We love our thumbs!

Grade 4 is doing a unit called Out of Africa. In IPC lab we are doing some investigations about archeology and evolution. Last week we tested life with and without opposable thumbs. Students completed a number of tasks with their hands and then tried the same tasks with their thumbs taped to their hands. We also talked about other adaptations in our skeleton such as how the shape and tilt of our pelvis allows us to walk upright and use our hands for tasks. We will look at the shape of human skulls in our next lesson. 

Temperature and Particles

We continued in our They Made a Difference unit in grade 3 by talking about how Fahrenheit and Celsius made a difference in how we describe temperature. Students made their own thermometers that showed how particles take up more space as they warm up. Students also conducted an investigation about how a vitamin tablet dissolves faster in warmer water because the particles more around more. 

To make this a fair test we only changed the temperature of the water. We used the same type of beaker, the same amount of water and the same size tablet. 

We used thermometers to measure temperature and ipads to measure time in this experiment. 

As the water warmed up, it moved up the glass rod.