Sixth Grade Greek Olympics by Jennifer C.

DNA Extraction Lab by Nareg

Recently in Science/Tech we have been talking about cells and organisms, and with that we started learning about DNA and how it makes up every living thing. Mrs. Bibayoff of course wanted us to get an up close look at DNA before we started diving into how it works and the different parts. This activity was super fun and seeing the DNA in the end was pretty cool.

Our test subject was a strawberry that we put through a process to in the end achieve little tiny strands of DNA. Our first step was to mash up the strawberries in a plastic bag to crush some of the cells. We then mixed together a DNA extraction liquid (water, soap, and salt). With a coffee filter, we squeezed out the juice from the strawberry into a cup so that was all we were left with. The very last step was to add rubbing alcohol to the strawberry juice and wait a couple of seconds. Sure enough you could see little strands of DNA in the cup.

I thought this was a very cool hands on way for us to take a look at DNA up close.

*From Mrs. Bibayoff*

Sneak Peek at Coming up in Science/Tech: I've been talking with two different scientists to come in and visit our classes. One is a biologist that would lead us through collecting our own cheek cells to extract the DNA. The other is a neurologist (brain scientist) from the world renowned UC Davis MIND Institute who plans to bring in. . .  Sheep Brains! Hoping they are both able to join us in April.

DNA extraction lab today. 🤓 #NCSinnovates @NCS_LE pic.twitter.com/k3JQ4aGJCj

— Mrs. Bibayoff (@LEroomI3) March 28, 2017

Greek Drama Masks by Natalin

A few days ago in expressions, we started working on our Greek Drama Masks. These masks were based on Ancient Greek’s masks used for acting. Their masks represented emotions like sad, happy, mad, scared, etc. 

What we did was draw on 2 paper plates 2 masks on that were opposites from each other like fire and ice or a dog and cat. Also we were allowed to choose any characters we wanted as long as they were opposites or something. I decided to choose 2 characters from a cartoon. When we were finished drawing, Sharpieing, and coloring our characters we staple them together and hole punch ribbons on both ends to finish the project. Overall I think this project was a fun project to do and I bet others enjoyed it too!

Climate Snapshot Maps

Check out our class Climate Maps (organized by Science/Tech period):

40 Book Challenge by Te'a

The 6th graders have been expected to try and read 40 books in the entire school year. That might sound easy for some, but there’s a catch. Not only do you have to log the books you’ve read so far in a paper log, but you also have to add the books you read into a Padlet; which is a website that allows the 6th graders to create personalized digital book logs that others can access with a QR code (here's a link to an example). Not only that, but you can’t just read “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” 40 times. No, you have to read 40 DIFFERENT books. And sorry to you comic book lovers, but you have to step out of your comfort zone because in order to complete the challenge, you have to read books of different genres, such as science fiction and mythology.

With all that set aside, the challenge is a great way to allow us 6th graders to start reading new styles of books, not only because we have to. Starting to read a new genre can introduce a whole different way that you think about reading. You might also be more drawn to reading after discovering that there isn’t just one style of writing a book. As we are now about a third into this year, we have had a lot of time to read in morning production, so some 6th graders should (hopefully) be even closer to the finish line. So, what are you waiting for? Start reading!

What’s Going On in LE? [Week of November 4th] by:Nathan

Overall, life here in Leading Edge has been great! I’ve made some new friends, and we’ve learned so

many new things. My classes are Expressions, PE, Science/Tech, Math, and last Core.

In Core we have started our ancient Egypt unit (as mentioned above). Right now we’re learning about Egyptians and their way of life. Also we’re making posters about different gods and goddesses. My group chose the god Seth, the god of storms and chaos. We drew a big picture of him and will write his name in hieroglyphics and add a cartouche (an oval shape that has name of royal person or god written on it in hieroglyphics) to it too. We also recently did our Nile brochures. We had to include a map showing it’s route, why it was important to early Egyptians, section about the Nile today, section about uses of papyrus, facts, and a creative cover.

 In Expressions we just finished making our “Apple 4 Ways” where you had to draw 4 different apples and use different mediums for each one. Also one of them had to feature some sort of collage. For mine I used colored pencil, charcoal, oil pastel, and tissue paper collage.Using charcoal was super unique because it was cool fading it and doing other cool things. So now in Expressions, to connect to our new Ancient Egypt unit in Core we are signing up for parts in our play, Mummy’s Tomb.

Right now in PE we are doing create a game where you have to create a safe game that fits in with either flexibility, cardio, muscle strength, muscle endurance, or body composition. We get to chose the equipment we need an create a game based on one of the fitness components. Your game has to have group dynamics, movement patterns so you know how to play, and lastly self responsibility. Our group has created a game with two goals, two bowling pins, two paddles, and a ball. The goal is to try to get the ball into the goal and if you hit the bowling pin too you get an extra point.

In Science/Tech we’ve just finished our trimester 1 portfolios. We had to state our projects that we completed in the first trimester. You also had to write about how you're doing in LE and what your goals are. Now we are learning about weather and climate. In class we went on this website about heat and sunlight. We played with a model on the computer about how sunlight reflects off the ground and transfers into the Earth. You can also add clouds and gases or adjust the albedo and speed to see what changes it makes. Hope you enjoyed my Leading Edge update!

Digital Storybooks

Inspired by the beautiful picture book Weslandia by Paul Fleischman and our studies of ancient civilization traits, sixth graders wrote their own civilization stories. Here are some that decided to go with a digital storybook format. Just click on the books below to read them.

Insulation Challenge-By Ajay Trinh

Lately in Science/Tech, we’ve been working on insulation. Insulation is an object that traps heat. In class, we work in groups and experiment what objects are good insulators. The objects that we (and most people) chose to use were, tin foil, styrofoam, plastic, and cardboard. We used a wireless temperature sensor as a thermometer which would give us information on to a computer. Our group wrapped our items around the plastic cups we used to see which would be the best insulator. For our group, the best insulator was the styrofoam. It was styrofoam because when we put it into the water then put the thermometer sensor in, the temperature went up.

I learned that a plastic wrap was a not so good insulator too. One of our big problems was that when we tried making a hole for the thermometer sensor through the tin foil ripped some which was a minor problem. Another problem was that sometimes the water was too hot and melted the cup! The majority of the time, the temperature stayed at one spot, then either moved down a little, or moved up a lot (probably because the sensor was warming up and we needed to give it time). This experiment was awesome! I hope we get to do it again but with more insulators!

Padlet Book Logs by Jessica

Padlet is a website that six graders are using this year to give their opinions on the books that they've read. It is very useful for other students because they get to see what their classmates thought about a book. So they could see if the book is worth reading. In fact, recently my class made it a bit more fun by getting to scan our classmates' QR codes with the iPads and see what they thought about the books they read so far this year and over the summer. 

It also comes in handy for the 40 books Challenge to remember what we have read and for teachers because they can see how much you're reading. I think it is the best website to comment on and review books because it lets you explain what you liked about the book and tell special highlights that you liked about the book.