage the students to come talk to us about it before making that decision. Some topics may require parental permission. Students are also encouraged to incorporate the scientific method into their projects although this will not be required. A group may choose to simply do an informative-based topic (for example: The Three Types of Volcanoes).
CREDIT FOR PARTICIPATION
I plan to give the students a grade on their project equal to one test grade (40%). I will then drop the lowest grade out of the test grade category in applying the final grade for the trimester. This is separate from the one low-grade that I drop in the "Assignments" and "Labs/Quizzes/Notebook" categories. This gives the students the opportunity to make up for a low test score. A group member evaluation will play be included in the overall grade for the group.
AWARDS
The entries will be judged by teachers and possibly a few parents. We will have a first-, second-, and third-place winner as well as an honorable mention for each grade level. Preference will be given for groups who incorporate the scientific method in determining the award winners. Honorable Mention winners can be either informative-based or scientific method-based projects.
OTHER HELPFUL INFORMATION
**I had a discussion with a parent who informed me that it might be helpful to list where display boards can be purchased. These are tri-fold display boards about the size or a little larger that average, large-sized poster board. Look for them at:
- The School House
- Hobby Lobby
- Michael's
- Office Max or Office Depot
and possibly a few other locations as well. I was told that there are kits available which include ready-made section headings and titles for the display the students would then simply pop into place. **Utilize technology. If students have access to tablets at home, maybe find a way to include them in their display. It is a great way to show videos and/or photos of their work on the project. Lastly, this is the first run-through for us in having a science fair this year. There are already a few things that I plan to do differently in continuing to have the fair as an annual event. I do welcome your feedback.
LEMMINGS ONLINE GAME - FREE!!!
http://www.oldgames.dk/freeflashgames/arcadegames/playlemmings.php
(The main characters in this puzzle-solving game were featured in the 7th grade Heredity Project)
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Kevin Schwarten - Middle School Science Teacher
kschwarten@gracesystem.org
(920) 337-1115 ext. 308
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ADMISSIONS 
