It's been a busy few weeks! Third, fourth, and fifth grade students have been working on their airplane projects! For this projects, students...
The students did an amazing job taking their airplanes from concept to reality! The flight contest yielded winners in each classroom as well as overall grade level winners. It's amazing to see how students used technology to become paper airplane experts and to build incredibly intricate paper planes! Over the last couple of weeks, we have embarked on a study of boats. We've learned about all different kinds of boats, how boats float, and how technology is used in boating. The students have been reading about and researching boats, writing about boats, solving math problems related to boats, and collaborating about how most effectively design a boat. To make the learning process more relevant, we mixed up the boat theme with the third grade Common Core Georgia Performance Standards. Students were able to apply their learning and take their knowledge to a deeper level. The project for this unit was building a boat to compete in a boat race. The students worked in teams to design and build their boat. The students took the boat project in many different directions and developed a diverse array of vessels. Several of the groups studied how sails work and built sails to enhance their boats. Other groups researched angles and and shapes to create streamline boats for the race. The end result was awesome and the students had SO much fun! 2014 Boat RacesIn third grade, we spend a LOT of time learning about Georgia. We learn about the regions, the plants, the animals, and the geography. To take that learning and understanding to the next level, we took a trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains! On this trip, students deepened their understanding and experienced what makes this region so unique. Our trip began with a stop at Mountain Valley Farms in Ellijay, Georgia. At the farm, students got to see and hear about the productive resources used in the farming industry. They got an up-close experience with a dairy cow, pigs, and baby goats. We enjoyed a picnic lunch with the goats, cows, pigs, and horses. The awesome people at Mountain Valley Farms then gave the students ice cream that was made from milk produced on the farm. The unique ice cream flavors were delicious! It was a great opportunity to learn about the productive resources we have been learning about in Social Studies and to see how these resources relate to the real world. The next stop was R & A Apple Orchards in Ellijay. Students got to browse the store, learning about the endless number of "apple" products. They also learned about supply and demand and how pricing of products depends on this concept. This was another chance for students to see the different types of productive resources in use. The students enjoyed apple cider slushies and fried apple pies. After these stops, we arrived at the cabin. After quickly exploring the area, we embarked on a hike to the Cartecay River. At the river, students explored the smooth rocks and minerals in and around the river. They found evidence of weathering and erosion in the area, both concepts we have studied this year. The students even got a lesson in kayaking and how forces in the water influence things. It was an awesome experience! Once we arrived back at the cabin, there were many evening activities. We had competitive games of kickball, soccer, air hockey, and ping pong. Then, we went for a nature walk, in hopes of observing the plants and animals in the region. Students used their iPads to document the hike. Upon completion of the hike, students worked independently to create digital presentations of their hike using various apps. You'll soon be able to find these presentations on the Student Blog tab! No trip is complete without scary stories by the campfire and S'mores! The kids composed AMAZING campfire stories and shared in a very dramatic fashion. Amicalola Falls was our Saturday adventure! We started at the bottom of the falls, taking in the greatness of the waterfall. Then, we took a short hike up part of the mountain. The students found many great plants and animals from this region. After our hike, we enjoyed a picnic lunch followed by some play time on the playground. Our final stop at Amicalola was the Nature Center. Students got to see a cool exhibit about the Appalachian Mountains and got to see a variety of snakes native to this region. It was quite exciting! All in all, it was an amazing trip! It was so much fun to see all the "Aha!" moments as students got to experience all the things we've been learning about in the classroom! Be sure to check out the Student Blog tab over the next few weeks as students share their highlights of the trip! packed and ready to go!mountain valley farmsr & A Apple orchardscartecay rivernature walk, soccer game, scavenger huntcampfire stories and s'moreswatching deeramicalola falls state parkother fun stuff!We're back and off to a great start! In science, we are learning about the different Georgia regions. This week, we spent time learning all about the Okefenokee Swamp. The students created swamp snow globes, enjoyed a "Swamp Punch" drink, and have used a variety of digital resources to explore this region. Through virtual field trips and hands-on exploration of Swamp plants, the students have developed a strong understanding of this unique region. Here are some pictures of our Swamp Punch and digital exploration of the region. Last week, we had our annual TEAM PHILLIPS Classroom Camping Adventure! The students had a blast combining learning in all content areas with a camping theme. Here's a list of some of the things we did...
We'd live to give a special THANK YOU to the fabulous Hollydale Cafe staff! They helped us explore heat sources for cooking hotdogs by bringing the mobile kitchen into the classroom. What a great way for students to see real life uses of science! It was an amazing camping trip... the students were awesome and worked so hard! We're looking forward to more surprise theme days this year! Of course, we have lots of pictures of our day! Surprised faces!We have been hard at work in math!! We've spent time learning about place and number value, addition, subtraction, and now... multiplication! Along with all of this, we have spent time exploring math in real life and learning how to be problem solvers. The students have done a fabulous job of identifying real life math situations and working with others to be solve math problems. Over the next few weeks, we will continue working on multiplication. We will be sending home a variety of multiplication "at-home" resources over the next few weeks. Please take a little time each evening to practice and review the multiplication concepts. Also, please check the "Learning Links" tab for links to online multiplication resources. place and number value gamecandy multiplicationThis week, we started our Rocks and Minerals unit in Science! This is always a fun opportunity for students to learn about how to identify and classify rocks and minerals by their physical characteristics. It's also a great time to learn about the ways rocks and minerals are used in everyday life. We've spent time hunting for special rocks and sorting, exploring, and measuring many different rocks and minerals. Ms. McComas even brought in her very special rock collection to share! We are certainly on our way to becoming ROCK Stars!
We celebrated GREEK Day on Thursday! In third grade, we spend a lot of time learning about the lasting impact of Ancient Greece. We learn about the influence of Ancient Greece on America's democracy, ideas, and architecture. We even learn about the Olympics, which began in Greece. To cap off our learning, we celebrated with GREEK Day! The students explored the geography of Greece on Google Earth, tasted a sampling of Greek foods (YUM!), and learned a traditional Greek dance. Mrs. Snell even came into our class to teach the students more about Greece and taught the students a really neat dance! The students had a great time and are super interested in learning more about Greece! Greek food!Greek dancing!Last week, we had the opportunity to go on a field trip to FERNBANK Museum of Natural History. While we wish we could have spent the entire day there, the time we had there was so much fun! We raced around the museum to see as many exhibits as we could in the time frame. We went through the fossil exhibit seeing evidence of organisms that lived long ago. So many dinosaur bones and footprints!! Next, we ventured upstairs to walk through the five regions of Georgia! From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Atlantic Coast, it was amazing to "see" the habitats we've learned about all all year. Then, we had the opportunity to participate in the Amazing Animals show. In the show, the students got to see hissing roaches, lizards, and they even had an opportunity to touch a snake! All in all, it was an amazing field trip and a great learning opportunity! seeing the dinosaurs... amazing!Blue ridge mountains |
AuthorMaggie Phillips Archives
June 2015
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