BrainReactions.net

If you’re like me you love the collaboration that occurs on the web. BrainReactions.net is a fab wee site that allows you to brainstorm ideas with people from all over the world.

There are a range of things you can do from starting your own brainstorm to joining in with others and suggesting ideas for their brainstorms.

I’ve really enjoyed reading about a range of topics from how to mend a broken heart, how to make car crashes less deadly, the song that has most inspired you to my current favourite – How can plastic bags be creatively recycled… I say my favourite for one good reason…that is brainstorm reason number 183….

183. Put them under sheets to make a bed uncomfortable for an unwelcome visitor.

But wait… there’s another 187 ideas in that brainstorm you can check out!

The responses go from the serious to the ordinary to the extraordinary to the absolute hilarious. It’s a great site that has a really neat and easy layout.  You can check out the most popular, newest and the brainstorms with the most responses.   So go and check it out!

Visual Dictionary

Mirriam-Webster have an online Visual Dictionary that is pretty handy, thanks to The SMARTBoard Podcast for this. It’s a very well laid out visual dictionary. There are a couple of different ways you can search the dictionary.

Firstly is by word – type in a word or the start of a word in the search box and it will show you the matches (if there is more than one). Choose the word you want and click GO TO and you are away.

Secondly you can find by theme. On the main page there are 15 different areas ranging from astronomy, clothing & articles, communication, society, sports and games etc. Here you just click on your area and then continue through the lists that it presents to you narrowing down each time until you come to the word you want. Or if you’re like me you will just play around until you find an interesting word or image.

Once you’re at your word you can see the image and also a description of the word. You can click on the small red arrows and a new window will open where you can listen to the word being pronounced. For some images there are labelled diagrams or coloured diagrams such as this one for Automobile Systems.

This is a cool tool to have for your visual learners or when you’re kids just don’t understand a word, what better way to show them. I use google images search for this reason, but at times it can be a bit risky. There is also a very cool Game Of The Week where they take an object and give you the labelled diagram and your job is to fit in the correct words. Would be a great language/reading opening activity once a week to do up on the SMARTboard or through a projector.

The Story Of Stuff

Ever wondered where and how you got that “stuff”?

The Story Of Stuff by Annie Leonard is an easy and worthwhile twenty minute watch that explains where things come from and what REALLY happens in the “buy now” lifestyle. It walks you through the linear process of consumption – extraction, production, distribution, consumption and disposal with some eye-opening and startling numbers and facts.

Take the time to check out the recommendations and blog for more information and ways that you can contribute something more, than just to the cycle.

Thanks to Lynne for passing this on. I suggest you do the same too.

Twitter Santa

Awesome… I just had a conversation with Santa Claus via twitter!

He sounds like he’s very busy but he always has time to chat so pop along and add him to your twitter list and get ready for some great updates from the man in red.

Good work Santa!

Oobleck

Now, i’m not much of a science brain but this is one ridiculously fun lesson that kids love.

Today we made Oobleck. For those of you that don’t know about oobleck it is about time that you did, because it is the most amazingly crazy stuff. It is a non-Newtonian fluid that acts like a liquid and solid at the same time, see this video.

It is an easy recipe that is made purely from cornstarch or cornflour and water… see here for instructions.

Oobleck is explained at Science and Kids as:

“Oobleck is more commonly known among science teachers as the name for a substance made of cornstarch and water that peculiar ability to act like a liquid and solid at room temperature. Scientifically speaking, oobleck is a type of polymer. This means that it is made of very long chains of repeating molecules (monomers). Oobleck is also a non-Newtonian fluid, which means that its ability to flow changes when different amounts of pressure are applied to it. More simply, if you squeeze oobleck, will become brittle and crumble. If you just let it sit in your hand, it will drip and run like thin white school glue. Sound interesting? Try making some and explore it for yourself!”

To start the lesson off I used the first half of this video from You Tube by Kid Science.

It’s great because it’s hosted by a 4? year old who explains it all very articulately (honestly!) My kids really enjoyed being taught by this kid! We then broke off into groups and made our own ooblecks! This was great fun and kids being kids loved getting in there with their fingers and trying out this amazing stuff.

For my non-science brain it was so fantastic having these resources on tap to ensure my kids were getting the correct explanations for the concepts they were learning. It’s also great giving them the chance to hear explanations given in different ways, as different kids understandings of how it worked, clicked more with different video’s/explanations. And what I liked even more is that most of these video’s were MADE by the kids!

**warning** art shirts, newspaper and clothes nearby are a must!!

As the session progressed we talked about liquids and what we knew about them, then solids. The kids then had a go at trying to make the oobleck into a solid, making it run like a liquid and turning it back into cornstarch. All in all an extremely messy lesson but SO much fun.

Am going to continue the lesson tomorrow with the rest of the Kid Science video and also this one that show people running across a pool of Oobleck… really is amazing stuff!

More ideas with Oobleck…

Literacy: Link it to the Dr. Seuss story Bartholomew and the Oobleck, here’s a video of the story
Visual Art: Colour the oobleck with food colouring (warning: dyed hands!) and create awesome dribbly/spotty art that dries in layers!
Written Language: This is a great literacy experience activity as it is very rich is oral language and descriptive words. Get the kids sharing words as they play – write them down. Ask the kids to recount the experiment or their personal feelings in writing. Get creative and get the kids to come up with a new story that involves the oobleck!