TRY Lesson 2: The Parts of Trees

Will, Ben and Finn from CHMS returned yesterday to teach our students about the parts of trees.  They even had the opportunity to create costumes and act out the life cycle of a tree!  You can read below to see more information about the lesson taught:

Lesson 2: What makes a tree, a tree? In our lesson today we learned what sets trees apart from other plants. Trees have three main parts: woody stem, crown and roots. We also discovered the life stages of trees. Ask your child what makes a tree a tree and have him or her show you their tree costume! Tree Challenge: Do you want to know what the tree in your backyard provides? Check out the tree benefits calculator to see the economic and ecological benefits of your tree. Visit www.treebenefits.com/calculator/ to learn more!

Reminder: Shelburne Farms Field Trip

Shelburne Farms Field Trip

(Image Credit: https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2014/04/02/10/41/schoolbus-304249_960_720.png)

On Wednesday, third graders will be traveling to Shelburne Farms to explore Spring at the Pond & Forest, a hands-on link to our study of interdependence in Science.  We'll be leaving RES around 8:45 and returning around 2:00.  

Our plan is to be outdoors all day, so students should come prepared with the following:

• layers of clothing
• sneakers or sturdy shoes (no flip-flops or sandals)
• a snack
• a lunch from home (or let us know and we can order one from the cafeteria)
• a water bottle 
• sunscreen and/or bug spray (to be applied by your child)

We're looking forward to a day of outdoor learning at the Farms!

Chaperones:  Please plan to join us at school by 8:30.

Researching Issues within the Lake Champlain Watershed

Third graders have been learning about the Lake Champlain Watershed and its ecosystems during this bend, Organisms and their Environment, in our Interdependence Science Unit.

As our concluding work in this unit, we worked in small collaborative groups to research specific issues in the Lake Champlain Watershed.  The issues we researched include:

• Storm water runoff in developed and urban areas (pavement, storm drains, roofs)
• Storm water runoff in areas with agriculture and farms
• Invasive species spread by boats and fishermen
• Invasive species introduced by the canals
• Invasive species from gardens or pets

Our goal was for groups of students to design a project to communicate ecological issues of Lake Champlain's watershed, the causes of these problems and possible solutions with the community.

Here's a website with all of our projects: Lake Champlain Watershed Issues.

We hope you learn many ways that YOU can help protect Lake Champlain and its Watershed!

Echo Field Trip

Last week, we had the opportunity to visit Echo Leahy Center for Lake Champlain in order to further our learning about watersheds and the issues that impact them. First, we listened to a presentation from the Lake Champlain Basin program about invasive species in Lake Champlain, why they are troublesome, and what is being done and how we can help. Then, we helped to tell the story of Lake Champlain's history with fossils and artifacts. Did you know...that a beluga whale was found in Charlotte? How did it get to Vermont? We also built our own model of a watershed with a housing development, roads, a farm, and thought about ways we might be able to prevent the farm runoff from getting into our lake. We talked about impervious surfaces and absorbent surfaces, too.

 A HUGE thank you to the chaperones who helped us make this trip successful. Thank you, also, to Echo for providing us with this field trip (and the bus!) at no cost! (Third grade teachers took a class at Echo this summer to write the curriculum; Echo gave us a field trip as a thank you for helping to further develop the education program offerings at Echo.)

Huntington River in Review #ngss #fieldtrip

Last week, we visited the Huntington River at the Audubon Nature Center as part of our science unit about Interdependence and Organisms.  While at the river, groups of students completed three different activities.

At one station, students were working with Mrs. Ankerson to conduct a "BMI" (benthic macroinvertebrate) count of the Huntington River.  This required us to use our identification skills to determine which organisms we found in the river.  Photos of some of these organisms are in the slideshow.

At another station, students played a game with Mrs. Ayer to learn about the food chain within the Lake Champlain Basin.  Students were either algae, macroinvertebrates, or yellow perch.  During the game, students also learned about ways that the watershed can get polluted.  Some examples of pollution include dog poop, cow manure, road runoff, oil, etc.  We'll revisit this topic again later.

Finally, with Miss Darby, students spent time observing the environment in two ways.  First, they used their senses (sight, sound, touch, smell) and took notes of their observations.  Then, they drew a scientific drawing (accurately detailed with labels) of their surroundings.

A huge thanks to the Audubon for allowing us the opportunity to use their land for our field experience!  (Donations to the Audubon would be greatly appreciated!)