Magnetism and Electricity  October 29 - November 30, 2012

Using magnets, wires, bulbs and batteries, and the science process, students investigated the basic principles of magnetism and electricity.

Everyone participated in an experiment to determine the strength of magnetic force when additional magnets were added onto a stack of magnets.

Students also learned about electromagnetism, and experimented with the effect that the number of wire coils around a nail would have on its magnetic strength.








They then learned about circuits and  how a battery and bulb work.









Finally, they were challenged to create their own working flashlight using their knowledge of electrical energy and circuitry.

After much discussion, planning, designing, trouble shooting, and redesigning, students were able to create their own circuitry, including on/off switches and build unique working flashlights.

Central Maine Power's Mr. Brad Kaherl also joined us for a presentation to the entire Soule Program on electrical safety.

Secret Formulas  October 1 - 25, 2012
Mixing, measuring, comparing, and understanding physical and chemical changes were the main activities in this unit.  Students  learned to use the tools and process of science as they figured out possible proportions of ingredients for making substances such as paste and a cola-type drink.  They learned to write simple formulas and made their own secret formula for each substance.

First, the children learned to use many measuring tools of science.  They used triple beam balances to weigh things, graduated cylinders to find liquid volume, metric rulers for length, and thermometers for temperatures.

Working in groups, students then explored the properties of some ingredients that paste and cola drinks are made of.  From there, groups were able to determine which ingredients worked best to make a great all-purpose paste and a tasty cola drink.  Everything required careful measuring and observing, as well as good recording of results.  Getting the proportions just right required fine tuning.

Everyone then shared their secret formulas with the class and explained why they chose their specific formulas. They even created fun advertisements for their cola drinks. 

Experimenting With Bubbles  September 4 - 27, 2012

This year, the Soule teachers tried something new during our PM unit time.  For this first unit, all students rotated through classes with the four Soule teachers.  The classes were one week sessions.  In this way, all Soule students experienced, right off the bat, each teacher and their subject and style of teaching. Other first units included art, social studies, and health/fitness.

Experimenting With Bubbles  This unit was the first unit of the year and it was meant to introduce students to a fun way to engage in the experimentation process.

 Students used a simple bubble recipe to create and test different brands of soaps and their effect on bubble size.  They learned about how to conduct a fair test and about the importance of identifying and using a test variable.  The classes also learned how to use the metric system to measure accurately the size of a bubble.
Good clean fun, don't you think?

Healthy Foods From Healthy Soils  April 23 - May 22, 2012

All Soule and Harraseeket third graders are now participating in this unit.  It involves myself, Mr. McKibben and Ms. Pearson too.  We are focusing on what specific environmental and biological components are necessary to provide healthy food and water for all.  

A major aspect of this unit is our collaboration with Wolfe's Neck Farm where we will be spending an entire week.  There, we will work with the animals, help plant, learn about composting, and about nutrition, and many other topics.  Also, in conjunction with the Freeport Historical Society, students will be creating 15+ scarecrows to be donated to the farm, to the Historical Society's Pettingill Farm and to Mast Landing School.  When we return to school in September, some scarecrows will still be at work in our school gardens protecting our plants.

Kitchen Chemistry March 19 - April 12, 2012

Our kitchen cabinet and the many common items found in it constituted the framework for this unit's focus on how matter behaves. Using everyday household substances, students learned about the properties of matter, physical changes, chemical changes, atoms, molecules, and reactions.

Is turning cream, sugar and vanilla into yummy ice cream a physical or chemical change? The students discussed this matter while munching on their own homemade ice cream. How about making pancakes? In our own "Chemical Change Cafe", students pondered the evidence for which kind of change occurs to make pancakes while the pancakes were cooking on the griddle. What about the maple syrup? Did the sliced strawberries that went on top undergo a chemical or physical change? These were among the hot topics that the class explored.

Chocolate chip cookies provided the centerpiece for a discussion on conservation of matter, while a whole host of substances found in the kitchen were used to understand the what acids and bases are.

This unit was a fun and tasty introduction to the amazing world of chemistry.

Prehistoric Life February 13 - March 15, 2012

Research was be the main focus for this unit about life in prehistoric times. As students learned about deep time and the appearance of different life forms on earth, they chose one specific topic to research and become more knowledgeable in. A short presentation from each student was given.

Topics such as: theories on the cause of the last great extinction, Pangaea, the prehistoric history of flight, the La Brea tarpits, and of course, sabertooth tigers, mastodons, and the "terminator pig" were among the many well researched projects. All of the students' work is on display in the Soule Program hallway at school. The children did an awesome job picking interesting topics and finding important information about each subject.

Design and Build Unit January 3 - February 16, 2012

Wow! What a fun unit!

Everybody worked with a partner and learned about designing and building, from creating basic blueprint plans, to making materials lists, and writing step-by-step instructions to guide their work. After learning this design process, students then built their constructions.

First, working groups used real woodworking tools and basswood to make catapults. Which was more fun -- making the catapults or doing the test runs flinging wet sponges to find the greatest average distance the sponge would go?

Once certain benchmarks were met creating the catapults, students then dove into designing and building their own working vehicles. Partners needed to decide on the basic plan, and on what kind of power their car would use to travel three meters. Through careful planning and constant trouble-shooting, students learned many aspects of design technology and moved at their own pace.

There were wind-powered cars, rubber band power, push power, propellers, and motor powered cars.

We had a great time. Wish you were there!