Happenings for November 21st and 22nd
8th grade:
This short week finishes up the shoe design on google sketchup. Students are continuing to learn about the steps in manufacturing. When we meet again on November 28th we will be making a cardboard model of the shoes we designed.
Also, students are asked to take a look at the timeline for this activity. This sheet will not be passed out in class. The link is below:
time-line-for-you-are-a-designer
7th Grade:
Students are finishing their marble mazes and we are testing them on Tuesday the 22nd. Good luck to all of our groups!
6th Grade:
Students are beginning the building process of their gameboards and rules. We have so many exciting ideas already. I cannot wait to see the finished games. This activity is due on December 20th for “a” day classes and December 21st for “B” day classes.
Happenings for November 14th – 18th
8th Grade:
This week we are completing our mousetrap vehicles. So far we have some awesome groups who have a vehicle which went over 25 feet. I am so excited with the creative ways students have built these vehicles powered only with a mousetrap.
This week begins our introduction into the Engineering Design Process. Students will be planning out a new shoe design in which they measure their own feet, decide on a shoe style, build a model, create a company name and logo and make an advertisement to communicate their success. The project is slated to be completed by December 2nd, the end of the second marking period.
7th Grade:
This is our last week or the marble maze project and the big focus is working on the theme of their maze. We have some groups using themes such as miniature golf, under the sea, candy land and dragons. We’ll be testing these awesome mazes on Friday!
6th Grade:
We are finishing presenting our awesome inventions to our classmates and continuing on with our board game projects. Students are coming up with ideas for games and rules so that their classmates can test their games in a couple of weeks!
Happenings for Nov 7th – 11th
8th Grade:
Students are in the last stages of their mousetrap vehicles and are working on testing them for any needed changes before the final test which is this Friday. Good luck!
7th Grade:
We are in our second week of construction of the marble mazes. Testing for time will be on November 18th. Keep up the good work!
6th Grade:
We are completing our inventions project and moving into the game board project at the end of this week.
Wayne County Regional Enhancement Education Millage Proposal
School districts in Wayne County have placed a proposal on the November 8th ballot to provide added funding for our schools. It is the “Regional Enhancement Millage Proposal.”
If approved by the entire county, the 2 mil proposal will generate approximately $6.2 million from Dearborn but the District will receive $7.8 million in additional funding for our schools. Money would go to local schools starting this year and the millage expires after six years. Read more…
Wayne County Regional Enhancement Education Millage Proposal
School districts in Wayne County have placed a proposal on the November 8th ballot to provide added funding for our schools. It is the “Regional Enhancement Millage Proposal.”
If approved by the entire county, the 2 mil proposal will generate approximately $6.2 million from Dearborn but the District will receive $7.8 million in additional funding for our schools. Money would go to local schools starting this year and the millage expires after six years. Read more…
Happenings for October 31st – November 4th
8th grade classes:
Students are beginning work on their mousetrap vehicles. We are learning how friction and velocity play a part in how our vehicles will be successful. The vehicles will be tested on Nov. 11th.
7th Grade classes:
Students are working on their marble mazes now. They have been doing a great job working as teams to create a maze which will take a marble the longest time to get from the top to the bottom. We even found a cool website called paperrollercoaster.com which shows mazes made entirely of paper. We will test our mazes on Nov. 18th.
6th Grade classes:
Students are working on their invention projects still. At this point many are finished with the report part and are working on their projects.
“A” day classes are to turn in both parts on Nov. 9th
“B” day classes are to turn in both parts on Nov. 10th
***No school on November 8th, election day***
Happenings the week of October 24th – 28th
8th Grade:
We are continuing our unit on Energy Technology
Extra credit: (10 points formative)
Using the computer, research an energy disaster. Ideas can include the Exxon Valdez oil leak, the Chernobyl disaster, Three mile Island, Coal fire of 1962, Burning Kuwait Oil Fields (1991), Benxi Coal Mining Explosion (1942), BP Deepwater Horizon (2010), the love Canal disaster.
In a one page, double spaced, paper give details about the disaster, in your own words. Include also the environmental impact of the disaster and the cost to clean up or repair the damage. Finally, explain which form of energy may have been a better choice and why.
Starting Thursday we are beginning a unit on using energy with transportation. A mousetrap powered dragster! Instead of an engine to power a vehicle (gas – fossil fuels), we will be using a mousetrap.
Take a look at this website
https://gjhsengineering.weebly.com/mousetrap-dragsters.html
See examples below:
7th Grade:
This week we are continuing our egg crash vehicles. Students should be finishing construction by Wednesday so that they can test their vehicles for any modifications needed. The final testing will be on Friday. Good luck all!
6th Grade:
Students are finishing their research on their invention and using their graphic organizers to organize information into paragraphs. Next students will be typing a one page paper describing their invention. The second part of the activity will begin in about a week. Students should have already chosen if they plan to build a model, create a timeline or make a power point describing their invention.
Happenings for October 17th – 21st
8th Grade Applications of Technology class
Students are continuing work on the 7 main energy resources used in the world. Students have been researching the pros, cons, cost to produce and environmental impacts of each of the seven energy sources. Once they have completed that students are creating a foldable document which uses the information they gathered.
Content objective for students:I can create a foldable document which will contain the pros, cons, cost to produce and environmental impact of each of the seven main energy sources. I can give facts about one energy source, draw pictures of another energy source, develop a story about another energy source, create a brochure to entice others to use yet another energy source, write a short article to persuade others not to allow an energy source to be built in our town and finally, compare two energy sources.
This activity is due on October 26th. Included in the grade are your notes and the foldable.
7th Grade Foundations of Technology class
We have just started our new project called “Egg crash vehicles”. Students are in groups of 2-3 to research, design and then produce a vehicle which will contain a raw egg and will be tested.
Content objective for students: I can design a vehicle which will safely contain a raw egg. The vehicle must include wheels and safety features which will protect the egg from damage. The vehicle will be constructed of recycled materials and the egg will be able to be easily removed and placed into the vehicle by the teacher.
Links for the activity can be found below:
egg-crash-vehicle-design-ideas
6th Grade Exploring technology class
Students have just begun research on their Inventions activity. This week we are in the computer lab to research information on the who, when and where, other inventions related to ours, fun facts about our invention, and why this invention is important to me. Students are using a graphic organizer to help with organizing their ideas before typing a one page paper about their invention.
Content objective for students: I can gather information about an invention of my choosing which will inform others about the invention. I will include who invented, when it was invented, where it was invented, other inventions related, fun facts and why this invention is important to me. I will type a one page paper to display my research. Once I have completed that I will chose a project to display what I have learned about my invention. I can either construct a model, create a timeline or design a power point.
Links for the activity can be found below:
Happenings for October 10-14th
8th grade Applications of Technology:
We are beginning our energy unit this week with students researching 7 main energy sources, explaining the pros cons and costs required and then focusing on creating their energy folder.
Below are some examples of energy sources:
Assignment links: Click below to take a look at the assignment and rubric used for this activity. You can also access the energy vocabulary activity.
energy-technology
(directions and rubric)
This assignment is due on October 26th!
7th grade foundations of technology
Students are continuing work on their Public Service Announcements this week and are expected to finish no later than Thursday so that we can play their awesome PSA’s on Friday!
6th grade exploring technology
Students are completing their unit on “What is Technology” and will soon begin a new unit on “Inventions and Technology”. Click the links below to see a copy of the assignment and rubric.
Happenings for the week of October 3rd-7th
6th Grade: This week classes will begin the unit on Technology and History. We will begin with a “show and tell” of my antiques which include an 1880’s iron, a 1960’s curling iron, an instant Kodak camera from 1972, a 1960’s typewriter, a 1950’s 8mm motion camera and many others. The goal is to learn about technology used in the past to better appreciate the technology used today. Students will be able to define technology and give examples found in everyday life and then create a pict-o-word poster to demonstrate items representing technology.
7th Grade: This week students are completing their bottle labels and continuing the unit on advertising by creating a public service announcement using power point slides. Take a look at some public service announcement posters:
Public service announcements do not sell you a product but provide information and, in some cases, try to persuade you to change your behavior.
Extra credit (due on October 5th): List three issues you feel need to be addressed to change the behavior of kids your age. Explain why these behaviors are important to you. Example: Bullying is an issue in our district because sometimes I do not like the way someone talks mean to me our my friends.
8th Grade: Students are completing their unit on Careers in Technology this week and then will begin a unit on Biotechnology. We will learn about how the medical field works with technology to produce medicines which prolong lives and to help us live more complete lives.
prosthetic arm.