Isn’t learning science fun? Yessiree! Especially when you have the chance to play with a high speed camera for a little while! My little brother and I had a chance to use a super sweet Phantom Miro M320S. I’ll be posting more videos soon, but for now, here are two videos we took?
Why are bubbles so much fun to play with? And, more importantly, what makes a bubble?
Who doesn’t love a slow motion raspberry?
Well Earth Day has come and gone. But we all know that every day should be earth day! This year I recommended getting out and exploring the earth around you, your backyard, neighborhood, local parks, etc. My family and I have been busy doing just that, exploring!
Go ninja! Let's dive right into exploring!
We moved last September. Not very far, about 25 minutes from our old place, but it feels as if we are worlds away at times. Our first house was on a very busy street with a lot of through traffic, had a very small lot with only two large (and very sickly) trees in the front yard that we eventually had to have cut down (we love nature, but all good scientists know, safety first!). It might not sound ideal for our little budding scientist to get out and explore much but we were very lucky to have an adorable park that was within walking distance and an excellent metro park system in our county that we loved exploring.
Now we are in a different kind of location. Our lot is a little larger and is chock full of trees! We have lots of overgrown areas (that probably need a little help to reach their full potential!) and so many places to explore. It is such a stark contrast to our first location that we feel like we are literally in the middle of the woods. Of course it’s not really, but we have had a blast exploring all the surprises that nature has to offer here over the past few months. So, in the spirit of of good science, we are planning on sharing some of our “scientific exploration” (aka, all the cool stuff we are finding around here) in a hopefully regular series we shall call, Ninja Explorers of Southwest Ohio… just kidding, put on your gear and let’s go!
We have to catch you up a little bit, here is our wonderful, albeit overgrown, location.
One of the first critters we spotted were the squirrels! Granted, we had them in our old neighborhood too, but never this close and never this many before. So, to enhance our opportunities to observe these guys, we got a feeder and some feed corn.
Of course, what would be the fun in just sitting the corn out there for them to just take. We enjoyed seeing them figure this contraption out. It didn’t take very long though!!!
We also spotted this guy in our yard as we returned home. My wife had her camera and tried to follow him, but he was quick to get away. I believe he is a hawk and I think we have spotted him again since.
A little bit closer…
I’m not entirely certain that he was, in fact, a hawk. Perhaps one of you could help me identify him? Not sure why we think he’s a boy, but my daughter agrees, so until we hear otherwise, we’ll go with that! You can’t tell from the pics, but it was such a beautiful big bird! Hopefully we can figure out a little more about him if we can observe him again.
Spring has really sprung in our neck of the woods and we can hardly keep up with all the wonderful things happening in our yard. We can’t wait to share more with you but I would also love to hear about the exciting things happening where you are. What critters do you see? Do you adore seeing them the way we do, or do they get a little too close for comfort? We’ve had our fair share of that too, but that’s a tail… I mean tale, for another day!
Good Afternoon Super Scientists of the World!
Today, we celebrate Earth Day! I’ve compiled a list of things you can do with your friends and family! It’s easy, plus, get out and enjoy Mother Earth!
1. Walk around your town or city and pick up trash
2. Plant a tree or a garden
3. Into gardening? Start a compost pile.
4. Ride your bike
5. Watch the sunrise or sunset
6. Take a walk through your town, or hike through the woods
7. Commit to recycling!
8. “Ask for paper bags at the grocery!”
9. Use energy efficient light bulbs like CFL’s or LED’s.
10. Watch Mister C’s “Save the Earth” for more ideas! : )
Happy Earth Day everyone!
~Mister C
Well, Spring is in full Swing and I thought it was time to get some yard work accomplished. I figured I would start with something fun and easy…. like removing 1/3 acre worth of brush and Honeysuckle from our yard. Really, that’s not that fun! It just sounds like it would be. To the fun part…
During our clean up yesterday, my family came across a Garter snake. That’s right! It was probably right around 2 feet in length and was hanging out near a pile of leaves. It was probably just hanging out in the sun, digesting its last meal.
We took some video as I attempted my hand at being a snake handler. We moved it to the fence line so that we wouldn’t accidentally injure it during our clean up. I’ll post the video to YouTube this weekend.
Finally, I’m on my way to earning a yellow belt as an Ecosystem Warrior! Go Ninja!
So, my questions to all of the little scientists around the world are:
1. What do snakes like to eat?
2. Where do snakes fit into food chain/food web?
3. How can snakes be beneficial to an ecosystem?
4. How can snakes be harmful to an ecosystem?
5. Do snakes hibernate?
6. What type of snakes live in your “neck of the woods”?
*Just a few questions until the video gets posted! Have fun my scientists of the world!
~Mister C
Came across this video and had to share it! Makes you appreciate how much really can happen in a bookstore! Let you imagination run wild!
~ Mister C
Before I get to the equinox, I wanted to let you all know that Mister C’s music is finally “live” on iTunes! After numerous requests for digital downloads, I’ve uploaded my songs (more to come) and have included an iTunes button in the right sidebar! Enjoy!
On to the weather!…..
First of all, can you believe this weather!?! Unbelievable. Most importantly, be reminded that the Spring Equinox is upon us! March 20th is officially the first day of Spring for 2012! The equinox represents our location in the solar system as we orbit the sun and it represents that we have equal amount of daylight and night time on this particular day. After the 20th, the Northern Hemisphere will gradually have longer and longer days! Until the Summer Solstice arrives in June!
Get out, enjoy the sun, and learn some cool science stuff!
Mister C
I just recently uploaded PEMDAS and 3M‘s to iTunes and will be making more music available to download. Once the songs become live, I will add them to the site for easy access.
I’m trying to currently wrap up my newest songs: Fraction Action and Don’t Stress. Sorry for any delay, but I’ve been wrapping up my Superintendent License and needed to focus on my books! Remember kiddos, you have to work hard to be able to play hard. Now that all of my homework is finished, back to writing and making new songs for the world to enjoy. Fraction Action is a fun song that will hopefully help everyone understand those silly fractions a bit better. I know they always gave me a hard time when I was first learning them.
Have you supported your favorite subject lately? Make sure you vote. I’m planning to keep the survey up a little longer until I get a new song posted and will then change it.
Go Ninja!
Mister C
Any teacher, curriculum supervisor, or principal should be able to clearly explain the difference between “teaching to the test” and teaching towards curricular aim. Rather than focusing on the definition of teaching to the test, I would refocus teachers’ to the idea of best practices and what our role, as educators, should be while properly preparing students for the world. Popham’s definition of Educational Defensibility Guideline says that “no test-preparation practice should increase students’ test scores without simultaneously increasing students’ mastery of the curricular aim being assessed” brings the attention back to age-appropriate lessons and assignments that will harness students interests, while providing them with rich learning experiences that challenge common misconceptions and provide authentic lessons for students.
Sound instruction focused on curricular aim will provide good test results. I have worked with ODE and other state initiatives like OSCI, WeExcel and WOSAT to develop content-rich lessons for teachers to use in their classrooms. These lessons never required students to memorize content, but rather provided a learning experience which embodied content standards. They focus on curricular aim. Anytime a student completes a lesson, or unit of study, they should be able to explain the information and understanding the information using their own working definition. Then, when they are presented with a “test”, they will be able to synthesize what they have learned and articulate necessary information that illustrates their understanding. Not only will these students do well on the test, but they now have a true understanding of the content.
“Learning Science is Fun!”
Wowsers! I can’t believe that PEMDAS is still going strong! Thanks everyone for checking out the video either here at the site or at YouTube. My next goal is to get 100 subscribers as well! We can do this! Working on multiple songs currently and will start cranking out some more videos shortly. Thanks for being patient! Don’t forget to vote for your favorite subject!!!! My vote is for…..Science/Math!
Mister C
