Unit Starts Tomorrow!

by James Wampler
(Shelbyville, Ky. USA)

I have been getting ready with my classroom DevGru to present our Solar Cooking unit to the rest of the class.

We are connecting it to standards MS.ESS3.4 and MS.ESS3.5

MS.ESS3.4 Students need to make an argument based on evidence that increases in populations and per capita consumption of natural resources impacts earth's systems

MS.ESS3.5 Students need to be able to ask questions to clarify evidence of the factors that have caused the rise in global temperatures over the past century.

With this being our first year, we moved a little slower than I would have liked. We also lost about 6 days to snow that (thankfully) we don't have to make up.

Students tested some of their designs last week, but while I had thermometers, we could not locate the oven bags or anything to cover their ovens with...so the final DevGru testing will be this week. A student did send me a picture of her first box oven, which reached 160 degrees F.

Currently, I can't get the ASSC up to anything above 250 degrees. I attribute this at least partly to the fact that I still haven't found anyone with a saw and free time that could put a nice notch in the wood.

Maybe I'll just buy a hand-saw and a vice or something :)

The instruction and construction *should* go smoothly. I am getting more nervous about having favorable weather for the end of the year. Currently trying to find ways that students can test their units in the classroom if they have to.