"For the bug external stimuli lab, we picked an insect to experiment on and my group chose the Madagascar Hissing Cockroach. We could test several different materials and investigate the reaction of the bug. We chose to use different habitats and environments. After building four different environments, we allowed the cockroach to choose where it wanted to settle, recording the amount of times it chose each habitat. We then concluded that the Madagascar Hissing Cockroach was more comfortable in the dead material (leaves, grass, etc.) environment."
- Laura
"The bug external stimuli lab was a lab to see how a bug would react to external stimuli or changes in its environment. My group tested a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach and saw how it responded to the presence of light. We saw that cockroach would rather be in extremely dark environments compared to neutral or bright environments. Other groups tested different bugs with different external stimuli to see how that certain bug would react. This taught us about how organisms react to stimuli, an also about the bug we tested. "
- Rishi D.
"The Bug External Stimuli ADI Lab was a lab that had the purpose to see how certain external stimuli affected certain bugs. The bugs you could test on included cockroaches, beetles, earthworms, beetles, mealworms, crickets, and snails; the external stimuli you could choose included humidity, light, temperature, texture, etc. The specific bug and external stimuli our group selected were the Bess beetle and humidity respectively. Our lab proved that Bess beetles don't have a preference when it comes to humid and arid areas."
- Philip
"For 21 days, Mrs. Deinhammer’s science classes were restlessly waiting for chickens to hatch. We learned about the life cycle of a chicken and how long it takes for a single cell to become a big, living organism. We named our chickens Albus and Minerva. I think this chicken experiment was a great thing to try because it taught us all about the life cycle of a chick. And it really makes me understand that what you think is just an ordinary egg with a yolk, could have been a cute little chick running in 21 days if it had been fertilized."
- Diya
"In science we recently hatched chickens. We kept them in an incubator to imitate a hen’s warmth. It was a 21 day process. They grew everyday. 2 chickens have hatched! We will use them to learn about genetics and growth in tissues and cell. "
- McKenzie and Nehal
"In class we experimented to extract the DNA from strawberries. We did this by blending strawberries in a mixer. After taking the mix out, we added laundry detergent to the mix to separate the cells. Then we added meat tenderizer as an enzyme to separate the DNA. Then, we added alcohol to see and capture the DNA of the cells. The result were stringy white threads which were actually the DNA of the cell."
-Anish, Sarang, Axel, Shreyas
Cell survivor was a educational game based off of the show, Survivor. We were given a specified organelle (an organelle is one of the many important parts of a cell which complete specific tasks that keep the cell alive). Each day, we would give a presentation about our organelle, it’s function, and a reason for why it should not be kicked out. Our goal for this challenge was to be the last organelle standing to win. Each day, we voted one organelle out because we thought it did not need to stay, based on the group’s speech and the information we had. (Every organelle is as important as the next)
- Rishi D., Dhroov P.
"We thought it was really cool that we could participate and they would actually use our data for help. We also thought that it was interesting that we got to learn about what objects could help us avoid damage from uv rays. We thought it was also fun to work with the UV beads and use different materials than we normally do."
- McKenzie, Sophie, Kate
"Being part of citizen science was great. This is because you are not only learning, you are helping other people with the knowledge you have gained. I learned different things about UV light, and what helps block it. All in all, it was a great learning experience."
- Roma
"We did a lab to see how sugary drinks effect our bodies. Our group used Dr. Pepper as our sugary drink and cow liver as our text subject. We at first measured the mass and volume, and then divided it to find the density. We then left the liver in the Dr. Pepper and water (our control) over the weekend. When we came to class on Monday, we measured the mass and volume again, and then divided to find the density. After comparing the results, we found that sugary drinks do effect your liver and that you should not drink sugary drinks."
- Nikhil K.
"In science class, we preformed this lab to see how sugary drinks effect tissue. First we recorded data such as mass, volume density and then we soaked the cow tissue into the drink over the weekend. After two days, we took data on the sample and compared it to before it was soaked and the control (which is water). Then we created an infographic presenting our data."
- Armani and Shravani
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| Created by Yash D. |
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Created by Ava M.
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In order to learn how to think like a scientist, students researched scientists and composed a "tweet" from them.
"Our favorite moment from our first week of science is when we got to make a funny science tweet in the perspective of a scientist. It was fun to see what everyone came up with. Even if we didn’t make the winning tweet it was fun working with our friends to come up with an idea like this."
- Shambhavi and Aidan
Our first challenge this year was to see if students could design a device to pick up trash from the ocean.
"In my first week of school, we started a project in which we created an invention controlled by a Sphero that picks up trash in the ocean. My favorite part about it was that we got to deal with robotics and propose an idea to solve a global cause."
- Dhroov P
"Our favorite moment in science was when we got to build the Sphero into a trash picking robot and when we tested it out. We also likes how we were surprised when we found out our invention worked successfully by picking up 5 pieces of trash."
- Aarya and Shivani
After 9 weeks of studying the human body, here are a few favorites from our class...
"My favorite project we did in our study of the human body, was what we did in the immune system. One of the activities we did in the immune system was to show how fast viruses spread. We each got a cup of water and two people had “contaminated” water , but we didn’t know who had the special water. We shared our water using water droplets with each other . Using a special substance over half of our class was affected. This activity showed me how fast viruses and diseases spread."
- Amolika
"My favorite project was coding the Sphero. I loved the challenges of coding the tiny robot."
- Josephine
"My favorite project about systems this year was the Healthy East project. It was when we thought of many ideas to make our campus more healthy. During the project we learned about a couple of new systems and how good food and exercise can effect your body."
- Varun R.
"Our favorite project from our study of the human body was the rat dissection. We enjoyed learning about our body systems through a hands-on project. During the dissection, we could see the parts of the body in a once living animal instead of just a diagram. It gave us a deeper and more relatable experience from which we gained a lot of information. Dissecting the rat was a great way to see and understand the structures of the human body."
- Akshara, Taara, Michelle
"I liked whenever we were learning about our heart rate the most it was very cool. It was cool because we got to test things to see if our heart rate would actually change and we learned why doctors check our heart rate."
- Emily P.
"The external stimuli lab was a fun and interesting project. For the lab we chose a stimuli and tested it against an animal like a roly poly. We found out how they react to different types of music. We learned a lot from the lab. For example when we were researching about the roly polies we found plenty of useful information that helped us with our experiments. One of the important pieces of information that we found said that roly polies have sensory organs that let them hear. On FlipGrid, we respond to the younger kids’ questions that have to do with external stimuli of animals."
- Kushal, Rushil, Yadushan, Rohan
"The external stimuli lab was a lab where we used insects to try to answer questions about external stimuli. We used Madascar Hissing Cockroaches to see how they would react to carrots and lettuce. They liked the carrots better. I thought this lab was interesting because it was my first lab that had a living thing in it. (The cockroach). We also used the lab to answer questions that kindergarteners asked about insects. ( like, why do bumblebees sting?) We collaborated and shared with them using an app called Flipgrid."
- Lingesh
