WHEN WE PUT OUR IDEAS TOGETHER, OUR IDEAS GET EVEN BETTER



PreK Students proudly show their structure that they worked together to complete.



The current focus of our PS-K Think Tank classes are on the  Habit of Mind "Thinking Interdependently"

We've called it " Working Together" or "Sharing Ideas"  this skill is a tough one for kids to master. ( Hey, it's a tough one for adults too!)

We began our work with this by learning from the classic character Horton in Dr. Suess' series of books. Horton exemplifies kindness, caring and friendship. Students talked about how they could be a good friend when working with others and from there we put it to the test.

The challenge? Each group was given ONE set of materials ( Legos) and had to work together to complete ONE final piece. They were given progressively more difficult challenges-- from freebuild something with one moving part to create a seasaw that balances. It was amazing to watch the students figure out how to complete the task and simultaneously navigate the difficulties of sharing materials and ideas.

 The first moments were filled with " That's my piece!" ringing through the room, but with a little guidance and refocus, students began to share, use kind words and truly work together!

In Kindergarten, we even took a "train tour" of all of the work accomplished when we put our ideas together. Just listen to the kids' excitement!

Students noticed that not only was the outcome of their project more interesting and creative, but they were happier doing it!

Great job young thinkers!
-Mrs. Ford

Spotlight on Maury Engineers!




Ms. Scott's class test their Straw Rockets!

As I'm sure many of you have heard, we are "A World in Motion"! Through a generous grant from the GM Foundation and the Society of Automobile Engineers, all of our students are becoming engineers!

While you might be used to seeing lots of finished work or products posted around the school showing all of our exciting Think Tank and Science activities, this unit is a bit different. Students are partaking in the "Engineer Design Experience" where they are constantly working to solve problems and perfect their specific designs. For this reason, the best way to share what we are doing is through pictures AND videos! Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more pictures showing their progress!

 4th Grade Engineer Design Teams:
  

Students carefully cut out the hull for their Skimmer models.



3rd Grade students begin (safely) testing out a variety of Straw Rocket models. Does the length of the rocket matter? What about the diameter of the rocket? Which travels farthest? Which travels in a straight line? They are exploring all of these concepts!



In "Engineering Inspired by Nature", 2nd grade students look at different seed dispersal methods and work to design toys using various methods. Their toys will work like helicopters and parachutes but include important observations about size, weight and surface area.

Before being given a template for the helicopter, students tried to make something that fell in the same way as a maple seed.

Does a helicopter with one or three paperclips stay in the air the longest?

Recording data

Kindergarten and 1st Grade students explore Rolling Things. In these challenges they determine the impact that weight and ramp height have on the movement of an object.



Ms. Kelly's Class is ready to "Crash and Bash"!

 

Mrs. Dorsey's students also "Crash and Bash"

 I also have exciting news to share! You may have noticed the "TRAINING AREA" marked the end of the 1st floor hallway. This space will be used by Maury 5th graders to design the best JetToy cars they can. Through an in-house competition, four Maury 5th graders will fly to Detroit, Michigan to compete in SAE's 7th Annual JetToy Competition in April! Stay tuned for more pictures, videos and information about this particular challenge  in the coming days.

If you are an engineer, find any of these activities particularly exciting or just want to support our students and have the time, please email me and come volunteer on any of our Think Tank days!

Until next time,
Mrs. Ford

2nd Annual Maury Think Tank and Science Expo in Pictures: PART I

Future DC Beekeepers? I think so!

THANK YOU to the over 200 people who came out from the Maury community and surrounding DC schools to support the 2nd Annual Maury Elementary Think Tank and Science Expo! While not all are accounted for on the sign-in sheet below, I love that most kids wrote ( or tried to write!) their own names upon entering. Look at all those thinkers!

We had so many wonderful organizations volunteer at our event and share their expertise. Organizations included: Living Classrooms, DDoE and Junior Duck Stamp Program, National Capitol Astronomers, DC Beekeepers, District Crossfit, Labyrinth Puzzles and Games, The Anacostia Watershed Society, DC Water (featuring Wendy the Waterdrop!), Casey Trees , Engineering is Elementary,  The National Science Foundation and GLOBE program, The National Science Teacher's Association, The Optical Society of America,  Physiotherapy Associates: Capitol Hill. In addition, a special thank Hyde-Addision Science teacher Kelly Meschari for sharing the event with her school community and Suzanne Wells for publisizing through the Capitol Hill Public School Parent's Associaton. Because of both of these collaborative efforts, we had families represented from schools all over the District!

Shirt says it all! Toni Burnham from DC Beekeepers!

Upon entering the Expo, visitors recieved the following floor plan. This helped guide them to each of the amazing activities available and they could check off as they went. Not only does this help for those of us who need a little organization to see everything, but it adds a "professional" feel to the event making students feel as if they are visiting a fascinating conference!

 

The best way to speak to the learning, thinking and FUN that was had by all is to share pictures from our resident volunteer photographer, Elizabeth Nelson. Interestingly, I  emailed families today in hopes that many others took pictures I could share. All respondents noted something to effect of " I took this one picture but then we got so into the expo that I forgot to take more!". While that leaves us with fewer pictures, I think it is a testament to the purpose of the evening-- to Learn, Play and Think WITH your child!  That being said, I'm still waiting to see if anyone has pictures from some of our stations including the AMAZING laser show and DC Water with Wendy the Water Drop!

So here are the wonderful pictures we do have, in no particular order. Enjoy!

Looking at the Moon with National Capitol Astronmomer Guy. F. Brandenburg

Jay Miller prepares his station for the thinkers about to descend!

Maury Mom, Jessica Robin and National Science Foundation/GLOBE program representative prepares her station with lots of swag!

Living Classrooms had so many hands on activities for kids to complete including bridge structures!

DDeO and Junior Duck Stamp Program set up for the masses! They had make- your-own bird feeders!

Even teachers waited to see Jupiter in the clear ( COLD!) night sky!

Toby Ratcliff from NSWC and partnering with Engineering is Elementary speaks with Maury parent while a PreK student tests submersibles. Does it float or sink??

Owner of Labyrinth Puzzles and Games, Kathleen Donahue, explains one of her great games to students and a station volunteer. I'm even there in the background wrangling in another volunteer!

Who knew it was so hard to make straw bridges? These great thinkers were not deterred!

Maury 3rd Grader learns from experts at Living Classrooms.

Swag? YES PLEASE!

The line develops behind the "Pink Candy Scope" which had a perfect shot of Jupiter!

Parents get in on the amazing sight ( and then go back to volunteering ushering folks to and from the location!)

Can you suspend 6 nails from the head of one? This PreK student used his picture and math smarts to do just that! (And just look at that huge bag of goodies collected at all the other stations!)

Leaf rubbings with Casey Trees!

Perplexus! A favorite. This game is great for strengthening the Habits of Mind dispostion PERSIST!

Community members and students from surrounding schools get in on the action!

Explaining the NASA symbol

John McLaughlin from the GLOBE program leads students of all ages in creating their own clouds.

Engineering is Elementary station testing out ocean submersibles. Maury is thrilled to be a pilot school for this program over the next two years!

Chris Lemieux from the Anacostia Watershed Society chats with Lisa Goode from the Office of Early Childhood Education at DCPS

Day or Night? A great game for strengthening spatial sense for young children!

Students and Families made names tags that had a picture of their best "SMART" on it for all to see!

Games for all ages from Labyrinth.

Judy Thomas, staff person from Labyrinth teachers a game to 1st grader.

District Crossfit teachers about the science behind physical fitness!

Working together at Kataminos

Origami with parent and origami expert ( and Maury mom) Naomi Griffin. Ms. Sweeney helped here too!

Straw Bridges bring in more dedicated builders. Do you see anyone starting to use a special "strong" shape?

Learning to make bird feed with DDoE. Can you see DC Water's Wendy the Waterdrop in the background??

Jessica Robin engages young learners!

The National Science Foundation and GLOBE were extremely popular stations!

Hands on lerning with Living Classrooms

Dressed in beekeeper gear working with a real hive!

Labyrinth Game stations were always busy

Look at the balance!

Q-B-MAZE!

District Crossfit workout!

Keep it up! Notice the parent AND student leading the session! Fitness can be a family affair!

Learning about trees with Casey Trees!

"Wendy theWater Drop" joined us! She is the mascot of DC Water! If you haven't checked out DC Water's amazing video " A Drop's Life" go here to see it!

Look at that concentration!

Closely examining some goodies!

Principal Albert-Garvey welcomes families with parent volunteers at the event Welcome Table!

More beekeeping!

I'm not sure it's possible for  to love my job more than I already do, but seeing the turnout and community support for events like this make my teacher heart grow! Thanks to all and stay tuned for even more pictures as they come in.

Happy Thinking!
- Mrs. Ford