Mar 21
2019
Good morning!
This week we talked specifically about sound waves, which are longitudinal. Students watched several videos in class, linked below:
About sound waves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JFLZpgBc9U
About hair cells: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxcbppCX6Rk
Hearing test: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNf9nzvnd1k
We also talked a lot about the shape of the ear and what each section (outer, middle, and inner) do for hearing.
These ideas will be on the quiz tomorrow (Friday) on Section 1.
Today, we started Section 2 including a directed reading assignment and vocabulary words in the foldable. Have a happy week!
Mar 19
2019
Hello families!
Last week we started Chapter 2. So far we have defined “sound waves” and looked at some ways we experience sound. This should be a quick chapter as the concepts are very easy to grasp now that we have talked about properties of mechanical waves already!
My goal is to cover sections 1, 2, 3, AND 4 with enough time to take a Chapter 2 mini-test before Spring Break! It seems ambitious, maybe… but I really think students are learning the material as quickly as I would like to cover it!
Check out Student Connect, since I updated it this week with grades on some assignments, quizzes, and tests.
As always, reach out to me if you have any questions. 🙂
Happy Tuesday! (Can you believe we are already 40% through the school week?)
Mar 15
2019
Hello friends!
I’m sorry to say that I will be absent on Friday, March 15. I seem to have caught the bug my son has been fighting all week! Friday is my favorite day of the week so I’m extra sad to miss out on wishing you all a great weekend!
Thursday we started a new chapter in the Sound and Light books. I had a lot of fun playing with tuning forks with the kids… especially in 4th hour when we dunked the tuning fork in some water to see what would happen. So funny! Today with the sub, students will receive a directed reading assignment that goes with the chapter materials we went over together. It is due before students leave because NOBODY likes weekend homework. 🙂
Check Student Connect on Sunday to look for updates as I am a little bit behind on grading. One quiz and one test will be added this weekend. On Monday I will be adding grades for the assignment with the sub and also the vocabulary foldables I haven’t had a chance to grade yet. Have a great weekend!
Mar 12
2019
I wanted to clarify some things about quiz retakes.
If a student is staying for quiz retakes, they must be able to get a ride home from a parent after their quiz is over. The tutoring and quiz retake does not take 2 whole hours and I do not always stay late enough to put students on the late bus! I turned several kids away and asked them to reschedule because they thought they were going to stay until 5.
Generally speaking, quiz retakes take about 15-30 minutes depending on the length of the quiz and what your child’s misunderstanding on their original quiz was. I will allow students to call their ride if needed, or parents can wait in the car for a short time while their child retakes the quiz.
Thank you for your understanding! Quiz retakes allow students to correct misunderstandings on the information we cover in class.
Mar 11
2019
Transverse vs Longitudinal Waves
- Note that in both waves, the energy moves left to right
- Transverse wave medium moves up and down, perpendicular to the energy movement
- Longitudinal wave medium moves left to right, parallel to the energy movement
Labeling Waves
- Transverse wave labeled between time 1:12 and 1:40
- Longitudinal wave labeled between time 1:52 and 2:08
Flow of Energy, Not Matter
- Start at 0:39
- Visual of how the water waves do not push the matter forward
Wave Motion Explanations
- Frequency 0:51
- Skip Period, you won’t be tested on that
- Wavelength 2:08
- Amplitude 2:41
Wave Behaviors
- Reflection 0:41
- Example: Mirror
- Example: Echo
- Transmission 1:09
- Example: Light through window
- Absorption / Reflection 1:18
- Example: Color / black / white objects
- Example: Ways to absorb sound
- Refraction 2:25
- Example: Air & glass have different densities
- Example: Straw / glass
- Diffraction 3:08
- Scattering 3:38
- Example: Earth’s atmosphere
Wave Song
- I have no words…. I’m still laughing.
Mar 11
2019
Good morning everyone!
I hope nobody is up this late looking at my blog… yikes!
I decided that we need one more day before the Chapter test because a lot of students were freaking out on Friday about it. Students are not sure what to expect on my tests and it seemed to cause a lot of stress to schedule it on a Monday. We are going to do one last review day including some YouTube videos that will help students with abstract concepts that I will also post here for students to study on their own.
The test will be on Tuesday. No doubt about it! Everyone should know exactly what to study tonight for it and the stress should be low!
Mar 8
2019
Good Afternoon Parents!
Monday we are rolling out a new tardy policy.
Each teacher will track tardies in their own class. You can expect to hear from me when your child has reached 3 tardies in class. After this parent contact, your child is at risk of serving detention for additional tardies.
This is especially important considering my classroom is so far away from everywhere else. Students have 6 minutes to cross the building to get to my class. They do not have much room at all to lag in the hallway and talk to friends.
I had one class today where only 4 out of 21 students showed up on time!!! Those students were given a token of appreciation from me 🙂
Please discuss with your children now ways that they can improve their punctuality and show up on time. Thank you! Have a great weekend! No homework!
Mar 8
2019
Since the behavior in 3rd and 4th hour today was so delightful, I decided to ease everyone’s anxiety and post the correct answers to the chapter review assignment. It is not a graded assignment but it will help students study for Monday’s test.
Thanks for making my Friday more peaceful!
1. Longitudinal and transverse waves differ in how the media moves. In a transverse wave, the media moves perpendicular to the direction the energy moves. Longitudinal wave media move parallel to the movement of energy.
2. Wavelength and amplitude are different in how they measure a wave. Wavelength is the length of one wave, whereas amplitude is how far the wave moves away from its rest position.
3. Reflection and refraction are two different ways waves can interact. Refelcted waves bounce off of an opaque surface. Refracted waves enter a new medium and bend due to travelling at a new speed.
4. A
5. B
6. C
7. B
8. A
9. B
10. 
11. Wave speed is the frequency multiplied by the wavelength. S=FxW
12. Skip
14. Waves carry energy but not matter. So, waves will make the canoe bob in a small circle and stay in one spot, but they will not move the boat.
15. The vibration from the singer’s voice cause the glass to vibrate at one of its resonant frequencies. Once this happens, the glass will vibrate with great amplitude, but since glass is not flexible, it can’t handle the vibration and it shatters.
18. Rank: B, C, A ~ Wave B has a high frequency and a high amplitude so it has the most energy. C has a similar frequency but a smaller amplitude, so I put it next. A has a low amplitude and a low frequency, so it has the lowest energy.
Mar 8
2019
Please assist your child in reviewing materials for Monday’s test! We did vocab for the whole chapter, directed reading for one section, and we have tons of notes on Properties of Waves and Wave Interactions. Study study study! Tests are NOT open notes!!!
Mar 6
2019
Good evening everyone!
Unfortunately my son became ill tonight so I am going to be out tomorrow to help him get better… so, as a result, I am going to switch my plans for Thursday and Friday. We will do the quiz on Friday instead and tomorrow you will work on the chapter study guide with the sub.
Visible Light Slideshow Here is the slide show, as planned. I also will make you each a paper copy of the words from the slide show that will be handed out with your section 3 directed reading assignment before the quiz.
Try to have a peaceful day!
