Separating substances using AIR!

In Science we have been exploring ways to separate mixed solids using a variety of techniques. Yesterday we separated iron filings from popcorn kernels, coarse salt, sprinkles and sugar using magnets!

Today we experimented with air! We used a fan to create moving air that would separate the different solids. We used combinations such as popcorn kernels and flour, icing sugar and coarse salt, as well as, corn starch and sprinkles for our experiment. We even tried a variety of speeds on our fan to see if our results would be affected.

We learned that air can be an effective way to separate some solids, particularly the flour and icing sugar since they are such light, powdery substances

In the end we had a little fun, made a lot of mess, and learned a thing or two!

The Golden Garbage Can

These fantastic fifth graders won the Golden Garbage Can award for working hard to keep their classroom clean!

Way to go Gang!

What's a great way to learn something new? With music and movement! 

Here's our fifth graders learning about the 3 states of matter with a catchy tune! 

We had a wee bit o' fun on Thursday celebrating St. Patrick's Day and our new chemistry unit. We experimented with mixing color, adding colored vinegar to baking soda (with glitter since leprechauns love that sparkle) to see a colourful chemical reaction, and we made green sparkly non-newtonian fluid! 

Check out one of our fantastic fifth graders! We have a lot of artistic kids in our gang this year and Feodore is one of them. He was nominated as a featured artist for the month of February! His write-up can be viewed on the Grasslands website.

You can view his page directly at:

http://www.grasslands.ab.ca/Featured%20Student%20Artists.php

OR

From the Grasslands homepage, click on Grasslands Student Art Gallery under the "Quick Links" tab. If you scroll down you will see the link for featured artist.

He will also appear in next week's edition of the Brooks Bulletin.

Hi gang!

March is Nutrition Month!

The theme for Nutrition Month this year is “Find answers at healthyeatingstartshere.ca”. The Brooks Communities Choosewell committee is encouraging schools and families to participate in Nutrition Month activities.

 Below is an outline of the Nutrition Month activities that you can participate in!

Super Supper Photo Challenge
The Brooks Choosewell committee would like to encourage families to prepare and enjoy nutritious, delicious meals at home.   From March 6-12, 2017 submit photos of your supper/evening meal that your family has prepared to our Facebook page.  https://www.facebook.com/brookscommunitieschoosewell
Be sure your supper photo meets the following conditions:
 At least 3 of the 4 food groups
 A serving of a Dark Orange OR Dark Green Vegetable
 A serving low fat Milk or Milk alternative
 Must be prepared at home

Each photo that meets the conditions will be entered into a draw to win one free admission for your family to a Brooks Bandits game.   Send in as many family supper photos as you can to the maximum of 7 photos (7 days in the contest period).


 For meal ideas and suggestions, see the Nutrition Month resources.

Submit photos to the Brooks Communities Choosewell Facebook Page at: https://www.facebook.com/brookscommunitieschoosewell

Lunch Box Classroom Challenge (Grades K-6):
(Our class is going to be doing this one!)

 In participating classrooms, one food group will be secretly chosen for a ‘lunch box check’ in class, to see how many students have that food group.  There will be one random check each week during the 4 week challenge that runs from March 6 – 31, 2017. The day of the lunch box check will not be known by students and there will be a different food group for each ‘lunch box check’, so help your child pack a balanced, nutritious lunch as many days as you can.  Students can earn bonus points if they have all four food groups in their lunch during that week’s lunch box check.  Classroom teachers will tally up the number of students who brought (and ate) the chosen food group.  The winning classroom will receive a class program at Dinosaur Park or to the Brooks Gymnastics Club.

Some Great Nutrition Resources:

 The Moving and Choosing site: www.movingandchoosing.com, as well as the AHS site: www.healthyeatingstartshere.ca provide reliable, evidence-based information.

Other credible websites you can trust include:
www.dietitians.ca  (Dietitians of Canada)

http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/eating-nutrition/index-eng.php (Health Canada)

www.myhealth.alberta.ca

We hope that your family will be able to participate in as much Nutrition Month fun as possible.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Grasslands Wellness Facilitator Candice Buteau (candice.buteau@grasslands.ab.ca or 403-501-9750).
Sincerely,

Brooks Communities Choosewell Committee