Our lessons for Week 3 celebrated the power
of wind. We began by discussing the benefits of wind on hot days to cool us. We
also discussed wind power as a natural source of energy and presented images of
wind turbines. Students shared their experiences with unusually strong winds,
tornadoes, and especially hurricane winds, just in the wake of Hurricane Irene
along the East Coast. We also watched a short segment from a Cyberchase
episode: the characters worked together to create a wind gauge that allowed them
to determine the location with the strongest wind speeds. Students then created
their own wind gauges and had the benefit of light winds outside to see the
gauges move from "0" to "2" and "3". Students
recorded this information on a diagram that they will use throughout the month
to gauge local wind speeds. Below are examples of weather vanes, kites, pinwheels and whirligigs that the students created this week.
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| Group photo with weather vanes! |
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| Aidan |
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| Joel |
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| Issyah |
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| Jayda |
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| Leila and Nicole |
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| Alexa |
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| Sam |
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| Jessica |
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| Leila |
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| Max |
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| Sydney |
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| Leila |
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| Max |
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| Alexa |
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| Joel |
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| Alexa |
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| Jessica's completed whirligig |
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| Emerson |
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| Jessica and Aidan |
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| Joel |
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| Jessica |
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| Sam with holes! |
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| Aidan |
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| Leila |
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| Nicole (background) |
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| Nicole designing her pinwheel |
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| 2 pinwheel designs (right, Alexa) |
Some interesting notes:
1. The Chinese used kites approximately
2,500 years ago as a form of technology: during war, kites were used to spy and
also to send messages.
2. Students visited the computer lab to
research Chinese kites. Many students printed images of the kites they enjoyed
to inspire their own designs.
3. The kites do fly!!! Wind required :)
4. Pinwheels can be airborne if a cork is
pinned under them (we used balls of model magic). Simply hold the pinwheel
facing the sky and toss upward. Watch it twirl back down to the ground
(unfortunately, if the pinwheel segments are flattened, it will not
work).
5. The students’ weather vanes are both
beautiful and functional! Set in the ground with the arrow facing north to
determine which way the wind is blowing. Thin dowels placed inside straws allow
for the movement of the weather vane. They are not weather proof however, so to
enjoy them consider placing your child's weather vane in a flower pot filled
with soil on a porch.
6. The whirligigs will look terrific in a window or
on a porch too! They have a wonderful calming effect, watching them twirl in
the breeze.
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