In our class, we will start by exploring the world of fractals (what is one, anyway?), then get outside do some field biology, next perform experiments indoors and wrap up our camp with engineering designs. Should be tons of fun!
We’ll also visit the Minnesota Children’s Museum and the Science Museum of Minnesota. Hopefully everyone will find something they are really passionate about, if not everything!
You may be asking yourself “what does art have to do with science and math?” Well, to come up with new ideas of how to improve things or find solutions to problems, we have to be creative. We’re tapping into that aspect of learning. Plus, it is more fun to learn while drawing, building and otherwise creating, right?
On this page, we’ll be sharing what all we do in our class, “Hands-on Fun with Science, Math and … Art?”
Day 1: Games of getting to know one another, introduction to fractals: fractal bingo, Sierpinski triangle, tetrahedrons. Check it out – we were featured on the Summer Academy blog!
 Putting together the 4th order tetrahedron – great team work! |
|
|
 |
 Math behind the tetrahedron |
 |
 First to complete her own 3rd order tetrahedron!
|
 Holding up the 4th order tetrahedron |
 Math behind the Sierpinski triangle |
Day 2: fractal cutout/popup cards and setting pitfall traps to collect bugs!
 Our TA made some awesome cutout cards! |
 This student made a different type of card (with the inside open) and taught some students how to make it! |
 Super cool designs made with wooden pentagons |
 A pineapple! |
 The soil was really hard to dig into. We were glad to have team work! |
 These two did a great job setting their pitfalls. |
 We wrapped up the day with an awesome game! |
Day 3: The Science Museum field trip, including the “Dream Big” movie (we will be doing some activities from the Dream Big Educator’s Guide), and collecting some of our pitfall traps
 Enjoying the Lego exhibit |
 Building, building, building with Legos! |
 Built an awesome building! |
 Prepping a slide to look at cells from the inside of his cheek |
 Laboratory scientists in training! |
Day 4: collecting bugs from pitfall traps, nature bingo, fractal video zooms and XaoS and watersheds
 Collecting surface-active arthropods using pitfall traps |
 Students enjoyed some free time to roam and collect some bugs to look at under the microscope |
 A third-order tetrahedron with Zometools! |
 Learning about contamination in watersheds |
 Making it rain on her watershed and seeing where the contamination goes |
Day 5: XaoS and other computer stuff, 5×5 math game, studying water surface tension and turbulence (see the following movies: turbulence1, turbulence2)
Amazing fractal art created by a student!
Day 6: Fibonnaci sequence and spirals (boo! I didn’t get any pics of students investigating the broccoli Romanesco), arthropod identification and looking at arthropods and other stuff through the microscopes
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Day 7: solar ovens, eating smores cooked in the solar ovens, plant identification and web of life game
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Day 8: Create your own game (from PBS SciGirls curriculum- can’t find it online right now), visit to The Children’s Museum, and played some of our own games!
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Day 9: Finished games from yesterday, caught up on “Experts“, and extracted DNA from strawberries and kiwi – it worked somewhat… I didn’t get any pictures today! 🙁
Day 10: Flower of life, chair lift challenge, playing our own games that we created. Check out this and this video showing the challenge in action!
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Day 11: Exploring and creating fractals using XaoS in the computer lab and build a windmill (lesson starting on p. 61) See two videos of students with their windmills – here and here!
Day 12: We started the day playing the games that we created and then explored other classes’ final presentations. We went to “Cool Caves,” architectural design class, “Tech Ninja,” and “Pinball Penny Arcade.” So fun!
We wrapped up the day playing with our windmills. Check out these three videos of successful windmills: video1 video2 video3
 |
 This was part of the game – Keelan created a math problem to solve and did so! |
 Super awesome game where you put your hand inside and try to guess what’s in the box! |
 A student’s own version of air hockey! |
 Going into a “cave” |
 Amazing caves! |
Day 13: We saw the rocket launches, attended a presentation for a clay class, watched the stop motion animation movies and wrapped up our day at the improv show.
We wrapped up our day testing what is the best way to see turbulence and the mixing of colors from Skittles. We looked at cold and warm water and cold and warm milk. The warm milk won, like we thought it would! Two students created gorgeous designs with their experiment.
