In Science Class . . . Week of 2/6

The science fair was great! So wonderful to see the 4/5s teaching the little kids during the day, and I was amazed by number of Emerson families present for the evening event. Thank you to all of you out there who spent a lot of time helping your students. I think will be the beginning of a really special Emerson tradition! Thanks to the 4/5 teacher team, Ms. Hodge, and the PTA for their support, too!

This week, students reviewed mineral properties with Ms Peggy on Tuesday. (I was in Big Basin with the BAM 5th graders that I also teach.) On Thursday, we examined pink granite and tried to identify the minerals present using our mineral property tables - feldspar, quartz, mica, hornblende.

Next week, students will be taking a quiz reviewing rocks, mineral properties, etc. A study guide will go home Tuesday. Students will be able to use their notebook, as with other previous quizzes. If you have questions, please let me know! Thanks!

In Science Class . . . Week of 1/23 and 1/31

This week and last, we've been exploring new mineral properties. We found that calcite, a mineral, reacts with acids to form a chemical reaction that results in bubbles. Last week, we tested several rocks for calcite by putting the rocks in vinegar. Two rock types - marble and limestone- bubbled. Last Thursday and Tuesday this week, we examined some new minerals and discussed the properties of magnetism, luster, cleavage, and streak color. We filled out a mineral property table and compared it to a table of known mineral properties.
Key Questions:

• What rocks contained calcite? How did you know?
• What knew properties did you learn about? (Magnetism. Luster = metallic or nonmetallic. Cleavage = mineral breaks apart with flat surfaces. Streak color - color of the streak of mineral pieces when a mineral is rubbed against a tile). Why did you study this? (It helps us understand how geologists identify a mineral and also helps with our table-reading skills.) FYI, the new minerals were hematite, pyrite or Fool's Gold, galena and magnetite.
  

Tomorrow, Thursday, Feb 2, we will be presenting our science fair projects to the little kids (K-3) during normal science times. Both 4/5th grade students and the little kids are SUPER excited about this! It's been an epic adventure for the 4/5s and me, and I'm thrilled about the enthusiasm for science and sharing our learning. Please make sure your students have their boards complete by the beginning of the day and send them with enough materials to do a couple demos if you are able. The science fair for all Emerson families will be tomorrow night at 6:30 pm at the Cafetorium. If you are able to help out at around 6 pm (moving projects, organizing kids and materials, setting up tables, etc) please contact me at caitlinjenkins@berkeley.net or leave a message with Sonia. I hope to see you all there! The kids are so proud of their projects, and they look great so far.