Thursday, 3 October 2013

Gould Lake


When we were at Gould Lake we had to make a shelter for a chipmunk or other small animals. First thing to do was get into groups of three, then find a spot to make the shelter. After we built the little home we had to put weights on it and Seth, Emma, and I put the weights on and it held 30 pounds each weight (sand bags.) Also if snow comes it won’t break because it was very strong. When we finished we had to go back to eat lunch. After we had lunch I played a little soccer and it was fun. But then the instructors told us to come in to learn about the Earth’s water. Most of the Earth’s water is salt and only 3% of water is fresh but then ice is 2% so that means that 1% is fresh water so we don’t want to waste that water. Then we had to go outside to do another game. We had to bring water from the lake and fill two big jugs of water. We had to fill them before the other team filled theirs with two buckets and long strings were attached to a big wooden bar. And the other team had little buckets to pass to the buckets up in a big line of people, filled them in like two minutes and the other team finished in three minutes. We had to go to the other game but they weren’t ready so we played this game: we had to touch this girl’s back without her seeing us. After we played that game they were ready for us to come and start the other activity. We had to build a beaver dam with sticks and soil. I was partners with Seth. We also had a backup dam. After we finished we had to talk about if we would change anything about it. We didn’t need to change anything.  When we had to put water in it, it leaked but the backup dam held it for a while but then it started to leak because Seth was taking sticks off of it. When we were done we had to get ready to go back to school but my dad wanted me to go back home with him so I did.  
By Maddi     


                                         

8 comments:

  1. Glad that your had such a great adventure at Gould Lake Grade 5/6. Maddi, your write up was filled with details....I love it! It sounds like everyone learned a lot about Structures and the world water supply. Seth, next time BACK AWAY from the back up dam! Warmly, Cheryl MacDuff-Wills (Maddi's mom)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for commenting on our blog, Cheryl. It's so great to have parents who are interested and excited about what we do in our classroom... and on trips!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great Blog! I am looking forward to seeing more postings about all the deGroot class adventures :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your studies in the outdoors sounds wonderful. Will the class be going to study on the school yard or down by the pond? What questions would you have about the changes in your environment in October?
    What tools will you need to take with you to explore the outdoor?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, the students are excited to explore the outdoors around our school.
      Some of our questions are:
      How do the leaves change colour so quickly? (Warren)
      Why do the leaves fall off the trees? (Logan)
      Tools we will need to explore the outdoors might be:
      Snowshoes (Austin), a net, a shovel (Seth), a flashlight if at night (Sierra), a bin to keep any objects we collect in (Noah), a magnifying glass (Mikhayla) and a book to identify animals and plants we find (Kendyl).

      Delete
    2. Austin thinks that we also need Mr. Farquar!

      Delete
    3. I like the list of tools. I will have to check in my backpack to list the tools I carry when I explore the woods.
      Your questions are very interesting. The changing leaves invite everyone to look at the trees. How do they change colour? How do they hold on to the tree? (or fall from the tree?) When does the tree stop moving the sap into and out of the leaf to carry the nutrients to the roots?
      What other questions do I ask myself when I am investigating the tree leaves?

      Are there any trees in my area that hold the leaves on the branch all year long?

      Happy exploration!

      Delete
  5. Looks like a wonderful trip. We heard a lot of stories about the adventures of the day.
    Looking forward to the next post!

    ReplyDelete