The second term of the school year began with a once-a-week LEGO Club for grades 2 – 5. The students take on different challenges every week. They put their creativity and innovative minds to the test and design/build Lego creations.
It’s been some time since I’ve posted my after school club challenges.
This week I decided to challenge the students to find out who scribbled on a piece of paper.
Materials:
Running alcohol
5 Different types of pens (I had 4 black ink pens and 1 blue ink pen)
Recording worksheet
Pencils
Coffee filters
Investigation Method:
First, I showed the students the paper with all the scribbles. They knew I had done it immediately, but they didn’t know which pen I used to make the scribbles. So, to get them to begin their own investigation, I demonstrated to them how to get the colors out of the inks.
Take a pen – Draw a circle on the coffee filter – Fill in the circle by coloring it in lightly so that the coffee filter doesn’t rip – take a pipette, get some rubbing alcohol – Drop 2 or 3 drops of the rubbing alcohol on the ink – See what happens to the blank inkThe students tested 5 different pens then determined which pen came closest to the paper with the scribbles.
Here are some of the pictures during our investigation:
Sunday was beautiful! Amazing New England fall weather! My two yorkies must have known because they were wired all morning. Originally, I was going to see the fall foliage, but things just didn’t work out. But, I wanted the dogs to get some fresh air since they don’t get outside much during the week. So, mom suggested we go out for lunch then drive up to the outlets so that she can exchange some stuff she bought last week. We got the pups ready…I swear I feel like we have two babies in the house, especially when we get ready to go out with them. Just bag after bag with the dogs’ necessities. Mehh- But, I love them so… Haha
So, we got in the car after getting ready and drove to Panera Bread…got some food and drinks…sat outside with our coffee and pastries. The dogs also got settled in…here is Happy looking too cute:
Then, my mom got a phone call from a very close family friend asking my mom to come over so she can see Happy. Happy is her favorite…she calls herself as “Happy’s Mom.” She immediately fell in love with Happy because her previous dog, Dooli, looked just like Happy. Her house wasn’t too far away so we said we would and drove to her place. Our stay ended up being couple of hours…haha. Thank goodness she had a fenced in yard, otherwise we were going to hear complaints (aka whining and barking from Happy). Lily is okay indoors all day…She does like the fresh air, but she’s not a huge fan of walking/running outside. For the longest time, we had to carry her on walks because she just refused to walk. Even at our family friend’s house, Happy was going crazy in the yard…running, sniffing, playing, doing her business, etc. Lily just kind of walked to one spot and pretty much stayed in that spot unless she saw me run away or go inside. Two completely different dogs. Lol.
Can you see the HUGE smile on Happy’s face??!!
My mom REALLY REALLY wanted to get some of the clothes returned/exchanged because she demanded that I drive up to the outlets an hour before closing time. Lol. So we went… while my mom went inside the stores, I walked around with Happy and Lily. And, of course, Lily had to bark at another dog…and Happy decided to join in…I was trying to quiet them when I saw a security guard sneak up on me. Thought he was going to tell me to leave, but he saw nothing was going to happened so he left. I walked away from the “scene” and sat down on the bench with them waiting for my mom. It was so embarrassing – gahhh.
In any case, I think the dogs had a nice outing today. Haha. I’m hoping to take them somewhere next weekend…I think the beaches near my house are now open for dogs or I might try to go see the fall foliage next weekend.
On Labor Day, the entire family took a day trip to Maine…including our two babies (Happy and Lily). We were going to leave them home, but at the last minute, we decided to take them with us to Portland, ME. I think Happy and Lily are New England dogs. They LOVE being by the ocean and lobster. Haha. I’m not sure if dogs can eat lobster meat, but… I gave some to them on this trip. They are doing perfectly fine.
Here are some pictures from the trip (it started to rain when we got to downtown Portland, so we drove around for a bit then drove back down to MA):
Another beautiful day in New England… (few weeks late in posting, of course. I really need to stay on top of posting in a reasonable time).
I love Rockport, MA. It’s small and wicked busy during the summer months, but I just like coming here to just sit by the water and relax. I wanted to spend a nice day with the dogs before the start of the fall. I think they may have been a bit hot, but knowing the two rascals, they loved being outdoors.
Lily enjoying the view….
Happy looks so happy…
This is one my favorite pictures of Happy…
Few Sundays ago, the weather was really nice and the dogs were itching to go outside. So, we decided to go out to get some lunch. The dogs hung around outdoors with us. I was very surprised at how well Happy behaved during lunch. She usually would have whined about sitting in one spot for an extended period of time, but on this day, Happy just hung out with us without a peep!
Then, after lunch, we took them to Lake Quannapowitt in Wakefield. It was such a lovely day.
I can’t wait till the beaches are open for dogs. One of very few places I can let them roam around leash free. And, Happy goes wild!
After two failed attempts at going to Halibut Point State Park in Rockport, MA, my friend and I ventured to a park in Gloucester, MA. We drove around for almost two hours for a nice place to let the dogs get some exercise. We stumbled upon a sort of hidden park in Gloucester. It was called Ravenwood Park. Parking, unfortunately, was not big or convenient. I mean I say “hidden” because there weren’t any signs that pointed us to the park. The GPS took us to a private road. I don’t think I will return to this place any time soon, but it was still a nice place – quiet, not so busy, calm, pretty place.
Lily began the trail by walking on her own…well, more like sprinting and running – just straight running, no sniffing around. Just running straight. She’s tiny but it was hard keeping up with her! I could just be really out of shape, but I think…I’m pretty sure she just kept wanting to go nonstop.
Even her new friend, Tofu, couldn’t keep up. Tofu just wanted to sniff around and investigate his surrounding.
About 15 minutes into the hike, she decided she didn’t want to “walk” and just froze in one place. I ended up hiking with an 8-lbs Yorkie. I definitely got a workout. Haha. 
She’s adorable though isn’t she? 
August was a crazy month for me… right after the Maine trip, things started rolling almost too fast for me. It was just work everyday and then BAM! I had to prepare for the start of the new school year. Looking back, I feel like I’ve attended about ten meetings and staff developments. Of course, it was just four…but in my defense those four days were LONG days. Tons of information thrown at me. The phrase “deer caught in the headlights” could definitely fit in this situation. Haha. Nonetheless, I got through it all with much support and encouragement from many many wonderful people in my life. Quick shout-out: “Thank you everyone for always cheering me on!”
In any case, here are some of the fun stuff that went down during the summer camp:
Clay molding, DIY Chess boards and pieces, Make Your Own Game Boards, Life Size Monopoly, and random “portraits”
Clay molding: Guess what these are supposed to be! Nom Nom Nom. Haha
The kids had some free time so they decided to do some “Free Draw.”
(The picture above needs a description. One of the boys in the class decided to draw a portrait of his “girlfriend.” A girl in another class who he would like to marry. Cute? Weird? Funny?)
Life-sized Monopoly Game Board (It was too big for me to get the entire board in one picture frame.) Note: The cardboard box with pink strips of duct tape is supposed to be prison.
Make your own board game: Few boys decided to make basketball and soccer themed board games. They explained how to play, but I don’t think I ever fully understood how to play these games.
Last project was to learn to play the chess AND to make your own chess pieces and board. Can you guess what the class was interested in this past summer? Haha.
We invited the younger kids to come into our classroom to play our games. It was a success! I think everyone’s favorite was the life-sized monopoly game. I did see few first graders sitting by the chess board to play a game (or two) of chess.
Before we headed to Portland, we stopped at a Lobster Festival that was being held in Rockland, ME. We parked our car in a high school parking lot then hopped onto a yellow school bus, which took us to the festival grounds.
Steaming lobsters…look at all those lobsters!!
Festival grounds…
Clam chowder, lobster salad, and steamed lobster
We found a hidden bridge on our way down to Portland…Androscoggin Swinging Bridge
Ready! Set! Nolza! 
