Australia

The animal lovers in the classroom have really enjoyed studying the unique animals of Australia. The focus has been on what adaptations those animals have developed in order to survive in their specific biome. Students began to work with their biome groups to design an animal that has many of those adaptations in order to live in that biome. The super exciting part is that they will design, color, sculpt, and then print their made up animal on our 3D printer! Students have been exploring the app to build objects to be printed in order to be ready to create their groups’ animal next week.

The other exciting thing Fourth Graders got to do this week was to speak to an actual Australian… in Australia! On Friday, students got to Skype with my cousins Adam and Millie Hamilton. It was great to hear the accent, that native Australian Millie has, and compare it to the Irish accent of Adam. Students got to ask them lots of questions, most of which were about animals. Adam shared the money they use and the students were fascinated that it was so colorful and made from plastic. So much fun!

Beekeepers

Fourth Graders got to become junior beekeepers this week! The ladies from CABA, the Charleston Area Beekeeper Association, invited the Fourth Graders to join them in opening up our observation hive to check on the health of our bees. They are checking on the stores of honey, the presence of hive beetles and verroa mites, and the strength of the queen. This was an amazing experience for our junior beekeepers! Fourth graders learned that the bees stay calm if you stay calm and they became confident about being near the bees, with and without the suits on. Our hive is happy and healthy and we have four new panels inside for the bees to fill up again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Important Dates:

• Tuesday, Feb. 28 – Field Trip, Peter and the Starcatcher 9:30-11:30
• March 6 – Student Led Conferences, Half Day, 11:30 Dismissal
• March 7 – Student Led Conferences, Half Day, 11:30 Dismissal