Since it was our first class of the year, we did things a little bit differently than normal. We started out with a little get-to-know-you activity. Fortunately, the weather was gorgeous, and we were able to do that outside!
After that, we watched the SciGirls episode: Butterfly Diaries.
Once the video was over, we got into our fun experiment! The girls were given the challenge to build a butterfly glider. They were given three pieces of card stock. Two had preprinted gliders (from here) printed on them, and one was blank. The girls had the option to either build the glider according to directions, or to create their own design. They had tape, scissors, glue, pennies, and paperclips. A few of them asked if they could find items in nature to use in their designs, which added a cool dimension to some of their creations! It was really interesting to see the gliders. No two were alike. They measured their flights, several of the groups redesigned and tested again. There was a lot of collaborating happening. It was fantastic!! At the end of the project, the groups presented their findings.
Then, lunchtime happened:
For the second half of class, we had a guest speaker come in from The Monarch Project. She gave a really great talk about the amazing life cycle of the monarch as it related to their journey to and from Mexico each year. It's really miraculous! She brought in monarch eggs, caterpillars, chrysalis, and live monarchs. In the end, the girls got to name, tag, and send off nine monarchs. The monarchs they released are now somewhere between here and Mexico :)
Next month, the girls will delve into the world of robotics. It's going to be FUN!
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