Franklin Discovery Engage

STEM Rec Challenges October 30 - November 3 Science Iron Cereal Challenge. Iron is a common metal that's used to make magnets, tools, buildings, and more. Iron is also an essential nutrient for our bodies and is added to many of the foods we eat to ensure we have enough. Students will use magnets to determine which breakfast cereal has been fortified with iron and which has not. Standard: Students will understand that magnetism can be observed when there is an interaction between the magnetic fields of magnets or between a magnet and materials made of iron. Literacy Have you ever wanted to interview a vampire? What about getting to know an alien? Or chatting for a little bit with The Cat in the Hat? Well this week in literacy, you can!! Students will have a chance to dress up and dive into one of 8 carefully chosen children's book characters. Using a companion book and their own creativity, students will get into character and play an interview game. Partners wi...

Dear Parents, First I would like to give a BIG HEARTFELT THANK YOU, to all who have donated to the makerspace.  Every contribution has been greatly appreciated. The pumpkin elevators were a great success. Our students collaborated to make 37 elevators.   Right now our makerspacer is full, but I would like to highlight some projects that are coming up and the supplies that will be needed.  Paper rolls go fast so we can always use those. The week of November 6 - 10, students will be making their own m arble maze. If every student makes one, we will make over 300 mazes. Materials needed for this endeavor are:   - pipe cleaners - craft sticks - box lids (from cases of paper or the short boxes from Costco) - masking tape  - marbles (lots of them) The first two weeks in December, engineering will be making  Foxville - a town made out of boxes (see example below). Since it will be the holiday season, students can decorat...

Block 2 is finally upon us, and with it comes cooler weather, fun holidays, and lots of great literacy opportunities for the Franklin Foxes. In addition to celebrating your favorite holidays and curling up with a hot beverage and a good book, check out the literacy classes that your little foxes will be taking this block. IMHO: Beginning Opinion Writing In this class, 1st and 2nd grade foxes will build basic writing skills while writing about the things that matter to them. Whether it be our opinions about the best Engage class or the most appropriate toppings on pizza, students will learn how to share and support their opinions in writing. All About Me: Beginning Narrative Writing This class, geared towards 1st and 2nd grade foxes, will build basic writing skills as they write about the the person they know best: themselves! Whether it be the thrilling tale about their first lost tooth or the heartwarming story of their favorite family outing, students will learn how to richly s...

Folks, I've done it!  I've scheduled an entire block with no war!  This block, a lot of our classes will be geography-based, and we'll focus on the where of social studies. My 1st and 2nd graders will be studying geography and creation myths in two separate classes.  In geography, we'll be studying continents and then focusing on local geography.  In creation myths, we'll look at several creation myths from around the world, and at the end of the term, students will be able to make their own creation myths. My 3rd and 4th graders will be studying geography and explorers.  In geography, we'll start with the continents and then focus on mountains of the world.  In explorers, we'll focus on the great explorers of the world, including Columbus and Magellan, among others.  We'll end that term by becoming explorers ourselves. My 5th and 6th graders will study geography and Enlightenment philosophy.  In geography, we'll study continents and move fr...

Science Rules!!! First/Second Grade: This block students in first and second grades will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of classes.  In the mornings these children can choose to engage in programming kid friendly robots, learning and discovering space science, or examining different habitats and the plants and animals that live there.  Students are sure to be engaged in these fun classes. Third/Fourth Grade: There are several options for our third and fourth grade students this block.  First (and probably much anticipated) is the Geology class.  This has been talked about among students for several weeks as we will take this time to explore minerals, rocks, earthquakes, and volcanoes....and yes, we will be breaking open geodes!  I have added a new class to the mix called "Transportation."  This class will explore the ways people move around the world with some design and engineering sprinkled throughout.  Finally, fo...

STEM Rec Challenges October 23 - 27 Science / Math This week we are starting our month on magnets. Why can some metals form magnets while others can not? Students will learn about the metals that are magnetic and try magnetizing a piece of metal to form their own magnet. Standard: Students will understand that magnetism can be observed when there is an interaction between the magnetic fields of magnets or between a magnet and materials made of iron. Math Students will be using a budget to spend money. Each child will be given flashcards with money on them.. The challenge is to use the amount of money they have to spend on items they want and keep within their budget. Literacy Fitness Relay! This week we are going to play a game outside using straws! We are going to make as many letters or words as we can with our teams. Social Studies We're continuing our journey around the world.  We'll visit Mexico for the Day of the Dead and skip from Europe to ...

FDA hosts an Angel Tree each year during November and December for those families that could use a little holiday magic. If you would like to be on the tree or know of someone that could use it, I am accepting applications now. The link to the application is here and can also be found on the counseling page of the school website. If you have any questions, please contact me at katie.barker@franklindiscovery.org.

STEM Rec Challenges October 16 - 20 Science / Math October is National Bullying Prevention month.To promote kindness among students, science and math are joining together to offer a poster contest in which students can design posters to promote the message of bullying prevention. Literacy / Wellness This week in Literacy we are doing a wellness challenge. We are learning about building confidence in ourselves and others. We are going to play "rubber face" and "what makes me unique" and then write down things we like about ourselves and what we like about others! Social Studies Throughout time and across lands people have found reasons to celebrate.  Fall is an especially ripe time for celebrations.  This week we'll start our two week journey across the globe to learn about different cultures and their fall festivals.  This week we'll visit India and Israel for Diwali and Rosh Hashanah! Art Our adventure of learning about art from aroun...

Because October is National Bullying Prevention month, we are putting an extra emphasis on kindness this month. Students will be acting as secret agents to fulfill their secret kindness missions as many times in a week as they can. Most secret missions can be accomplished by the students themselves, however a few might require a little bit of help from an adult. Next week, students will have the opportunity to create posters promoting kindness and anti-bullying messages. At the end of the week there will be a contest where students and staff will vote for their favorite posters. The winning posters will be displayed around the school. Katie Barker

STEM Rec Challenges October 9 -11 Short week at school / Monday - Wednesday Long relaxing weekend with your children! Enjoy! Science We’ll have the classical cartesian diver experiment for students to explore. Can they determine which forces allow this experiment to work? Standard: Students will understand the relationship between the force applied to an object and resulting motion of the object. Math Trashketball. Students will be practicing basic math facts while trying to score points throwing a basketball in a trashcan. Literacy This week in literacy students will be reading nursery rhymes to learn about different emotions. How are emotions described in stories? Students will act out emotions as they explore their feelings, responses and passions.   Social Studies / Wellness This week at the social studies table...there will be no social studies.  But it's okay!  Take a breath.  In fact, make that a slow, deep breath.  Because...

Art Station Meet Miss Jenale and Miss McKenna Miss McKenna is currently studying Anthropology and Art History at UVU. She loves painting, drawing, sculpting, and anything else having to do with art. She is also an avid reader and book collector. In her spare time she either draws, watches TV or practices her archery skills. Miss Jenale's favorite movie is Madagascar 2.  Her favorite line is when King Julian says, "Maurice, it is more fun when you raise your arms like this" (as the plane they are in is crashing).  Her favorite holiday is Halloween. She loves to dress up and all the candy. She has a Siberian Husky. Jenale says the best way to describe her dog is the way Agnes says it in Despicable Me , "she's so fluffy I could die."  Jenale invites all parents to come and visit her at the art station in STEM. Learning about weaving. A rug made by Franklin Discovery students. Our Art Station masters have been doing a fantastic ...