Invasive Species in Ottawa

There are some plants and insects (and even trees, bushes and probably animals) that are thriving in Ottawa but that are not native to this region, and so have no natural predators. In Morrison Park, and the St Paul High School field, I have seen:

• Garlic Mustard
• Emerald Ash Borer and dead ash trees

Not quite so close to our school, but still within the City of Ottawa, I have seen many instances of wild parsnip, the sap of which can cause very severe blisters and burns.

• Wild Parsnip - safety and control

What can we find growing in Morrison Park this year?

Film Canister Rockets

Many of our students are very, very, very interested in explosions, so we will be tinkering with film canister rockets. Film canisters are not very common these days -- I had to explain what they were the first time I mentioned them to my students -- but I was able to collect many from a friendly photo developing store.

Here are some good links to start researching:

1. Science Kiddo - Film Canister Rocket
2. PBS Kids - Film Canister Rocket
3. Imagination Station - Film Canister Rocket

These web pages all describe demonstrations, but we will want to turn them into experiments by changing only one thing and see what the effect is.

Some questions we may want to answer:

1. What different types of fuel can we develop? What is the least expensive, most powerful fuel we can find?
2. What is the effect of temperature?
3. What is the effect of structural items on the rocket, such as fins and a nose cone?
4. What is going on that makes the rocket go up?

Here's another type of rocket we can maybe try too:

Tea bag rocket

Obstacle Course in Scratch

A fun game to make in Scratch, building on concepts we have studied earlier in the year is an obstacle game. Here is an example, but be creative and make one that is special for you!

Scratch Obstacle Course Game

Hopscotch Programming

Hopscotch is a great programming environment available for iPads. It is a lot like Scratch, but designed for the touch screen interface.

Here is a YouTube video that provides step by step instructions to make a "Tapper Game" - a game where you are trying to tap an object as much as possible to get points. These instructions give the basic ideas and concepts, you will need to provide the game ideas!

Tapper Game in Hopscotch YouTube Video

Happy creating!

Lemon Batteries

The grade 3 - 4 class has been studying energy: how we use it, how it is made, and how we can reduce our dependency. Here is a great explanation of a hands on activity to make a real battery from household materials:

• Lemon Battery Experiment

Apparently, these batteries can be a bit finicky. We'll try our luck in class and see how it goes!

Update: We did successfully make the batteries in class, and were able to measure voltages of about 0.9 V per lemon. However, this was not enough to light up an LED, especially since more current was also needed. Later, by attaching three lemons in series, and making three sets like this, then attaching these three sets of three lemons in parallel, we could finally get enough current and voltage to make an LED light dimly.  

Mad Libs Program in Scratch

To reinforce what has been learned about the computer science concept of variables through exposure in previous programming exercises, students in grades 5 and 6 are creating their own Mad Libs program in Scratch, using variables to hold the nouns, verbs and adjectives. Here is a simple prgram I wrote, if you would like to see an example:

• Mad Libs Scratch Program

Once the use of variables is mastered, the program can be updated to use lists instead. Here is an example of how this can be done:

• Mad Libs Using Lists

My you have a happy time coding!

Building With MaKey MaKeys

Students have started making inventive rooms, space stations and novel tin foil buttons to use as user interfaces connected to MaKey MaKeys, then connected with Scratch programs to give the creations special sound and other effects. 

To be continued!

Caribou Math Contest

All our students should be very proud of their efforts in the latest Caribou Math Contest. It was one of our best showings as a school every! Well done team!

Here are some pictures of students studiously working on their contests.

Those who finished early, had time to work with Tangrams. Some worked hard on making traditional Tangram puzzles, while others created their own images.

Introduction to MaKey MaKeys

I am very excited about the latest acquisition for our PYP STEM lab -- MaKey MaKeys from SparkFun!

What is the MaKey MaKey? It is marketed as an invention kit for everyone, and practically speaking it is a gadget that connects to your computer that allows to you make original and creative user interfaces for programs. Say, for example, you'd rather tap a banana instead of using your space bar. Simple with a MaKey MaKey!  Really, it's probably best to just watch one in action.

Here's a great introduction to the MaKey MaKey, that starts with a cool video:

Introduction to MaKey MaKey by SparkFun

Circuit Basics

Continuing our exploration of electricity, the grades 3 to 6 students are starting to explore circuits. An excellent introduction to circuits can be found on this SparkFun website:

• What is a circuit?