Mr. Mathews

March 31, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

Today students began by copying their new vocabulary words, which I will post below in the homework section.  As they did that, I checked their agendas for the reading homework pages 360-366.  I took up their "Water Distribution" vocabulary homework from the weekend and we took a pre-quiz over the water cycle.  We then brainstormed "water cycle" and watched two short animations on the water cycle as an introduction to the topic.  With any remaining class time students began defining their vocabulary words.

Homework

Finish/start defining "Water Cycle" vocabulary from the back of the book.  Study for vocabulary quiz this Friday 4/4/08.  The vocabulary words can be found below:

water vapor, water cycle, evaporation, condensation, transpiration, and precipitation

Thank you very much,

Mr. Mathews

March 26, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

Today I passed out their tests from Chpt 5 Sec 1-2 and Chpt 6 Sec 1.  They then brainstormed all the ways we use water in our everyday life and pair shared their ideas.  I then did a demo of water distribution on earth.  We talked about the amount of water that most people use in one day and why its important to conserve it. 

Homework

Study/Review "Water Distribution" vocab words for 10 minutes and make sure the B.O.B. section is finished.  Students need to bring colored pencils, crayons, or markers to class tomorrow for extra credit.

Thank you very much,

Mr. Mathews

March 25, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

We had a last minute change of plans today due to 5th graders from Powder Springs Elementary being in the building.  Students simply worked on the Guided Reading Workbook pages 127-131 questions 1-33. 

Homework

Study/Review "Water Distribution" vocab for at least 10 minutes.  Make sure it is finished.  Bring colored pencils to class on Thursday, 3/27/08 for bonus points.

Thank you very much,

Mr. Mathews

March 24, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

I began class by passing out three different graded assignments including their vocabulary quizzes from 3/13/08 over Chpt 5 Sec 1-2.  Students then took 3 minutes to clean out their science notebooks of everything except dividers and blank paper.  I passed out the new syllabus, which will be attached at the bottom and discussed the new late work policy.  Students finally made a new vocabulary table using the following words: iceberg, glacier, aquifer, groundwater, permeable, impermeable, water table, saturated zone, wastewater, and desalination. 

Homework

Students are to finish the vocabulary table we started in class today with the words above.  They are only doing the definition from the back of the book.  The words iceberg and wastewater are going to have to be defined by some source other than the back of the book, such as the internet, dictionary, encyclopedia, or else where.

Download syllabus_4th_nine_weeks.doc - 4th nine weeks syllabus 

Thank you very much,

March 21, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

Students turned in Chpt 6 Sec 1 vocabulary words and were given 5 minutes to review for test.  They were then given 2 minutes to ask any questions about the test.  Finally, the students took the test.

Homework

Enjoy your evening

Thank you very much,

Mr. Mathews

Assignment from March 19th, 2008

Sorry for the delay.  We were having internet issues.  Either way, below you will find the front and back of the "Volcanoes and Plates" enrich sheet.  Thank you very much.

Download volcanoes_and_plates_front.pdf - Front side

Download volcanoes_and_plates_back.pdf - Back side

March 19, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

Students began as always by copying their homework in their agenda.  I then took up their vocabulary tables from chpt 5 sec 2.  We watched a BrainPop video on volcanoes which led us into a discussion over the Ring of Fire, island arcs, and hot spots.  I then passed out their homework which I will scan tonight and post tomorrow afternoon.  I also passed out their study guide for the test on Friday.  It is posted below. 

Homework

Finish "Volcanoes and Plates" Enrich sheet and study for Earthquake/Volcano (chpt 5 sec 1-2 and chpt 6 sec 1) test Friday 3/21/08

Download earthquakes_and_volcanoes_study_guide.doc - Test study guide

Again, the homework will be scanned in tonight and posted tomorrow afternoon. 

Thanks you very much,

Mr. Mathews

March 18, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

Students began as always by copying their homework in their agenda.  I discussed some issues concerning my blog site and late work and finally, passed out some graded papers.  When finished, I checked agendas for reading pages 178-181 from last night while students did the discover activity on page 178.  We discussed this together and talked briefly about a couple different types of volcanic eruptions.  We the went outside to demonstrate explosive volcanoes using alka seltzer tablets and film canisters.

Homework

Make sure vocab for chpt 6 sec 1 back of the book is complete and read or reread pages 178-181 if not already.  Also, spend 10 minutes reviewing vocab words. 

Students will test this Friday 3/21/08 over Earthquakes (chpt 5 sec 1-2) and Volcanoes (chpt 6 sec 1).  You are the first ones to find out about this. 

Thank you very much,

Mr. Mathews

March 17, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Classwork

Today students began by copying their homework in their agenda.  They finished their paragraphs describing the relationship between earthquakes and plate boundaries in Latin America.  When finished, on the same sheet, they answered the question "How do volcanic eruptions change the surface of the earth?"  This was to be answered in at least 3 sentences.  When finished, they defined the vocabulary from Chpt 5 Sec 2 in their own words.  If they had time left, they began their homework.

Homework

Students are to read pages 178-181 and have their parents sign their agenda showing that they did read.  Also, students are to make a new vocabulary table for those pages Chpt 6 Sec 1 and define them from the back of the book.  The words are: volcano, magma, lava, Ring of Fire, island arc, and hot spot.  DO NOT do the definitions in your own words. 

Download plate_boundaries_and_earthquake_relationship_writng.doc - Assignment for earthquakes and plate boundaries relationships.

Earthquakes over the past 5 years map. - Use this for the relationships writing. 

Thank you very much,

Mr. Mathews

March 10, 2008

Good evening parents and students!

I have wonderful news...Here is a link to the Earth Science textbook online. Students, you no longer have to bring your textbooks home if you have access to the Internet.

Here is the link to the wave website we looked at in class today.  http://aspire.cosmic-ray.org/labs/seismic/index.htm