TWIG Science
This year we will be using the TWIG Science Curriculum to guide us on our journey through the four modules. All the while, we will use the scientific method to explore the questions we have and look for answers.
The Ultimate Playground-Students investigate forces and use what they learn to design the most incredible playground ever, with everything from swings and slides to fairground attractions and roller coasters! Through hands-on investigations, texts, and videos, students learn how forces make things move—whether it’s making carousels spin or skydivers fall. They investigate how magnets can exert a force without contact, build their own model swings and dumbbells, and even take part in games of miniature tug-of-war. Hold on tight—it’s going to be quite a ride!
Welcome to the Biodome-Can’t visit the rain forest? Then let the rain forest come to you! Students enter the Biodome—a state-of-the-art greenhouse that mimics a tropical rain forest environment—and discover the wide variety of life that rain forests contain. They look after plants in the Biodome’s nursery, and nurture and observe real butterflies throughout their life cycle. Students also study the life cycles of other organisms, and look at the traits that animals of the same species share and inherit. There’s a lot to explore—out there, and in here!
How to Survive the Ice Age-Students take a trip thousands of years back in time, to see what the American landscape was like during the last Ice Age. They discover mammoths, saber-toothed cats, and more, and ask the question: Why did some plants and animals go extinct at the end of the Ice Age, while others survived? Students investigate how environments affect the organisms living in them by planting their own seeds and varying the environmental conditions. They also consider the specific traits that help organisms survive in their environment.
Weather Warning HQ-Students become experts in weather and climate by answering calls to Weather Warning HQ. Set up to help people in the local community, Weather Warning HQ handles all kinds of queries—from when to hold an outdoor event, to what time of year is best for a jungle expedition. Students find the answers by using weather tools, examining weather and climate data, and making observations. They investigate local weather conditions and explore weather patterns from elsewhere around the United States and the world, and help design a public awareness campaign about the risks associated with lightning.
From www.twigscience.com