Can you create a constellation?

Woodlawn now has four constellations in the main stairways - Orion and Taurus in the south and Bootes and Ursa Major in the north.  We are inviting the students to create their own constellation.  They can submit a drawing of their unique constellation along with an essay explaining what is represents and the story behind the design.  Is it a story of a hero, an explorer, animal, location?  We have room for a few more Woodlawn constellations to be mounted on our 'stars'.

Beaver Engineering

Both humans and beavers are environmental engineers - able to modify a habitat which can change the landscape and species richness of a region.  This makes both of these mammals a keystone species and their behavior can affect the healthy and stability of their environment.  These Rieke kindergarteners were able to test their engineering skills as they took the challenge to use mud, sticks, and water to create a mini dam!

Hello Woodlawn Wildcats!

Here is a shout out to the Woodlawn students from American Museum of Natural History astrophysicists from around the world!

Cosmic Rays

How do you collect sunlight?  What can affect how much solar energy hits the Earth?  How can we save the energy from the sun?  These are questions that our 3rd and 4th graders asked as they collected data about our sun.  Using solar energy meters the 3rd graders predicted the best angle to collect the most watts/m2 and then set up an experiment to track the temperature and solar energy at a location for a week.  They found that temperature was a good prediction of how much energy they could collect from the sun but that clouds and pollution may affect how much radiation reaches the Earth's surface.

HOBO data logger graph - blue is temperature, black is volts

The 4th graders learned how to connect a circuit to use solar energy to charge a AA or AAA battery.  They made predictions on how long it would take to fill a rechargeable battery and collected data with a multimeter every 10 minutes over an hour.  It was a science/recess lesson!

Solar battery circuits chargers while the students played

Checking the connections after collecting data

Tracking the Sun

Sunflowers are able to detect and move to toward the sun by a process called heliotropism.  Our 5th graders were given the engineering challenge to mimic this process with four mini solar panels, a DC motor, popsicle sticks, and a glue gun.  As a team they needed to wire the panels to the motor so that when the tip of the 'solar house on its side' is facing the 'sun' (work light), the motor would stop.  But if they turns either left or right with the solar house, the motor would spin in the opposite direction.  The students were able to practice their 'engineering loop' and after multiple tries, fails, and brainstorming, they got it.

Art in Nature

Sometimes when you take a step closer to the intricate world of nature you see amazing things - patterns, colors, textures that you would have overlooked.  On our nature adventures, we have been using technology in the form of a Proscope and iPad to view what a bug would see.

Simple Machines

What are a mechanical devices that have allowed humans to move, lift, push, and pull objects for centuries - Simple Machines!  The 1st graders were able to test how these devices help transfer their effort to solve a task.

• Wedges and Basic Wheel
• Can you transport a large box across the room?
• Screws
• Can you move water uphill?
• Levers
• Can one student lift 3 classmates?
• Pulleys
• Can you lift your classmate three feet off the ground?
  

STEAM and Community Service

At Stephen's Creek, our 4th graders were able to identify and learn about ways that the Native Americans used our local plants - ferns, willows, firs, berries, and The Tree of Life - cedar.  Unfortunately, invasive plants have moved into our natural area and with the help of the Portland Parks and Recreation SW Watershed Steward, the class was able to remove English Ivy from one section of the park.

The students were able to take their hard work back to the classroom and change it into a beautiful art project.  While the Native Americans would not have used English Ivy for their baskets, our students removed the leaves and learned how to weave a mini basket!

Muon's in the air

Humans can only see part of the radiation from the sun - the visible light spectrum.  What about the unseen gifts from our local star?  Some are safe for humans and life on Earth, and other are damaging.  We discussed how our atmosphere protects us from some of the most dangerous forms of cosmic radiation - some of the ultraviolet spectrum, x-rays, and gamma rays.  Using a homemade cloud chamber, Rieke 3rd grade students were able to view a normally invisible safe cosmic particles called muons.