A Rotten Log Experiment, and Seeds

While doing my blog hopping one day, I came across a really cool website called The Dinner Garden. This site promotes growing your own garden, to help end hunger. They will send you free seeds, upon request. If you can donate to their site to help cover shipping, they do appreciate it. Their requests have gone way up this year. If you have a large bounty, the idea is that you will share your bounty with those in need. I think it is a great concept.

As promised here is the rotten log experiment. First we had to find a rotten log to place somewhere in our yard. We did that, and it has been placed. You have to leave it in the same place, and make observations for the next month, or more. Please make sure your husband is aware not to move it so he can mow there ahem Craig. Then you discuss what your students think will happen to the log. Will it disappear into the ground, do nothing, rot more, what? What about underneath, and other living things? DJ and Caitlin decided it would indeed rot more, bugs would eat it, and bugs or other critters would live in, and on it. When I asked them what they thought about under the log, neither were real sure. So that is what we will be investigating. Be sure to check at least once a week, and discuss your findings, and observations. This is a cheap, like free, and fun Science experiment that anyone can do.

The video below can be for all age ranges. DJ will be using tomorrow for Science to cover deserts, and Caitlin will be using it for her desert habitat lesson.

Lesson Plans For 04/06/10:

DJ:
Sign Language: Occupations
Science: Deadly Deserts, and The Lake Trip a lesson in recycling and being green
Math: Addition, subtraction, beginning measurement
Vocabulary
Language Arts: Drawing conclusions, root words, homophones
Reading: Read chapters 12-15 of Black Beauty with summary

Caitlin:
Reading: Where is Zot
Sign Language
Printing Practice
Math: Number counting, and match
Draw the missing parts
Sequencing
Animal Habitat: Desert Animals
Phonics: See, say, read, and write
Site Words
Flash Cards

Easy Digestive Discoveries Health Experiment

We were supposed to do this on Thursday, and I completely forgot it. So, we did it last night. This is easy, and it could be used for Health class to explain digestion, or for a Science experiment. I am going to tell you how to do it. What you need: small piece of cooked lean beef, bottle with a screw top, dark cola. Place the beef in the bottle. Pour cola into the bottle. Screw on the lid, to seal the cola, and meat. Observe the cola, and meat for one week. Do not open the bottle during this time. Then discuss the following questions. Do you think that meat is easy to digest? What other foods might be easier for your body to digest? With what other foods could you do this experiment.

Here are some basics about the digestion process. Your digestive system works to break down foods you eat. While you chew, and swallow foods, different acids in your saliva, and stomach work to break down the foods. Acids break down protein that is found in meat. The experiment above will allow you to observe how the meat you eat, is broken down, or digested.

Let me know if you do this, and how your kids liked it. To view the cute video on digestion, check my archives from last week.

Lesson Plans for 10/13/09:

DJ:
Science: Plants and animals of the past
Language Arts: Commas, prefixes, homographs
Spelling/Vocab: Look up the definition for each word, write each word two times each
Math: Division, place value, rounding numbers
Cursive Writing
Reading Comprehension: worksheet

Caitlin:
Alphabet book: Letter S
Reading: HOP Tag
Site words
Printing practice
Science: Plants and animals
Biggest/smallest: worksheet
Math: Numbers