STEM News

Dear fellow scientists,

Prep students are investigating and recording how different-shaped objects move. Students have been exploring how objects such as masking tape, dominoes, books, dusters and whiteboard markers roll. Students recorded their findings by using drawings and symbols. We had lots of fun testing predictions and comparing results! Listen to this read aloud called BOUNCE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r199Xnxj21c 

Grade 1 students have been naming the three main fossil fuels — coal, oil and natural gas — and exploring how many of the things we use at school and at home are made from them. From plastic toys and shoes to petrol-powered cars and electricity, students were surprised to discover how much we rely on fossil fuels! Watch this video on: Think Earth Environmental Education Foundation- Think Earth movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mimHTCCIQY0

Grade 2 students are investigating about composting. They began by asking questions using the prompt “I wonder…” and made predictions about what would happen to different food scraps over time. Students then drew what their chosen food item looked like at the start of the investigation. Over the next few weeks, they will observe and record what changes occur as the food breaks down! Watch this video Make the Most of Compost! By SciShow Kids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5s4n9r-JGU 

Grade 3 students are learning how to use shadows to estimate the time of day. They have been observing how the size and direction of shadows change as the sun moves across the sky. Students also practised reading the time using a sundial and explained the steps needed to create and set up a sundial, so it works correctly. It has been fascinating to see how people told time long before clocks were invented! Watch this video on Make Your Own Sundial! By SciShow Kids. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeSexM-wVzA 

Students in Grade 4 became young scientists as they investigated friction! Friction is the force that can slow down or stop moving objects, and students had the exciting challenge of predicting, testing, and comparing how different surfaces in our classroom affect the movement of a counter. Watch this video on Slipping, Sliding Science! | Physics for Kids by SciShow Kids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps90zArJEJY 

Grade 5 students explored the fascinating world of light and reflection! Using mirrors and flashlights, they investigated how light bounces off surfaces and changes direction. Watch this video on: What Is a Reflection?: https://www.clickview.net/primary/videos/80352409/what-is-a-reflection 

Students in Grade 6 explored the fascinating world of extremophiles—organisms that can survive in some of the harshest environments on Earth. We took this one step further by imagining how these incredible organisms might survive on Mars! Watch this video on extremophiles: https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/extremophiles-101/ 

STEM team