Oct 18-22: Solar System, Quiz, & Build a Planet

We've got so much to do before the end of the quarter! AHHHHHH... So here's what we've been working on this week.

Monday - Formation of the solar system (pg 15)
Tuesday - Finish pg 15
Wednesday - Quiz (Star Cycle, Heavy Elements, & Formation of the solar system)
Thursday - Design a planet
Friday - Finish designing planet computer activity.

We will be having an end of quarter test next week (hopefully on Thursday 28th). It will cover all of our astronomy stuff from the beginning of the year to the present:
    Big Bang
    Red/Blue Shift
    Microwave background radiation
    Star Cycle
    Heavy Element Formation
    Our Sun compared to other stars
    Formation of the solar system
    Requirements for life on alien planets
    Earth compared to other planets in the solar system

Oct 11-13: Heavy Elements

Another short week of school...

Monday - Heavy elements game... go through the star cycle and learn how elements fuse together to make heavier and heavier elements.
Tuesday - Review of heavy elements questions
Wednesday - You're a star explanation and beginning of project.
Thursday & Friday - FALL BREAK!!!

Oct 4-8: Reality Town & Star Life Cycle

Students had the opportunity to participate in Reality Town this Tuesday. They were given job options based on their collective GPA from 7th and 8th grade (kids with a 4.0 had unlimited options where kids with a 1.0 could only choose from a much smaller selection). They had to use their monthly wages to pay bills, buy groceries, etc. Hopefully it was a good experience for them on what the "real world" is like.

In science though, we're learning about the star cycle.

Monday - We did a brief chemistry review that hopefully will be helpful to students when we start talking about nuclear fusion... in stars... not bombs.
Tuesday - Reality Town!!! We also did a brief review of graphing. They were assigned graphing homework, but most students got it done in class. If not, then it is due Friday.
Wednesday - We did a post reality town survey and then talked about the star cycle.
Thursday - Finish star cycle notes...
Friday - Graphing homework due. Finish and grade work. Start You're a Star Project.