Pumpkin People
How can the community best view the Pumpkin People?
Every year New London homes and businesses create Pumpkin People. Second and fifth graders at Kearsarge Regional Elementary School collaborated to create an interactive map showing the location of each of the creations, along with a picture. They had to travel to each location, take pictures, and create the map. This helped community members see all of the pumpkin people and where they were located. This was useful during the town's voting for the best display! See the live map by clicking here.
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Play Ball!
How can data help us understand sports?
Fifth graders examined the statistics from New England sports teams. They used what they learned about data to interpret the team's performance and make predictions. Students created a news broadcast about the results of their work for their school to see.
Fun with Force and Motion
Third graders at Parker Varney Elementary School in Manchester created projects to show what they know about force and motion. The project's entry event was an egg drop. The principal dropped eggs, wrapped in the students' protective designs, from the school's roof! This sparked interest and launched the unit. Next, the students learned important concepts and vocabulary related to force and motion by participating in investigations and experiments and recording their work in an interactive notebook. They were able to take this notebook home and share their learning with their families. Finally, they were ready for the challenge: creating a game, machine, or piece of art using concepts of force and motion, and answering their driving question. They had a public exhibition to show off their projects. See examples of their great work, along with the project wall, below!
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The Best Sled!
How can we, as sled designers, create the best sled for the Simonds School hill?
Second graders at Simonds Elementary School in Warner, NH decided to create the best sled for their sledding hill at school. After testing the sleds provided by their gym teacher, students evaluated the sleds and discussed why some sleds worked better than others. Then it was time to get to work! Using their analysis of the sleds, advice from resident expert (the gym teacher), and principles of force and motion, the students designed sleds that would work the best on their sledding hill. The students created prototypes of their sleds, and hope to test them soon! They also hope to use their findings to inform future purchases of sleds for their school.
Photo credits to the teachers at Simonds School