Summer Science: Drops on a Penny

It's raining out which inspired me to think about another activity with water.  Something about summer inspires watery experiments.  Get either a pipet or medicine dropper and a penny.  Older pennies minted before 1982 are copper and more defined.  Count how many drops of water the surface of the penny will hold before smashing over.  Sometimes, you'll be able to hit 100.  Why?  Water has unique properties owing to hydrogen bonds.  Water molecules are sticky and create a bubble of water on the penny.  Try it!

Summer Science: Super Bubbles

Another favorite activity and experiment I've used countless times is Super Bubbles.  At a camp, I usually make this an inquiry activity, unless there are many young children; I'll have teen helpers make up a batch and let the kids play.  But, super bubbles makes an excellent inquiry lesson.  Have three different brands of detergents.  (Include Dawn.  I've found it to perform exceptionally well.) Have both glycerin, Karo, and a generic brand of corn syrup.  The kids should use the same quantities of detergents, water, and either syrup or glycerin.  Ask the kids how they'll determine which combination makes the best bubbles.  Biggest?  Longest lasting?  Advise them to change one variable at a time.  If they test two variables simultaneously, they won't know which factor makes a difference.   By this I mean, if they're comparing Dawn and Joy, they should add Karo to both solutions.  The kids love the bubbles and this is a great way to introduce experimental design.

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Summer Science: Cartesian Divers

One favorite idea I've used at countless science camps and outreach events is Cartesian Divers. (This link is a good source for pipets and nuts for ballast.). A packet of ketchup from a fast food restaurant works, too!  Use cold water and fill a 2-liter bottle to the top.  If you are using pipets and a nut, have a basin of cold water available.  Test the diver in the basin or pail.  If your diver bobs under water as you submerge it, it should work in the bottle.  A 20 oz. soda bottle will work, too and is easier for little hands to squeeze the bottle.

Summer Science Water Play: Bowling for Density

For a number of years, I hosted summer science camps, both at our church and at private schools where I taught.  One terrific theme is water, perfect for home-school.  Let's start with density, specifically, The Bowling Ball Experiment.  Will a bowling ball float?  It depends.  Take a large pail or plastic trash can and fill it half-full with water.  Add a big bowl of ice.  The density of ice water is close to 1 g/mL.  A ten pound bowling ball will float and a sixteen pound ball will sink.  A twelve pound bowling ball has a density of approximately 1g/ml and will bob in the ice water bath.  I do this as more of a demonstration with younger kids and walk older kids through the calculations before we test the bowling balls.  Incidently, I bought mine at yard sales.

Summer Science Ideas

In our house, Paul, who is six, is reading everyday and logging his time online for the summer reading program through the library.  Today, he went outside to explore around the lake out back.  My husband, Rob, and Paul selected plants for our garden.  We play board games, like Monopoly or Trouble, too.  We have Paul do at least 30 minutes a day of school work (reading, writing, counting change, painting, etc.) to stay sharp.  There are other project ideas to try.  If you have a stream nearby, all you need are ice cube trays to assess the water quality with benthic macroinvertebrates.  Cacapon Institute has instructions and a virtual stream assessment.  Cornell University has loads of ideas for young ornithologists or birders.  Start with a bird life list.  Home Science Tools has summer project ideas to last all year!  Steve Spangler's site has cool science gear.  Last up is PBS with ideas like silly putty and lava lamps.  As home-schoolers know, education comes in many forms.  Let's have fun this summer with some projects!

Portfolios

I'm in the throes of reviewing several portfolios for a number of home-school families.  What comprises a portfolio?  Each one is as different as each family.  One family may compile loose-leaf notebooks for each child containing work samples, photos from field trips, book logs, and notes from lessons.  I teach at a Co-op and take photos of the children and their projects.  These are chronicled in my blog (mrsstevenschemistryclasses.blogspot.com).  I encourage families to save electronic records, screenshots, and photos online as part of the portfolio.  You can take a photo or scan work samples to save digitally.  My advise is to have your child get in the habit of photographing or scanning meaningful work.  Your child can also video himself giving a book report.  Save it on YouTube and link it to your blog.  Start your own blog to document as a portfolio.  I typically interview families, look at their work samples, and evaluate the curriculum or syllabi.  Once I have an idea about the family and their curriculum, I write an endorsement letter for the school board to submit with their portfolio.  Here are some portfolios samples.


Dolly Madison
Fly Report
Art example
Book List
McGuffy work
Science Example


These examples were submitted as part of two families' portfolios.  In one case, the daughter selected and sent her submission.  Your child could, too!

Apologia Biology Wrapup: Final Assessment

We are winding up class.  The last event is a final assessment to see what the kids have learned.  The Virginia SOL for Biology is used in Virginia in their public schools as a graduation requirement.  The SOL exams (What were they thinking with this acronym?) are not as difficult as the New York Regents Exams or quite as easy as the North Carolina exams.  These type of tests can serve as a gauge.  Does your child know 75%?  Which questions were missed?  If your child takes the exam, reviews the questions she missed, and studies a bit, she could retest with an exam from another year.  These tests are another way to prep for standardized tests home-schoolers are sometimes compelled to take.  Try one!  I used released exams like these for years to prep kids for tests.

Apologia Biology: Anatomy and Physiology

My Bio class is finishing the text.  One of the moms asked for some basic Anatomy lessons.  Last week, I had the girls identify the major systems of the body and write out what they already knew as a preassessment activity.  This week, I'm drawing on these anatomy slideshows to provide an overview.  Anatomy and Physiology (A&P) is replete with terms.  The first step is to review positions and directions: proximal, distal, palmar, plantar, medial, lateral, intermediate, superficial, deep, anterior, posterior, ventral, dorsal, Sagittarius, superior, inferior, cranial, and caudal.  Note that many of these terms are paired.  I wrote these on the board and instructed the kids to mark the paired terms. It's helpful to be able to identify position.  These terms are used repeatedly in Anatomy, such as superior and inferior vena cava.  We reviewed position and then learned the names of the bones and had a quiz.

Apologia Biology and Young Explorers Dissections

This week both classes are completing dissections.  Last time, the kids did the Smithsonian Shark Dissection and owl pellet dissections.  The Bio class assembled the Smithsonian frog lab this morning.  (The shark lab specimen set in about 30 minutes.  The 'flesh' is composed of a plaster mix.  The frog is made from a gelatin mix and requires 1-2 hours to set.). This afternoon, the Bio kids are dissecting the perch and frog with packets before they help the Young Explorers class to dissect the worm, crayfish, grasshopper, clam, perch, and frog.  One of the moms is bringing pig organs for opservation, and I ordered a sheep heart to dissect.  The reason, we schedule these marathon dissections is logistics. Our church's insurance company prohibits any lab.  (Last year we met at my house for Physical Science and Chemistry.). Bio has loads of activities and simulations which can be accomplished in the CCD classroom.  Microscopes slides aren't experiments.

Back to mega dissections. Some of the Co-op members travel between 30-45 minutes each week.  It's onerous to come to my house each time.  So, this afternoon, we're going to a park with a pavilion because naturally, it's raining today.  It also means loading screen shots on to my iPad and lugging lab manual, fake frog, random organs, and dissection equipment to the park.  I loaded the car the night before.  Not ideal, but hey, we adapt; we home-school!

Here are the photos from the dissections at the park.  It was wet and chilly.  Of course!  One of the moms, Renee, brought fabulous pig organs: trachea, stomach, esophagus, heart, lungs, liver, eyeball, and brain.  (She planned to cut it up after for her barn cats.)  (One of the dads, Khoat, was explaining how to prepare sheep stomach in Vietnamese cuisine.)  The organs were largely attached and we reviewed structure and function before dissecting the sheep heart and the preserved pig heart I had ordered from Carolina Biological through Amazon.

Candy, another mom, had wanted her kids to do a series of dissections.  I had planned for the Bio class to dissect the worm, clam, grasshopper, crayfish, perch, and frog.  I just ordered two sets and had everyone dissect.  Apologia has optional dissections in the textbook.  The Biology Corner has dissection packets, too.  We spent two hours this afternoon.  The Bio class just dissected the perch and frog.  The younger kids did not spend as much time on any organ.  Elementary kids identified major organs.  Just remember the specimen seldom resembles the diagram.  Don't be discouraged!

Apologia Young Explorers Anatomy: Dissections

The consensus was ewwww!  Only the three of the boys liked the owl pellet dissections.  Everyone like the synthetic Shark  I liked the fact they can practice the cuts correctly.  In fact I ordered the synthetic frog to practice before we do the preserved specimens.  These photos exhibit children much more engaged than in reality.  I ordered the Smithsonian frog lab as a result of this experience.  The kids need to cut up a synthetic frog before the preserved specimen.  I'm hoping to make comparisons between the synthetic shark and the preserved perch, too.  We had extra time and worked on water tests. One of the kids had begged for weeks to do more water tests.  Since we only had 30 minutes remaining, we elected to test water.

Apologia Biology: Alternatives to Dissections

What about dissections.  I feel strongly kids should dissect preserved specimens, not road kill or pets.  But, some kids will NOT dissect under any circumstances to the extent they won't be party to a class that does dissections, even if they are exempt.  In other cases, families may not be able to afford the specimens or justify the expense for one child.  So what are the alternatives? If the issue is your daughter is a strict vegan, this synthetic shark lab from Smithsonian can be reused!  I was pricing preserved shark specimens and saw this one on Amazon.  The church's insurance policy prohibits any experiments on site.  (We dissect in my garage at home.)  I wanted to see the quality of this synthetic shark and the Bio class could test it and then set it up again for the little kids in the afternoon.  In fact,  the Bio kids are participating in an alternative assessment as they guide the little kids through the dissection. Slick, right?  Yes, Virtual dissections  abound.  Use those sponsored by textbook publishers or located at science sites such as Biology Corner.  How was the shark?  The girls carefully followed direction to create the shark specimen.  After 15 minutes it was ready.  The dissection packet enclosed had terrific details about shark anatomy.  The Smithsonian Shark Lab (Ebay has one, too.) isn't cheap; it is reusable and basically a toy, which can be dissected anywhere.  The Smithsonian also has a frog dissection kit.  If your facility limits experiments the frog and shark kits, with owl pellet dissections, supplemented with virtual dissections would provide a decent alternative to preserved specimens, especially for teens strongly opposed.  These kits are nice for elementary aged kids, too, who may not be ready for the real deal.

Update:
The goo around the shark stays pliable for quite awhile and can be prepped early the same day.  The powder has plaster of Paris, which is readily available in any craft store.  But, I don't know if you can get the same jelly consistency.