STEM Challenge!
STEM Challenge
Design an Earth-Friendly Sneaker*
*Credit - PBS Design Squad
We will be periodically including an optional STEM Challenge for students. The “Design Squad” at PBS has some great challenges. Our goal is to find challenges that are engaging but do not require a lot of materials, particularly ones that you may have easily accessible at home or you can easily substitute with whatever you have handy.
Our first challenge is one that will hopefully appeal to students on multiple levels. It challenges students to develop an Earth-friendly sneaker! Below is the pdf file of the challenge. It does contain a variety of opportunities to extend the inquiry and project. Use as little or as much as you feel is manageable. Most of all...have fun!
Click here for instructions to the Sneaker Challenge
BOKS
At Jordan/Jackson, the spring session of BOKS was just getting underway. BOKS stands for Build Our Kids’ Success, and was inspired by Dr. John Ratey’s book “Spark”. Dr. Ratey, of Harvard Medical School, states that “exercise is the single most powerful tool that we have to optimize the function of our brains.” Our first spring session focused on movement and running. Students started with three warm up laps, which included jogging, shuffling, and skipping. We also played a game of capture the flag and ended with a nutrition lesson from one of our school nurses, Mrs. Johnston.
Though school is closed, the BOKS team has been working hard to bring you the best at-home activities to keep your kids active and healthy. As such, they will be offering Facebook LIVE BOKS classes each week day at 12PM, and the best news is that anyone can join in the fun! Please join some of the wonderful BOKS Trainers at www.facebook.com/boks each weekday for a fun dose of physical activity for you and your kids. If you aren’t able to join the events at that time, don’t worry, the workouts will remain on the BOKS Facebook page and can be watched at your convenience. We hope you have fun with these workouts and can’t wait to continue with our BOKS classes in the future.
How to Talk to Your Kids about Coronavirus
Check out the link to PBS' website for parents. There are some good resources for parents on how to talk to your kids about COVID-19. They also have lots of great ideas for experiments, crafts, recipes and other things for families to do. PBS is offering a weekday newsletter with activities and tips you can use to help kids play and learn at home; the link to sign up is also below.
Click on the link: sign up for PBS' newsletter
Here's a few ideas from their website:
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Make a Miniature Garden With spring coming soon, learn how seeds and plants grow and build observation skills with this hands-on garden activity. First create your miniature garden and then track plant growth with the Nature Cat plant journal. | Peg's Pizza Fractions Who says you can't play (and learn) with your food. In this fun Peg + Cat activity, explore the fractions of 1/8, 1/4, and 1/2 while eating delicious pizza. | Homemade Snow Globes A homemade snow globe is a childhood must! The best part about these snow globes is that they give you the perfect opportunity to get rid of some of those pesky plastic figurines lying around the house. Another idea is to use LEGOs -- if your child can part with them! |
Make a Miniature Garden
Peg's Pizza Fractions
Homemade Snow Globes
Resources and Guidelines from the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)
News of the coronavirus COVID-19 is everywhere, from the front page of all the papers to the playground at school. Many parents are wondering how to bring up the epidemic in a way that will be reassuring and not make kids more worried than they already may be. The NASP has put together some guidelines and resources for your use.
Click on the link: Talking to Children About COVID-19 (Coronavirus): A Parent Resource
Corny Joke Challenge
Below is one to get us started:
IXL Math and IXL ELA
Mathematics and English Language Arts resources
Click on the link to their website: IXL Math and IXL ELA
Students login using the same user name and password they use for Google without the "@mansfieldschools.com" . See the sign-in example and picture below.
sample username: bjones29
sample password: 8765432
Typing Club
Students login using the same user name and password they use for Google without the "@mansfieldschools.com". See the sign-in example and picture below.
sample username: bjones29
sample password: 8765432
Scholastic Go!
Click on the link to their website: Scholastic Go!
Username: jjelem
Password: jjelem
TrueFlix
Multimedia resource, including eBooks related to Science and Social Studies topics.
Click on the link to their website: TrueFlix
Username: jjelem
Password: jjelem
We're Now On Instagram!
We're also on Twitter: JordanJacksonMA
Link to our website: Jordan/Jackson Elementary School
Mansfield Public Schools