ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

Hello everyone,

I hope you are all doing well! I want to thank everyone who participated in the 8 Gold Fiesta we had during PSSAs. Thank you so much! We are closely approaching the end of the school year, but we are not finished yet! Still, one last unit before the very end.

Below is a photo of our Taco 'Bout a Great Year bulletin board in our POD:

WHERE WE ARE:

We are just finishing our Weather & Climate unit and took our unit test today (their last test of the year). Starting tomorrow, we'll begin watching a David Attenborough documentary called "A Life on Our Planet," which focuses on our new STEELS standards related to human environmental impact. After we finish the documentary this week, next week we'll break up into 4 groups per class period and debate two essential questions from the documentary. Students will spend the first day gathering information and facts to support their debate stance (the Affirmative or Negative) for their debate question. On the second day, students will work with their group to share their research and prepare a speech for their debate. This will be a fun way to transition from our Weather & Climate unit into the Environmental Science unit.

WHERE WE ARE GOING:

After our debate, we will move into doing a mini-project focusing on a profile of these 11 regions of Pennsylvania: Great Lakes, Pennsylvania Wilds, Upstate PA, Pocono Mountains, Pittsburgh & Its Countryside, Laurel Highlands, The Alleghenies, Valleys of the Susquehanna, Dutch Country Roads, Lehigh Valley, and Philly & Its Countryside. Students will research components about the geology in the area, natural resources available, population, etc. All components will then lead to a discussion on human impacts on our environment in Pennsylvania and to figure out what might be best for the state's future. Each group for each region will represent that region in our class roundtable discussion to create a joint proposal for energy in PA. This will be a fun way to end the year focusing on our Sustainability and Stewardship/ Environmental Literacy standards related to Natural Resources and Human Impact on Earth Systems.

If you have any questions, please contact me (curtis_silverwood@conestogavalley.org) or follow Science With Silverwood on Instagram (@sciencewithsilverwood).

Thank you,

Mr. Silverwood

PSSA TESTING

Hello everyone,

I hope you are doing well! As a reminder, in 8th grade, students take the science PSSA. Students will take both test sections on Wednesday, May 1st. The test will cover topics such as Earth Science, Life Science, Physical Science, and Technology Education. I have not required students to do IXL to practice for the PSSA, but students can use the IXL lessons posted on my Schoology course to help refresh their knowledge in any subject area they don't feel comfortable with.

WHERE WE ARE:

Last week, students presented their Weather Preparedness PSA projects. They did a fantastic job! Those who did podcasts or videos included parents in their projects, and I'm beyond thankful to those who contributed their time! I love that! Now, on the days intermingled with PSSA testing, we have been focusing on the difference between Weather and Climate. We have done some activities to learn about climate zones and how they differ based on many factors.

BELOW ARE SOME VIDEOS FROM THIS YEAR'S PSA PROJECT

(Click the menu icon in the upper right-hand corner to see the other videos in this playlist)

WHERE WE ARE GOING:

Next, we'll examine global warming, the Greenhouse Effect, climate change, natural and man-made climate influencers, and ways of reducing human environmental impact. After we finish covering these topics, we'll begin review for our Weather & Climate unit test. During the review, I'm going to conference with students and do check-ins with them about missing work and what they need help with as we finish up the year and move into our final topics. My goal with the last month and some change of school is to ensure everyone feels confident moving into high school!

If you have any questions, please contact me (curtis_silverwood@conestogavalley.org) or follow Science With Silverwood on Instagram (@sciencewithsilverwood).

Thank you,

Mr. Silverwood

WEATHER PREPAREDNESS

Hello everyone!

I hope you are doing well! The year feels like it is flying by! I can't believe that PSSA testing is almost here. As a reminder, in 8th grade, students take the science PSSA. This year, the science PSSA is all new. It will have 25% Earth Science, 25% Life Science, 25% Physical Science, and 25% Technology Education. I have not required students to do IXL to practice for the PSSA, but students can use the IXL lessons posted on my Schoology course to help refresh their knowledge in any subject area they don't feel comfortable with.

WHERE WE ARE:

For the past two weeks, we focused on many weather-related factors. Check out some of the demonstrations we did in class on my Instagram page: www.instagram.com/sciencewithsilverwood.

This week, we had our Watching the Weather class discussion to finalize the Watching the Weather project, where students were making daily observations (without technology) of the sky conditions, temperature, humidity, wind speed/direction, and precipitation. We discussed weather patterns and trends they noticed over the past three weeks, and many students had great things to contribute to the discussion! They probably never focused that much on the weather before!

We have been looking at Weather Maps & Symbols as well. Students worked with partners on reading and analyzing different types of weather maps (some from a newspaper, some from the National Weather Service). They had a mini-quiz on this, and now we are looking at Severe Weather.

WHERE WE ARE GOING:

Students will be introduced to their Weather Preparedness - PSA Project as we move into Severe Weather. Students can work independently or in groups of up to 3 people for their severe weather public service announcement. Students will research one of five possible severe weather events (a tornado, hurricane, flood, drought, or blizzard) and give a 3-minute, no more than 5-minute presentation on their event, providing details on how to stay safe and be prepared for their event. Students will receive the rubric, be introduced to the project tomorrow (4/11), and have three full work days in class to complete their project. They can create a video, podcast, brochure, or slide presentation. Next week, students will present. After the presentations, we will move into the final part of our Weather & Climate unit. We'll focus on the difference between weather and climate, climate zones, and climate change.

BELOW IS AN EXAMPLE OF A GROUP'S PSA PROJECT FROM 2 YEARS AGO:

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me (curtis_silverwood@conestogavalley.org) or follow Science With Silverwood on Instagram (@sciencewithsilverwood).

Thank you,

Mr. Silverwood