Second Grade Videos
I hope you enjoy these videos from our school year.
2019 - 2020
*FYI - THIS WEB PAGE IS BEST VIEWED FROM A LAPTOP OR DESKTOP - WHEN VIEWING FROM A MOBILE DEVICE SOME IMAGES MAY APPEAR TO BE CUT OFF.
Some formats that I use to create these videos give me control over the music volume when students are talking and some do not. I apologize if some students are harder to hear.
A Beautiful Day for a Visit to the Creek
We took advantage of this beautiful weather today and went to see what we might find at the creek. Spring is beginning all around us. Check out this video to see what we found today.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
CARS - Wheels and Axles
To demonstrate how wheels and axles work we made cars. The girls used hammers and a wheel and axle to put the cars together and then decorated them. The girls generously gave away the cars they worked so hard on to the Pre-K students and became a teacher when they taught the Pre-K students what we learned in science about wheels and axles. One of the stages of learning is "I can teach it." So in the process we demonstrated our understanding of this simple machine. The first video is from the day we made the cars. The second video is from the day we visited the Pre-K. In the third video you can hear the girls reflections of this teaching experience. :)
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
LEVERS - Launching "Snowballs"
We learned about levers as a simple machine. The girls launched (paper) "snowballs" and experimented with changing the fulcrum and the load. They changed the size and position of the fulcrum to see how that would change the effort to move the load. They also changed the force applied. As you can see from the video, the girls had a great time and they learned a lot too!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Balloon Jets - The Science of Force
This girls experimented with force- specifically the force of the air coming out of a balloon. Will a small balloon, a medium balloon or a large balloon win the race?
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Paper Spinners with Gravity
We experimented with paper spinners that are PULLED down to the ground by the force of gravity. The girls had a great time!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Fast Cash - Will force transfer from one object to the other?
Students used the information they have learned about force to make a hypothesis before experimenting. The questions is... What will happen to a dime set at the end of a ruler when the opposite end of the ruler is hit by the force of a sliding quarter? (The ruler is held steady). What is your prediction? Watch this video to see what happens. Students then continued to experiment changing one or more of the variables.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Force Paintings
After learning about the science of position and motion, and how a force is a push or a pull that makes something move, the girls used the FORCE of their own breath to create beautiful force paintings. They could "paint with all the colors of the wind."
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
A Winter Visit to the Creek
With a little bit of snow on the ground we went to visit the creek today to see what it looks like in the winter time. The girls had some great observations!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
AND NOW THE WEATHER... 2nd Grade Weather Reporters: In front of the green screen
Second grade scientists have spent the trimester learning about the science of weather. As a culminating project the girls became weather reporters. The reports include most of the components of our lessons from the entire trimester. In each of their reports you will hear about types of clouds they learned about, seasonal information, appropriate clothing related to the weather, the use of weather instruments, and other important information related to weather. The reports were filmed in the upper school S.T.E.A.M. studio in front of a green screen. Students wrote their own reports, chose their own locations, selected their background images and created their own forecast. The girls also worked one on one with a member of the iTeam to put together their green screen video forecast which is available for you to watch in this section.
A special thank you to Mrs. Walker, Mrs. Powers, Mrs. Diana, Mrs. Hobson, Mrs. Zachary, Mrs. Westmeyer, and Mrs. Carmichael for all your help!
*If you click these videos and they don't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
BONUS: Behind the Scenes of the Green Screen.
(I apologize that not all of the behind the scene photos came out ok... I included the ones that I had so that you could get a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes to make these awesome weather reports.)
Thanksgiving Parade Balloons
Second graders designed and created Thanksgiving Parade Balloons in their homerooms and art class. THEY ARE AMAZING!!!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Anemometers
We made anemometers in class to measure the speed of the wind. These may be added to the other weather tools the girls have created for your at home weather station. Please let me know if you are using these tools at home to measure our weather.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Weather Vanes
Weather Vanes are used to tell the direction in which the wind blows. In class we each made our own weather vane.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Rain Gauge
The girls each made a working rain gauge in class to measure the amount of rainfall in a given period of time. They are taking this tool home to measure the rainfall over the next couple weeks.
The second video is a tutorial about how we made the rain gauge in class and how to use it at home. This is the first tool for your at home Weather Station.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
A Beautiful Day at the Creek
What a beautiful day to visit Kirk's Run! Today the girls learned how to carefully look under rocks for living creatures and place the rocks carefully back where they found them. We also used our nets to catch and release different insects and animals. Since we had a lot of rain yesterday, some girls wanted to measure the depth of the creek and come back on another day to compare. We had a great day exploring!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
2nd Grade Music Video
EVAPORATION, NEXT!
The girls created a music video about EVAPORATION and the WATER CYCLE to the tune of "Thank U, Next" by Ariana Grande. FYI - I did not write these words but it was too cute not to make a music video!!!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
The Water Cycle
The girls were on a water adventure today! Each student pretended to be a water droplet and traveled to different destinations. We used colored beads to identify the different locations and we put the beads together on a bracelet. Each bracelet tells a story about where their specific water droplet traveled. The girls also wrote in a Water Adventure Booklet to keep track of their journey. :)
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
October Visit to Kirk's Run
What a great time at Kirk's Run today! While we explored the creek and used our scientific observational skills as well as our 5 senses we wrote in our journals about today's experience. We will keep all of our journal entries in one book that will come home as a keepsake at the end of the school year.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Does Water Evaporate?
While learning about weather, we have talked about clouds and how water droplets get into clouds. We did an experiment about evaporation. The girls mixed epsom salt, water, and food coloring, put the mixture into a petri dish, and waited to see if the water will evaporate. What is left behind are salt crystals. This lesson will lead us into learning about the water cycle.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Making Clouds Rain
The girls learned about the different types of clouds. We experimented with shaving cream and food coloring to show what happens when clouds become too heavy with water droplets...rain falls from the cloud! We had a great time! The second video is the students' reflections.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Our First Day at the Creek
We had a great day exploring the creek for the first time in our new Agnes Irwin boots. Many more adventures at Kirk's Run to come!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Harvesting Seeds in the AIS Greenhouse
Today we went to the Upper School to visit the AIS greenhouse. We learned how to harvest seeds from tomatoes. We will let them dry and keep them packaged away for safe keeping until the Spring when we will plant our own seeds - the very same seeds that we harvested today and grow our own seedlings. How exciting!
Bonus: Some 3rd grade students who did this lesson last year, brought in tomatoes that they grew from the seeds they harvested last Fall and grew into plants last Spring. We harvested these seeds as well and will demonstrate how the plant life cycle continues on and on.
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Visiting Kirk's Run
We walked down to see the creek that we will be exploring throughout this school year. Many more adventures at Kirk's Run to come!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.
Color Experiments
Today the girls worked on using scientific observation skills as they completed color experiments. They practiced looking closely, examining carefully for details, asking questions, and using their 5 senses (not taste today). Bonus: Hear what the 2nd graders think about science!
*If you click this video and it doesn't work, try clicking the YouTube button on the bottom right of the video.