Third graders have mastered telling time in Spanish. Students have enjoyed taking the lead to quiz their classmates and making their own personal clocks to aid them in their practice drills. Students have also enjoyed playing “Collectar Cartas” (Collect Cards) to show off the precision in their time-telling skills.

What is soil? Third graders at Unquowa have been discovering the answer to this question through many investigations, such as “soil sifting”. Here students were given three different soil samples and a multi-level soil sifter. As each layer of the sifter was taken apart, students discovered small rocks, roots, insects, sand and clay. In the classroom, students learned that soil is a very important natural resource that takes 500-1,000 years to produce!

Today grades 3 & 4 experienced life in the small village of  Nicaragua. We were pleased to have Samantha, a local high school student, visit our classes. Samantha is part of “Build-On”, a high school program of community service. Samantha, along with other students, constructed a school in Nicaragua. She shared her experiences and taught our students about the culture, art, food and education in La Chimpinella. Samantha ended her presentation by teaching us all the very popular banana song.

Equipped with binoculars and clipboards, the 3rd and 4th graders set off for an “animal homes” hike. Students observed surroundings for nests, rock piles, mounds and other possible animal homes and recorded their findings with tally marks. Logs were carefully lifted to reveal pillbugs, beetles, centipedes and clusters of slug eggs. Among the homes identified along the Horse Tavern Brook were a squirrel’s nest, brush pile, tree hollows, rock piles and many crevices along the brook. 3rd and 4th graders listed London’s Brook, the Horse Tavern Brook and the Rooster River as three water sources that are homes to abundant wildlife including fish, mallard ducks, herons and snapping turtles. As our walk concluded, trout lilies were sighted beginning to emerge along the trail. This lovely native plant has speckled leaves, similar to  the field marks of a trout, and flowers that bloom every four to seven years…a sure sign of spring!

Thank you to Marlene Koch, who visited today. She spoke about her homeland, Germany, to grades 3 and 4. Marlene shared information about schools, holidays, food and sports that are popular in Germany. The students had many interesting and varied questions for Marlene. After the presentation, each student received a bookmark, travel journal, and a sticker of the German flag.  Marlene also baked a typical German cake to share.

Third grade took a trip with fourth grade to the Fairfield History Museum recently. We enjoyed an informative tour of the museum, where Mr. Walt shared many interesting stories about Fairfield’s past. We learned why some people were considered “witches” in the 1600 and 1700’s and what was done to “witches” in Fairfield. We also discovered a school from this time period called Fairfield Academy and read the tuition documents, grade books and a teacher’s notes on student behavior. Seeing written documents from this time period, we realized the handwriting and spelling was different from what we know today. Students were able to try writing with a quill and ink well, the way they did in the 1700’s. After a little practice, we created final copies on linen paper to take home.

What is March 14th? It’s Pi Day at The Unquowa School! Our friends in eighth grade led us in Pi Day activities with hula hoops. We discovered that we have some expert hula-hoopers in third grade! Later, we returned to the classroom to try some challenging “circle math” activities. Our eighth grade teachers taught us the word “radius” and strategies for problem solving. We finished our celebration at lunch with pizza pie!

Third graders designed a commemorative stamp about an event in history, a person who has brought change or a milestone in technology.

The 3rd and 4th graders learned that the shape of a bird’s beak is related to the food it eats. A grosbeak has a short thick bill for breaking open seeds, while a hummingbird has a long slender bill for extracting nectar from flowers. Many water birds have broad, flat bills for straining food from water and mud. As part of their study on animal adaptations, students used tools that were different sizes and shapes to pick up various foods. Each tool was a model that represented a type of beak. For example, pliers represented a short, thick beak perfect for cracking open sunflower seeds. Students investigated which tools worked best for picking up cooked spaghetti, rice, sunflower seeds, raisins, and floating objects.

Within a study of weather, third graders discovered the destructive powers of tornadoes by creating one in the classroom. We learned that a funnel cloud is a rotating, cone shaped column of air extending downward from a thunderstorm. A funnel cloud does not touch the ground. If it does touch the ground, it is then called a tornado. In this experiment, students were given materials and specific instructions to follow. Our third graders carefully measured, poured and mixed. We discussed the significance of each material, including adding liquid soap to break the water surface tension. Soon, students were twisting their own tornadoes and witnessing the potential power of 300 mile per hour winds to pick up and scatter debris.