EXPLORE ANIMALS, FAMOUS PEOPLE, SOCIAL STUDIES, and DINOSAURS
Do love to learn new things? Pebble Go or Pebble GO Next is your go-to for facts, pictures, videos, and games!
1. Watch this video
2. Study the parts of a plant at this site- kids growing strong
Show What You’ve Learned
You are a botanist who has just discovered a new type of plant. As every good scientist does, you will document your exciting finding. Design a fact sheet highlighting your new plant discovery. Be sure to include the following key pieces of information:
• your plant’s name
• your plant’s basic needs
• your plant’s parts
• where your plant lives
• a colored illustration of your plant in its natural habitat
Your fact sheet might have text features like labels, captions, maps, bold words, subheadings, and more.
lesson idea adapted from ilove2teach.blogspot.com/
1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #1: Zenzizenzizenzic
2. Listen to how to pronounce the word Zenzizenzizenzic 5 times. Say it 5 times to practice. Can you say it FAST 5 times?
3. Find out the meaning of zenzizenzizenzic by reading this article. Record 2 sentences about this word.
4. Make a tiny Z math dictionary page. Your page should have the word and definition for at least ten Z math words. Here are some other ideas of Z math words. You can use these or find your own.
Z-Intercept Zenith Zero Divisors Zero Element Zero slope Zodiac Zone
5. Find out how many points zenzizenzizensic would be worth in Scrabble using this online scrabble calculator. Record the points on your recording sheet.
6. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
If you’ve ever said to yourself as you watch an online video lesson, “There has to be a better video on this!” now is your chance to make that happen. The Khan Academy team is looking for teachers to share their lessons online through video. Check out the video below and go for it! It would be awesome to have Westside students, as well as students all over the world, learning from you!
Have you ever wondered what the world would be like without certain modern day conveniences that we often take for granted? Consider this, the first bicycle was invented almost 200 years ago in 1817. It didn’t even have pedals! You had to scoot it along with your feet! How would the world be different today had the bicycle never entered the scene? What about other modern day conveniences that make life easier today? Comment below with a list of your top 3 inventions that would have the greatest impact on our lives today had they not been invented.
Have invention ideas that you think just might change the world? Check out this video for some inspiration and remember, “It’s okay to make mistakes! It’s not okay to stop!”
Share your ideas in the comments below!
Sensory language includes words or phrases that connect to the five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. It creates vivid mental images and engages the reader’s mind on multiple levels.1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #5: Sensory Language
2. Watch this video. Record an example for each of the senses on your recording page.
3. Look over the story prompts on this list. Choose 3 that you like. Record them on your recording page.
4. Make a section on your recording page for each of these words: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch.
5. Spend 5 minutes brainstorming details for your character, setting, and events. Choose descriptive words that connect the reader to your story by using the senses.
6. Write your story on your recording page.
7. OPTIONAL: If you would like to write more stories using this guide, please do! Share all of your stories with your teacher/EY coordinator.
8. Share your language arts mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Lesson adapted from https://www.thepaintedturtle.org/hospital-program
The grade 4, 5, and 6 student
s have spent the last several weeks creating Wonderopolis pages to share. Each student picked a topic, came up with question to answer, researched this topic in great detail, and set out to work on creating an informational product.
This is the link to find the projects– > EY WIKI
Please check out these projects. They turned out wonderfully!
Wonderopolis has a Online Summer 
Enrichment Program that I am going to check out for my own kids http://camp.wonderopolis.org/
We have many children who will be invited to attend the Extreme Math Day on May 13th.
Look for invites towards the end of this week. It will be a fun day of math puzzles!
If you are looking for some math problem solving, Noetic math has a few free online math contest practice resources @ http://www.noetic-learning.com/gifted/sample.jsp,
If you like those you could consider subscribing to the sum
mer program @
http://www.noetic-learning.com/summermath/
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns
Mary Mary Quite Contrary, How Does Your Garden Grow?
#17 Wonder of the Day: Can You Garden in the City?
Do you have a garden? What is the most unique thing you’ve grown in a garden? Maybe you’re thinking you’d like to have a garden, but you don’t have the yard space or know how to get started. Well this is the Wonder for you!
Springtime is a great time to start planting a garden and this Wonderopolis Wonder talks about many things related to gardening!
At the beginning of the school year, Westside Middle School students were given the opportunity to be beta readers for a young adult novel. Author Angela Prusia has always had beta readers for her novels, but this was the first time she asked students to give her feedback. After the book was released in February, Angela noted:
“I’m so grateful for all the amazing feedback from your students on my book, Cafeteria Food, which I renamed Nameless after several students’ suggestions! Hands down, their feedback was better than what I normally receive from adults.”
Fourteen students’ names made it on the acknowledgment page in Angela’s book. She is excited to offer the students another opportunity to be beta readers for the next two books in this trilogy (another decision she made based on the beta readers’ feedback).
During her visit at Westside Middle School, Angela had the students write several different pieces during a Writer’s Workshop. Click here to download a compilation of their work.
Have you ever wondered how a basketball, bouncy ball, and golf ball are like a supernova? Well, probably not, but this video will explain how they are alike using physics. After watching, try this experiment for yourself and leave a comment on how it went. For an added twist, try it with different types of balls too! Physics is awesome!