Science in Action: Exploring, Experimenting, and Discovering

 

It's been an exciting start to the year in Kindergarten and First Grade Science! Our young scientists have been busy asking questions, making predictions, and discovering that science is all around us.

Kindergarten students kicked off the year learning about their amazing brains, exploring their five senses, and discovering the importance of observation through Jane Goodall. Fall brought hands-on investigations with apples and pumpkins, and most recently, students have been exploring trees, their different parts, and how they change with the seasons.

First grade students have been putting their scientific thinking to the test! From conducting penny experiments and exploring living and nonliving things to investigating pumpkins and their seeds, students have been learning to make predictions, test ideas, and record their observations. One of our favorite experiences was planting radish seeds, watching them grow, and finally harvesting our very own radishes! Most recently, students have begun exploring the science of sound through fun, hands-on investigations.

Our favorite part? Watching those little faces light up when an experiment leads to an exciting discovery! Every day in the science lab brings new questions, new discoveries, and lots of curiosity!

 

 

Second grade science has started off with a bang.  Literally!!  We finished our Volcanic unit by making and erupting volcanoes.  We are now studying Pebbles, Sand and Silt which has students examining, sorting, washing and collecting rocks while learning how rocks move inside and around the Earth.  Students are also learning the steps of the Scientific Method and figuring out that hypotheses are not always correct.  They are all keeping a Science journal full of their classwork, experiments and observations.  They will take these journals home at the end of the school year.  They are learning how to be observant scientists that ask lots of questions!

 

Third grade started off the school year by reviewing the Scientific Method and putting the steps in action by completing several experiments.  Students are now learning about the properties of water and the important role water (fresh and salt) plays in the existence of living organisms.  They are asked to answer thought provoking questions about the way humans interact with water and what the future looks like with the current supply of fresh water, including the fresh water found in glaciers.  Third grade planted lettuce seeds and are watching them grow with the hopes of harvesting it later this month.  When harvested, they will take the lettuce to our kitchen staff to be shared with the whole school!  Students are learning that some questions have hard answers and that our future will entail more research that they someday might be leading.

 

 

Fourth graders have been learning that energy is everywhere, and they've been testing it with their own hands. Through five investigations on motion, electricity, sound, light, and heat, students have seen how energy moves from one system to another.

Along the way, they've built circuits, powered motors with solar panels, and explored magnetism and electromagnets. Guest speakers also visited the classroom to show how these ideas connect to real careers. Engineers from Exxon and Diamondback and linemen from Oncor shared how they use energy in their work right here in the Permian Basin and beyond. Students saw that the science they do at their desks is the same science professionals use every day.

Our young scientists are asking questions, making predictions, and discovering that learning is most exciting when you get to try it yourself.