Feature Articles

In Writing Workshop, we continue to focus on feature articles. Each child chose a topic that they are intereseted in, and know a lot about. Within this topic, third grade writers chose two subtopics. Subtopics are smaller topics within the larger one that researchers want to focus on in their article.

They wrote paragraphs jam packed with information that will help us readers learn so much. They worked to include an interesting hook, specific, topic-related "technical" words, and a satisfying ending.

On Monday researchers chose the topic that they want to research to learn more about. It was exciting to see inquisitive brains at work as children developed questions they want to answer. Finally, they turned those questions into subtopics. As many researchers began taking notes yesterday, we learned about plagiarism. It's important that children learn not to copy exact sentences from their research. We practiced pulling out "fact fragments" - the most important words from a sentence that contain the chunk of meaning. This is a skill the children will be developing for years to come.

Ask your child to tell you the subtopic they decided to focus on and one fact fragment that they recorded about it yesterday.

Electricity

Third grade scientists are having such fun as they explore electricity. They have made a motor run using just two wires and a battery. Ask your scientist how they got the motor to spin in the opposite direction...

Lighting a small bulb using only a battery and two copper wires was tricky. All students were able to make the bulb light, and the process helped us realize that the light bulb and the battery have "critical contact points." These are points that must be connected in order to create a complete circuit.

The very bottom of the light bulb, (we call that the base terminal) must be touching (directly or through metal wire) the metal part of the top or base of the battery. This must be connected (directly or through metal wire) to the opposite end of the battery. The wire must be connecting with the metal side terminal.

Why is everything attached using so much metal? Your third grade scientists can tell you because we learned about conductors on Monday!

Atoms

Did you learn about atoms in third grade? Probably not. (I know I didn't!) Your children are! Last week, third grade scientists learned that the world around us is made up of matter. We also learned that matter is made up of atoms. Atoms are incredibly small. In fact, the period at the end of this sentence is made up of billions of atoms.

Above you can see the model of an atom. Challenge your third grade scientist with these questions about it:

What is the center of an atom is called? (The nucleus)
What is inside the nucleus? (Protons and neutrons)
What is moving around the outside of the nucleus. (Electrons)
Describe the charge of electrons and protons. (Electrons have a negative charge. Protons have a positive charge.)

Another test

Please work.

This is a new test.

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