Pendulum Activity

The question I chose to investigate this week was - Which pendulum will come to rest more quickly—a lighter pendulum or heavier pendulum? In order to find an answer to this question, I designed a test using the following materials:
*1 1/2 inch washer
* 1/2 inch washer
*2 pieces of string of equal length
*tape

First, I thread a piece of string through the larger washer and tied it to the towel rack in my bathroom (yes, this may seem like an odd choice - but it worked.) :) Then, I extended the string all the way to the bar and let it go. As I let go of the washer I began my timer. I did this three times and recorded the results. I repeated these steps with the smaller washer as well. The larger washer took more than twice as long to come to rest as the smaller one.

One challenge I had with this activity was identifying when the pendulum actually stopped moving. It seems like it moved ever-so-slightly for a VERY long time. I tried to stay very still so that I would not produce any sort of air currents that would cause the pendulum to continue moving. I can predict that this may be a challenge for my third graders as well.

If I present this inquiry lesson to my students, I will change a few things. First, I will let them work with a partner to construct a holder for the pendulum. Having five boys of my own, I have plenty of Lego's and building toys that they can use. Also, I had the idea to extend the activity by taking them to the playground and using the swing as a pendulum. That way, they can connect the lesson to something they use every day.

I really enjoyed this week's guided inquiry experience. As I continue to work through these courses, I feel like I am becoming more and more comfortable with this level of inquiry.

Melting Icebergs

Well, I have no doubt that the flooding caused by global warming and the melting of icebergs will have a negative impact on many species of animals and plants. I think a lot of these effects will be seen for many years after as well. This would be a great time to talk with students about food chains and the "circle of life". I think many students will think it only affects polar bears and seals, when really such an event will affect everyone and everything, even if it is indirectly.

Regarding the inquiry lesson, I might want to explain to the students that the investigation is not exactly what will happen in the real world. It would be interesting to find out what percentage of the oceans are frozen, and try to replicate that percentage in the investigation. I know that the ice-to-water ratio I used when I performed this activity was no where near accurate.

Question - why is it that many people don't "believe in" global warming?

STEM Strategies Lesson Plan

Ah, I'm finally finished. This week has been a very busy one. I have enjoyed reading the chapters and articles this week, but I had some trouble with the lesson plan. I am not very familiar with the 5 E's strategy. It has been 13 years since I graduated from college, and I am guessing that this is a newer approach to lesson planning. Honestly, I found the lesson plan template very repetitive and time-consuming. I cannot imagine using this template for all of my lesson plans in 5 different subject areas. I look forward to reading about how others use this format in planning lessons.

The lesson I used for this week's assignment is one that I have used before. We worked on this activity in a district cohort in which I participated. There were many things I had to add to the lesson plan, though. I chose this particular activity because it is a standard that we will be working on very soon.

First Post

Hello Everyone! This is my first time blogging. :)