We kicked off our school year in my favorite way: The Spaghetti Marshmallow Tower Challenge. The students worked collaboratively in pairs to build a tower out of a handful of dry spaghetti and marshmallows.
Everyone communicated very well as they suggested and tested their ideas. This activity is certainly an enjoyable way to practice thinking like a scientist.
Afterward, we recorded the students reflections about what worked or didn't work:
'Keeping big marshmallow for last didn't work.'
'Not good to put more weight on top.'
'Cutting marshmallows in half was good.'
'Marshmallow melt from heat from hands.'
'Good to make a strong bottom.'
'Triangles were good.'
'Tall, thin tower didn't stand up.'
'Spaghetti breaks easily.'
'Weight needs to be same on all sides.'
That's a lot of scientific thinking that I look forward to exploring more deeply as our inquiries continue.
We also spent time this week introducing several of the digital tools we will be using. Our Kidblog, Twitter, and more are linked to our class Wiki. Please visit to share your thoughts and comments!
A very important task we completed was discussing and choosing our class name. We are 'Uniters'. I am excited to explore the theme of Unity with the class throughout the year.
jies.jp
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