Autumnal Changes

I hope everyone is enjoying the delights of autumn - gorgeous fall weather, pumpkin spice lattes, juicy apples and the carving of pumpkins. We are enjoying a look at how the world changes along with the season - shorter days, crisper air, and bare trees.

As part of our Growth and Changes unit, we observed and sampled different types of apples: Granny Smith, Red Delicious, Pink Lady, Royal Gala, Golden Delicious, and Spartan. After tasting each type of apple, students described the apple (round or tall; red, yellow, or green), the colour of its flesh (white or creamy), the consistency of its peel (thick or thin), the taste (sweet or slightly tart), and its texture (tender or crisp).

The apples were peeled and then we made apple crisp. We cannot wait to devour the tasty treat tomorrow!

Meewasin Field Trip

Fall Fun

Celebrating the beautiful colours of fall with hot chocolate, cookies, and a leaf hunt.

Statistics and Probability

During the last two weeks, the students have been studying statistics and probability. We  collected, organized, and represented first-hand data using tally marks, charts, lists, bar graphs, and line plots (abstract pictographs). We surveyed other classes, played games of chance, and represented the results. To culminate our study, the students brought in a box of multi-coloured candy. We graphed the colours, determined the probability of choosing a colour, created designs with lines of symmetry, and then ate our results!

 

Welcome

Welcome Grade 3!

We look forward to another great year!

Classroom Glimpse

Here is a peek inside our classroom

Edible Soil

Today, we made edible soil to identify the layers of soil. 

The first step in turning rock into soil is that it must be broken down into sediments–small pieces.Rocks can be broken down (wind, water, ice, plant roots, people, etc.) The sediments are piled up. It’s not soil yet...it needs more. 

To demonstrate the bedrock layer, we crushed a vanilla wafer. Seeds germinate and plant roots grow in this dark-coloured layer. It is made up of humus (decomposed organic matter) mixed with mineral particles. Organic matter is plants and animals, which die and start to decay in the soil. Organic matter is mixed with the sediment. 

To demonstrate the subsoil layer, we mixed chocolate chips and marshmallows with pudding. We smoothed it over the wafer. The top, organic layer of soil, is comprised mostly of leaf litter and humus (decomposed organic matter). To demonstrate the topsoil layer, we layered crushed chocolate cookies and then poked a gummi worm through the top to peek out of the “soil.” Green cut Twizzlers resemble grass.

We mixed the edible soil to simulate the addition of another important component to soil - air. As air must be added to mixtures or baking will look like a pancake, soil is the same way. It needs air. That is why gardeners or farmers dig or plow or till soil before planting. Air is added to the sediments and organic matter over time. The last thing we need to make the soil is time. It needs to set. Soil also needs time. It is not nearly as fast as the Edible Soil. It takes half an hour to make. Soil takes hundreds of years.