Roller coasters are all about physics! Unlike most moving vehicles, cars, trains, and buses that rely on engines, roller coasters rely on gravitational potential energy. What goes up, must come down.
1. Set up your STEAM mini spark recording page:#50: STEAM Challenge: Roller Coaster
2. For this mini spark, you will be building your own roller coaster. Visit the Instructables website linked below to find templates you can print and cut out. Or, use your own materials and come up with your own design. Get creative and don’t forget to take pictures to document your progress.
3. Go to the Instructable website and read the information from the top to the bottom. Record examples of potential and kinetic energy on your recording sheet.
4. On your recording page, make a list of the supplies you will need. If you need help getting supplies talk to your EY coordinator.
5. Print out this template. If you want to used colored paper, talk to your EY coordinator about getting some to use.
6. Complete all of the steps. Take at least 5 pictures of your process.
7. Take a picture and a video of your challenge.
8. Add all of your pictures to your recording sheet. If you would like to make Pic Collage of your challenge that is great.
9. Share your STEAM mini spark recording page and your video with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Many of you know that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a crusader for Civil Rights. He had a dream. In some ways, that dream became a reality through the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Spark your thinking!
1. Set up your social studies mini spark recording page: #43: The Civil Rights Act
2. Read the background information below. Identify 5 pieces of information that are new to you.
The Declaration of Independence declared that “All men are created equal.” However, when the country was first formed this quote didn’t apply to everyone, only to wealthy white landowners. Over time, things did improve. The slaves were set free after the Civil War and both women and non-white people were given the right to vote with the 15th and the 19th amendments.
Despite these changes, however, there were still people who were being denied their basic civil rights. Jim Crow laws in the south allowed for racial segregation, and discrimination based on gender, race, and religion was legal. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. fought for the civil rights of all people. Events such as the March on Washington, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the Birmingham Campaign brought these issues to the forefront of American politics. A new law was needed to protect the civil rights of all people.
On June 11, 1963 President John F. Kennedy gave a speech calling for a civil rights law that would give “all Americans the right to be served in facilities that are open to the public” and would offer “greater protection for the right to vote.” President Kennedy began to work with Congress to create a new civil rights bill. However, Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963 and President Lyndon Johnson took over.
President Johnson also wanted a new civil rights bill to be passed. He made the bill one of his top priorities. After working the bill through the House and the Senate, President Johnson signed the bill into law on July 2, 1964. Martin Luther King, Jr. attended the official signing-in of the law by President Johnson.
A year after the Civil Rights Act was signed into law, another law called the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed. This law was meant to insure that the right to vote was not denied any person “on account of race or color.”
3. Watch the video about the civil rights movement and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. While watching, write down 8+ important details and key points.
4. The law was divided up into 11 sections called titles. Read the list. On your recording sheet record the title that you would like to learn more about.
Title I – The voting requirements must be the same for all people.
Title II – Outlawed discrimination in all public places such as hotels, restaurants, and theatres.
Title III – Access to public facilities could not be denied based on race, religion, or national origin.
Title IV – Required that public schools no longer be segregated.
Title V – Gave more powers to the Civil Rights Commission.
Title VI – Outlawed discrimination by government agencies.
Title VII – Outlawed discrimination by employers based on race, gender, religion, or national origin.
Title VIII – Required that voter data and registration information be provided to the government.
Title IX – Allowed civil rights lawsuits to be moved from local courts to federal courts.
Title X – Established the Community Relations Service.
Title XI – Miscellaneous.
5. Take a 10 question quiz to test what you learned about the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Record your score on your recording page.
6. OPTIONAL: Research one of the titles of the Civil Rights Act. Make an information page to share with your classmates.
7. Share your social studies mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Check out these mini sparks to learn more about Martin Luther King, Jr.
Art requires creativity and imagination and enhances flexibility, adaptability, productivity, responsibility and innovation – all required skills for a successful career in any field of study. The ‘A’ in STEAM represents ‘Art’ which includes music.
Spark your thinking!
1. Set up your STEAM mini spark recording page: #49: Intro to Opera
2. Get started with this informational video. Record details from this clip on your recording page. Add in details about conductor’s role and actions. Explain how he is positioned during the opera.
3. Watch this video, The Physics of Opera. Record at least 8 vocabulary words and a short definition on your recording page.
4. Answer these questions on your recording sheet. Rewatch the video if necessary. ****Remind your teacher that the answers to these questions can be found in the STEAM mini spark folder.
What techniques do opera singers use to project their voices over an orchestra?
How does the shape and material of an instrument affect its sound?
Explain the concept of harmonics as described in the video.
Why is it beneficial for an opera singer to emphasize higher partials?
Describe the role of the concert hall in enhancing the sound of opera singers.
What factors can influence a singer’s vocal ability as they age?
How do the vocal techniques differ between a Wagnerian singer and a bel canto singer?
5. Share your STEAM mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Check out the Marvelous World of Opera Badge on the EY website.
5. Add a screenshot of your art to your recording page or print it out.
6. Create a second piece of word art with a different theme. Use the same website and experiment with different shapes, fonts, colors, etc. Add a screenshot of your art to your recording page or print it out.
7. Share your language arts mini spark recording page and your art with your teacher/EY coordinator.
1. Set up your STEAM mini spark recording page: #48: Make a Crystal
2. Watch this video that shows the steps for making a crystal.
3. Gather your materials. Take a picture and add it to your recording page.
measuring spoon
colored pencil
pipe cleaner
hot water
food coloring (optional)
spoon
Borax (Available at grocery stores in the laundry soap section. Use 20 Mule Team Borax Laundry Booster, not Boraxo soap.)
a glass or jar
Safety first! Borax can irritate your skin, eyes and lungs, and it can be harmful if you swallow it. Ask a grown-up for help handling borax, and don’t touch your crystal once it’s done
4. Watch the video again and work on your experiment. Take pictures while you are working and add them to your recording sheet.
5. The following day, take a picture of your crystal and add it to your recording sheet.
6. Read this information and add a summary to your recording sheet.
Understanding Borax Crystals.
Borax is a type of crystal, defined as “a solid with flat sides and a symmetrical shape due to its molecules being arranged in a specific, repeating pattern.” Each crystal exhibits a unique repeating pattern that corresponds to its shape. Crystals can vary in size, but they all share this characteristic structure. Examples of crystals include salt, sugar, and Epsom salts. Salt crystals typically form in a cube shape, while snow crystals display a six-sided design.
How Do Borax Crystals Form?
Hot water can dissolve more borax than cold water. This is because the molecules in heated water spread further apart, allowing more borax to dissolve. When no additional borax can dissolve in the solution, it is considered saturated. As the solution cools, the water molecules come closer together, creating less space for the dissolved borax. This change allows crystals to start forming as the water evaporates and releases the excess borax.
7. Share your STEAM mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
1. Set up your STEAM mini spark recording page: #47: STEAM Challenge: Paper
2. Look over the STEAM challenge.
3. Make a sketch of what your structure will look like and any ideas that you have. Add a picture of your sketch to your recording page.
4. Gather the materials you will need. Ask an adult to help you if necessary.
5. Take a picture of your supplies before you start. Add the picture to your recording sheet.
6. Take a picture of you final project at add it to your recording sheet. Explain your project, what you did well on this challenge and where you can improve.
7. Share your STEAM mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Every year, on December 4th, we get to celebrate National Cookie Day! It was all started in 1987 by a guy named Matt Nader. He thought, “Why not have a whole day just for cookies?” He wanted everyone to enjoy the joy and coziness that cookies bring. So grab your favorite cookie and get ready for a sweet celebration! 🍪😄
Spark your thinking!
1. Set up your Early Enrichment Mini Spark recording page: #51: National Cookie Day
2. Here’s a quick, but fun, video about the history of the cookie. Record something you learned from the video on your recording page
3. Who is the most FAMOUS lover of cookies??? Well, Cookie Monster! Who else? To help celebrate National Cookie Day, sing along with the video below!
4. What ingredients do you need to make chocolate chip cookies? Write down your ideas on your recording sheet.
5. When you are done scroll to the very bottom and see a recipe for chocolate chip cookies. How did you do listing the ingredients? Write down any of the ingredients you didn’t list.
6. Share your Early Enrichment Mini Spark recording page with your teacher or EY Coordinator.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
1 cup Shortening or Butter 1 cup Sugar 1/2 cup Brown Sugar 2 eggs 2 tsp. Vanilla 2 cups Flour 1 1/2 tsp Salt 1 tsp Baking Soda 12-oz. pkg. Chocolate Chips
Preparation
Cream shortening, sugars, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Sift together dry ingredients. Stir into creamed mixture. Blend well. Add chips.
Drop from tsp. 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet (or a non-stick baking sheet). Bake in moderate oven (375 degrees) for 8 – 10 minutes.
Makes 6 dozen.
Check out this mini spark and explore a list of famous firsts throughout human history. Take the challenge and learn more about an event that happened in history.
Spark you thinking!
1. Set up your social studies mini spark recording page: #42: Famous Firsts in World History
2. Watch this video and record all of the firsts on your recording page.
2. Each famous first is briefly highlighted – not much information is given. The idea is to spark an interest in you to know and learn more. Which of the 7 events do you want to learn more about? Record this on your recording page.
3. Choose one. Do research to find 10 details about the famous first you picked.
4. Share your social studies mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Check out the famous firsts badge on the EY website. This mini spark help you with the badge.
Roller coasters are all about physics! Unlike most moving vehicles, cars, trains, and buses that rely on engines, roller coasters rely on gravitational potential energy. What goes up, must come down.
Art requires creativity and imagination and enhances flexibility, adaptability, productivity, responsibility and innovation – all required skills for a successful career in any field of study. The ‘A’ in STEAM represents ‘Art’ which includes music.
WordArt.com is an online word cloud generator that enables you to create amazing and unique word clouds with ease.
