Quaking Marshmallows

Earthquakes change the land quickly!  Can a structure created from toothpicks and marshmallows survive a 15 second, simulated earthquake?  We decided to find out.

Students were partnered and began designing their structure.  The only materials used to create the structure was marshmallows and toothpicks.  If any marshmallows remained, they could be eaten. :)  The goal was to have a standing structure, all intact, after the earthquake.

Three structures survived and three did not.  The teams with the surviving structures discovered that a strong foundation was important.  They also shared that a wide structure with support in the center, helped the structure survive.  Enjoy some of our photos from this experiment! 

The Art of Fractions

We have been studying fractions in math.  Did you know that fractions can be found in art?  Or, maybe it is the other way.  Did you know that art is about fractions?

The class learned how to draw a face today.  Take a look at a human face.  Where would you find the eyes?  Where would you draw the nose?  How about the chin?  Place a pencil under the chin and on top of the head; peek at the face.  The nose belongs in the middle, or 1/2, of the face.  We had so much fun connecting our math fractions to our art project!  Thanks Mr. Auman!

Class Tree

Arbor day will soon be here!  Happy (early) Arbor Day -- to occur on Friday, April 30!  Each class is adopting a tree on the Manhattan Catholic Schools campus.  This is the tree we selected!

We take daily walks around our school's block.  This little tree is located on the north side of the elementary building, and it looked like the perfect tree for our class to adopt.  We are doing a bit of investigation to determine what type of tree this is.  For now, we placed our name on the tree tag, and we are looking forward to "naming" or identifying our tree soon! 

First Communion

Our day was amazing!  It was such a special, and blessed day for our second grade students, as they received Jesus in the Eucharist -- for the very first time!  Students were excited, anxious, and happy to be invited to the Table of the Lord.  I truly wish I had more time to take more photos before Mass.  That time flew so quickly!  Enjoy some of these from our day! 

Bread Creations

We learned how to make bread!  Students were grouped by three's for wheat break making.  Students learned what yeast is and how yeast functions.  We learned that yeast is a living organism, and needs water and sugar to grow.  Students worked together to add ingredients, mix, and then knead their bread dough.  We divided the dough into three equal loaves.  Students learned how to shape and pinch their bread loaf.  Our amazing kitchen staff baked our bread.  A recipe was included with each student's loaf.  We hope that you enjoy our photos from this educational experience.  We are very grateful for Riley County K-State Research and Extension's partnership for this project!

Heavenly Host

We are three days away from our First Holy Communion!  The students are anxious and excited for this very special day.  Fr. Kerry came to visit us.  We learned so much about how hosts are made, and what we should be mindful of when we receive Jesus.  We also learned about consecration.  This is when the bread really becomes the Body of Jesus! 

Beautiful Banners

We are in full-swing preparation getting ready for First Communion!  This week we have been busy creating our pew banners.  Students created a chalice, stalks of wheat, and grapes for their pew banner.  A mom helper created hosts for each banner.  Another mom helper created names and ironed them onto each banner.  A third mom helper sewed ribbon across the banner top.  They are really starting to look amazing!  The photos with this blog show some of our in process work.  We are so excited for Sunday! 

Butterfly Life Cycle

Mrs. Johnson discussed the life cycle of a butterfly: egg, larvae, chrysalis, and butterfly.  The class went on a hunt for small sticks and leaves.  They created a mini representation of the life cycle in a petri dish.  Eggs were created from clay, and items were glued into the dish.  Spring is an amazing time of metamorphosis!

Corn Observations

We planted corn about 14 days ago, as of this blog post.  We left for Easter break, and returned to lots of changes in our plants!  Oh my goodness!  Our plants started with one root peeking out of each seed.  Our plants have transformed.  They have stems, and definite leaves on each stem.  We took a look today to see what we noticed about our plants.  We compared our plants with our plant partner.  Here is what we observed:

• My plant is greener than my partner's plant.
• My plant has longer roots, and is taller than my partner's plant.
• I only have three plants, and my partner has four plants.  Where is my other plant?
• My plants are shorter, and I saw that my plant was not as close to the sun.
• All of our plants are green, so that means they are healthy.
• My roots are growing out of the holes of my pot! 

Plant Doctor to the Rescue!

Plants get sick too!  Did you know there are doctors who can help plants?  It is true!  We met a plant pathologist - aka plant doctor - last week.  Dr. Jardine Zoomed into our class to teach us about photosynthesis, how to keep plants healthy, and clues to seek out if your plant is sick.  We also learned that plants get vitamins - or nutrients - from the soil.  We eat the plants, and then we get these vitamins to help our bodies grow.  Plant doctors are amazing!  We had great questions, such as: Can insects make plants sick?  Can animals hurt plants?  What happens if a plant is sick?  We loved learning about keeping plants healthy! 

Birthday Bon Voyage

We celebrated our final birthday today!  Oh my goodness!  How is it possible that every single student in my class is now 8?!  I have been telling the class that we want time to slow down, because after our year ends, they are not my class anymore.  

We were so excited to celebrate this special little lady today.  She told us all about her favorite things, including rice and beans!  We enjoyed donuts on her behalf.  Happy April birthday! 

Corn Seeds

We are growing in many ways!  We have been growing as second-graders.  We have also been growing seeds.  We have radishes and corn underway in our classroom.  The corn seeds were planted about 7 days ago, as of this blog post.  We have been watering our seeds each day, and making observations every other day.

Our seeds have all sprouted!  We discovered that seeds planted deeper in the soil take longer to sprout then the seeds planted closer to the soil surface.  We also discovered that some of our roots found the holes in the bottom of our pots, and are growing out of the holes.  We will continue to observe our corn seed growth.