6th graders ahoy!

I've been having lots of fun with my gifted 6th graders after school. The first week, we did an exercise on scientific observation, where we talked about how you can compare apples to apples (they observed apples very carefully). They practiced using triple-beam balances, rulers, and their senses to make detailed observations. Then they got to eat them!

Our second lesson was paper rockets. The kids constructed mini rockets out of paper and launched them by blowing through a straw. The fins were entirely of their own shape and construction, so some flew much better than others. There was quite a competition going about who could shoot theirs the furthest. This week I won't be there but the math teacher is going to have them graph their data from last week and try some modifications to their original rocket design. The unit is on rocketry and we are going to build several different kinds before we're done.

I'm working on getting some individual in-depth research projects on topics having to do with astronomy that the kids selected. A lot of them seem to want to know about black holes...