Algae (Food Hunt)

            For homework Mrs.R said we have to find 8 items with at least one of 3 different ingredients called Alginates, Carrageenan, and Beta-Carotene. I found Beta-Carotene first it was in butter, my dad's dietary supplements, V8 juice, and vegetable oil spread. I found Carrageenan in Whipping Cream, strawberry cream cheese, coffee creamer, and evaporated milk. I could not find anything that had Alginates in the ingrediants, but I looked thoroughly which can be verified by my mom and dad who helped me tear up the cabniets in the midst of the search. I think Mrs.R wants us to look for these beacuse they might be algae or some type of marine plant.

Plankton Wars

Our class had a plankton WAR!!!!!!! We all were teamed up and started to design the ultimate plankton; I was pair up with Matt. Our plankton had a flat blue clay head it was flattened to give our plankton more surface area and prevent it from sinking. Two tooth picks was stuck inside the head to make a body and a sponge piece was attached to the other end of the two tooth picks. Then we attached aluminum foil to the bottom in shape of 2 flippers also to keep it from sinking to the bottom. However our design worked a little too well because according to the rules the plankton had to sink below the surface of the water  and lasted the longest before hitting the bottom. Ours floated, enough said.
          So first place went to another team; Karen and Morgan won the war. Their plankton had a flat red clay head and two tooth picks sticking out and a small piece of sponge at the bottom. The sponge was wrapped in aluminium foil which may have possibly stopped the sponge from absorbing and keep their plankton from sinking. Their plankton had a mini pink plastic sword attached to it which might have helped weigh it down so it didn't turn out to be a floater like ours.Also the plankton they made had googly eyes.
        

DAY 5 (Bird Watching Adventure)

Site 1:
On February 18, our class went outside to observe again and this time we were also looking for birds to see how many we could find in our "backyard" (aka behind the school). At site 1 we went to the pond and on our way there we saw and/or heard 1 crow and 2 seagulls. On the tree lined path to the pond dappled sunlight filtered through the branches high above to rest on the pine needle covered path below. As we came to the pond we spotted 8 geese and another seagull resting on the water. Avery a classmate noticed fish coming out of the pond slightly to eat the bugs sitting on top of the water. It was 75 degrees with a clear blue sky that seemed to stretch on forever interrupted only puffy cotton ball clouds floating by.

Site 2:
We walked around to the side of the pond a little ways to where the flat area around the pond dropped off. Looking down this steep hill i could see trees well over 30 feet tall rising up proud and strong from the ground below. Mrs.R informed us that of the trees below was called a tulip polar tree. Among the trees we saw a squirrel's nest but i could not see any squirrels because we were too far away. The squirrels might not have come out anyway since the buses over at the bus garage were making too much noise rumbling and groaning engines loud in natures silence. It was as hotter than its been all winter with the coming of the change in seasons so by then i was really warm despite the slight breeze.

Site 3:
We walked down from the pond through the woods till we reached the creek which was teeming with life compared to previous visits. We saw a tadpole swimming frantically in the deeper water of the creek and the Mrs.R and some classmates shifted some dead leaves lying on top of the water out of the way and out popped a frog the frog was a brown color but it was not very big a little smaller than my pinkie (my hands/fingers are on the small side but you get the idea).After seeing the frog I was distracted by a sharp pain, like a needle prick, and looked down to see a bright green breir poking me in the arm. Despite this discomfort I was glad to be under the trees and out of the sun, because as I may have mentioned before I was hot. 
Site 4:
 We walked for a long while farther and farther into the woods and at last we arrived at our destination a part of the creek where the sides widened out into a pool. We saw baby salamanders swimming in this pool and Mrs. R referred to this as a vernal pool. We also saw some more small frogs and managed to catch one and took pictures of the little creature. I could hear the trickling music of the creek flowing across small rocks.

DAY #4

Site 1:
On Valentines day our class went outside to look at algae in the pond and the creek. It was really warm outside the temperature hovering around 70 degrees. As we walked around the pond a huge strong gusts of wind hit tangling my hair, bending the trees down and causing large ripples across the pond. Walkiin on the rocky groud on the far side of the pond we found a shell of a turtle egg and i took picture of some brown algae barely underneath the pond water.I could hear the sound of the buses moving around the bus garage which was a little ways away from the pond where we stood.

Site2:
As we were leaving site one and heading toward site 2 a tree suddenly crashed down from the force of the wind. Which scared the begeezus out of me but being a decaded marine ecology class we contiinued into the woods despite the risk of falling trees. i continued to hear the creak of the trees under the force of such strong wind so we made sure to keep a sharp look out for falling trees. At last we arrvied at the creek and found yucky brown algae in the creek. I continued to hear the buses and the distance.

Site3:
At our last site which was farther down the creek i found more of that brown scum like algae in the creek. The wind continued to blow at frightening force bending some of the thinner trees nearly in half. While walking next to the creek green briars scratched painfully at my legs and arms. The  ground around the creek was soft and muddy easy to slip on.

DAY #1

SITE 1: Our class went out side on January 17th to find signs of life and we walked through the patch of woods outside our school.
SEE: I saw deer tracks and then i saw leaves littering the ground all around us.
HEAR: I heard birds singing and the wind blowing.
FEEL: i felt really really cold.

SITE 2:
SEE: I saw fungi on the fallen tree and lots of dead leaves.
HEAR: I heard wind blowing through the woods and crunching of leaves on the ground.
FEEL: I felt the cold wind on my skin.

SITE 3:
SEE: I saw tall trees bare of all their leaves and leaves and fallen branches.
HEAR: I heard the trees creaking under the force of the wind gusts.
FEEL: I still felt really really cold.

SITE 4:
SEE: I saw rotting logs and leaves.
HEAR: I heard the wind blowing and the crunching of leaves on the ground.
FEEL: i feel really cold.

DAY # 2

Site 1:

See: I saw light sparkling across the pond our class had walked down to. I saw geese on the far side of the pond which you might be able to make out in these pictures as small dark dots. I saw wilted brown plants around the edge of the pond shown in picture number one.

Hear: I heard the crunch of pine cones underfoot as we walked around the pond.

Feel: I felt the sting of sharp thorns across my arms. I also felt the soft warm sunlight breaking through the clouds.



site 2:           

See: At the second site i saw birds flying overhead and moss growing on the ground the only green in a sleeping forest.
Hear: I heard the crunching leaves and birds chirping in the tall trees.
Feel: I felt sticks and rocks under my feet causing me to trip often, and rare warmth the trees provided blocking out the harsh wind.


Site3
See: On our outing at the third site i saw wood pecker holes in a dead fallen tree and a mole hole.
Hear: I heard creaking of the trees from the force of the wind.
Feel: I felt cold freezing wind blowing past and slippery leaves sliding under my foot.


Site4:
See: I saw 3 birds flying and an odd looking green plant growning on the ground.
Hear: i heard the birds singing yet again and the wind whistling as we walked back toward the school.
Feel: I felt uneven ground with yucky slippery wet red mud.

2/7/11 plankton observations

 Our class looked at plankton under the microscope on Feb. 7th and took these pictures. I saw  this picture to the left and determined it's a zooplankton and this plankton is micro size.it is a holoplankton.

A worm is shown in the picture above. It is an macro zooplankton and is meroplankton.  

In the picture directly to the left is another picture of a micro, zooplankton. Which is holoplankton because it stays a plankton for it's whole life.       

The picture above is a sample from Star Beach, Japan. These are skeleton of sea stars which are meroplankton because they only live part of their lives as plankton. These are macro, zooplankton.   (these pictures were taken by: Mrs.Richardson)

DAY #3

Site 1

See: I saw sereral trees like the one in the picture above. I also saw a seed/nut on the ground that most likely came from said tree.
Hear: I could hear the roar of the heater which heats our school and is located on the roof above the courtyard.
Feel: I felt the icy chill of the early febuary air blowing through the trees surrounding us. I also felt the stiff, strong tree roots under my sneakers. 



Site 2:

See: I saw a writhing worm in the muddy ground. Then i saw i fluffy gray duck feather in the grass.
Hear: I heard the distant whoosh of the cars speeding down the road passing us by. I heard the sounds of an airplane soaring through the sky.
Feel: I felt freezing wind gusts raising goose bumps on my arms. I felt the squish squash of the soft red mud under my boots as we walked.



Site 3:

See: I saw white fungi growing on a fallen tree which is show in the third picture. I saw little brown mushroom like fungi also growing on a fallen tree as seen in picture number one. I also saw a little stream with a tiny bug sitting in the water seen in picture two. Lastly i saw a woodpecker hole in a tree seen in the fourth picture.
Hear: I could still hear cars in the distance but the sound was fading rapidly. I heard the crunch of the fallen dead leaves under our shoes.  
Feel: I felt the uneven ground covered with old leaves and sticks fallen from the trees above. The cold wind continued to blow strongly.



Site 4:

See: I saw a tall cedar tree rising high from the ground pictured in the first image. I saw small, round, and blue seeds which fell from said tree featured in picture number two. Lastly, I saw an old post where the power line used to hang but is no longer in use; a newer post was put up not far from it.
Hear: I heard a bird calling out it sounded similar to a crow call. I heard the persistant wind that was still gusting through the trees in the wood.
Feel: I felt the numbing cold through my sweatshirt. Then I felt my boots sinking into the very muddy ground.