Access various journals, magazines, newspapers, cyclopedia, research resources, primary sources (History), age appropriate resources for inquiry and PBL, videos, games, and health and wellness resources!

Science Background:

The basis of how the balloon works is that warmer air rises in cooler air. This is because hot air is lighter than cool air as it has less mass per unit of volume. Mass can be defined by the measure of how much matter something contains. The actual balloon (called an envelope) has to be so large as it takes such a large amount of heated air to lift it off the ground. For example, to lift 1000 pounds worth of weight you would need almost 65,000 cubic feet of heated air! To help keep the balloon in the air and rising, hot air needs to be propelled upwards into the envelope using the burner.

Materials: lightweight kitchen garbage bags, timer, hair dryer with various speeds and temperatures, scissors, thread, extension cord, tape, other types and sizes of bags

Students create a theme park for the novel “Where the Red Fern Grows" using Makerspace. OR Students create a comic book that describes all of the sequential plot elements of the story. OR Students create a test using Quizlet or Kahoot that explores all the story elements.

Science Background: All organisms interact, and a key science concept for students to understand is that all organisms affect each other and are affected by each other. Getting rid of a certain species like mosquitoes disrupts the entire food chain, and this simulation allows them to start thinking about the ecosystem in a big picture way.

Materials: Pinnies or some other way of distinguishing teams, Large playing field, Timer

My goal for this year was to add math games to my repertoire of teaching strategies as part of my regular classroom routine. I looked at this as the first step to moving towards a guided math program. Also our PLT group was working on ways to increase the level of math fact knowledge in addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. The Saskatchewan Curriculum recognizes that “mental mathematics is a combination of cognitive strategies that enhance flexible thinking and number sense. It is calculating mentally and reasoning about the relative size of quantities without the use of external memory aids. Mental mathematics enables students to determine answers and propose strategies without paper and pencil. It improves computational fluency and problem solving by developing efficiency, accuracy, and flexibility.” I also wanted to increase opportunities for communication and collaboration. Some of my math games involved building, creating and problem solving. Others involved competition and cooperation. I created a brochure that highlighted the favorite games of the students and it also provides links where teachers can find these games.

Science Background:
Methane gas is lighter than oxygen gas, causing the methane bubbles to rise. This can be used to demonstrate that even though both gases are colourless and odourless, they are made of different substances and therefore have different masses and properties. The reaction is caused by the combustion reaction. Anytime a hydrocarbon such as methane is burned, the products are water and carbon dioxide.
Materials: Water, Splint, meter stick, tape, dish soap, Gas line with hose

Science Background: Substances like Silly Putty are part of a class of materials called polymers. Like other molecules, polymers are compounds, but they are large and may contain tens of thousands of atoms. Compare this, for example, to water, a compound of hydrogen and oxygen that contains three atoms. A good way to visual the difference between small molecules (like water) and polymers (also called macromolecules) is to think of the size difference between a crystal of salt (small) and a strand of spaghetti (larger and longer). Like the strand of spaghetti, polymers are long chains of molecules strung together. These strands can also be tangled up to create a giant mess of polymer chains.

"OK Go Sandbox is an online resource for educators that uses OK Go’s music videos as starting points for integrated guided inquiry challenges allowing students to explore various STEAM concepts."

Science Background:
When substances are mixed they may change state or they may change into a new substance completely. Students will observe changes in colour, temperature, volume, and state in this activity.
Materials: 50mL graduated cylinder, bromothymol blue indicator, 3 resealable bags, 2 spoons or scoopulas, baking soda, calcium chloride powder

This multigrade PBL unit, developed by Dani Vavra, outlines:

Protocol for unit
Details of the proposal
Outcomes from Life Transitions 20 and Health 9

This is a template students can use to create a plan of action for a project.

Resources include:
*What is PBL?
*Planning a Unit (forms for elementary, middle school and high school)
*6 As of PBL Design
*Structure of PBL
*Culture and PBL
*21st Century Skills
& More

PBL Peer Assessment
PBL Planning Forms
PBL Project Essentials Checklist
PBL Project Management Kit
PBL Project Planning and Management Tools
PBL Project Planning Forms
PBL Rubric for Project Design Evaluation
PBL Sample Rubrics
PBL Science 10 CR1 Chemical Reactions

This document offers an example of a peer assessment that could be used for a PBL project.

"The Project is an audio experience produced by PBLWorks. Hosts Laureen Adams and Stanley Richards dive deep into the power, the potential, the pitfalls, and the possibilities of Project Based Learning – to help you, your students, and your colleagues get the most out of PBL."

The following is a collection of resources needed to run professional learning about Project Based Learning at Sun West.
Included items:
The PowerPoint presentation, planning templates, project ideas, essential question templates, student action plan template, student reflection template and a link to outcomes for each grade (I CAN statements).

This workshop is optional for a school prior to completing the full Day PBL Professional Learning PD. It is not mandatory that you do this work prior to the main PD, but it will allow your school to focus on skill development and make collective agreements about who will teach what in each grade skill-wise.

This is a weekly reflections students can complete as they work through a project to help them stay on track.

The following is an example of a template for a weekly reflection students could use if they were working on PBL or Genius Hour, or any project.

We intend to create a winter garden and landscape the garden patch on the east side of the school. The landscaping will help make the school look more inviting and create a more welcoming atmosphere that persuades people to come into our school! The following are the powerpoints and outlines we used to do this.