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I picked this site because it was very fun and colorful! There were moving diagrams to show how the planets rotate around the sun as well as interactive games. There was information on the solar system as a whole as well as links to each of the planets and the planets' moons. Very educational! I would use this in my classroom as a center on the computer. I would have different centers set up around the room for the children to explore, and this would be an interactive website that would offer information to the students.

This YouTube video is a 25 minute episode of the Magic Schoolbus. In this episode, the class takes a field trip into outerspace. They travel around the sun and to each planet. I picked this video because I always loved The Magic Schoolbus series. They keep children's attention but are very educational as well. I would definately use this video in my classroom. After a long week of studying the planets and solar system, I could play this on a Friday to wrap up the unit.

During this activity students will complete a worksheet (that is attached on the bottom of the website) where they will gather information about each planet. I like that the information that is needed to complete the worksheet is quite extensive compared to other worksheets. This webquest could be used as a lesson one day to break up the tediousness of sitting in a desk and reading from the book. I like that it incorporates technology in the classroom by allowing students to use computers.

While navigating through the website, students will be able to obtain knowledge on our solar system and all of the planets involved. Each planet has its own page of information. I like this website, because you can have the students use technology (the computers) and team work to find all of the information on each of the planets. I would have pairs of students receive one planet, and then sharing to the class about their information (This would help the kinesthetic learners) Also, there is a short 4 minute video that is called the "The Solar System Song" which has information about each planet. I would use this after the students all shared their information on what they learned on their planet. By sharing this video it incorporates technology, review and for those visual learners a small video to help them remember planets. There is also a planet quiz on the website as well as links to the stars and moons pages.

I like the idea of this matching game, however I would take the time to make the cards out of construction paper and laminate them so that the students could use them at their desks instead of having to be at the computer. I would also probably add more descriptions and have each planet as an answer two or even three times, just to make the game more challenging and show that the student has proficient knowledge over the material that has been covered in class.

Nice job considering modifications you would make.

LAB - Pig Dissection: This is an illustrated power point presentation that guides students through the dissection of a fetal pig. It includes identification of all external and internal features and structures. A great hands on activity for biology students learning about the body systems, I selected it for its practical applications and because the pig model closely simulates the human systems. Well labeled and extremely detailed.

This process is called 'capillary action'. In this experiment you will need a little bit of time. You need a minimum of two glasses, one filled with water and the other one empty. You then will twist a paper towel and form a 'rope' out of it. You will place this in the glass with water in it. You will also place the other end of it in the empty glass. If you do this in the morning first thing when the students get there you could check on it at lunch and maybe a gain before you leave for the day, either way this takes time. You cant start this right before science. What happens is the water travels up one side of the paper towel, across the cups, and down into the other cup until both glasses are evenly filled. This shows students how water is capable of travel. It also is a bridge into talking about how root systems work in plants. What the students will be able to observe throughout the day is the same process plants use when they take water from the soil and carry it to the other parts of the plant. I would do this as an all day thing. Maybe between every subject, or every other subject, I would have them record observations in their journal. This is great for observational skills. You can even use more cups and put food coloring in them, this helps you track the water as it goes from cup to cup.

Join the Saint Louis Astronomical Society as the host public star parties at the Science Center on the first Friday of each Month! This resource is an excellent, not-to-mention free, field trip opportunity for students to get up close and personal with our solar system. This weather permitting event is open to the public and allows the student to visually explore the stars through telescopes while also having the opportunity to ask the St. Louis Astronomical Society any questions they may have. This field trip opportunity, if not allowed to travel as a class, is a great resource to share with parents to extend their students learning process. In addition, this website includes nightly sky updates that can be shown via a projector in class, as well as, Astronomy facts of the day.The Saint Louis Science Center would prove to be a great field trip experience during my planet or constellation lessons.

Interactive website to help develop kids in the subject of astronomy.

This website has several information about the solar system and space. It could be useful to both the teacher and students. For teachers, it has a lot of useful information to use while planning/presenting a lesson. For the students there are several different links to play game and learn about the solar system and space.

This is a lab activity where the students cut out the shapes of the planets and hang them from string making a solar system mobile. I chose this source because I like the hands on learning aspect it brings to the classroom.

This is a hands-on activity that allows students to grasp the idea of how far the planets are from each other and from the sun. The activity starts by having the students perform simply mathematics to convert the distance in astronomical units to centimeters. I really like that the students have to perform this task themselves and that it incorporates mathematics into the science lesson. After determining each planets distance from the sun, the students use color beads on a string to show each planets distance from the sun.

Love the science/math integration!

This site has a ton of neat ideas about space, the sun, earth, the complete solar system, technology used, and a site for parents and teachers. This is a site that kids could get on in the classroom during free time because it is kid friendly and would keep their attention. The different activities are labeled by "Explore" which contains facts, videos, and pictures, "Do" which has activities, books, and coloring pages, and "Play" that has a vast amount of games, puzzles, and quizzes all revolving around space. I think that students would stay engaged with this site and want to keep playing. Not only would they be playing games, but also learning about space

This looked like a great free app that can be used on an ipad or iphone. You can look at the sky in a 3D or 2D form. It shows the star consolations in relation to the planets. This would be a great app to use when learning about the solar system and the stars. The app is free and it gets great reviews. This would be a good way to integrate technology into the curriculum.

I have the star walk App, which is not free. This looks Iike a good free alternative, with perhaps fewer ways to get "lost" in space with zooming in on objects, a good thing for younger students!

This is a game based on the Digestive system of the body. Digestive health is important, especially for young adolescents. I chose this game as a way to allow the students to practice and review the different parts and functions of the Digestive system.

This website can be used for children K-5. It is very interactive, and gives a lot of information about the solar system, different planets, etc. It is very kid-friendly in that aspect. I can definitely see myself using this website for students in my future classroom! I like how it includes a YouTube video on the main page. I would use this as an introduction to the lesson, or something similar to get my students engaged and ready to learn about astronomy! The best part of all is that this website is FREE!

This movie visually explains the how hurricanes form and their movement. The movie defines "low pressure systems" and "tropical depression" that a student would hear a meteorologist use in a forecast. This movie could be used to introduce a lesson on storm systems that occur. I chose this BrainPOP movie because it seems as though students love the visual and retain the information given from BrainPOP.

SC.E.1.2.3 Students know that our Sun is a star and that the energy of the Sun can be captured as a source of heat and light on Earth (e.g. plants, solar panels) Students will have a basic understanding of the vocabulary words sun, solar system, star, planet, asteroid, comet, orbit, axis.

"Monster Physics" is an app that allows the user to create and test his/her own machine using a variety of devices such as wheels, propellers, ropes, etc. After the user invents a machine, he/she is able to test it to see if it works. So, not only does this app allow students to create their own system, but it allows them to evaluate the effectiveness of their creation as well. I chose this app because it looks child-friendly and can easily be used for students to explore different mechanisms that I may not have readily available. Also, this app lets them create a device which may require too much time or space if attempted within the classroom. I would allow students to use this app during a rotation time or if they finish their assignment early in order to further their knowledge of mechanical systems as well as enhance their critical thinking skills.

StudyJams is a website sponsored by Scholastic that has a plethora of math and science (not to mention free) activities. Most topics have a video or slide show to present the information as well as a test so that the student (or teacher, if formatively assessing) can see how well they have retained the information. My cooperating teacher during my second block introduced me to StudyJams. The reason I selected this resource is because I have seen this site in action and it really does engage the students. I do not see this site being as frequently visited as it was in my cooperating teacher's classroom (which was about everyday). However, I think the short videos and review tests are great ways to grab the interests of my students.

Is there a particular science topic on StudyJams you would recommend?

The students are studying Animal Classification Systems they will make a "foldable" that would help them practice seeing and using the 8 levels of classification. After teaching the students about the 8 different levels of classification, I would have the students each choose a mammal and have them fill out this "foldable" to help them see and use the classification system because there are scientists out there who have the job of classifying animals in real life. This is a great way for the students to be little scientists and take this boring concept and make it their own!