1. Explain what you covered in science classes

In science class until today, we explored few topics such as what is a cell. We spent time learning about what is a cell, specifically what does it do and how it means to us. Additionally, we studied about the differences between plant and animal cells, which helped me understand the different organelles between both plant and animal cells.

2. Explain what you did in the science labs

During our lab session, we conducted total of 3 different experiments as I remembered. We tested what will happen if we put a vegetable in coloured water, and compared it with the vegetable that's not coloured. We've also view the onion under the microscope, our group found out that it has few visible organelles like nucleus. One memorable activity is the powder guessing activity. Our group used ingridients like water and vinegar to indicate and made a assumption for guessing the powder based on their reactions to the liquid, we observed that when powder one touches the water, it blended in, and when powder 2 touches the vinegar, it starts bubbling. So we assume powder one is sugar, and powder two is baking soda. 

3. Explain what you would like to learn more about

To continue, I'm really interested into any kinds of experiments. I'm eager to understand more about making hypothesis, and the chemical reactions we will experience in the science lab. In case you don't know, hypothesis is a prediction that guides you in your science research. Specifically, I want to understand more about how you can use your understanding of cells in the future because I want to know if our learning is useful or not. I plan to move further by reading books related to cells, or youtube channels like Blippi, making easy experiments for kids.

4  Explain what you found difficult and how you plan to solve this problem

The most challenging part of this class was avoid talking to my friends. I struggle with this because I'm too talkative when I'm with my friends. To overcome this problem, I plan to 

1. First try to finish my work first

2. Second try to not talk when someone is speaking,

3.  Lastly focus on tutoring first and taking notes, and then talk quietly after everything is done.

5. How did you work with others and communicate in science this term?

During the science lab and other class activities, working in groups taught me about how to distribute the work and teaching others. When we faced challenges like not knowing how to write a hypothesis, our group solved it by discussing with someone who has higher understanding in science. Working in a team helped me understand all the concepts better because we can discuss and say our own understanding and compare.

6. Portfolio Improvements & Peer Feedback

Looking back to a piece of my work, I made two specific improvements to my grade 8 science magnification and cell size worksheet and one improvement to my note: 

1. Fix the units on the magnification calculations : on the first word problem, I initially wrote 400mm as my answer. I correct it by removing the millimeter unit because the total magnification is a multiplier 400x, not a measurement of length. 

2. Incomplete section : I went back to complete the incomplete peer feedback section. I explained why scientific equations are essential for viewing microscopic organisms. 

3. Plant Vs Animal cell: I added detailed notes including every organelle's function instead of just listing the names.

When my partner checked on the Understanding Magnification and Cell Size worksheet, my peer reviewed my answers. When looking at Word Problem 1, they pointed out that I wrote "400mm" as my answer. They explained that multiplying ocular lens power 10x by objective lens power 40x gives a total magnification factor 400x, not a unit of length like millimeters