Tinkering to Learn About Energy- How can I demonstrate energy transfer between objects and energy changing forms through a chain reaction machine?
Cardboard Engineering- How can we use cardboard to make a fun ball-roll box game for 1-4 players?
Kindergarten Explores Properties of Materials to Solve A Problem
Kindergarten students using the "Eyes and Tools of A Scientist" to observe deeply and ask, "what else?"
Fourth grade is inspired to cook with ulu (breadfruit) after a visit to Noho'ana Farm in Waikapū- ulu fries are yummy!
Fourth Grade uses Arts Integration Strategies to demonstrate understanding of earth changes at plate boundaries.
Second Grade uses oil pastels to bring the pollination story to life!
Calling all Kindergarten engineers... Crate a device that will allow you to communicate with someone across the room...
Arts Integration in STEA2M... checking for understanding using tableau.
Reflection in STEAM is essential to both student understanding and teacher evaluation of students’ learning. Reflecting helps students make connections, understand their successes and failures, and become aware of their learning. Reflections help teachers identify where different students are in their learning process.
Reflecting helps students process and organize their learning. As they reflect, students observe how successful they have been during an activity. Then, they work to identify what they learned from their experience. The reflection process gives students time away from the social and fast-paced nature of group work to think critically about their role in their own learning.
Many STEAM lessons and activities are collaborative in nature. Collaborative work supports and motivates students, but it can be difficult to identify how well each student is progressing in a group setting. Individual reflections help educators accurately monitor each student’s progress and guide future instruction.
After reflecting, students often gain a deeper understanding of the content because teachers are able to ask questions that prompt critical thinking that can only be accomplished after the main activity has been completed. Reflecting also helps students identify connections to previous learning.
Reflecting helps students process and organize their learning. As they reflect, students observe how successful they have been during an activity. Then, they work to identify what they learned from their experience. The reflection process gives students time away from the social and fast-paced nature of group work to think critically about their role in their own learning.
Many STEAM lessons and activities are collaborative in nature. Collaborative work supports and motivates students, but it can be difficult to identify how well each student is progressing in a group setting. Individual reflections help educators accurately monitor each student’s progress and guide future instruction.
After reflecting, students often gain a deeper understanding of the content because teachers are able to ask questions that prompt critical thinking that can only be accomplished after the main activity has been completed. Reflecting also helps students identify connections to previous learning.
STEA2M is Science Literacy- Come to Pōmaika'i Literacy Night and Check it Out!
First grade students are joined by their 4th grade buddies who served as "scribes" to record student questions from a photo prompt. We will use these student questions about light to guide our STEAM learning. Check out our video of this session on Vimeo- https://vimeo.com/318127066?activityReferer=1
Grade 3 is thinking about Weather and Climate- how can we build a tool to measure and monitor the weather ?
Science and Art meet through Engineering Design at Artist in Me Night, 2018
Students and their families stopped by our Pollen exploration Table in Bldg. E to observe pollen under the microscope and build and test a hand pollinator tip.
Draw the Line on Climate Change!
Mrs. Ranken and some Pomaika'i students participated in the Blue Planet Foundation's efforts to spread the word about rising sea levels around the world.
In Kahului, the lower portion of Keopuolani Park will be covered by sea water by the end of THIS century, according to the most current scientific projections.
Mahalo to Jackson, Holden, Nate and Anela for showing you care about the earth!
In Kahului, the lower portion of Keopuolani Park will be covered by sea water by the end of THIS century, according to the most current scientific projections.
Mahalo to Jackson, Holden, Nate and Anela for showing you care about the earth!
Grade 1 Challenge: Design and Build a Package that will keep a Plant healthy, with no care, over the whole Spring Break.
Challenge Accepted- our designs go into the garden on March 16....
" Was my Plant Package Effective? Our plants come out on March 27- 11 days later!!
A Gallery from our STEAM Weather Unit- don't forget to take a look UP sometime!
What's the Weather?- Grade 3 getting breezy in STEAM!
Scientist Record Observations and Make Evidence-Based Claims
During our first lesson blocks, we examined the text of local weather reports and identified what parts make up the weather. We considered density, pressure and temperature and how these phenomenon interact to influence our weather.
Data Analysis is an Important Math Application for Science |
Our grade three families completed an online weather survey designed to give us information about how important the weather is to our community. We used the raw data from the survey questions to create visual representations demonstrating the conclusions from the survey results. We will use the information to move ahead with our question, What IS the Weather?
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Effective Peer Feedback- makes us better scientists and better communicators!
Electrical current travels in a circuit and can do work!
Magnetic Force in Grade 4
How can we "see" the invisible magnetic force? What do the patterns made by iron filings over a magnet tell us about the strength of magnetic forces? Can we create a magnetic force using electrical current and measure its strength?
Our School Garden is Tasty!
follow the link below to see a post featuring a taste of summer from our garden!
mrankenstems.blogspot.com/2017/08/see-what-garden-made-this-summer.html
STEAM-Y Teacher Summer Vacation!
Mrs. Ranken spent a few weeks this summer exploring the woods and rivers in the Upper Delaware River Valley between New York and Pennsylvania. There were so many opportunities to view wildlife and enjoy the peace of nature. I even got to stop at the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco on the way home where there was an exhibit about the Summer of Love!
Grade One designs packages for protecting and preserving plants during transport.
During the Design phase of the Engineering Design Process, our package engineers share ideas about how the package will meet all the needs of the plant which will be inside, with no care, for three days.
We were surprised to find that a garden friend had moved into our flowers while they waited in the garden to be placed in the student-designed and built packages!
When the Create phase of the Engineering Design Process was complete, we had a variety of plant packages designed in answer to the question, "How can I design and build a plant package that will keep a plant healthy for three days with no care?"
Grade 3 and the Tiger Rescue Problem
How can we use our understanding of simple machines and magnetic force to design and build a tiger rescue process that will be effective and safe for the tiger?
STEAM Lab goes into the Field- Keālia Pond, NWR
Grade 4 field scientists went to Keālia Pond, NWR on March 2, 2017. As part of studies about Hawaiian watersheds students collected data on water quality at three points near the boardwalk area. Areas sampled included the Seawater outflow, where the ocean "receives" water from the watershed filtered through the pond; the Tidal Wash area where outflow from the pond meets inflow from high tide; and Inside Pond where the watershed empties from Waikapu stream and other freshwater sources. Mrs. Ranken facilitated a discussion about why field ecologists would want to compare water quality parameters from different locations within the estuary.
Although our day was cut short due to heavy rain, the students were able to share their data with the entire grade level and use it to spot patterns within systems, discuss challenges faced by field scientists and relate cause and effect through various environmental scenario reflection questions.
Although our day was cut short due to heavy rain, the students were able to share their data with the entire grade level and use it to spot patterns within systems, discuss challenges faced by field scientists and relate cause and effect through various environmental scenario reflection questions.
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New Dry Erase Surface for STEAM Room Work Tables! |
Thanks to a generous donation from DonorsChoose.org, our STEAM Team tables in B-10 have a dry erase surface! Now students can share ideas, design prototypes and get those creative juices flowing! We want to use our science notebooks to record he process we follow and data we generate, but sometimes it is easier to get everyone's ideas out when there isn't any pressure to come up with a permanent idea!
Grade 3 was the first grade to try out the new surface as they prepared for an upcoming trip to Waihe'e Coastal Refuge.
Grade 3 was the first grade to try out the new surface as they prepared for an upcoming trip to Waihe'e Coastal Refuge.
https://www.donorschoose.org/Mrs.Ranken
February 2017- Grade 3
EQ: How do engineers use knowledge of properties of materials to help design solutions to problems?
Grade 3 student engineers tackle an initial building challenge: Use a wheel and axle to move a load.
his is the first time the students have used the VEX kits along with the Autodesk Inventor iPad application together to follow a build blueprint.
This step builds on the students' emerging proficiency with the VEX materials and the functionality of the App.
The work of engineers includes collaboration and this STEAM Team is modeling how we support our peers and contribute out ideas even when it is not our turn to manipulate materials.
Way to Go!
his is the first time the students have used the VEX kits along with the Autodesk Inventor iPad application together to follow a build blueprint.
This step builds on the students' emerging proficiency with the VEX materials and the functionality of the App.
The work of engineers includes collaboration and this STEAM Team is modeling how we support our peers and contribute out ideas even when it is not our turn to manipulate materials.
Way to Go!
December 2016- Grade 5
EQ: How can we design an oil spill clean up process that will be most effective for removing oil and have the least negative impact on the ecosystem?
pH value is used as an indicator of environmental health. Here, student environmental engineers use digital pH meters provided by a donation from Donors Choose ( https://www.donorschoose.org/Mrs.Ranken) along with the classic technology of limus paper strips and compare pH values from samples using both techniques.
Materials were tested for use as boom (contain the oil spill) and removal tools. Students used their data and observations about each material to design the Oil Spill Clean-Up process which was then scored and evaluated for improvement.