Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Tried It....Tunes Tuesday...Lovin' It...

Tuesday...four days until Spring Break.
I'll spare you the hours and minutes until then.

I'm linkin' up for three different linky parties.
1. Tried it Tuesday with my sweet friend Holly from
Fourth Grade Flipper.
2. Tunes Tuesday with my awesome friend Nick
from Sweet Rhyme & Pure Reason.
3. Lovin' It & Over It with my fantabulous friend
Ali from Teaching (Powered by Caffeine).

Am I missin' any other link-ups?

This month's Tunes Tuesday topic is: Science.
How have you used music to teach Science?

I blame my newest Science obsession on Chelsea
Chelsea wrote this blog post and I KNEW
I had to do the same thing in my class
with my rockstars.



I started by adding The Periodic Table of Elements
in words and pictures to our 
Science Edmodo library.
(My kids reminded me they had their very own Periodic Table in their agendas)
I knew I keep these kids around
for a reason.
Little geniuses!

Then, I introduced this video from Study Jams-Periodic Table.
For some reason it was givin' me a fit this week when I was watchin'.  I hope it works for you.

Then, we used an idea from Sue's Science for Kids blog
to write our name in Elements.
Some of the letters don't have an element, so the kids typed
in their name and it generated a fake element.
That was fine with me, as long as they knew it was fake.

Finally...we get to the part about tunes in Science.
I shared two songs with my kiddos.
The first one is Tom Lehrer's "The Elements".
It's animated with the names of the elements.
I have found myself watchin' this several times and
singin' along.  Where was this video when I was
in Chemistry in high school?


The second video is "Meet the Elements" by They Might Be Giants.
It is catchy and easy to understand.

Grab a set of the lyrics here!

To wrap all of this up,
we have taken advantage of our Technology Lab
to start workin' on our
America's Most Wanted: Element Posters.
It's been nice to have a lil' break from test prep!
I've already heard lots of "Did you know....?"

Chelsea took her projects a step further and made
a 3D model of an atom using the same element.
If you are super duper sweet, you can leave
Chelsea some love on her blog and she might
even send you the rubric!

I also have a Symbaloo board that we use with several links
that also go into more depth of the elements.
(Let me know if you use it and want somethin' added, or if you
have a great resource that I most certainly need in my life.)

Here is a link to more of my Symbaloo boards
(appropriate for upper elementary-early middle).

Last, but definitely not least....

I got a new bed.
I'm officially in LOVE.
It is a king size throne fittin' for this
sleepin' beauty queen.
I most definitely feel like royalty in my new bed.
Who has some Bon Bons I can have?
I'm already thinkin' about all the wonderous
naps I will be takin' in this thing (yes, I'm typin' from it).
I might never go to work again and become
a professional pajama wearer.

Humidity.
I had to get a dehumidifier for my mini castle
aka the bedroom.
I live on the water...salt water.
Water plus cold air and moisture equals mildew
by the slidin' glass door.
I don't do mildew, mold, dust, or dust mites.
Just ask my allergist.
So...I needed somethin' to get rid of
all the humidity in my room.
The dehumidifier is supposed to run for 24 hours
and then go to a normal settin' after.
Not MY dehumidifier...
it has been runnin' straight for five days now.
I have emptied it at least three times each day.
That's...well...a lot.
Every time I empty it I think, "Surely, this will be
the last bucket of water for a while."
Wrong.
Maybe day six will be the lucky number.
Keep your fingers and toes crossed for me.

Happy Tuesday, friends!
If anyone needs me...I'm sure you know where I'll be...
in my new bed...after school.
Don't forget to visit my friends and leave them some lovin'!

14 comments :

  1. So glad you got the bed! You'll have to share the bedding you use because Joel and I are never in agreement over any for our king-size bed. We've been using a blanket we got from my mom in a pinch for two years now because we can't find anything we both like!

    Also, thank you for the reminder about the insane humidity that I do not miss down South. We get our fair share here over the summer, but at least it doesn't last 9 months! I will take some of the warmth, though! :)

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  2. Thanks for linking up! Studyjams is such a great free resource! And I have a "They Might Be Giants" CD in my car right now! Haha.

    Those names written with elements look cool too!

    -Nick
    Sweet Rhyme – Pure Reason
    Follow my blog with Bloglovin

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  3. That Symbaloo still intrigues me. I clicked on your link but didn't get very far because I have to sign up. I'm going to go back after I comment and give it a go! :)
    I often dream of spending my days in the comfort of my bed! We have only a queen bed because this old house has small rooms. A king bed at a hotel is such a luxury and I feel like I've gone to heaven! Enjoy!!! You're there right now, aren't you? :)
    ~Holly
    Fourth Grade Flipper

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  4. I got a new sleep number bed not too long ago and it's the best money I have spent on furniture even though it's only a queen. :)

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  5. Yay for new beds!! There is nothing like a comfy bed. We recently got a super comfy memory foam topper for our bed and I've started calling it the marshmallow. Look up Pusheen marshmallow and you'll know why!

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  6. Ok, what type of bed did you get? My husband and I have been looking for like a year and haven't bit the bullet yet! They are SO expensive. We have a queen currently and will eventually move...he says when we move, we should get a room big enough for a king, so we shouldn't get the bed now. GRRRR men! I have no sympathy for you about LIVING ON THE BEACH in FL with humidity. Here in CT, it is 13 degrees! :(
    Theresa
    Pinkadots Elementary

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  7. I am in awe of your Symbaloo boards. I thought I was all fancy giving parents and students a few links on our class website - I guess I have to step it up a bit to keep up with you : )
    Thanks for the shout out the other day - I was reading on my phone (while pretending to mark) and could not comment. I have a lovely queen bed, but I have to share it with my furnace of a husband and in the morning our overly cuddly black lab. It seems very small!

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  8. A professional pajama wearer?!? Where do I apply? I am excited and slightly jealous of your new bed! Sweet dreams!!
    Rachel
    A Tall Drink of Water

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  9. All right, Alison! Give it up...what kind of bed is it??? We bought a sleep number 2 years ago and I have never been more miserable! In January, we bought a Temperpedic (how the heck do you spell that anyway?) and it's like sleepin' on a rock, for now, but I've been assured it will feel like the one in the store, soon. In fact, they suggested that I let my daughters jump on it... a lot!

    As for the tunes, they are the only way I can get my kiddos to remember anything! I wish there was a song for capitals and periods! We're stuck right there.
    Brooke

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  10. Oh girl, once you go king you can never go back! I bought my king 6 years ago, and it's been heaven. I'm still relegated to one small part of the bed because my dogs think it's THEIR bed. They were the very reason I bought a king.

    I cannot even IMAGINE how you live in humidity. Any slight humidity here and I'm a pile of sweat. Humidity is NOT my friend. I didn't even know there were dehumidifiers. What an awesome invention. Does it really take the moisture out of the air? #FloridaProblems
    Thanks for linkin' up, sweet thing!!

    Ali
    Teaching Powered by Caffeine

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  11. The jealousy I have over your new bed isn't normal, we...aka...I ...actually talked about selling pretty much all of our belongings when we move in June in order to get new bedding and such. I told the mister it was to save up...he doesn't need to know the difference.

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  12. Your bed sounds like it's fit for a princess! Do I hear a cross-country pajama party in the works?!?

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  13. Thanks for all the love :) I've got some new things to include in my unit next year! I love the Write Your Name in Elements! Hmmm, maybe I can still have my kids do this if we have time before the end of the year. I will also be adding the Meet the Element video to my collection! Thanks for the ideas! Spring break in four days...I'm jealous. I still have until mid April before I can attempt to become a professional pajama wearer!

    Chelsea
    Fifth Grade Wit and
    Whimsy

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  14. Thanks for sharing the Elements videos - we are doing Sue's name activity on Monday at STEM Club, and now I can share your videos - perfect!

    So sorry to hear about your humidity problems. We have that in the summer and I can hardly breathe. Ugh.

    Are you on Spring Break now? We still have another week.

    Jane
    Learning in the Little Apple

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