Nov. 22-24: Ozone & Quiz

 This week we're talking about ozone and taking a quiz!

Monday - Finish nitrogen and start ozone
Tuesday - Finish ozone and review
Wednesday - Quiz on nitrogen cycle and ozone

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

I'm thankful for my job!
I'm thankful for the good days and the good students!
I'm thankful for the times when they make me laugh!
I'm thankful to go home at the end of the day!

Nov. 15-19 : Global Warming & Nitrogen Cycle

We're wrapping up our discussion about the carbon cycle, and possible human influences on it, and moving on to nitrogen. Nitrogen is important for the DNA and proteins in living things - so it's important to understand how it gets around and how we influence it as well.

Mon 15 - Greenhouse Lab (p8)
Tues 16 - Annotate global warming article
Wed 17 - Finish pg8 and play nitrogen cycle travelling game (10)
Thurs 18 - Nitrogen Cycle Notes (11)
Fri 19 - Finish notes

With the nitrogen cycle we're going to talk a lot about how humans influence the amount of nitrogen in the soil and water by adding fertilizers. Too much fertilizer can be carried away by rain water into our groundwater, rivers, and oceans. It causes algae to bloom (grow) and many algaes actually can create deadly toxins. Do humans worry too much about green lawns? This might be a good topic for discussion if you want to do some critical thinking!

Nov. 8-12: Carbon Cycle

We're talking about global warming this week... please email me if you have any quesitons about what and how I'm teaching this issue. You can email me through the Fort Herriman MS website.

Monday - Finish You're a Star projets & Carbon Cycle Notes (pg6)
Tuesday - Human Impacts on the Carbon Cycle (pg9)
Wednesday - Most 9th graders are going to the play. Those who stay will be given an alternative assignment.
Thursday - Carbon Cycle Quiz for R&S.
Friday - Finish human impacts notes.

Nov. 1-5: Carbon Cycle

The new quarter has finally arrived. Last week students took a big exam on all of our astronomy stuff that we've covered over the first quarter. They took it on Thursday and then had a chance to retake it on Friday if they didn't pass. The students who did pass went to a cool "Halloween" science demonstration put on by Mr. Hammari who also teaches Earth systems. It sounded like it was really fun, and I wish I could have gone up there to watch, but I was in charge of retesting and of my 8th graders that I had for the other half of the day.

Here's what we've done/ are doing this week:

Monday - No School
Tuesday - You're a Star work day (Apollo 13 movie in the afternoon).
Wednesday - Make new folders and recycle the old stuff - discussion on Earth's spheres (pg5)
Thursday - Half of the carbon sinks and sources lab (pg7) & part of carbon cycle notes (pg6)
Friday - Finish pg 7 lab and work on pg 6 notes

For extra credit: Post a comment describing what the colors of the bromothymol blue solution pictured here mean.